Big 12 Notebook: OSU joins league’s one-loss club

The possibility of cracking the coveted top four of the College Football Playoff standings was strengthened for Oklahoma State just before kickoff on Saturday.

Ohio State had lost at home to Michigan State, providing the No. 6 Cowboys with an opportunity to impress the committee and remain undefeated.

Baylor, however, had different ideas. Playing at a level capable of generating 700 total yards, the Bears took control in the second quarter, built a 24-point lead and ended an 11-game losing streak to Oklahoma State in Stillwater that stretched back to 1939.

The loss jumbled the hopes of all Big 12 teams in the CFP picture, especially since the panel has chosen not to throw any considerable love to the conference. A year ago, the Big 12 was left out of the first four-team playoff mix. This season, Oklahoma State’s spot at No. 6 has been the highest for a Big 12 team.

Now, Baylor, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State all sit with one defeat while competing into what amounts to a year-end round-robin as part of a backloaded Big 12 schedule.

“That was a good team we played,” Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy said. “We battled back and got a couple of stops on defense, (but) couldn’t get anything going on offense.”

The difference, oddly enough given the Big 12’s pass-happy reputation, was on the ground.

In moving the ball at will, despite having to turn to a third-string quarterback, Chris Johnson, in the second half, the Bears wore out the Cowboys with 304 yards rushing. No one managed to crack the 100-yard mark, though three Baylor rushers — Shock Linwood, Johnny Jefferson and Devin Chafin — all gained at least 60 yards.

The Cowboys, who have struggled to stir any consistency with their run game, countered with a mere 8 yards on the ground. Some of that was because they were playing catch-up, some was because they are limited in what they do with their backs, and some was because Baylor administered six sacks.

The question now, as it is every week a new CFP poll is released, is where the Big 12 falls now that it no longer sports an undefeated squad.

Ohio State dropped from the unbeaten ranks, though No. 1 Clemson, No. 2 Alabama and No. 4 Notre Dame all won. So too did No. 5 Iowa, which remains undefeated.

Oklahoma, which had surged to the No. 7 spot, needed to stop a late two-point conversion attempt to outlast TCU 30-29. The Horned Frogs were playing without their talented pass-catch combination of Trevone Boykin and Josh Doctson, though the Sooners had to piece-meal their way through the second half without quarterback Baker Mayfield, who went out with an injury.

In other Big 12 games, Kansas State managed its first conference win, scoring 10 points in the final 42 seconds to overturn Iowa State 38-35; and West Virginia won its third straight with a 49-0 shutout over winless Kansas.

BAYLOR (9-1, 6-1)

Game: Baylor 45, Oklahoma State 35. The Bears turned to third-string QB Chris Johnson and the 6-foot-5 sophomore responded with 138 yards passing and 42 rushing in the second half. Baylor built an early lead, but starting QB Jarrett Stidham injured both his right ankle and hand. Stidham, a freshman, was summoned after Seth Russell, the Bears’ original starter, was lost for the season with a neck fracture. Baylor amassed 700 yards behind a balanced attack. WR K.D. Cannon caught five passes for 210 yards.

Takeaway: The work Art Briles does both teaching a proven symptom, and seemingly making it easy for any quarterback to produce, was proven again as Baylor bounced back from its only defeat, a loss at home to Oklahoma.

Still, the leadership Johnson provided with plays that made him look like a veteran was also a credit to the player.

“I thought he was fabulous. I thought Jarrett (Stidham) was unbelievable,” Briles said. “I’m not sure we punted in the first half, and then Jarrett was unable to go in the second half.

“We have a lot of confidence in Chris. Everything he did was not surprising to us. He is an extremely talented player that just has a gracious attitude about him. He’s just a great, great teammate, and I’m really excited for him.”

Stidham completed 12-of-21 passes for 258 yards and one touchdown while steering the Bears to a 24-14 halftime margin. They boosted that margin to 24 points in the third quarter after Johnson connected with Jay Lee for a pretty 39-yard strike into the end zone, and then fired a 71-yard bomb to Cannon.

From the outset, Baylor looked determined after the loss to Oklahoma dropped the Bears four spots in the CFP poll to No. 10. Oklahoma State, the lone unbeaten left in the Big 12, came in at No. 6. Still, the Cowboys had not lost at home to the Bears since the inception of the Big 12. In fact, Baylor’s last win in Stillwater was in 1939, when the series was not played continuously.

