But no other team in the country has beaten both No. 3 Oklahoma and No. 12 Baylor all season, and none team has accomplished that feat since Oklahoma State in 2011. That is not an opinion; it’s a fact.
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A body slam tackle on Thomas by Hawthorne at the end of the play was not well-received by the Longhorns bench, many of whom came onto the playing surface.
This was evident today.
Tensions were high early in Saturday’s Big 12 regular-season finale between No. 12 Baylor and unranked Texas.
Mike Finger summed it up pretty well with this tweet. The Longhorns (5-7, 4-5 Big 12) held on after building a 20-0 halftime lead, but still have consecutive losing seasons for the first time since 1988-89 in the old Southwest Conference. Penalties hurt, too; the Bears were flagged nine times for 60 yards. Down 20-0 and with the emergency QB in the game, Baylor basically ditched the offense that has brought us out of the Dark Ages and is as synonymous with our program as the colors green and gold, and went to a throwback single-wing attack.
Houston (12-1) jumped to a 17-0 lead with the help of two turnovers by Temple, one capped by a 47-yard touchdown run by Ward. Coupled with the nation’s fourth-best rushing attack, Johnson should move the ball plenty against a Texas defense that ranks 102nd in the nation while allowing 203.2 yards per game. But on third-and-9 at Baylor’s 25 with 4:35 left, Swoopes pitched it to Warren, who stepped out of bounds three yards short of the marker.
Baylor ventured into Texas territory eight times.
“We convert there, and you don’t know what happens”, Briles said. He made the decision official after Baylor’s 23-17 loss to Texas.
Baylor can get to 10 wins and play on January 1 for the third year in a row. “But stepping back and looking at it from the player’s perspective, it made it clear that Baylor was the right choice”.
The Bears answered by methodically moving down the field _ again _ and scoring on Hawthorne’s 8-yard dive into the end zone, cutting the lead to 20-17 with 9:40 left in the game. “I’m just thankful to Coach (Art) Briles for believing in me”.
Hawthorne threw two interceptions in his first three passes. Jefferson popped a run on fourth-and-four from the 31, but defensive tackle Poona Ford stripped the ball and recovered at the 43.
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With a struggling Texas offense that hadn’t put points on the board in the second half, and a defense that was gouged all day by the Baylor rushing offense, Baylor had momentum in the 4 quarter.
