NEW ORLEANS — On their family tree, Jabbar and Malik Muhammad are listed as cousins.

They see it differently, though.

"That's my little brother," Jabbar said on Friday. "They ask me is that my brother, I say yeah," Malik asserted.

Cousins? Brothers? It won't matter on Monday night. For a few hours, Jabbar Muhammad — a starting cornerback for the Washington Huskies — and Malik, a freshman cornerback for Texas who made his first career start in the Big 12 championship game — will be adversaries in the Sugar Bowl. No. 3 Texas (12-1) takes on No. 2 Washington (13-0) in a Sugar Bowl that's serving as a semifinal for the College Football Playoff.

"I'm really excited to step out on the field with him," Malik Muhammad said. "It's just good to get out there, for us to both be out there. I get to watch him, he gets to watch me do our thing."

While talking about their on-field reunion, Malik explained that "sports in my family, they take that seriously." Former NFL all-pro receiver A.J. Green is another cousin. As is Texas freshman edge rusher Billy Walton III. Jabbar's father and two brothers played college football. Their cousin, Amina, starts for the Texas women's basketball team.

Jabbar said he started playing cornerback because that's what his brother, E.J., played. Malik credited Jabbar with being the first person to train him at the position.

'He's not a freshman anymore'

After spending three years at Oklahoma State, Jabbar Muhammad transferred to Washington this season. He leads the Huskies with 12 pass breakups, and he and teammate Mishael Powell have both intercepted three passes. Malik, meanwhile, has 28 tackles, four breakups and an interception in his first season. Against Oklahoma in October, he scored off of a blocked punt.

"He's not a freshman anymore. He doesn't play like a freshman," Jabbar said. "I commend every corner who plays college football. When the team can go at you for 60 snaps straight through the air, it can get rough, and he has the confidence out there. He's playing fast. He doesn't look like a freshman, honestly. I'm proud of him."

Both cousins are on the verge of a championship

The two corners both hail from the Dallas area. Jabbar went to DeSoto, though he never won a state championship there like Malik did at South Oak Cliff with his two Class 5A Division II titles, and he said that experience "showed me the process of winning, it showed me how to be able to go through those steps, get better, get better at practice, how to practice."

Now, both cousins are two wins away from a national championship. The smack talk has been kept to a minimum in the lead-up to Monday night's game, though. They did communicate last Thursday when Malik reached out to wish Jabbar a happy birthday.

"We get to bump heads and I'm ready for it," Jabbar Muhammad said. "We respect the game. We know he's gonna get some NFL guys (to cover), I'm gonna get some NFL guys on the other side. There hasn't really been too much trash talk, but I know we're both ready for it."

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Jabbar, Malik Muhammad contribute for Texas, Washington football teams