Johnson’s audition could turn into a start as the Bears move forward with a Nov. 27 clash at TCU. Briles said the Baylor staff would have to “hustle” to get Stidham ready on a short week.

“It’s real puffy; it’s swollen up,” Briles said of the hand. “They don’t think there’s a break in there. … He was having trouble gripping the ball.”

Next: at TCU, Nov. 27.

IOWA STATE (3-8, 2-7)

Game: Kansas State 38, Iowa State 35. The Cyclones blew a 21-point halftime lead that proved to be the final straw as seventh-year coach Paul Rhoads was fired Sunday after making curious decisions not to kneel on the football in the fourth quarter. Four second-half turnovers cost Iowa State, which used a 195-yard rushing performance from RB Mike Warren, including a 76-yard score, to seemingly take control. Warren, however, lost two fumbles. QB Joel Lanning lost another with 10 seconds remaining, enabling the Wildcats to snap a six-game losing streak with a field goal.

Takeaway: Rhoads, just 32-54 in seven seasons, had seemed to gain secure footing as the Iowa State coach with a home win against Texas and a narrow loss against Oklahoma State. But the startling meltdown at Kansas State, including 10 points by the Wildcats inside the final minute, brought an end to Rhoads’ tenure.

Former offensive coordinator Mark Mangino, who was dismissed by Rhoads in the middle of the season, had earlier chimed in on Twitter: “There is no doubt at all … The Fat Lady is singing.”

That reaction was typed for all to see, even though Mangino’s son, Tommy, was still on the Iowa State staff as the wide receivers coach.

Rhoads wanted to run the clock out with the Cyclones up by a touchdown after obtaining the ball with a fourth-down stop with 1:31 remaining. Warren, however, fumbled on first down and Kansas State converted the takeaway into a game-tying touchdown. Inexplicably, Lanning did not take a knee on the next ISU possession with 40 seconds left and lost a second-down fumble after getting sacked.

The loss was the latest in a series of bad finishes this season for Iowa State which also failed to maintain a halftime lead against Iowa, could not put away Toledo in regulation and blew a 17-point margin against Oklahoma State.

“We’ve just got to find ways to finish games,” Lanning said. “Right now, we’re not finishing games.”

The Cyclones end the season with a Nov. 28 trip to West Virginia and Rhoads will stay on to coach the team in the finale. Under terms of his contract which runs to Dec. 31, 2021, he will get a buyout of nearly $4.6 million.

This marks the sixth straight year that Iowa State will finish with a losing record and the third straight in which it failed to qualify for a bowl.

Next: at West Virginia, Nov. 28.

KANSAS (0-11, 0-8)

Game: West Virginia 49, Kansas 0. The Jayhawks allowed a touchdown on the first possession they defended, and then gave up an interception return for another touchdown just 19 seconds later while digging a 28-0 first-quarter deficit. QB Ryan Willis completed just 13-of-38 passes for 127 yards with three interceptions. Kansas added just 94 yards rushing as backup RB De’Andre Mann carried four times for a team-high 49 yards. The Jayhawks allowed three West Virginia rushers to have 100-yard games while suffering their 14th straight defeat.

Takeaway: Things were beginning to look up for Kansas after it lost by just six points in a Nov. 14 visit to TCU and had two late possessions to try to produce winning points.

Players spoke of the lift that upset bid provided, especially with two home games to close out the schedule, but the Jayhawks were never in the game against West Virginia, a team they beat the last time the Mountaineers visited for Charlie Weis’ only Big 12 victory as Kansas coach.

“The first quarter got away quick,” Kansas coach David Beaty said. “From that point forward, the wheels kind of fell off.”

Beaty is the latest man hired to turn around the Jayhawks, yet is looking at the possibility of a winless season, something Kansas has not suffered since going 0-10 in 1954. The Jayhawks have won just three of their last 52 Big 12 games since losing their last seven conference games in Mark Mangino’s final season (2009). During that stretch of seven seasons, Kansas either went winless in the Big 12 or won just one conference game.

Obviously, no one expected a quick fix from Beaty, who has used 39 first-year players, the most of any FBS program. The fallout against West Virginia, however, was also unexpected.

“They schemed us really well,” said LB Joe Dineen. “They were physical up front, we weren’t. All the credit to them.”

Give Dineen some credit too. He managed 16 tackles, all solos, as the Jayhawks played without S Fish Smithson, who came in as the nation’s leader in solo hits with a 7.8 average and had been in on 100 tackles through the first 10 games.

