Longhorns Steve Sarkisian Once Made History at the Alamo Bowl with Washington
For Texas Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian, everything is coming full circle.
He has fond memories of his time as head coach of the Washington Huskies, a team he'll face in the Valero Alamo Bowl in San Antonio on Thursday, Dec. 29.
But he also has some not-so-fond memories of the 2011 Alamo Bowl, a thrilling game Sarkisian and his Huskies lost in a 67-56 finish to the Baylor Bears and Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III. At the time, it was the highest-scoring regulation game (123 points) in bowl history.
Sarkisian opened up Thursday's Alamo Bowl press conference and was reminded about a game that likely still hangs in his mind a decade later.
"Thanks Derrick, you had to remind me of that 2011 game," Sarkisian said with a laugh. "But hey, that was a heck of a game and I'm sure everybody here loved watching that one."
It was Sarkisian's third year at the helm in Seattle and his second bowl appearance with the team. But a win was hardly going to come easy against RGIII and an electric Baylor offense.
Still, despite falling behind 21-7 in the first quarter, Sarkisian's offense ripped off 28 unanswered points in the second quarter to take a 35-21 lead before Baylor hit a field goal headed into halftime.
But the high-scoring affair continued, as Sark's Huskies surrendered a whopping 29 points in the third quarter. Incredibly, Baylor led 53-49 just at the end of the third quarter.
Washington reclaimed the lead early in the fourth quarter, but it was all Bears the rest of the way, as 21 carries for 200 yards and five rushing touchdowns from Baylor running back Terrance Ganaway was too much for the Huskies to keep up with. In total, the Bears rushed for 482 yards and eight touchdowns in a game that featured little to no defense.
The Longhorns and Huskies likely won't be putting up those kind of numbers on Dec. 29. But the matchup will serve as a chance for Sarkisian to get some slight revenge over his former team while helping soften the memories of that thrilling 2011 game.
You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7
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