Click here to subscribe today or Login.
By STEPHEN HAWKINS
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Dezmon Jackson came up inches short on a desperate, fourth-down dive with 24 seconds remaining and fifth-ranked Oklahoma State fell to ninth-rated Baylor 21-16 in the Big 12 championship game Saturday, knocking the Cowboys out of contention for a playoff spot.
Blake Shapen threw three TDs while completing his first 17 passes as Baylor (11-2, College Football Playoff No. 9) took a 21-3 lead.
The Cowboys (11-2, CFP No. 5) rallied back, then went 89 yards on 17 plays on their final drive. But their Big 12 and national championship hopes wound up just shy.
After having first-and-goal from 2 following a pass interference penalty, Jackson gained a yard and was held for no gain before an incomplete pass by Spencer Sanders.
On fourth down from the 1, Jackson tried to sweep wide left, but with safety Jairon McVea in pursuit, he barely missed while trying to reach the pylon in the front corner of the end zone.
“When I saw the running back with the ball, I thought I’ve got to run this guy down,” McVea said, who wasn’t even sure where the ball was when the tackle was made. “The ref signaled not a touchdown, so when I saw that I was pretty happy.”
“They made a good play. It’s not 27’s fault,” Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy said, referring to Jackson.
There would need to be some chaos, in form of an upset or two in other conference title games later in the day, for third-time Big 12 champion Baylor to have a chance to be in the final four for the first time when the CFP rankings come out Sunday.
Baylor coach Dave Aranda passed on politicking for the playoff.
“I’m sure it will work out the way it’s supposed to,” he said.
Baylor was 2-7 in Aranda’s debut last year, when the pandemic wiped out spring drills when he was coming off a national championship as LSU defensive coordinator. The 11 wins match a school record.
Shapen started his second game in a row for injured quarterback Gerry Bohanon (right hamstring), and the Bears won even with only 242 total yards of offense. They had only 36 yards after halftime, while Shapen finished 23 of 28 for 180 yards passing overall.
Aranda recalled Oklahoma State’s Mike Gundy telling him “that winning is hard” before an earlier meeting between the teams.
“And I think today was an example of it,” Aranda said.
Sanders threw four interceptions, one by McVea, and the Cowboys were without leading rusher Jaylen Warren because of his lingering ankle and shoulder issues.
After Oklahoma State took a 3-0 lead on Tanner Brown’s 23-yard field goal set up after all-purpose Baylor back Trestan Ebner fumbled on the opening drive of the game, the Bears scored 21 consecutive points.
Sanders threw picks on the next two drives, setting up Baylor with short fields for three-play TD drives — a 2-yard TD pass to wide-open tight open Ben Sims and Drew Estrada’s 4-yard scoring catch.
Baylor had a 21-3 lead — the largest deficit this season for the Cowboys —after an incredible 13-yard diving catch by Tyquan Thornton with a defender on his back, and able to get both feet down in bounds, with 5 1/2 minutes left in the first half.
The Cowboys were within 21-16 on Brown’s 20-yard field goal with 8:17 left. That was set up after Ebner muffed a punt recovered by Korie Black, who had ended the first half by deflecting a field goal attempt that came up woefully short.
McVea had his interception early in the second half, but Baylor failed to get a first down. Instead of punting from their own 36, the Bears went for it on fourth down and Shapen had to just throw the ball away without an open receiver. Eight plays later, Dominic Richardson scored on a 4-yard run for the Cowboys.
“I told the team in the locker room how proud I was that they’ve done everything we’ve asked them to do since January,” Gundy said. “Came up just a few inches short, but I also made them aware of that doesn’t have anything to do with what they’ve accomplished this year.”
THE TAKEAWAY
Baylor: The Bears won the 2013 Big 12 title outright and shared in 2014 with TCU, both of those coming during a six-season stretch when there wasn’t a championship game for the conference. Baylor lost to Oklahoma in the title game two years ago.
Oklahoma State: Sanders had seven interceptions in the two games this season against Baylor, though the Cowboys won the first meeting 24-14 on Oct. 2. The first pick Saturday was right to the defender, and the second one was picked off by leaping linebacker Matt Jones when Sanders, under pressure, tried to throw off his back foot toward the sideline. The other two interceptions were tipped passes. … Oklahoma State, also without standout center Danny Godlevske had only 70 yards rushing on 40 carries (1.8 yards per carry).
UP NEXT
Baylor: A New Year’s Six bowl game, going to the Sugar Bowl if not in the playoff.
Oklahoma St.: Waiting to find out which bowl game awaits.
___
More AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25. Sign up for the AP’s college football newsletter: https://apnews.com/cfbtop25