Next: vs. Kansas State, Nov. 28.

KANSAS STATE (4-6, 1-6)

Game: Kansas State 38, Iowa State 35. The Wildcats used two fumble recoveries to score twice in the final 42 seconds and overcome a 21-point halftime deficit with 24 unanswered second-half points. DT Will Geary and DE Marquel Bryant made the key strips on fumbles by the Cyclones, who opted not to kneel on the ball on two possessions inside the final two minutes. PK Jack Cantele booted a decisive 42-yard field goal after LB Charmeachealle Moore recovered the last of four takeaways the Wildcats produced on eight Iowa State fumbles. QB Joe Hubener accounted for 306 yards.

Takeaway: Much-maligned for allowing far too many completions in soft coverage and far too many long rushes because of missed tackles, Kansas State figured to be out of it after allowing four second-quarter touchdowns and 304 first-half yards to Iowa State.

No one banked on the Wildcats pitching a second-half shutout. Especially when they ranked last in the Big 12 in takeaways after forcing just eight on the season and five during a six-game losing streak that coincided with the start of Big 12 play.

“We played inspired and created turnovers,” said Kansas State coach Bill Snyder, who also reflected on Iowa State’s misfortune.

“I think our defense was competitive, but I don’t know if all of those were turnovers that we created,” Snyder added. “Iowa State is a very disciplined football team that normally is not going to do that. Maybe we’re getting a break or two here that maybe we hadn’t gotten on some other things that happened in the year.”

No doubt, it took breaks to rally from a 21-point deficit and score twice in the final 42 seconds.

Still, the win puts a different twist on how Kansas State finishes. It remains possible for the Wildcats to qualify for a sixth straight postseason appearance, though wins are needed the final two weeks against Kansas and West Virginia.

“We really need to put this one behind us as soon as possible and worry about the ultimate goal,” said Cantele, who lost his starting job last season after a poor performance against Auburn but stepped back in as Kansas State’s regular kicker after Matthew McCrane hurt his knee in nonconference play.

The game-winning boot, into a 15 mph north wind, capped the second-biggest comeback in Kansas State history.

Next: at Kansas, Nov. 28.

OKLAHOMA (10-1, 7-1)

Game: Oklahoma 30, TCU 29. SS Steven Parker batted down a two-point conversion pass inside the final minute to preserve a precarious win for the Sooners, who played the second half without starting QB Baker Mayfield because of concussion symptoms. Mayfield completed 9-of-20 first-half passes with two touchdowns. RB Samaje Perine rushed for 188 yards and a TD as Oklahoma won its sixth straight game, putting the Sooners in position to claim at least a share of the Big 12 championship.

Takeaway: The move Parker made to break in and knock down TCU’s conversion pass shortly after it was thrown by QB Bram Kohlhausen was, admittedly, fun to watch from the Oklahoma sideline since the deflection preserved the Sooners’ narrow win.

“It looked like he was up there,” said Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops, “like he could have dunked it on a 12-foot rim. He was way up there. It was a great play.”

Especially considering it sealed the victory and kept alive any national championship hopes for the Sooners, who have won six straight since recovering from a defeat to Texas.

That loss could still be a huge factor in how the CFP committee views Oklahoma if the Sooners manage to claim the Big 12 championship with a win Nov. 28 at Oklahoma State. Still, it was not anything Parker was worried about as he defended the gamble TCU took after scoring on a 12-play drive with 51 seconds remaining.

“Basically I just had a hard decision on whether to stay with my receiver or go after the quarterback,” Parker said. “I knew that the route was going to be double-draft seven and come get the quarterback. I just played in between and kind of play dummy to it. Then from there, just time my jump right.”

Had the ball not been deflected, TCU had an open receiver in the back of the end zone. The Horned Frogs already had burned a fatigued OU defense for three straight fourth-quarter scores. The Sooners were blanked in the last period, despite impressive advantages in total yardage (536-390) and first downs (29-16).

“We (forced) four turnovers again. We’re doing a lot of good things, but give TCU credit,” OU defensive coordinator Mike Stoops said.

“To knock the champ out, you have to fight. It’s going to be a fist fight. We were just hanging on. We couldn’t make a play. We overran the football. We made good calls; we just lost momentum. We had to make a play. We just felt like we were going to make one to win the game. It got to that point, and we were able to do it.”

Next: at Oklahoma State, Nov. 28.

