With the expansion of the College Football Playoff to twelve teams in the 2024–25 season, the Cotton Bowl Classic will serve as either a quarterfinal or semifinal each year.

Nonetheless, Sanford persevered, and in 1938 the game made a profit as Rice defeated Byron White's Colorado 28–14 in front of a crowd of 37,000.

Some 40,000 attended the 1939 match between Saint Mary's College of California and Texas Tech, with the Gaels upsetting the undefeated Red Raiders 20–13.

In 1940, an underdog Clemson team surprised the Boston College Eagles 6–3, in the first and only appearance at the Cotton Bowl Classic by Tigers coach Frank Howard.

In 1943, The Texas Longhorns represented the SWC in their first ever bowl game against a highly ranked Georgia Tech team at the time.

In 1946, Missouri was defeated by Texas, despite the 4th quarter work of freshman fullback Robert (Bob) Lee Clodfelter, who was to mature under Weeb Ewbank at Washington University in St. Louis the next three years.

Rice's Dickey Moegle (last name spelling later changed to "Maegle") began a run around end from his team's 5-yard line and down the open field.

Syracuse Athletic Director Lew Andreas asserted that no one from his university had accused Texas of dirty play, and attributed those claims to members of the media.

Lynn Amedee's 23-yard field goal gave the Tigers a 3–0 halftime lead after Texas had missed their own which led to an 80-yard drive.

Amedee recovered a Longhorn fumble at the 37 early in the third quarter and Jimmy Field scored 5 plays later on a touchdown run.

), gave Arkansas the Grantland Rice Trophy emblematic of the national championship awarded by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA).

The same two teams met the next year, but this time, the Irish ended the Longhorns' 30-game winning streak with a 24–11 victory, denying Texas the Associated Press national championship (the Longhorns had already clinched the regular season championship in the UPI poll, a pre-bowl poll until the 1974 season; Nebraska won the AP title).

Texas and Notre Dame met again in the 1978 game, with the Longhorns again top-ranked, only to see the Irish and quarterback Joe Montana roll to a 38–10 victory.

Alabama led 13–10 going into the 4th quarter when Texas quarterback, Alan Lowry, ran the bootleg to perfection and scrambled 32 yards for the go-ahead touchdown.

2 Texas A&M in a blowout to force a tie for the conference crown, and opened the door for Arkansas to stroll to Dallas on New Year's Day.

Thanks to a blocked punt and the brilliance of future NFL Hall of Famer Joe Montana, the Irish rallied to win 35–34, their second consecutive Cotton Bowl Classic victory.

Alabama's Joey Jones returned the ensuing kickoff to the Texas 38-yard line, and Tide quarterback Walter Lewis took over with 1:54 left.

Brown and fellow Heisman winner Davey O'Brien, who played in the 1937 Cotton Bowl, both attended nearby Woodrow Wilson High School in the Lakewood area.

For 53 years, the SWC champion played as the home team in the Cotton Bowl Classic, a tie-in which continued through the 1994 season.

Meanwhile, the Fiesta Bowl, unhindered by conference tie-ins and played in generally warm weather, propelled itself to major-bowl status by attracting national championship contenders, most notably with its January 1987 matchup between Penn State and Miami.

In 1999, the Cotton Bowl arranged for a team from the Southeastern Conference to be the Big 12 opponent, and Southwestern Bell (now AT&T) began sponsoring the event.

After a lackluster first half ended with the game tied 3–3, the Razorbacks opened things up, led by Offensive MVP running back Cedric Cobbs.

Arkansas beat their former hated rival, 27–6, holding the Longhorns to negative yards rushing, and sacking the Texas QB a bowl-record 8 times.

Tech quarterback Graham Harrell broke the NCAA record in this game for most touchdown passes thrown by anyone in Cotton Bowl Classic history.

However, Dallas' frequently cold January weather had been a longstanding concern, and was thought to have hampered any prospect of upgrading the game to the BCS.

The game was highlighted by Razorback Joe Adams punt return of 51 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter, to give Arkansas early command.

After failed negotiations to return the Cowboys to the Cotton Bowl, Jerry Jones along with the city of Arlington, Texas funded the stadium at a cost of $1.15 billion.

The 160 by 72 feet (49 by 22 m), 11,520-square-foot (1,070 m2) scoreboard surpasses the 8,736 sq ft (812 m2) screen that opened in 2009 at the renovated Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri.

Won (8): BYU, Duke, Florida State, Kentucky, Miami (FL), Saint Mary's (CA), Tulane, Wisconsin

Lost (10): Cincinnati, Florida, Fordham, Marquette, Maryland, Memphis, Mississippi State, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Western Michigan