About a year ago, I wrote, “There’s also been a lot of talk about how the Big 12 may have missed out on a playoff bid because it didn’t have a conference championship game“.
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Five Big 12 teams – Baylor, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, TCU and Texas Tech – have clinched bowl eligibility. The fear is Texas’ midseason upset win over Oklahoma, a result that gets more confusing by the week, could leave the Sooners and the Big 12 shuttered from the playoff for the second year in a row.
“Go into their backyard on a night like tonight and play this way, you know, we’re one of those teams that has a chance”, Stoops said. “It’s got to be a positive”.
Mayfield, who was the first ever walk-on true freshman to start at a Power 5 school (Texas Tech), threw for 270 yards and three touchdowns, ran for 76 and a touchdown, and put Oklahoma on the fringe of the playoff discussion – while knocking Baylor squarely out. They were sixth in the latest College Football Playoffs ranking, with the toughest part of their schedule to come. LSU might be the only SEC West team left in the rankings on Tuesday night, and the Tigers just got beat at home by Arkansas.
Former Lake Travis star Baker Mayfield is the Big 12 offensive player of the week after guiding Oklahoma to a huge 44-34 victory over Baylor in Waco on Saturday night. Oklahoma State is unbeaten, but the Sooners have momentum like no other after a road win against Baylor – their first win in the regular season against a top-five team since September of 2011 when OU won at Florida State.
“Sterling again is just a sensational player”, Stoops said. “We are going to come back tomorrow, look at the tape, and go to the drawing board”, said Stidham. “Everyone is going to focus on the last drive and last play, but there is so much that led up to that point”. Mason Rudolph is completing 64.4 percent of his passes for 3,161 yards, 18 touchdowns and eight interceptions. We could have put the dagger in them right then. – Keenan Reynolds broke the NCAA record for career rushing touchdowns, upping his total to 81 with four scores to lift Navy (8-1).
Sure, there can be neutral site arrangements like Texas/Oklahoma and Texas Tech/Baylor have, but those aren’t going to be feasible for every team, and they’re going to be limited to the first few weeks of conference play, as no one particularly wants to give up November home games with the stakes potentially so high.
So when Bob Stoops says the emergence of fellow tailback Joe Mixon helps Perine – “he hasn’t had to carry the entire burden” – the truth is, the bigger the burden on Perine, the more he produces.
The defense played a Baylor team that had beat them down 41-12 and 48-14 the last two season.
Baylor (8-1, 5-1, next game Saturday @ Oklahoma State) – The Bears looked pedestrian with Jarrett Stidham in charge, although his back injury might have been more of a factor than either or Baylor coaches were letting on.
Oklahoma was up only 37-34 and apparently facing third-and-15 from this 17 after Mayfield threw an incompletion while under pressure.
But Baylor’s Travon Blanchard was flagged for a horse-collar tackle giving Oklahoma new life. “We lost at home and that sucks, but we can still win the conference so that’s what our goal is”, said senior tackle Spencer Drango. It hurts and you’ve got to take it personal and I think we all took it personal today. There was an injury timeout, and trainers tended to Burt, though it was unclear if he was injured.
Mayfield then ran for 17 yards, and ended the drive with a 7-yard TD pass to Dimitri Flowers. Coming into the day, UT had committed only seven turnovers in nine games, so this charity of giveaways came out of the blue.
It was the eighth time this year that Mayfield has thrown for at least three touchdowns in a game and the fifth time he’s thrown for at least three TDs and run for at least one score.
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NOTES: The Bears last lost in Waco to TCU on October 13, 2012…. David Beaty still hasn’t won his first college game, but his team’s fight has been impressive in recent weeks.
