BYU and No. 20 Oklahoma State both have something to play for Saturday when they meet in Stillwater, Okla.
Despite losing four straight games, the Cougars (5-6, 2-6 Big 12) can become bowl eligible for the sixth year in a row with a win.
The host Cowboys (8-3, 6-2) have even more on the line. They are in contention for a spot in the Big 12 championship.
Texas sits on top of the standings with a 7-1 record in Big 12 play. Oklahoma State, Oklahoma and Kansas State are locked in a three-way tie for second place at 6-2.
The Longhorns and Cowboys would clinch spots in the Big 12 championship game with wins over Texas Tech and BYU, respectively. Oklahoma State defeated the Sooners and Wildcats this season and own tiebreakers should the three programs finish knotted up.
The championship game scenario gets much more complicated if Texas and Oklahoma State aren’t both victorious.
“Our goal when we start the season has always been to find a way to win a conference championship,” Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy said. “I just told the team, ‘My math is not really good. I don’t understand all that.’ I know if we keep winning, it gives us the best chance in the end.”
The Cowboys found themselves trailing by 14 points in the second quarter at Houston before making a comeback to keep themselves in the championship hunt with a 43-30 win.
Alan Bowman passed for 348 yards and a pair of touchdowns and Brennan Presley hauled in a career-best 15 receptions for 189 yards. Ollie Gordon II had three second-half touchdowns and finished with 164 rushing yards to help Oklahoma State rally for the victory.
“This was a really good culture win for us,” Gundy said. “Things didn’t go well for us in the first quarter and a half. When playing on the road, when you have that many things go south, if you don’t have a strong culture, strong chemistry, a lot of times, teams can’t fight back and recover from that. In all three phases, they did.”
BYU was on the verge of having its own good culture win Saturday. The Cougars were in prime position to defeat Oklahoma at home but squandered away the opportunity with costly turnovers.
In the second half, BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff threw an interception that was returned 100 yards for a touchdown. He also fumbled while being sacked on the Cougars’ 25-yard line.
“Turnovers cost us,” said BYU coach Kalani Sitake, whose team had three giveaways in the 31-24 loss. “You cannot be careless with the football, whether it’s fumbles or interceptions, and expect to beat teams.”
The outcome spoiled the best offensive output of the season for BYU, which has uncharacteristically struggled to move the ball and score. Aidan Robbins rushed for a season-high 182 yards and Retzlaff had 173 yards passing and two touchdowns for BYU, which finished with a season-best 390 total yards with 217 yards rushing.
“Offensively, we saw some really good things,” Sitake said, “but the turnovers were such a downer.”
BYU has experienced growing pains in its first season in the Big 12, having lost four in a row and five of six in conference action.
–Field Level Media
