“We just have to control what we can control, which is the next game”.
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STILLWATER, Okla. – Mason Rudolph threw for 352 yards and a career-high five touchdowns, and No. 12 Oklahoma State beat No. 5 TCU 49-29 on Saturday. “And when that person leaves, you’ve taken X number of plays away”.
In their 41 wins over the last four-plus seasons, the Cats are 189-for-208 (.909) in red zone chances with 134 touchdowns, while four of their non-scoring trips have come via kneel downs to close out victories. The total has gone OVER in four of Oklahoma State’s last six games.
It’s not as if Oklahoma State lucked its way into this game, or even that the Cowboys just won because of turnovers (even though that’s a perfectly legitimated way to win a game). Boykin’s first interception in the first half was a definite omen that the clock might have struck midnight for TCU.
“Maybe the playoffs are out of line, but we can beat Oklahoma and Baylor, and you’re 11-1, and somebody else can make that decision”, Patterson said.
The Big 12 knows something about quality wide receivers. Washington ranks fifth in the Big 12 with an 85.8-yard average per game. The national leader in receiving yards suffered a injury to his left wrist late in the second quarter, and his status for the remainder of the season is unclear.
Another important matchup between top-25 teams will take place in the SEC when No. 3 Alabama (8-1) visits No. 20 Mississippi State (7-2).
Oklahoma State sits at No. 8 in the CFP rankings after the win over the Frogs last week. “Yes, but it ain’t going to be because of all of this”, Spencer said of the tragedy four years ago.
Head coach Gary Pinkel tweeted that his team is “united” and “stands together as one”, after a group of 34 African-American players initially organized the boycott. And coach Gundy is a great coach.
Referees said he was forced out of bounds by cornerback Jermaine Edmondson, but replays showed Reilly running out on his own accord. “Those people came here to support the school on homecoming and, when something like that happens, it’s very sad and makes everything mean just a little bit more“.
“That was the best half of a football game”, he said as the Cowboys led 28-9. So there could be a sense of payback if they’re on the bubble with the right team now and the right offense.
As with any Oklahoma State home game, the man whose name graces the stadium, T. Boone Pickens, was front and center.
MI State got hosed Saturday night on Nebraska’s game-winning touchdown with 17 seconds remaining, but the Spartans were bound for a few bad luck after testing fate so many times this year.
Meanwhile, the No. 2 Buckeyes have the nation’s longest winning streak at 23 games-they are 10-0 SU in their last 10 on the road-and they are 16 1/2-point favorites facing an IL team that has dropped 10 of its past 11 at home during the month of November. And it steamrolled from there.
TCU managed a field goal, but Oklahoma State tacked on two more touchdowns before halftime, with Rudolph going deep again for one, firing to wideout Marcell Ateman on an 82-yard score. The defense, despite the big effort against TCU, picking off Heisman candidate Trevone Boykin four times, did allow 53 points to Texas Tech and is giving up 35 points per game against six Big 12 foes.
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The Horned Frogs’ playoff aspirations were dealt a significant blow after Saturday’s debacle against Oklahoma State in Stillwater. On three different occasions this season, OSU did not lead with a minute remaining, yet still found a way to win (at Texas, vs. Kansas State and at West Virginia). Bean, with 5 1/2 sacks and 10 1/2 tackles for loss, won’t return this season…. TCU had been 47 of 47 on extra-point attempts before Vincent Taylor blocked the Frogs’ first try Saturday….
