The college football gods smiled upon me during my 19-game 2022 season covering the Lone Star State. I saw 10 of the 12 FBS programs in person, as well as two FCS games. Four of those games went into overtime and 13 were one-possession games. 

The season started in El Paso for a Week 0 clash between North Texas and UTEP. It ended in Los Angeles with the TCU Horned Frogs falling in the national championship game to Georgia, one of the best teams I’ve ever seen live in my life. 

Here are the best 10 games I witnessed from the press box during the 2022 season. 

1. TCU 51, Michigan 45 (Fiesta Bowl) 

A top five could be made from TCU games alone. The Fiesta Bowl takes my top spot because of the stakes, and for a 12-minute period that began at the 6:32 mark of the third quarter and ended with 10:02 in the fourth. The game transformed from a 21-9 slugfest to a 51-38 barnburner over that time span. The Horned Frogs became the first team from Texas to reach a national title game since the Longhorns in 2009. 

2. Sam Houston 17, SFA 16 (Week 5) 

The Battle for the Piney Woods ended with a bang in 2022 when the two long-time rivals played the final chapter, at least for a while, in a near 100 Year War in East Texas. The Bearkats clinched their 10th-straight win in the series with a one-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-goal with 35 seconds left in the game. SFA led 13-0 at one point in the first half and 16-7 early in the third quarter. Sam Houston moving up to the FBS ranks means the 96th meeting was the last between the two programs for the foreseeable future. 

3. Houston 37, UTSA 35 in triple overtime (Week 1) 

The season began with fireworks in the Alamodome with Clayton Tune converting a two-point play in the third overtime to seal a win. The Roadrunners led 21-7 to start the fourth quarter before the Cougars scored the next 17 points to take a 27-24 lead with 23 seconds left in the game. Frank Harris led the UTSA offense into field goal position for the game tying kick. The two teams matched scores in the first two overtime periods, but it was Tune who scored last. 

4. Kansas State 31, TCU 28 in overtime (Big 12 championship game) 

TCU was part of a handful of truly memorable games. The Horned Frogs came out on top often in 2022, but the Big 12 championship was one of two defeats on the season. Still, they showed off their grit and toughness by formulating a fourth-quarter comeback to force overtime and nearly win the Big 12 title and finish the regular season undefeated. Jerry World made for a fun backdrop with both teams filling up the stadium with purple. 

5. Alabama 20, Texas 19 (Week 2) 

DKR was rocking with Alabama and Nick Saban in town. ESPN Gameday and FOX Big Noon Kickoff were also in town. The Longhorns showed up, even when quarterback Quinn Ewers left with a shoulder injury. The Longhorns played tough defense and nearly pulled off the upset. Bryce Young, the current Heisman Trophy winner at the time, led a game-winning drive for the Crimson Tide. 

6. TCU 43, Oklahoma State 40 in double overtime (Week 7) 

This was the game that made outsiders like me start to believe that the Horned Frogs were a team of destiny. The Cowboys took a 24-7 lead with 10:04 left in the second quarter and looked in complete control. The Horned Frogs fell behind 27-13 with 11:38 in third quarter and trailed 30-16 to start the fourth quarter. They scored 14 straight in the last quarter and eventually won in overtime on a Kendre Miller two-yard touchdown run. 

7. TCU 29, Baylor 28 (Week 12) 

The fire alarm field goal kick to win the game in Waco might be the play of the season. With the season on the line, and a spot in the College Football Playoff within reach, Griffin Kell ran out onto the field and nailed a 40-yard field goal as time expired to improve TCU to 11-0 on the season. 

8. UTSA 31, North Texas 27 (Week 8)

The legend of Frank Harris grew another chapter long in the win over rival North Texas. The two teams combined for nine points in the first half, but exploded for 35 combined in the fourth quarter as Austin Aune and Harris traded haymakers in the Alamodome. Harris scored the last and decisive blow with a 10-yard touchdown pass to JT Clark with 15 seconds left in the game. 

9. Texas A&M 23, Arkansas 21 (Week 3) 

The high point of the Aggies’ season took place in Arlington during the third week of the season. Both teams ended up as disappointments, but it felt like a season-saving win at the time for Jimbo Fisher and Texas A&M. Devon Achane was awesome and KJ Jefferson committed a memorable fumble that changed the contest. 

10. Tulane 27, Houston 24 (Week 5) 

The 2022 hype for Houston officially died in Week 5 in the loss at home to Tulane on a Friday night. Tulane ended up as the best G5 team in the country, but that wasn’t known at the time. The Green Wave beat the Cougars in Houston with their third string quarterback. Tune & Co. did make it fun late.