The morning after Texas
Published: 10/26/2008 1:22 AM
Last Modified: 10/26/2008 1:22 AM
AUSTIN, Texas – Oklahoma State was indoctrinated into the high stakes world of college football Saturday.
For those who have followed OSU football closely and have knowledge of the Cowboys' recent history against Texas, Saturday's game in Austin was no surprise. The top-ranked Longhorns did not have to make another comeback from a double-digit deficit. Texas, though, had to earn everything it got in the 28-24 win over the Cowboys.
For those who have not followed OSU football closely, Saturday's game may have been a surprise. It also may have brought a measure of respect to the Cowboys program, particularly on a national level. Such respect is tough to come by in the league dominated by Texas and Oklahoma.
The Cowboys showed Saturday in Austin there is not a distinctive difference between them and the team ranked No. 1. Earning respect is nice, but it's not going to change the final result against Texas.
OSU players all agreed they let a great opportunity get away to end all the years of Texas heartache. Even the Texas players and coaches agreed that OSU deserved the status it has earned this season.
The Cowboys' chances of winning the Big 12 championship took a big hit Saturday. There are still a few big games with plenty of high stakes remaining on the regular-season schedule. And who knows what the final month has in store for Texas, Texas Tech and OU.
The Longhorns have road games still left at Tech and Kansas. Tech has Texas and OSU at home the next two weeks before a Nov. 22 game in Norman with the Sooners. OU, like OSU, has a loss to Texas and would love to have the Nov. 29 Bedlam game have Big 12 South Division title implications.
So would the Cowboys. If OSU can apply the lessons learned from Saturday's high-stakes matchup with Texas in the next month, who's to say that those title dreams may not be dashed completely?
Game balls
***Brandon Pettigrew: The senior tight end showed why he is regarded as one of the best at his position in college football. His eight catches for 83 yards provided another dimension to the offense. His blocking at the line of scrimmage did not allow Texas' defense to dictate the game.
***Kendall Hunter: Spud did have a costly first-quarter fumble that took away a potential scoring chance. Still, the Big 12's best running back responded with a 161-yard rushing effort against a stingy Texas rushing defense.
***Ugo Chinasa: The sophomore defensive end chased after Colt McCoy all afternoon and deserves some credit for forcing McCoy's fumble that Jeray Chatham recovered at the OSU 10 with 5:27 left to play.
***Victor Johnson: The true freshman showed up well in the high number of snaps he played at safety. He is regarded as one of the better tacklers on the team. Johnson also had an impressive 52-yard kickoff return.
Cowboy checklist
***Third-down defense: Before Saturday, the OSU defense had down a good job of getting off the field with third-down stops. But McCoy and Texas converted 11 of 14 third-down plays. The defense has improved, but it can't give opposing offenses additional plays. The OSU offense would love to have those snaps.
***Moving forward: Bouncing back from tough defeats is a line of distinction between really good teams and average teams. This week's home game with Iowa State presents a nice bounce back possibility.
---Matt Doyle
Written by
Bill Haisten
Sports Writer