OKLAHOMA STATE (10-1, 7-1)

Game: Baylor 45, Oklahoma State 35. The Cowboys had a chance at getting off to their best start in history, but the perfection needed to get into the CFP mix finally caused them to unravel. QB Mason Rudolph passed for 430 yards and two touchdowns, but Oklahoma State added just 8 rushing yards on 23 carries after the Bears stormed through for six sacks. WR James Washington and FL Jalen McCleskey each caught two touchdown passes, but the Cowboys’ string of 12 straight victories was snapped.

Takeaway: Baylor executed a whopping 104 plays while generating 31 first downs and eventually fatigue set in for the Cowboys.

“We couldn’t stop anything,” OSU defensive coordinator Glenn Spencer said. “They’re hard to stop and very good, and evidently, they’re a lot better team than us. When you get hit on a couple of deep balls, you find something to do there and then you leave something open somewhere else.”

Baylor finished with 700 yards and gained 300-plus on both the ground and through the air, despite needing to rely on a third-string quarterback in the second half.

“We didn’t tackle well. We had a guy there and they were always falling, and I think yards after contact were really bad,” Spencer added. “There were a couple situations in the backfield that were really bad. They broke tackles and broke containment a couple of times. We’d hit them for a gain of two, and they’d fall for five.”

The loss was the first for Oklahoma State since shredding Rudolph’s freshman redshirt last season at Baylor. The quarterback came off that defeat to engineer the Cowboys to an upset at Oklahoma, which qualified OSU for the postseason and a win in the Cactus Bowl over Washington.

Although a playoff berth probably dissolved, Oklahoma State can still compete for at least a share of the Big 12 title, closing against another 7-1 team in the Big 12, Oklahoma.

“Hopefully, we come out with a little more fire than we did this week,” said WR David Glidden, one of three OSU receivers to snag a team-high five passes, joining Washington and Marcell Ateman. “It’s Bedlam for a Big 12 championship so that should say enough.”

Next: vs. Oklahoma, Nov. 28.

TCU (9-2, 6-2)

Game: Oklahoma 30, TCU 29. With the standout pass-catch combination of QB Trevone Boykin (ankle) and WR Josh Doctson (wrist) sidelined by injuries, the Horned Frogs scored 16 unanswered points in the fourth quarter but failed to get a two-point conversion going for the win with 51 seconds left. QB Bram Kohlhausen’s 14-yard touchdown strike to WR Emanuel Porter provided that opportunity, but the conversion pass by Kohlhausen was knocked down by the Sooners’ Steven Parker. Kohlhausen replaced Foster Sawyer, who fizzled after going 7-of-8 in the first quarter and leading TCU to a 7-0 lead.

Takeaway: The decision to go for two points was made despite the decisive edge in momentum TCU gained in the fourth quarter with both key defensive stops and big offensive plays.

Before getting in position to convert a go-ahead conversion, the No. 18 Horned Frogs scored on an 86-yard connection from Kohlhausen to speedy WR KaVontae Turpin. PK Jaden Oberkrom then added a 43-yard field goal, and another defensive stop put TCU in position for a decisive drive.

The decision to go for two points was based on being in a road environment, this time before the third-largest crowd to ever gather at Owen Field. In addition, TCU has a short week of preparation before a Nov. 27 (Friday) game against Baylor.

“They had no time outs left, and if we make it, they only have 50 seconds and a long way to go,” TCU coach Gary Patterson said.

“We have a ballgame Friday, so if you go to three overtimes, you’ve got no chance (physically) in that game. I’m the hero (for a similar risk last year) at West Virginia, and I’m the goat in Norman. There’s not anybody on our sideline that wanted to go for one. We didn’t come here to hang around; we came here to win.”

Even so, it did not look that way all the time. TCU committed four turnovers, three off interceptions by Sawyer, which led to his removal.

What proved interesting was that Sawyer’s ability to see the field as a 6-foot-5 freshman prompted Patterson to favor him over the 6-2 Kohlhausen. While Kohlhausen managed to engineer the TCU comeback bid, the shorter QB eventually had the biggest pass attempt of the game batted down as Parker chose to surge in.

“To be honest, if (Parker) doesn’t knock it down, there’s a guy open in the back of the end zone to catch it,” Patterson said.

Although the loss knocked TCU out of the Big 12 title hunt, the rally was encouraging. The Frogs pieced together anything they could offensively. RB Aaron Green was most consistent, providing 127 yards on 24 rushes with one touchdown.

