Mayfield passed for 270 yards vs. Baylor, ran for 76, and accounted for four touchdowns.
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The top three of No. 1 Clemson, No. 2 Ohio State and No. 3 Alabama is unchanged after all three won Saturday.
“It was kind of weird game“, Saban said. Even more solidified as the front-runner after rushing 22 times for 204 yards against Mississippi State, including touchdown sprints of 74 and 65 yards. “That’s something that’s never going to change”. But he also now has the benefit of running a team with a knack for erasures.
The second quarter saw Oklahoma add on to their lead as quarterback Baker Mayfield hit wideout Sterling Shepard for a 39 yard touchdown pass. The Sooners failed to convert on the PAT, making their lead 13-6. Winning at undefeated Baylor has them thinking about a potential berth in football’s final four.
The season is ending, but Iowa State is starting to get healthy.
“We struggled on offense to finish and then we finally have a great play at the end, great play by Josh. And then we came up short at the end, ” said UCLA coach Jim Mora, who has dropped the home finale in each of his four seasons with the Bruins. “No, it doesn’t get easier”. “We just jibe well together”.
Part of the programming involves Thursday mental health breaks Gundy has arranged for his roster. The Cowboys are 17-8 ATS in their last 25 home games and 4-1 ATS in their last 5 conference games. “It puts everything in perspective”, Whitener said.
With all of the hoopla surrounding the showdown in Big 12 country (Baylor vs. Oklahoma), it was a different conference that stole the spotlight Saturday night – and not in a good way, either. Oklahoma averages 214.3 rushing yards per game. The Tigers had 34 first-place votes.
More than anything, though, this team rallies behind a highly effectual offense. But with a second half comeback including 14 fourth quarter points, the Cowboys moved to 10-0 SU and 6-4 ATS on the season.
The Sooners also will move up in the rankings this week and – if not for that infamous October stumble against Texas – Oklahoma would be a definite ingredient in the CFP mix. “I knew at this point in the season I needed to start progressing and seeing things”.
A year ago, Oklahoma State quarterback Mason Rudolph showed promise while losing his first career start as a true freshman against Baylor. Though competition under center would divide a few locker rooms, it has served as a galvanizing force in this one. “Trying to learn what makes them tick, what makes them go, what we’re not good at and need to cover up and what we are good at….” “There are not too many two-quarterback systems that have worked the way this has worked”. A loss by the Cowboys to either Baylor or Oklahoma will create another odd tiebreaker scenario for the Big 12 champion, and will send the committee back to where they were last season in looking at who’s in among the Power-5.
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“We’re a mature team”, Rudolph said. No. 7 Stanford lost to OR (where would the Ducks be if quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. had been healthy all season?), and No. 10 Utah fell in double overtime at Arizona, eliminating the Pac-12’s only shots at the College Football Playoff. Still, it is hard to see the Gators being kept out of the playoff if they manage to beat Alabama.
