Texas football's Sugar Bowl win vs. Georgia, revisited: 'Longhorn Nation, we're back'
The last time Texas made the Sugar Bowl, the Longhorns earned an upset win that they hoped would put them back on the map as one of college football's blue bloods.
Exactly five years ago, then-No. 15 Texas upset a Georgia team that narrowly missed the College Football Playoff 28-21 in New Orleans. Quarterback Sam Ehlinger, who ran for three touchdowns in the game, then made headlines for his postgame interview after being named MVP of the game.
"Longhorn Nation," Ehlinger screamed into the microphone, "We're baaaaaaack!"
REQUIRED READING: This year's CFP looks as wide open as ever, so why can't Texas win it all? | Bohls, Golden
A four-year starter at Texas from 2017-20, Ehlinger helped bring the Longhorns back to prominence under former coach Tom Herman, who was fired before the 2021 season and replaced by current coach Steve Sarkisian, who has led Texas to the College Football Playoff for the first time. Now, Sarkisian and No. 3 Texas (12-1, 8-1 Big 12) will take on No. 2 Washington (13-0, 9-0 Pac-12) on Monday for a spot in the national championship, once again at the Sugar Bowl.
Texas eventually made it "back." However, it didn't come with the Sugar Bowl win, or even the year after (the Longhorns finished the 2019 season with an 8-5 record). Nor were the Longhorns back in 2020, when they went 7-3 in the COVID-19-shortened season, Herman's last in Austin. The Longhorns went a combined 13-12 in the next two seasons before enjoying their current 12-1 campaign and Sugar Bowl berth.
Here's a look back at Texas' 2019 Sugar Bowl win over Georgia, what followed and whether Texas is finally "back":
More: Texas football has the most depth, balance in our CFP rankings by position
Texas wins Sugar Bowl over Georgia
Georgia narrowly fell to Alabama in the 2018 CFP national championship game with true freshman quarterback Jake Fromm, sparking many to place high expectations on the Bulldogs entering the 2018 season.
The Bulldogs had a chance to clinch a second consecutive College Football Playoff berth that season, but once again fell to the Crimson Tide in the SEC championship game, ending their national title hopes and placing them as the first choice for the New Year's Six bowl games.
While the Bulldogs entered the Sugar Bowl as heavy favorites, the Longhorns proved they could hang with the top dogs in a 28-21 win, advancing to a 10-4 record, their first double digit-win season since going 13-1 in 2009.
Ehlinger completed 19 of 27 passes for 169 yards, adding 21 carries for 64 yards and three touchdowns in the win. Texas also forced two turnovers and allowed 284 yards of offense against a potent Bulldogs squad.
Despite the Longhorns' success, they weren't projected to win the Big 12 in 2019; they were instead picked to finish second by Oklahoma, which represented the Big 12 in the playoff the year prior.
Sam Ehlinger 'We're back' video after Texas Sugar Bowl
Watch a clip of Ehlinger's message to Longhorn Nation after the 2019 Sugar Bowl here:
Texas record after 2019 Sugar Bowl
Were the Longhorns back after their upset win over Georgia in 2019? Their record wouldn't suggest so — at least, until Texas made the College Football Playoff this season.
Between the Sugar Bowl win and the 2023 college football season, Texas went 28-20, including two eight-win seasons — but still well below the Longhorns' lofty expectations. Here's at Texas' year-by-year record after Ehlinger's claim in 2019 Sugar Bowl:
2019: 8-5 (5-4 Big 12)
2020: 7-3 (5-3)
2021: 5-7 (3-6)
2022: 8-5 (6-3)
2023: 12-1 (8-1)
More: Five years later, Texas is indeed back in the Sugar Bowl — this time eyeing a CFP title
Sam Ehlinger career stats
Here are Ehlinger's stats by year as the Texas quarterback:
2017: 158 of 275 passing (57.5%) for 1,915 yards with 11 touchdowns to seven interceptions; 114 carries for 385 yards and two touchdowns
2018: 275 of 425 passing (64.7%) for 3,292 yards with 25 touchdowns to five interceptions; 164 carries for 382 yards and 16 touchdowns
2019: 296 of 454 passing (65.2%) for 3,663 yards with 32 touchdowns to 10 interceptions; 163 carries for 663 yards and seven touchdowns
2020: 194 of 322 passing (60.2%) for 2,566 yards with 26 touchdowns to five interceptions; 113 carries for 377 yards and eight touchdowns
Is Texas football back?
The question remains heading into the Sugar Bowl: "Is Texas back?"
It seemed like the Longhorns might've been after beating Georgia in the Sugar Bowl, but that turned out to be not quite true. In a recent interview with the Statesman, Ehlinger responded to that very after Texas clinched a spot in the College Football Playoff for the first time in program history.
"I can't answer that directly," Ehlinger told the American-Statesman. "I think that the program is certainly headed in the right direction. I think coach (Steve) Sarkisian has done a great job in the way that he's building the roster and the culture, and then you throw in the scheme, the battle on both sides of the ball together, and I think they're definitely moving in the right direction.
"The sky's the limit for where the program can go from here in the next few years."
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas' 2019 Sugar Bowl win, revisited: 'Longhorn Nation, we're back'
