Oklahoma State Can’t Hang With Texas in Big 12 Championship Loss
Oklahoma State fell short of its championship goals and failed to put up a fight.
OSU lost 49-21 to Texas in the Big 12 Championship in a game that was never close. Needing a big win to boost its College Football Playoff candidacy, Texas made a statement in Arlington.
In addition to their 28-point win, the Longhorns dominated almost every facet. The Longhorns outgained the Cowboys by nearly 400 yards and finished with 20 more first downs.
The Cowboys’ defense made strides early in the second half, forcing the Longhorns to punt on their first drive. That lasted one drive as Keilan Robinson went 57 yards, narrowly staying in bounds for a touchdown on the Longhorns’ next possession.
That made it 42-14 and ended all hopes of an OSU comeback. While that was the knockout blow, Quinn Ewers led Texas to its big lead before halftime on his way to 452 yards passing against the OSU defense.
After a three-and-out on the game’s first possession led to kick-catch interference on a punt, OSU gave Texas great field position. A few plays later, Ewers found Adonai Mitchell in the end zone for the first of many scores from Texas. Mitchell, along with Ja’Tavion Sanders, ended with more than 100 receiving yards for Texas.
That was Ewers’ first time leading the Longhorns downfield, but far from the last. Ewers threw for 354 yards and four touchdowns while completing 74% of his passes in the first half alone as the Longhorns opened up a 21-point halftime advantage.
In that first half, the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year did some damage on offense. Texas defensive lineman T’Vondre Sweat caught a 2-yard touchdown near the end of the first quarter to complete Texas’ third straight touchdown drive to begin the game.
Mitchell’s 62-yard catch and run set up the Longhorns for another touchdown on their next drive. Running back CJ Baxter got away from Collin Oliver to reach the end zone and take a 28-7 lead early in the second quarter.
OSU’s offense sputtered again, but Nickolas Martin intercepted Ewers and returned it to the 3-yard line, giving OSU an opportunity to close the gap. A couple of plays later, Alan Bowman found Rashod Owens in the end zone for a touchdown for what would be OSU’s last score until Owens' second touchdown with the game out of reach in the fourth quarter.
OSU’s offense struggled throughout the day, with star running back Ollie Gordon failing to get into a rhythm. Gordon gained only 88 total yards and was clearly outmatched in the loss.
The Cowboys will soon find out their bowl destination with a 10-win season still in reach.
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