2018 Cotton Bowl Classic
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]
| 2018 Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| College Football Playoff Semifinal 83rd Cotton Bowl Classic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | December 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) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 72,183[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 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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
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Statistics
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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| No. 3 Fighting Irish | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| No. 2 Tigers | 3 | 20 | 7 | 0 | 30 |
| Statistics | ND | CLEM |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 17 | 26 |
| Plays–yards | 69–248 | 78–538 |
| Rushes–yards | 35–88 | 37–211 |
| Passing yards | 160 | 327 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 17–34–1 | 27–41–0 |
| Time of possession | 27:06 | 32:54 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notre Dame | Passing | Ian Book | 17/34, 160 yds, 1 INT |
| Rushing | Dexter Williams | 16 car, 54 yds | |
| Receiving | Miles Boykin | 5 rec, 69 yds | |
| Clemson | Passing | 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 |
References
- @Shalom_Sports (December 29, 2018). "Clemson Tigers derrotó 30-3 a los Notre Dame Fighting Irish" (Tweet). Retrieved December 29, 2018 – via Twitter.
- Fawkes, Ben (December 10, 2018). "Odds for every 2018-19 CFB bowl game". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
- @DarenStoltzfus (December 29, 2018). "72,183 the announced attendance today for the #CottonBowl" (Tweet). Retrieved December 29, 2018 – via Twitter.
- Dosh, Kristi (December 31, 2018). "Television Ratings Down For College Football Playoff Semifinals". www.forbes.com. Forbes. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
- 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.
- "2018 Cotton Bowl Classic". Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic. Archived from the original on August 31, 2019. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2019-01-01. Retrieved 2018-12-05.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- Hale, David M. (December 27, 2018). "Suspensions of three Clemson players upheld after B samples test positive". ESPN. Retrieved December 27, 2018.