2018 Cotton Bowl Classic

Last updated
2018 Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic
College Football Playoff Semifinal
83rd Cotton Bowl Classic
1234Total
Notre Dame30003
Clemson3207030
DateDecember 29, 2018
Season 2018
Stadium AT&T Stadium
Location Arlington, Texas
MVP Trevor Lawrence (QB, Clemson)
Austin Bryant (DE, Clemson) [1]
Favorite Clemson by 11.5 [2]
Referee Matt Austin (SEC)
Attendance72,183 [3]
United States TV coverage
Network ESPN and ESPN Radio
Announcers Sean McDonough (play-by-play) Todd Blackledge (analyst)
Holly Rowe and Tom Rinaldi (sideline) (ESPN)
Bill Rosinski, David Norrie and Ian Fitzsimmons (ESPN Radio)
Nielsen ratings 10.3 (16.8 million viewers) [4]
International TV coverage
Network ESPN Deportes
ESPN Deportes Radio
Announcers Lalo Varela and Pablo Viruega
Cotton Bowl Classic
 < 2017 (Dec.) 2019 > 
2 vs. 3 Seed CFP Semifinal Game
 < 2018 Rose 2019 Fiesta > 

The 2018 Cotton Bowl Classic was a college football bowl game played on December 29, 2018, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The 83rd Cotton Bowl Classic was a College Football Playoff semifinal with the winner to compete in the 2019 College Football Playoff National Championship. [5] It was one of the 2018–19 bowl games concluding the 2018 FBS football season. Sponsored by the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, the game was officially known as the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic. [6]

Contents

Teams

The game featured second-ranked Clemson of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) against third-ranked Notre Dame, an FBS independent. [7] This was the first time that the two programs met in a bowl game; their more recent regular season meeting had been in 2015, won by Clemson. [7] The only prior Cotton Bowl to feature two undefeated teams had been the 1948 edition, which ended in a 13–13 tie between Penn State and SMU. [7]

Clemson Tigers

Clemson defeated Pitt in the 2018 ACC Championship Game on December 1, then received their bid to the Cotton Bowl with the release of final CFP rankings on December 2. [7] The Tigers entered the bowl with a 13–0 record (8–0 in conference). On December 27, it was confirmed that three Clemson players, including starting defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence, would be suspended from playing in the game by the NCAA, due to drug testing showing "trace amounts of a banned substance", which was identified as ostarine. [8]

This was Clemson's second Cotton Bowl bid in school history, following its appearance in the 1940 edition. It was also the first Cotton Bowl appearance by an active ACC member since Maryland's appearance in the 1977 edition.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Notre Dame received their bid to the Cotton Bowl with the release of final CFP rankings on December 2. [7] The independent Fighting Irish entered the bowl with a 12–0 record. This was Notre Dame's first Cotton Bowl berth since the 1994 edition and its eighth overall.

Game summary

Scoring summary

Scoring summary
QuarterTime Drive TeamScoring informationScore
Plays Yards TOP NDCLEM
18:359313:15CLEM40-yard field goal by Greg Huegel 03
14:3110664:04ND28-yard field goal by Justin Yoon 33
212:503651:04CLEMJustyn Ross 52-yard touchdown reception from Trevor Lawrence, Greg Huegel kick blocked39
21:448853:12CLEMJustyn Ross 42-yard touchdown reception from Trevor Lawrence, Greg Huegel kick good316
20:024800:46CLEM Tee Higgins 19-yard touchdown reception from Trevor Lawrence, Greg Huegel kick good323
32:043711:01CLEM Travis Etienne 62-yard touchdown run, Greg Huegel kick good330
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.330

Statistics

1234Total
No. 3 Fighting Irish30003
No. 2 Tigers3207030
StatisticsNDCLEM
First downs1726
Plays–yards69–24878–538
Rushes–yards35–8837–211
Passing yards160327
Passing: Comp–Att–Int17–34–127–41–0
Time of possession27:0632:54
TeamCategoryPlayerStatistics
Notre DamePassing Ian Book 17/34, 160 yds, 1 INT
Rushing Dexter Williams 16 car, 54 yds
Receiving Miles Boykin 5 rec, 69 yds
ClemsonPassing Trevor Lawrence 27/39, 327 yds, 3 TD
Rushing Travis Etienne 14 car, 109 yds, 1 TD
Receiving Justyn Ross 6 rec, 148 yds, 2 TD

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References

  1. @Shalom_Sports (December 29, 2018). "Clemson Tigers derrotó 30-3 a los Notre Dame Fighting Irish" (Tweet). Retrieved December 29, 2018 via Twitter.
  2. Fawkes, Ben (December 10, 2018). "Odds for every 2018-19 CFB bowl game". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
  3. @DarenStoltzfus (December 29, 2018). "72,183 the announced attendance today for the #CottonBowl" (Tweet). Retrieved December 29, 2018 via Twitter.
  4. Dosh, Kristi (December 31, 2018). "Television Ratings Down For College Football Playoff Semifinals". Forbes. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
  5. Stevenson, Stefan (January 2, 2018). "College Football Playoff returning to the Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium". Fort Worth Star-Telegram . Retrieved March 1, 2018.
  6. "2018 Cotton Bowl Classic". Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic. Archived from the original on August 31, 2019. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2019-01-01. Retrieved 2018-12-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. Hale, David M. (December 27, 2018). "Suspensions of three Clemson players upheld after B samples test positive". ESPN . Retrieved December 27, 2018.