Big 12 Football Weekend Recap

BAYLOR - The Baylor defense forced five Texas A&M turnovers and the offense capitalized, as the Bears took home a 41-21 win. Entering the game, Baylor had lost 20 of the previous 22 meetings with the Aggies. Linebacker Joe Pawelek highlighted the defensive effort with two interceptions, while Robert Griffin headlined the offense with 241 yards passing and two touchdowns. Griffin has accounted for a school-record 25 touchdowns (14 passing, 11 rushing) in his freshman season. Jay Finley ran for 116 yards and a score, while Jacoby Jones finished with 54 yards and another two TDs on the ground. Baylor is idle this weekend, then will conclude its schedule on November 29th at Texas Tech.

COLORADO - Playing their final home game of the season, the Buffaloes were upended by 11th-ranked Oklahoma State, 30-17. One week after reclaiming the starting job at quarterback, Cody Hawkins had a subpar day as he completed just 19-of-37 passes for 171 yards and a touchdown. Demetrius Sumler paced the rushing attack with 86 yards and a TD, but it wasn't enough to keep pace with the Cowboys. CU struggled against the run, as the Cowboys racked up 226 yards and two TDs on the ground. OSU tailback Kendall Hunter averaged 9.3 yards per carry. Given that the Buffs boast the nation's 106th-ranked scoring offense (19.18), they can ill-afford to give up such chunks of yardage against a quality opponent. The team has a bye this weekend, then will take on Nebraska on November 28th for a shot at a bowl game.

IOWA STATE - The Cyclones have now lost nine straight with Saturday's 52-20 defeat at the hands of Missouri. The team has one final chance, next weekend at Kansas State, to end the season on a positive note. The offense was able to move the ball up and down the field, but the defense had no answer for Chase Daniel and the Tigers offense. Quarterback Austen Arnaud set a new ISU single- game completion record by connecting on 36-of-54 passes for 326 yards and two TDs. He was also intercepted twice, including one that was returned for a touchdown in the second quarter. Mizzou quarterback Chase Daniel threw for 328 yards and a pair of TDs, while the Tigers' running game gashed the Cyclones for six yards per rush.

KANSAS - The Jayhawks proved no match for fourth-ranked Texas in Saturday's 35-7 loss. A once promising season for the Jayhawks has now turned south, with four losses in the last five games. Sophomore wideout Dezmon Briscoe caught nine passes for 115 yards, as he became just the fourth player in school history to eclipse 1,000 receiving yards in a season (1,091). Kerry Meier is hot on his heels with 826 yards on 73 catches. The Jayhawks trailed 14-0 at the half, but the Longhorns turned up the heat in the second half. Quarterback Todd Reesing completed 25-of-50 passes for 258 yards and a touchdown, but he was outshined by his counterpart, UT signal-caller Colt McCoy. Reesing, who set a school-record with 3,486 passing yards a year ago, now has 3,200 yards this season. The Jayhawks are idle this weekend, then will wrap up the regular season at Missouri.

KANSAS STATE - The Wildcats took another beating in Saturday's 56-28 loss to Nebraska. The loss was the team's fifth straight, with each of the last four coming in blowout fashion. The biggest key in the game was Nebraska's ability to control the line of scrimmage with the running game, as the Cornhuskers tallied 340 yards and six touchdowns on the ground. K-State quarterback Josh Freeman spent most of the game running for his life, as he was sacked five times and hurried on what seemed like nearly every throw. The Wildcats managed only 247 yards of total offense, compared to 610 yards for Nebraska. The Cornhuskers held a 13-minute edge in time of possession. K-State takes on Iowa State Saturday afternoon in the season finale.

