Tulsa World: Defense, Bryant carry OSU

TULSA WORLD HOMEPAGE | Tuesday, February 09, 2010 | WIRELESS

OU | OSU | TU | ORU | HIGH SCHOOLS | COLLEGE FOOTBALL | COLLEGE BASKETBALL | NFL | FANTASY | OUTDOORS | GOLF | PROS | ALL

HOMEPAGES

SPORTS EXTRA BLOGS

		Sports Editor Mike Strain
		Sports Columnist Dave Sittler
		The Picker Entertaining & Infuriating

LOCAL PROS

ALL SPORTS

PHOTOS & VIDEOS

OUTDOORS

FIND A STORY

Search the World's archives

EMAIL ALERTS

SOCIAL MEDIA

RSS FEEDS

CONTACT US

BUY PHOTOS & PAGES

Buy a published photo by clicking the "Order this Picture" link on the photo. For a full-color page reprint, call 732-8198 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday or order online.

TULSA WORLD

ADVERTISE ON SPORTS EXTRA

Learn more about the site.

Newspaper View Print this story

Bookmark

Defense, Bryant carry OSU
Cowboys defeat Baylor to forge a 7-0 record.

OSU's Dez Bryant catches a long pass in front of Baylor's Antareis Bryan in the fourth quarter of Saturday's game. Bryant caught 11 passes for 212 yards and scored twice. STEPHEN HOLMAN/Tulsa World

By BILL HAISTEN World Sports Writer
Published: 10/19/2008 2:03 AM
Last Modified: 10/19/2008 2:29 AM

Audio: Listen to Mike Gundy’s postgame press conference.

Cowboys defeat Baylor to forge a 7-0 record.

STILLWATER — For the first time since 1945, an Oklahoma State football team has a 7-0 record.

The No. 8-ranked Cowboys, driven by sophomore wide receiver Dez Bryant and a second consecutive outstanding performance by their defense, easily handled Baylor 34-6 before a Boone Pickens Stadium homecoming crowd of 50,080.

Bryant had a career-high total of 11 catches for 212 yards, and he scored on pass plays of 37 and 9 yards. In advance of next week's ABC-televised game at top-ranked Texas, the Cowboys are 3-0 in Big 12 play.

At first glance, OSU's four-touchdown conquest of Baylor might seem impressive, but there was one glaring blemish. On three consecutive second-half possessions, the usually prolific Cowboy offense stalled inside of the Bears' 5-yard line.

After surging to a 28-6 halftime lead, the Cowboys managed only two chip-shot field goals by Dan Bailey.

If short-yardage plays were tough against Baylor, they will be substantially more difficult at Texas.

"I think we've got some work we need to do," OSU quarterback Zac Robinson said. "We know that field goals aren't going to beat Texas."

Said Cowboy coach Mike Gundy of the second-half offensive performance: "Very disappointed. The play-calling was not very good."

However, Gundy said, "Once you get this far along, they're all good wins. We're very excited to be 7-0. The real story is how our defense played."

The OSU defense, an improving unit that had excelled in the previous week's victory at Missouri, limited Baylor to 204 total yards. On 31 rushing attempts, the Bears netted only 42 yards.

When OSU safety Ricky Price recovered a third-quarter fumble by Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin, it was the Bears' first turnover since Sept. 6.

"I think we had our best effort so far this year," Cowboy safety-linebacker Andre Sexton said.

In spite of a 28-point lead, there was no fourth-quarter letdown by the OSU defense. With 10 minutes left to play, Baylor had first-and-goal at the Cowboy 6-yard line.

On fourth down, Griffin mishandled an errant shotgun snap and was dropped by Cowboy end Ugo Chinasa for a 3-yard loss.

"(The Cowboys) play good on defense," said Baylor coach Art Briles, whose team dropped to 3-4 overall, 1-2 in the Big 12. "Confidence is a great booster, and right now they've got a lot of confidence."

Griffin, the talented freshman quarterback who on Saturday passed for 162 yards, was more inclined to believe that Baylor had self-destructed.

"I think we made (the Cowboys) look a whole lot better than they are," he said.

OSU running back Keith Toston scored on runs of 4 and 2 yards, but Bryant was by far the most productive Cowboy. In addition to his touchdown receptions, Bryant also had a 52-yard catch that led to Bailey's first field goal.

Bryant's big day would have been even bigger if an illegal-block penalty hadn't erased what would have been a 60-yard punt-return TD.

For the most part, Baylor attempted to guard Bryant with a single defender — cornerback Antareis Bryan. It was not an effective plan.

"I was sort of surprised," said Bryant, who for the season has 45 receptions and 11 touchdown catches. "I thought that they would put a (safety) over the top."

OSU had 457 total yards, but failed for only the second time in 18 games to have a 100-yard rusher.

Big 12 rushing leader Kendall Hunter was limited to 93 yards, 51 below his average.

During the postgame press conference, OSU coaches and players expressed interest in watching the telecast of the Missouri-Texas showdown and getting a comprehensive look at the Longhorns.

Bill Haisten 581-8397
bill.haisten@tulsaworld.com By BILL HAISTEN World Sports Writer

Newspaper View Print this story

Bookmark

COMMENTS

Add your comment

Show: Most Recent Comment First

0 comments have been made for this team so far. Tell us what you think below!

Reporting Comments

If you see a comment that violates our terms and conditions, please help us by clicking the "Report this Comment" link next to a comment. That will alert the web staff to review the comment. Thank you. -- Web Editor Jason Collington

Add Your Comment
In order to post a comment on this article, you must sign in to Tulsaworld.com. If you do not have a site account, you can create an account for free.