The virtual Buckeyes take on the virtual Longhorns in Arlington, Texas.
College football finally returned to the virtual world in 2024 with the release of EA Sports College Football 25, allowing fans of all 134 FBS schools to take control of their favorite team. For Buckeye Nation, that means getting to dominate with one of the best rosters in the game.
The new game also allows us to get a glimpse at what the season could look like, at least if the computers had their say. Each week, Land-Grant Holy Land will simulate Ohio State’s real-life matchup to see what our AI overlords think will happen.
Here are the results of our Cotton Bowl sim:
Ohio State 37 – Texas 34
As has been the case throughout the College Football Playoff, Ohio State took the ball and scored first, with Quinshon Judkins breaking off a 22-yard touchdown run to put the Buckeyes on the board. That lead wouldn’t last long, however, as two drives later Texas’ Quintrevion Wisner punched it in from eight yards out to make it 7-7 midway through the first quarter. From there, things started to get a little crazy.
Ohio State was forced to punt on its next possession, but was able to down the ball at the Longhorns’ own 1-yard line. On 3rd-and-9, Wisner was brought down by Caden Curry in his own end zone for a safety. The Buckeyes got the ball back on the free kick and would go on to tack on a 28-yard field goal, with Ryan Day’s group taking a 12-7 lead at the end of the opening frame.
Ohio State’s offense began to find its groove to begin the second quarter, opening things up a bit with a 52-yard catch-and-run touchdown by Emeka Egbuka. Following a Texas punt, the Buckeyes found the end zone yet again on an 18-yard touchdown grab by Jeremiah Smith, and all the sudden OSU was looking at a 26-7 lead. Texas, like Tennessee, was able to put together one long, methodical touchdown drive to end the half, cutting the deficit to 26-14 at the break.
Momentum started to turn in the third quarter, as the Longhorns chipped away even further on a 7-yard touchdown run by Jaydon Blue on their first possession of the second half. The two sides were held scoreless for most of the rest of the quarter, but with 1:45 remaining in the period, Wisner again found pay-dirt, this time from a yard out, to put Texas on top, 27-26 after a failed two-point conversion.
The Buckeyes responded quickly, as Will Howard hit Carnell Tate for a 31-yard touchdown to begin the fourth quarter. Ohio State would convert its two-point conversion to make it 34-27, but Texas was not done yet. With 5:38 left in the game, Blue scored his second touchdown of the night on another short scamper to knot things up at 34-34. Playing in its first close game of the postseason, Ohio State would need to find a way to finish strong.
With only 17 seconds remaining, Jayden Fielding knocked through a 31-yard field goal to give the Buckeyes a thrilling 37-34 victory.
It was another huge game for Will Howard, completing 23-of-32 passes for 362 yards and three touchdowns with no turnovers. In a break from the norm, Tate was actually his favorite target with seven catches for 115 yards and a TD, while Egbuka finished with five catches for 87 yards and a TD and Smith with five catches for 72 yards and a score. Ohio State did not run the ball a ton, but the ground game was still effective with Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson combining for 118 yards on 6.5 yards per carry.
Cody Simon led the way defensively with a whopping 15 total tackles to add to half a sack and a forced fumble. The Buckeyes racked up four sacks total, led by 1.5 by Tyler Bourne (J.T. Tuimoloau), and had six tackles for loss, with Curry recording two — one of which was the safety. Sonny Styles racked up 10 tackles and a pass breakup, while Caleb Downs and Lathan Ransom each had seven tackles and one tackle for loss apiece.
The game was an offensive showcase, as both teams totaled over 500 yards. Texas actually had the slight upper-hand in yardage at 538 compared to 514 for Ohio State, and neither team turned the ball over. The two sides were each pretty efficient on third down, with the Buckeyes converting on 8-of-14 chances and the Longhorns on 5-of-10. There was only one penalty called in the entire game — a single false start against Texas.