Not Back Yet: Best memes and tweets from Washington ending Texas' CFP dreams

When the Washington Huskies beat the rival Oregon Ducks in the regular season, it was basically chalked up to luck. Then it happened again in the Pac-12 Championship Game to complete a 13-0 regular season behind Heisman finalist Michael Penix Jr. But surely that magic would run out at some point, right? Perhaps in the CFP semifinal Sugar Bowl against a talent-rich Texas Longhorns team?

Not even then, it turns out.

The ever-present quest for Texas to be all the way back ended on New Year's Day night in New Orleans as Penix and the Huskies continued their truly magical run through the 2023-24 college football season. The quarterback was masterful, dicing up Texas from start to finish in the first leg of the College Football Playoff throwing for 430 yards and two touchdowns while also rushing for 31 yards, showing off his little-used mobility.

Texas didn't go down without a fight, though. After kicking a field goal and failing to recover an onside kick, they got the ball back with under a minute left and drove all the way into the red zone. Four tries from that spot, however, were unsuccessful, including a game-ending attempt at a fade. The end result was a 37-31 victory for Washington.

Throughout this run, the doubters have never stopped questioning the viability of Washington. But all Kalen DeBoer's team has done is keep on winning, 14 times in a row to be exact. If they can make it 15 consecutive wins on Jan. 8 in Houston against Michigan, though, they'll claim a national championship for the first time in more than 30 years.

Washington ousts Texas from CFP behind Penix masterclass: Best memes and tweets

As Washington handed Texas its second loss of the season and moved to 14-0, one win away from a natty, the college football world took the opportunity to praise Penix, praise Washington, troll Texas, and fire off as many jokes as possible.

The doubting won't stop for Washington when it comes to the CFP National Championship Game, though. Michigan has opened as the favorite for the title bout in Houston and, as the No. 1 seed, most prognosticators will likely be on the side of the Wolverines, especially after their own win over Alabama in the Rose Bowl earlier on New Year's Day.

But with the way doubting Washington has gone so far this season, perhaps that's exactly what Penix and his Huskies want.