Game of the Week – Bedlam – Oklahoma State 37-33 Oklahoma

Oklahoma State finally snapped their losing streak against their arch rival Oklahoma with a four-point win at home in Bedlam last Saturday. What a way to start the BIG XII Week 13 Review! The icing on the cake: the win knocks Oklahoma out of the BIG XII title game and ends their playoff hopes. The cherry on the icing, on the cake: it was Lincoln Riley’s last game for the Sooners.

A huge day from Cowboys quarterback Spencer Sanders and a dominating fourth quarter was the story in Stillwater. Sanders threw for 214 yards and a score, and also rushed for 93 yards and a score. The defence played their part too, sacking Sooners quarterback Caleb Williams on fourth down at the Cowboys 32 with eight seconds remaining.

Williams had a good game, passing for 252 yards and three scores whilst adding 36 on the ground. It was his 56 yard scramble that put Oklahoma in scoring range near the end of the game. The Sooners actually outgained their rivals by almost 100 yards, but the Cowboys were just more efficient with the football and made fewer mistakes. The muffed punt by Eric Gray that gave Jaylen Warren the easy score with 8:54 left in the game was a huge turning point.

Stoops in for the Bowl Game

The Sooners go home with only the silver lining of a reunion with former head coach Bob Stoops who will take over for the bowl game. You can bet Joe Castiglione is already making calls about a replacement. Don’t expect to see the Oklahoma head coaching position open long. They finish 10-2 in the regular season.

Mike Gundy’s Oklahoma State can now look forward to a shot at their first BIG XII title since 2011. A win next weekend will almost surely qualify the Cowboys for their first playoff berth, and then who knows? They have been written off plenty this season (including by me early on), but Gundy won’t want his guys focusing on anything but Baylor for the time-being. An incredible 11-1 regular season for the Cowboys.

BIG XII Week 13 Review – Texas 22-17 Kansas State

The Texas Longhorns finally snapped their six-game losing streak with a road win against Kansas State in Manhattan last Friday. Finishing the regular season with a win will be a bitter-sweet pill to swallow for head coach Steve Sarkesian, especially after losing to Kansas at home.

The story of the game were the two running backs. Longhorns junior, Roschon Johnson, in Bijan Robinson’s absence, ran for 179 yards and a score on 31 carries. The Wildcats Deuce Vaughn had another copy-and-paste stat line with 24 carries for 143 yards and one touchdown.

A tough loss to end the year for Chris Kleiman’s team, although without starting quarterback Skylar Thompson the loss is understandable. The Wildcats finished the season with a 7-5 record, two wins better than Vegas predicted them.

Steve Sarkesian is now the ‘hot seat coach in waiting’ after a disastrous first season, finishing 5-7. Whilst it’s too early to officially call him a hot seat candidate, a few early losses next season and we may as well light the fire for him.

BIG XII Week 13 Review – Iowa State 48-14 TCU

The Iowa State Cyclones finish the regular season with a drubbing of TCU in Ames in a game that seemed more like a Breece Hall pro-day than a competitive football game.

The star running back almost single-handedly destroyed TCU, but had a bit of help from Xavier Hutchinson and Brock Purdy on the way. Hall ran for 242 yards and four scores on 21 carries in what was likely his last game at Jack-Trice stadium. Hutchinson had 107 yards on 11 catches and Purdy completed 21/30 passes for 262 yards and two scores. It was a nice all-round performance from the Cyclones against a TCU team already looking to a Sonny Dykes future.

TCU running back and former five-star recruit Zach Evans was one again a no-show. It’s unclear if this was due to injury or another factor. What is certain is that Evans will enter the transfer portal and leave the programme.

The Horned Frogs move on from a season to forget at 5-7. The Cyclones finish on 7-5 and fans will be holding their breath as Matt Campbell gets interest from schools with open head coaching positions.

BIG XII Week 13 Review – Texas Tech 24-27 Baylor

The Baylor Bears secured their spot in the BIG XII championship game, winning at home against the Texas Tech Red Raiders last Saturday. All Baylor had to do was win and hope Oklahoma State would do their part, and each team did exactly that.

Texas Tech did not go quietly and almost tied the game with a 53 yard field goal that sailed wide left on the final play of the game. Interim head coach Sonny Cumbie reminded reporters that Raiders kicker Garibay was the reason they are going to a bowl in the first place. He had a 62 yard winner against Iowa State.

Blake Shapen threw for 254 yards and two touchdowns in his first start and Abram Smith ran for 117 yards with a score. Trestan Ebner also had a huge game receiving, catching four balls for 117 yards and one touchdown.

The Red Raiders need a win in their bowl to avoid a sixth consecutive losing record as they sit at 6-6. Dave Aranda’s Bears record their tenth win and a shot at the BIG XII title. That beeping you hear is Baylor backing up the Brinks trucks for a new contract extension.

BIG XII Week 13 Review – West Virginia 34-28 Kansas

Kansas didn’t go down without a fight, but they couldn’t do enough to stop West Virginia securing bowl eligibility in Lawrence last Saturday.

Quarterback Jarret Doege threw for 170 yards and three touchdowns whilst running back Leddie Brown ran for 150 yards and a score of his own. Winston Wright Jr. had two touchdown catches and Tony Mathis Jr. added 118 yards rushing for the Mountaineers in a gritty performance.

The Jayhawks did everything they could to hang around in this game, but didn’t have the firepower needed. The loss of running back Devin Neal due to injury evidently hurt their offence. Neal recorded 707 yards and eight touchdowns in 11 games.

Regardless of the loss, Jayhawks fans every reason to believe they’ve finally found the right coach. They beat the Longhorns and took TCU and West Virginia to the wire, not to mention giving Oklahoma a scare also. Kansas are the happiest 2-10 fan base you’ll find in the country. Neal Brown has much to improve on, but 6-6 and bowling after losing a lot of team leaders in 2020 isn’t bad at all.

Written by Jake @dyanstybrit