“We fight back, no matter who’s on the field,” Green said. “Second-string line, third- and second-string quarterback, freshmen at wideout, we just gave it our all. That’s what we’ve been taught to do. Unfortunately, we just came up short.”

Next: vs. Baylor, Nov. 27.

TEXAS (4-6, 3-4)

Game: Idle.

Next: vs. Texas Tech, Nov. 26.

TEXAS TECH (6-5, 3-5)

Game: Idle.

Next: at Texas, Nov. 26.

WEST VIRGINIA (6-4, 3-4)

Game: West Virginia 49, Kansas 0. The Mountaineers became bowl-eligible, storming to a 28-0 first-quarter lead en route to their third straight win. QB Skyler Howard passed for 133 yards and added 129 yards rushing while accounting for two touchdowns. RB Wendell Smallwood posted his seventh 100-yard game of the season, rushing for 118 yards and two scores. RB Rushel Shell also chipped in 108 yards and two touchdowns as West Virginia had a trio of 100-yard rushers for the first time since 1969.

Takeaway: Sure, the matchup against the winless Jayhawks looked easy.

Yet that was precisely why West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen spent the week harping on bowl eligibility while also reminding the Mountaineers of a 33-19 loss they suffered the last time they visited Lawrence, the only Big 12 win attained by former Kansas coach Charlie Weis.

“If ever there were a situation they shouldn’t have been ready to play, this is it,” Holgorsen said. “All due respect to Kansas, but it was cold and windy and there’s nobody here and all that stuff. But our guys didn’t care about that. It was all about us.”

To solidify that team concept, Holgorsen called for an early team meeting at the Mountaineers’ hotel, prior to the 11 a.m. kickoff.

“I told them to be down there at 6:45, that the meeting would start at 6:45,” Holgorsen said. “They were all bright-eyed at 6:30, so we started 15 minutes early. That told me that they were ready to go.”

West Virginia wasted no time exerting its authority on both sides of the ball. It needed precisely 100 seconds to march 63 yards in five plays for its first touchdown, an 8-yard blast by Shell. Nineteen seconds later, CB Terrell Chestnut scored on a 32-yard interception return.

The Mountaineers gained 630 yards while holding the Jayhawks to 221. Early in the second half West Virginia began to empty its bench following a TD burst by Smallwood. Still, the shutout was preserved, West Virginia’s first against a conference opponent since 2005.

“I don’t want guys playing soft or timid or on their heels,” said defensive coordinator Tony Gibson, “and I think we were a few times against the run. So I was jumping linebackers and making sure they knew what we were going to do and how we were going to go out there and play.”

The three-game win streak gives West Virginia as many wins in November as it achieved during the month in its first three seasons as a member of the Big 12.

Next: vs. Iowa State, Nov. 28.

NOTES, QUOTES

–Baylor entered the Oklahoma State game without starting defensive tackles Beau Blackshear and Byron Bonds, and safeties Orion Stewart and Terrell Burt. Worth mentioning in case anyone thought QB Seth Russell was the only casualty for the Bears on the season.

Still, the defense sparkled through the middle portion of the 45-35 victory, forcing the Cowboys to punt seven straight times beginning late in the first quarter.

“That’s amazing,” Baylor coach Art Briles said. “You get that, we’re going to be a hard team to beat, because we’ll mess around through those seven possessions and score three touchdowns. If that happens every time we step on the field, we’ll have a good chance to win every game.”

Baylor has some defensive playmakers, including senior DE Shawn Oakman, who began his career at Penn State and has grown into one of the most fearsome pass rushers in the Big 12. Oakman was in on four tackles, including one for loss, though five other Baylor defenders accounted for the Bears’ six sacks. Two of those were recorded by beefy DT Andrew Billings.

“(Oklahoma State) had a lot to lose. We knew they were going to come out and play hard, and we had to match that,” Billings said. “We had to double their energy because we already had a loss. We had to throw that out and beat OSU.”

Credit goes to NB Travon Blanchard who led the Bears with seven tackles.

“If you’re low on energy for that long Tuesday practice, Travon is always upbeat and getting everyone pumped up,” LB Grant Campbell said. “He brings energy and spark to the defense, and it’s fun to play with him. He’s bringing the excitement to that side of the ball.”

–Kansas State has been plagued by slow starts throughout Big 12 play and was again faced with what looked to be an insurmountable deficit, trailing Iowa State by 21 points at halftime.

Still, the message the Wildcats had heard so many times in the season was repeated again. This time, they responded by recovering four second-half fumbles and blanking the Cyclones during the 24-point push needed to gain their first Big 12 victory.

