Ollie Gordon II Carries Oklahoma State to 40-34 Double Overtime Win Over BYU
STILLWATER – No. 20 Oklahoma State rallies back in the second half after a slow start to beat BYU on Senior Day in double overtime, 40-34, to clinch a spot in the Big 12 title game. This marks the Pokes’ second Big 12 title appearance in the past three season.
With the win, the Cowboys moved to 9-3 overall on the season and 7-2 in Big 12 play. They’ll face No. 1 seed Texas Longhorns.
Ollie Gordon II recorded his eighth game of the season with 100+ rushing yards, yet that wasn’t the highlight of his day as he became the first Cowboy running back since Barry Sanders to finish with five rushing touchdowns in a game, three coming in the second half and two in the overtime periods. Gordon II finished the day with 34 carries for 166 yards and five touchdowns.
“I couldn’t do it without my guys, the front seven, tight ends and fullbacks, they were getting a hat on a hat towards the end of the game when we made our adjustments and I could always count on them,” Ollie Gordon II told the Cowboy Radio Network following the game. “They always got my back like I got theirs.”
Leon Johnson III had a great game as well as he finished with nine receptions for 132 yards. While he didn’t throw for a touchdown, Alan Bowman redeemed himself in the second half as he finished the game going 31-of-47 for 321 yards.
It was an excruciatingly slow start for the Pokes who scored just six points off two field goals in the first half. During the first two quarters, the Cowboys did, however, record 169 yards of total offense with eight first downs. But there was a pick six early in the game, with Bowman going 11-of-19 for just 76 yards.
The Cowboys came out swinging in the second half. The defense came up with a huge stop right out of the gates to force a three-and-out and a punt, directly leading to a two-yard touchdown run by Gordon II, his 16th rushing touchdown of the season. While the Pokes’ offense couldn’t get back on the board, the defense kept BYU off the board with several big stops.
Less than five minutes into the fourth quarter, Gordon II got back into the end zone from two yards out to record his 17th rushing touchdown of the season, a scoring play which was capped by a two-point conversion by Rashod Owens to get the Pokes within three, 24-21.
After a failed Cowboys’ drive, the Cougars took back over on their own 26-yard line with 7:47 left in the game. As they had most of the second half, the Cowboys came up with a huge three-and-out to get the ball back on their own 20-yard line following a punt.
The first play of the drive was a 13-yard completion to Johnson III, which was followed by a few runs by Gordon II for just a few yards. Bowman then hit Presley for seven yards to make it a 3rd and 2. After an incomplete pass to bring up a 4th and 2, Gundy called a timeout. With 3:17 left in the game, Bowman faked a handoff to Gordon II and swung it out to Jaden Nixon to pick up the first down and a few extra yards.
A few plays later, Bowman hit Johnson III, who took the ball down to the BYU 24-yard line. A few plays later, Gordon II gets into the end zone from 15 yards out to give the Pokes their first lead since the first quarter, give them 21 unanswered points.
However, the extra point by Alex Hale was blocked, keeping the Pokes with a three-point lead with just 47 seconds left.
OSU had a 96% chance of winning the game with just :47 left in the game. Enter BYU quarterback Retzlaff.
Retzlaff completed a 19-yard pass for a first down at the BYU 44-yard line, then a completion at the OSU 45-yard line with 23 seconds left in the game. After a spiked pass and an incomplete pass to bring up 3rd and 10 with 14 seconds left, Retzlaff threw a completion to the 34-yard line for a first down with just 11 seconds left. He then completed a four-yard pass to get within field goal range at the 30-yard line with seven seconds left. With four seconds left, Will Ferrin drilled a 48-yard field goal to tie the game up as time expired.
The Pokes won the overtime coin toss and elected to start on defense. The Cougars converted a first down on third and short down to the OSU 12-yard line, then Dylan Smith was called for defensive holding, moving the ball to the six-yard line and Retzlaff got into the end zone on the next play, putting them on top 34-27.
A few plays later, Ollie Gordon II got back into the end zone for his fourth touchdown of the game and tying the game up at 34 following an Alex Hale extra point.
Gordon II got back into the end zone for his fifth touchdown of the game, putting the Pokes up 40-34 following the failed two-point conversion. On the ensuing BYU drive, safety Trey Rucker stripped the ball away from BYU TE Rex to get the ball back and officially seal the game.