MISSOURI - The Tigers picked up their fourth straight win in convincing fashion, as they went on the road and trounced Iowa State, 52-20. Most importantly, Missouri clinched the Big 12 North and earned a trip to the conference title game. The Tigers will face one of the usual suspects -- Oklahoma, Texas or Texas Tech -- for the league title. Chase Daniel battled cold and windy conditions to complete 32-of-40 passes for 328 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. He completed his first 16 passes. Derrick Washington carried 11 times for 128 yards and two scores, while Jeremy Maclin finished with eight grabs for 103 yards and a TD. The Tigers have a bye this week, then they'll take on rival Kansas the following week.

NEBRASKA - Joe Ganz had a big day in Nebraska's 56-28 thrashing of Kansas State. Ganz threw for 270 yards and two TDs, while adding a team-high 95 rushing yards and another two scores on the ground. On the season, Ganz has 3,103 passing yards and needs just 95 yards to pass Zac Taylor's single-season school record. The Cornhuskers have won four of their last five. The ground game was the difference in this one, as the Huskers rolled up 340 yards and six TDs on the ground. Nebraska controlled the game from start to finish, out- gaining the Wildcats by more than 350 yards. The Nebraska offense converted 7- of-13 third downs and held a 13-minute edge in time of possession. The Huskers have a bye this week, then will square off with Colorado on November 28th.

OKLAHOMA - The fifth-ranked Sooners were idle this past weekend. They've won four straight but face two tough teams -- No. 2 Texas Tech and No. 11 Oklahoma State -- in the coming weeks.

OKLAHOMA STATE - The Pokes went on the road and knocked off Colorado, 30-17. OSU's only two losses this season have come against powerhouses Texas and Texas Tech -- both on the road. They team has one more tough test coming up -- a home game against No. 5 Oklahoma on November 29th, as the Cowboys will have a bye leading up to that one. Playing against the school where he turned down a scholarship offer, Cowboy quarterback Zac Robinson threw for 217 yards and a touchdown, and he ran for another. Kendall Hunter ran for 102 yards and a touchdown on only 11 carries for OSU. As a team, the Cowboys piled up 226 yards (5.7 ypc) and two TDs on the ground. They currently rank seventh in the nation in both scoring offense (41.64) and total offense (492.64).

TEXAS - After a bit of a slow start, the Longhorns pulled away in the second half behind another strong performance from quarterback Colt McCoy. Only a sophomore, McCoy has already tied Vince Young for the most wins as a UT quarterback. McCoy also broke his own school record by throwing his 31st touchdown pass of the season. He threw for 255 yards and two TDs, and led the team with 78 rushing yards and another touchdown on the ground. However, Texas could've used a more lopsided win, considering the increasingly likely scenario that Texas, Texas Tech and Oklahoma all tie for the Big 12 South title. The tiebreaker would be BCS standings.

TEXAS A&M - Five turnovers cost the Aggies in their 41-21 loss at Baylor. Texas A&M has now lost two straight, which followed a modest two-game win streak. The Aggies entered the game needing a win to keep their slim bowl hopes alive, but too many miscues proved costly. Aggies quarterback Jerrod Johnson completed 19-of-30 passes for 244 yards and a touchdown, though he also threw four interceptions. His 31 rushing yards led the team, as the Aggies weren't able to get anything going on the ground. In contrast, Baylor racked up 269 yards (5.2 ypg) and three TDs on the ground. The Aggies have the nation's 108th-ranked rush offense, and the defense is 111th at stopping the run. After a bye week, the Aggies wrap up their schedule on November 27th at Texas.

TEXAS TECH - The unbeaten Red Raiders got a chance to rest with this week's bye. It was a well-timed off week, with the team coming off consecutive wins over Texas and Oklahoma State. Next up for the Red Raiders is a road game at Oklahoma.

Date of Article: Mon Nov 17, 2008 4:56 pm

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- Baylor Bears  - Iowa St. Cyclones  - Oklahoma St. Cowboys  - Texas A&M Aggies  - Texas Tech Red Raiders  - Kansas Jayhawks  - Missouri Tigers  - Nebraska Cornhuskers  - Oklahoma Sooners  - Texas Longhorns