“In the first half, we were playing tentative and we just wanted to play right,” LB Elijah Lee said. “There was a difference in energy in the second half. We were just having fun, jumping over each other trying to make plays and trying to keep each other’s spirits high. Whenever you go into halftime, it’s like going into a classroom.”

By game’s end, that classroom turned into party central. The postgame celebration was among the wildest Bill Snyder had witnessed in his 24 seasons as Kansas State coach.

Maybe for good reason considering the win snapped the longest losing streak for the Wildcats since Snyder’s first season, when Kansas State went 0-7 in the Big Eight and finished 1-10.

“I’ve been here a couple hundred years,” kidded Snyder, “and I’ve never seen our locker room (like that). … A lot of times we say, ‘Act like you’ve been there before. We didn’t act like we’d been there before.’ But they needed that, so it was good. They were excited about it.”

–Oklahoma distributed glossy flyers depicting the achievements of QB Baker Mayfield prior to the game against TCU in an effort to build a case for a potential Heisman Trophy bid.

Any chance for Mayfield to follow up with a big performance, however, was disrupted in the first half. Mayfield suffered a head injury after he was hit in the back of the helmet by TCU LB Ty Summers. Summers was ejected for targeting.

Mayfield was examined after the drive ended, then was allowed to return to the game. His responses to further testing at halftime prompted the Oklahoma medical staff to rule out the junior quarterback in the second half. He was replaced by Trevor Knight, and the Sooners were limited to one second-half touchdown, a 72-yard burst by RB Samaje Perine.

“I know our doctors are incredibly thorough and always err on the safe side,” said Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops, “and once we did find a symptom, that’s when they made sure (Mayfield) was pulled. Of course, that threw us off in the second half and we weren’t very consistent at all.”

Mayfield, who sat out last year as a walk-on transfer from Texas Tech, has been phenomenal keeping plays alive with his improvisational skills. He entered the TCU game with the second-best pass efficiency rating in the country, averaging 308.2 yards with 31 touchdown strikes.

That left considerable pressure on Knight, a former starter who was beaten out by Mayfield. Across the field, however, TCU was using backups after its Heisman Trophy hopeful, Trevone Boykin, was ruled out by coach Gary Patterson shortly before game time because of an ankle injury.

“It’s tough. Gary’s sitting over there with a team that hasn’t lost but three times in two years,” Stoops said. “Regardless of who’s playing for them, they’re a good football team, and I knew they would be. Rarely is it perfect. We’ve had a lot of excellent games, and we’re due for one that maybe isn’t. You can win when you’re still not at your best.”

QUOTE TO NOTE: “What’s hard is every team has the goal of winning the conference. Once that doesn’t happen, there are teams that kind of fade a little bit. … When we lost those four games in October, (players) didn’t lose sight of what the big picture is. At that point, we set a goal to finish better than any team I’ve been a part of here. We have a chance to do that.” — West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

FIVE BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM WEEK 12 IN THE BIG 12:

1. Oklahoma lost improvisational QB Baker Mayfield to a head injury and then struggled to outlast TCU. SS Steven Parker deflected a two-point conversion pass in the final minute as TCU went for the win after scoring 16 unanswered fourth-quarter points. OU became the Big 12’s leading CFP hopeful.

2. Baylor responded from its loss to Oklahoma by totaling 700 yards to win at Oklahoma State for the first time since 1939. QB Chris Johnson, a third-stringer, stepped up and delivered key second-half plays while the Bears’ defense forced the Cowboys to punt on seven straight possessions during one stretch.

3. Oklahoma State had a favorable schedule to close out an unbeaten run, at least from the standpoint of playing its last two games at home. The Cowboys, however, could not deal with Baylor’s explosiveness and also stalled throughout the middle portion of the game offensively in picking up their first loss.

4. TCU alternated two backup quarterbacks after ruling starter Trevone Boykin out. The Horned Frogs stiffened defensively after knocking out Mayfield, but could not convert a two-point conversion to win it in regulation. Coach Gary Patterson defended the move, which he said he prefers making on the road.

5. Kansas State ended its 0-6 funk in the Big 12 with a 24-0 run in the second half to nip Iowa State. The Cyclones refused to kneel on the ball on two possessions inside the final two minutes. The Wildcats responded by converting turnovers into points, including a game-winning field goal by Jack Cantele. Iowa State coach Paul Rhoads was fired Sunday after the improbable loss.