Oklahoma State Dismantles TCU, Wins 63-17
STILLWATER – It was the second-straight dominating performance in a row by Oklahoma State as they dismantled TCU, 63-17.
The Cowboys move to 9-1 on the season, 6-1 in Big 12 play.
"I was proud of our guys. I told them afterwards that it's just fun for me to be along for the ride and be the coach and watch these guys practice during the week,” said Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy. “Their focus, their discipline, their toughness, their willingness to exert themselves during the week and just play hard. They have a smile on their faces, they compete, they like each other. It's a lot of fun for us as a coaching staff. We were good in all three phases tonight. I don't really need to get into statistics or all that… I was just proud of our guys. We were able to get a number of young players in the game, and they performed well. We had a couple of mistakes… but for the most part, those guys that played in the game in the end have had as many reps as the ones have had dating back to last year so that's why they could go out and play well and stop them and go downfield and score. I'm proud of those guys and proud of everyone in the organization. It was a good night for us."
It was an explosive first half for the Cowboys as jumped out 7-3 first quarter lead, but really poured it on in the second. The Cowboys combined for 352 yards of total offense, 145 of which came on the ground, with Jaylen Warren getting the bulk of the carries. He finished the first half with 14 carries for 103 yards and three touchdowns.
Spencer Sanders connected with Blaine Green for a 46-yard touchdown in the second quarter, giving Blaine his first touchdown of the season. Spencer finished the first half going 14-of-21 for 207 yards and one touchdown.
Sanders finished the night going 17-of-25 for 235 yards and one touchdown. As for the running backs, they combined for 396 yards and eight rushing touchdowns. Dominic Richardson ended up leading the way on the ground as he carried the ball 12 times for 134 yards and two touchdowns, Jaylen Warren close behind him with 18 carries for 124 yards and three touchdowns.
As an offense, the Cowboys combined for 682 yards of total offense, 447 coming on the ground with an average of 7.1 yards per carry. They combined for 37 first downs and converted 11-of-15 on 3rd downs.
On the other side of the ball, the Cowboy defense was stifling as they held TCU to just 273 yards of total offense. Coming into the game, TCU had averaged 450 yards of total offense. They Horned Frogs were also held to just 2-of-13 on 3rd down attempts and just 12 first downs.
"That's the most complete team we've faced this season, without a doubt,” said TCU head coach Jerry Kill. “No disrespect to Baylor or anybody else we've played, OU and so forth, but nobody that physical. That comes with when you run the ball like that, you become a physical football team on both sides."
Devin Harper led the Pokes in tackles with seven total tackles, with Malcolm Rodriguez right behind him with six total tackles, two tackles for loss and one sack.
In fact, Malcolm moved into sole possession of fifth place all-time in total tackles in Oklahoma State history. He’s currently sitting at 370 total tackles.
There was a scary moment a few minutes into the third quarter for the Cowboys. On a 3rd and 3 carry, Jaylen Warren picked up the first down, but stayed down on the turf after the run. He got up and walked off the field under his own power but was favoring one of his shoulders. However, just a few plays later he was up and walking up and down the sidelines.
Dezmon Jackson entered the game in relief and scored his first touchdown of the season on the same drive, a five-yarder to put the Pokes up 35-3 with 9:07 left in the third quarter.
Dominic Richardson became the third OSU running back to score a touchdown, and the second in the third quarter. On the drive, Richardson had five carries for 58 yards, capping it with a two-yard touchdown run putting the Pokes up 42-3 with 3:17 left in the third quarter.
Dez got back into the end zone less than two minutes into the fourth quarter. It was from one inch out following an unsportsmanlike penalty on No. 97 on the TCU defense. That put OSU’s lead at 49-3.
TCU scored two quick touchdowns early in the fourth quarter, one following an impressive drive by freshman quarterback Sam Jackson, resulting in a 13-yard run. The second came on a fumbled handoff between Ethan Bullock and Dominic Richardson, resulting in a scoop and score, getting TCU up with 17 points on the day, 49-17.
Freshman Jaden Nixon scored his first touchdown of the season, a 63-yard handoff from Gunnar Gundy, putting the Pokes up 63-17.
The Cowboys will travel to Lubbock next weekend for a showdown against the Red Raiders.