BIG 12 ROUNDUP
No. 9 Baylor 27, Texas Tech 24: Blake Shapen threw for 254 yards and two touchdowns in his first start for host Baylor, and the Bears held on for a win over Texas Tech. Abram Smith ran for 117 yards and a touchdown for the Bears (10-2, 7-2 Big 12, CFP No. 8).
Shapen hit Trestan Ebner in stride down near the 25 for a 61-yard catch-and-run score on the game’s opening drive that put Baylor ahead to stay. Shapen had a decisive 9-yard TD pass to tight end Ben Sims with 7 minutes left to immediately respond to a Tech score.
The Red Raiders (6-6, 3-6) still had one more chance after stopping Baylor on fourth down on its 12 with 1:18 and no timeouts left. They got in position for a 53-yard field goal attempt by Jonathan Garibay, who had plenty of leg but pushed the kick wide left on the final play. Garibay had a game-ending 62-yarder to beat Iowa State two week earlier.
Donovan Smith threw for 243 yards and had two TD passes for the Red Raiders, who a week earlier had only 108 total yards in a 23-0 loss to Oklahoma State in their home finale. That was the first time Tech was shut out in a 303-game span since 1997.
Smith’s 38-yard TD to Mannix Mclane with 11:37 left cut the deficit to 20-17. Baylor responded with a 10-play drive that ended with Shapen’s pass to Sims. Then Smith threw a screen pass to tight end Travis Kootz that turned into a 75-yard score.
Shapen completed 20 of 34 passes starting in place of Gerry Bohanon, who injured his right hamstring late in the first half of a 20-10 win last week at Kansas State that Shapen finished.
Smith’s 4-yard TD for a 17-3 lead with five minutes left in the first half came five plays after Raleigh Texada sacked Smith and forced a fumble he recovered at the Tech 24. Tahj Brooks had a 1-yard TD run to cut Tech’s halftime deficit to 17-10.