Field Level Media
Nov 20, 2021
Spencer Sanders threw for one touchdown and ran for another as No. 9 Oklahoma State clinched its first ever berth in the Big 12 title game with a 23-0 win over host Texas Tech on Saturday in Lubbock, Texas.
Oklahoma State (10-1, 7-1) hosts No. 13 Oklahoma (10-1, 7-1) next week in what could be a preview of the Big 12 title game on Dec. 4 in Arlington, Texas. The final spot will go to Oklahoma or No. 11 Baylor (9-2, 6-2), which owns the tiebreaker since the Bears defeated the Sooners during the regular season.
Sanders went 19-for-38 passing for 239 yards and added 48 yards on six carries, while Tay Martin had seven receptions for 130 yards as the Cowboys rolled up 427 yards of total offense.
Texas Tech quarterback Donovan Smith struggled against the Cowboys, going 9-for-28 for 83 yards. He was pulled in the third quarter for Behren Morton, who went 1-for-3 for zero yards, before Smith returned to finish the game in the fourth quarter.
The Red Raiders (6-5, 3-5) rushed for 25 yards on 26 carries and Texas Tech finished with just 108 yards of total offense. The Cowboys posted their first shutout since an 84-0 win over Savannah State in September 2012.
Leading 13-0 at the half, the Cowboys pushed their lead to 16-0 on Tanner Brown's 19-yard field goal on their first possession of the third quarter before putting the game away early in the fourth quarter.
Sanders capped a nine-play, 75-yard drive with a 9-yard touchdown run to extend the Cowboys' lead to 23-0 in the opening minute of the final quarter.
Oklahoma State took a 3-0 lead on its opening possession with a 12-play, 70-yard drive that ended with Brown's 24-yard field goal with 10:02 left in the first quarter.
The Cowboys doubled their lead early in the second quarter when Brown's 33-yard field goal capped a nine-play, 65-yard drive with 10:19 left in the half.
Oklahoma State found the end zone with 26 seconds left in the first half when Sanders lofted a 14-yard pass to John Paul Richardson for a 13-0 lead, concluding a 13-play, 80-yard drive.
The Cowboys defense held Texas Tech to just 26 yards in the first half -- 22 passing and four rushing.
--Field Level Media