Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Mayfield rallies Sooners after 20-point lead vanishes
NO. 12 OKLAHOMA 29, TEXAS 24
DALLAS — Baker Mayfield threw 59 yards to Mark Andrews for the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter after Oklahoma had blown a 20-point lead, and the 12th-ranked Sooners held on to beat Texas 29-24 on Saturday.
Mayfield’s second TD throw of more than 50 yards came 68 seconds after freshman quarterback Sam Ehlinger ran 8 yards to give the Longhorns their first lead after trailing 20-0 in the second quarter.
The victory kept the College Football Playoff hopes alive for the Sooners (5-1, 2-1) a week after a stunning home loss to Iowa State when they were ranked third with a nation-leading 14-game winning streak.
“The thought of the College Football Playoff is not what’s going through your head right there,” Mayfield said about the moment when the Sooners were trailing 24-23 a week after letting a 24-10 lead get away against the Cyclones. “It’s about doing your job and winning that game and beating Texas.”
Lincoln Riley, the youngest FBS head coach at 34, topped Tom Herman in the first Texas-OU matchup since 1947 with both coaches leading their teams for the first time. Bud Wilkinson, who led the Sooners to three national titles, was the losing coach in that game.
Ehlinger, the second consecutive freshman to start against Oklahoma for Texas (3-3, 2-1), had to be replaced by last year’s starter, Shane Buechele, on the drive after the Sooners went back in front.
After going to the pop-up medical tent after going down hard on his right shoulder and helmet on the Texas sideline, Ehlinger returned five plays later.
The series ended on downs, and the Sooners had to stop the Longhorns once more on a drive that started at the Texas 4 with 49 seconds left.
It finally ended on a desperation lateral play at the Texas 48, clinching a tense OU victory that looked early to be a blowout but instead was the fourth consecutive game decided by seven points or fewer in the half-burnt orange, half-crimson spectacle at the Cotton Bowl in the middle of the Texas State Fair.
“I told our guys that it definitely hurts a little more because of who this loss is to,” said Herman, who beat OU as the head coach at Houston in last year’s opener. “We’re not going to deny that.”
Mayfield, who grew up in Austin often wearing Sooner gear, beat his hometown team for the second consecutive year. He came back after leaving at the end of a second-half series appearing to favor his right arm after a hit on the ground, finishing with 302 yards passing and two touchdowns.
Mayfield opened the scoring with a 54-yard pass to Jeff Badet, who was waiting in the end zone to make the catch as trailing safety Kris Boyd waved fruitlessly at the ball.
Ehlinger, a huge Texas fan while also growing up in Austin, threw for 278 yards and a touchdown and ran for a game-high 106 yards while also pushing Chris Warren III into the end zone after handing it to him on a 1-yard plunge.
“He’s a tough kid,” Mayfield said. “You can tell by the way he carries himself. He bounces back up after getting hit. Just how Austin boys do it, I guess.”
Oklahoma’s Trey Sermon had 96 yards rushing and a 42-yard pass on a trick play that set up one of Austin Seibert’s three field goals.
NO. 6 TCU 26, KANSAS STATE 6
MANHATTAN, Kan. — Kenny Hill threw for 297 yards and ran for a touchdown, TCU’s defense shut down Kansas State’s ailing offense, and the sixth-ranked Horned Frogs remained unbeaten with a weather-delayed victory over the Wildcats.
Sewo Olonilua added two short touchdown runs for the Horned Frogs (6-0, 3-0), whose gritty defense held the Wildcats (3-3, 1-2) without points both times they ventured into the red zone.
Kansas State was forced to play without
quarterback Jesse Ertz, who was hurt in last week’s double-overtime loss at Texas. Sophomore backup Alex Delton got his first start and was 11 of 29 for 146 yards, struggling to run Coach Bill Snyder’s offense against the Big 12’s best defense.
The Wildcats’ ground-based attack managed just 70 yards on 29 carries.
After kickoff was delayed three hours because of lightning, the Horned Frogs wasted little time in taking the lead. Their defense got the ball back deep in Kansas State territory, and Aaron Hicks pounded away five consecutive times before Hill scampered in from 7 yards out for the touchdown.
Jonathan Song added a pair of field goals later in the first half.