ARLINGTON, Texas >> Jack Sawyer remembers wearing an Ohio State jersey, playing catch with his dad in the backyard of their Ohio home that sits not too far from campus. He dreamed of playing for the Buckeyes one day, making plays to help them win a championship.

That dream is nearing a reality, as Sawyer on Friday etched his name into Buckeyes lore, returning a fumble 83 yards for a scoop-and-score touchdown, ending a potential game-tying drive by Texas and putting Ohio State within one step of a title with a 28-14 victory in a College Football Playoff semifinal.

“I hit about the 30-(yard line) and I look back like, ‘I hope I have some blockers.’ I’m running out of steam here,” Sawyer said. “But they were running with me side by side. That just speaks volumes of who this team is — we always have each other’s back. It was a special moment.

“I love Columbus, I love the state of Ohio, I love Ohio State football.”

“I can’t say enough about Jack Sawyer,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day said during an on-field interview on ESPN. “He’s a guy who loves being a Buckeye. He loves his teammates. He’s done everything we’ve asked him to do. He’s a captain. He’s everything that we can possibly ask for in a captain. To make a play like that in that moment. We talk about before the game, you wanna leave a legacy behind and become a legend. He just became a legend at Ohio State.”

No. 8 seed Ohio State (13-2) will face No. 7 seed Notre Dame (14-1) in the CFP national championship game on Jan. 20 in Atlanta. Ohio State, a 9 1/2-point favorite, will be looking to win its first championship since 2014.

As proud as he was of his team’s performance in the Cotton Bowl, Day made it clear: “It’s not finished. We’re not done yet.”

Ohio State’s Quinshon Judkins rushed for two touchdowns and Will Howard threw for one, but Sawyer emerged as the star of the night.

Texas, trailing 21-14 with just over four minutes left in the game, had a first-and-goal from the 1. The Longhorns (13-3) were stuffed at no gain on first down, lost 7 yards on a sweep to Quintrevion Wisner on second down, and had a pass batted down on third down.

With the Irish facing a fourth-and-goal from the 8, Sawyer capped the defensive stand by coming off the edge and ripping the ball loose from quarterback Quinn Ewers, his roommate when the QB was at Ohio State. Sawyer picked it up at the Ohio State 17 and then raced down the sideline for the game-sealing touchdown.

“I was put in good position by the coaches,” Sawyer said on the field to ESPN’s Holly Rowe. “I saw the ball pop out right to me after I tackled him. I was just thinking I gotta just stay on my feet because like I said I almost blacked out when I scooped it and saw nothing but green grass ahead of me.”

When he was asked if he talked to Ewers afterward, Sawyer said, “Yeah I did. We were walking off and he said, ‘Screw you.’ and started laughing. … Got a lot of respect for him and the rest of that Texas team.”

During the press conference Ewers recalled the play.

”I felt him. I started drifting away,” Ewers said. “I thought I was going to get the ball out before he got there.

“Obviously, it’s not like I tried to give them the game. But I saw Jack running with the ball down the sideline and, you know, it sucks. But he’s a great player, great individual, great person.”

Ewers finished 23-for-39 for 283 yards with two TDs and one interception for the fifth-seeded Longhorns. Both touchdown passes went to Jaydon Blue on wheel routes, one in each half. Their second connection, a 26-yard play late in the third quarter, tied the game at 14-14. But the Longhorns never scored again.

The Buckeyes took a 21-14 lead with 7:02 left in the game on a 1-yard run by Judkins. That 13-play, 88-yard drive was kept alive when Howard delivered an 18-yard run on a fourth-and-2 from the Texas 34. He stumbled and fell as he was breaking free.

“It was a great play and a statement drive,” Howard said. “We needed that. We’d been beating ourselves all day with penalties and just getting behind the sticks, and that was a statement drive.”

On the ensuing possession, the Longhorns moved into position to tie before Sawyer came through.

In the first half, Ohio State scored on its opening drive, but then the teams combined for eight consecutive punts. Texas showed life when Ewers and Blue connected for an 18-yard score with 29 seconds left in the half.

Ohio State answered seconds later when TreVeyon Henderson took a screen pass from Howard 75 yards for a score just before halftime.

Howard finished 24-for-33 for 289 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Carnell Tate caught seven of Howard’s passes for 87 yards.

The Henderson and Sawyer touchdowns were the two plays that Texas coach Steve Sarkisian pointed to as the difference-makers.

“Hell of a football game. Two really good teams battling,” Sarkisian said. “They made two big plays, you know? … As I told (my team), today’s game is the life of a competitor. You put yourself in this arena. You compete your tail off. We have nothing to hang our heads about.”