| 2023 Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| CFP New Year's Six 88th Cotton Bowl Classic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
.jpg) AT&T Stadium inArlington, Texas, the site of the Cotton Bowl Classic. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | December 29, 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | AT&T Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Arlington, Texas | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | Offensive:Brady Cook (QB, Missouri) Defensive:Johnny Walker Jr. (DL, Missouri) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Ohio State by 3.5[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Derek Anderson (Big 12)[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 70,114 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Network | ESPN ESPN Radio | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Dave Pasch (play-by-play),Dusty Dvoracek (analyst), andTom Luginbill (sideline) (ESPN) Brad Sham (play-by-play),Kirk Morrison (analyst), and Taylor McGregor (sideline) (ESPN Radio) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The2023 Cotton Bowl Classic was acollege footballbowl game played on December 29, 2023 atAT&T Stadium inArlington, Texas. The 88th annualCotton Bowl Classic featuredMissouri of theSoutheastern Conference (SEC) andOhio State of theBig Ten Conference—teams selected at-large by theCollege Football Playoff selection committee. The game began at approximately 7:00 p.m.CST and was aired onESPN.[3][4] The Cotton Bowl Classic was one of the2023–24 bowl games concluding the2023 FBS football season. The game was sponsored by theGoodyear Tire and Rubber Company and was officially known as theGoodyear Cotton Bowl Classic.
The game featuredOhio State from theBig Ten Conference andMissouri from theSoutheastern Conference (SEC). This was the 13th all-time meeting between the Buckeyes and Tigers, with Ohio State leading the series 10–1–1.[5] Their most recent prior meeting was September 19, 1998, a 35–14 Buckeyes win at home. Missouri's lone win came during the 1976 season.
Missouri started the season 5–0, including a victory over No. 15Kansas State on a game-winning 61-yard field goal byHarrison Mevis. The Tigers were subsequently ranked in theAP poll. However, they were defeated at home byLSU, 49–39, and three weeks later lost on the road to top-rankedGeorgia, 30–21, ending their SEC title hopes. Missouri followed their loss to Georgia with a strong 36–7 win overTennessee, and ended their season on a three-game winning streak and a 10–2 record (6–2 in SEC). The Tigers entered the bowl ranked ninth in all major polls.
This was Missouri's fourth Cotton Bowl Classic; the Tigers had a record of 2–1 in prior Cotton Bowls, losing theJanuary 1946 edition and winning theJanuary 2008 edition andJanuary 2014 edition.
Ohio State entered the year looking to improve upon their 2022 season, when they received aCollege Football Playoff berth but lost to Georgia in the2022 Peach Bowl semifinal. The Buckeyes earned marquee wins overNotre Dame andPenn State by margins of 17–14 and 20–12, respectively. However, in a top-threerivalry clash againstMichigan in their final game of the regular season, the Buckeyes lost 30–24 in Ann Arbor, leaving them with an 11–1 record (8–1 in Big Ten) and out of playoff contention. The Buckeyes entered the bowl ranked seventh in all major polls.
This was Ohio State's third Cotton Bowl Classic; the Buckeyes won both of their prior two appearances, theJanuary 1987 edition andDecember 2017 edition.
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
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| No. 9 Missouri Tigers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 14 |
| No. 7 Ohio State Buckeyes | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
atAT&T Stadium •Arlington, Texas
| Game information |
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| Statistics | MIZZ | OSU |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 19 | 12 |
| Total yards | 331 | 203 |
| Rushing yards | 203 | 97 |
| Passing yards | 128 | 106 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 11–18–0 | 10–24–0 |
| Time of possession | 33:53 | 26:07 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missouri | Passing | Brady Cook | 11–18, 128 yards, 1 TD |
| Rushing | Cody Schrader | 29 carries, 128 yards, 1 TD | |
| Receiving | Marquis Johnson | 1 reception, 50 yards | |
| Ohio State | Passing | Lincoln Kienholz | 6–17, 86 yards |
| Rushing | TreVeyon Henderson | 19 carries, 72 yards | |
| Receiving | Emeka Egbuka | 6 receptions, 63 yards |
