Baylor: 40 at West Virginia: 43
With both teams coming off bye weeks, this game felt like a must-win for both schools. West Virginia’s chase to make a bowl this season and Baylor’s opportunity to repeat as conference champions would be in doubt with a loss on Thursday night. Early on, West Virginia seemed to have the upper hand as they stopped the Bears on their first possession, easily drove down the field, and punched it in for the touchdown. However, that lead did not last long, as Blake Shapen found Gavin Holmes for 56-yards. The Bears would score two plays later with their tight end, Ben Sims, running the ball in for a 1-yard touchdown. Holmes would have a massive impact in the first half, hauling in another long reception and running past the entire Mountaineer defense for his second touchdown of the night.
After a Casey Legg field goal, the West Virginia defense forced a monumental play. Blake Shapen fumbled the football, which Jasir Cox picked up, and returned for six to tie the game.
The Mountaineer defense did not capitalize on their big play, as Shapen found Craig Williams for the quarterbacks’ third touchdown of the first half. Baylor would only have a seven-point lead at halftime but would have all the momentum heading into the locker rooms. However, the momentum swung in favor of West Virginia as JT Daniels found Kaden Prather to tie the game.
Baylor scored on their first drive of the second half as well, but it was led by Kyron Drones since Shapen exited the game because of a hit to the head. This shootout included a blocked extra point, which the Mountaineers returned for two.
However, the determining play of the game was Tony Mathis’ 37-yard run to set up the Casey Legg game-winner.
Mathis rushed for 169 yards and two touchdowns in West Virginia’s upset win. Neal Brown and the Mountaineers improve to 3-3 and jump Baylor in the Big 12 standings.
Up Next for Baylor: vs. Kansas
Up Next for West Virginia: at Texas Tech
Iowa State: 21 at No. 22 Texas: 24
Traveling to Austin is always a challenge, but with the Longhorns shutting out Oklahoma last week and seemingly finding their offensive grove, the Cyclones had a tall task ahead of them. Their offensive momentum carried over to the special teams unit this week, as Keilan Robinson blocked an Iowa State punt early. However, this turnover did not lead to any points. Once Iowa State got the ball back, Hunter Dekkers led the Cyclones on an 11-play, 64-yard drive, which ended with a touchdown pass to Jaylin Noel. In the second quarter, Quinn Ewers conducted a scoring drive of his own, finding Xavier Worthy on the far side of the endzone.
Ewers threw his second touchdown of the day to Jordan Whittington just before halftime. After a Texas field goal to start the third quarter, the Cyclones answered with a 54-yard catch as Dekkers found Noel for their second score of the day.
On the following offensive possession, Matt Campbell’s team went on a thirteen-play drive, resulting in an 11-yard scamper from Dekkers to put Iowa State up by four.
However, the Longhorns had the last laugh in this back-and-forth contest. Steve Sarkisian rolled the dice on fourth and goal, and it paid off as Xavier Worthy again maneuvered through the Iowa State defense for six. While the Cyclones had several opportunities to win the game on their last drive, including a crucial drop, the Longhorn defense forced a turnover and ran out the clock. As a result, Iowa State suffers another close loss as Texas improves to three and one in conference play.
Up Next for No. 20 Texas: at No. 11 Oklahoma State
Up Next for Iowa State: BYE
No. 19 Kansas: 42 at Oklahoma: 52
With both teams coming off devastating losses for vastly different reasons, this felt like a must-win for both universities. Although Jalon Daniels remained out for the Jayhawks, Oklahoma welcomed back Dillion Gabriel after his absence against Texas. Right from the start, neither team had trouble moving the ball. Gabriel didn’t seem to have any issues in his return, leading the Sooners down the field for a touchdown less than three minutes into the game. Jason Bean also led a touchdown drive on his first possession, concluding with an incredible catch by Lawrence Arnold.
Both teams found the endzone on their first two drives to tie the game at fourteen, but the Sooners pulled away in the second quarter, scoring 35 points in the first half. However, it was a remarkable effort by C.J. Coldon to secure an interception that stood out for the Sooners.
Although Kansas did have a big day offensively, with Bean throwing four touchdowns, the Jayhawks could not contend with the Sooners’ rushing attack. Just before the end of the half, a 28-yard run by Eric Gray gave Oklahoma a two-possession lead.
Overall, the Sooners rushed for 298 yards and five total touchdowns, with Eric Gray and Javonte Barnes each scoring twice. Oklahoma earns a much-needed win on Saturday as Kansas looks to rebound against Baylor after falling out of the AP poll.
Up Next for Oklahoma: BYE
Up Next For Kansas: at Baylor
No. 8 Oklahoma State: 40 at No. 13 TCU: 43
The game of the week in the Big 12 did not disappoint. While this was a high-scoring affair like Oklahoma and Kansas, this contest came down to the last play. Spencer Sanders had two rushing touchdowns in the first quarter, including a 29-yard run to put the Cowboys up by seven.
While TCU scored a touchdown on a Max Duggan run, Oklahoma State pulled away at the end of the second quarter as Sanders found John Paul Richardson in the back of the endzone to put the Cowboys up by 17.
After a field goal-filled third quarter, TCU did just enough to tie the game at the end of regulation. The Horned Frogs used some trickery to find the endzone with just under two minutes in the game.
In the first overtime, both Oklahoma State and TCU scored touchdowns. However, the second overtime decided the game. After a remarkable 52-yard field goal by Oklahoma State’s Tanner Bown, Kendre Miller escaped a tackle for loss and crossed the goal line to upset the eighth-ranked team in the country.
This instant classic could go a long way in determining who makes it to Arlington in December.
Up Next for No. 11 Oklahoma State: vs. No. 20 Texas
Up Next for No. 8 TCU: vs. No. 17 Kansas State
Top Photo by Sam Hodde / AP Photo
