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| Sunday, December 3 Sooners find way to stay perfect Associated Press | |||
| KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Oklahoma had to hang on to stay perfect.
Again.
After a stunning midseason run that saw them climb to No. 1, the
Sooners stumbled in their final three regular-season games, but
found a way to win them all.
The same happened Saturday night against Kansas State (No. 7 ESPN/USA Today, No. 7 AP) in the Big 12 championship game.
The Sooners were outplayed in the first half, but used a blocked
punt to set up a touchdown that left them tied at halftime. Then in
the second half, they made just enough plays on offense and got a
stout performance from the defense to win 27-24.
"I don't know if anyone else has had the road that we've had,
played the games that we have," coach Bob Stoops said. "We've
more than earned our way."
Josh Heupel threw a season-high three interceptions, which may
have dented his Heisman Trophy chances. But he threw two touchdown
passes, ran for a score, and executed a beautiful option pitch on a
crucial fourth-quarter, fourth-down play, leading to the go-ahead
touchdown.
"He made the plays when he had to, and that's the sign of a
great quarterback," said Chuck Long, a former Heisman runner-up
who is now Oklahoma's quarterbacks coach.
Oklahoma began the year ranked No. 19. After winning its first
four games against a soft schedule, with all the games at home, the
Sooners took on No. 11 Texas in Dallas, No. 2 Kansas State in
Manhattan and top-ranked Nebraska at home.
Oklahoma won them all, handily, to assume the No. 1 spot and
suddenly the school's first perfect regular season since 1987
seemed within reach.
But it wouldn't be easy. The Sooners had to rally from a
10-point deficit in the fourth quarter to win at Texas A&M. That
was followed by a 28-13 victory over Texas Tech, a game Oklahoma
sealed only with a fourth-quarter touchdown drive.
Last week, with the Big 12 South Division title wrapped up and
the title game looming, the Sooners survived for a 12-7 victory
over Oklahoma State.
"We've had a long run," Stoops said this week, talking about
the mental strain of the season. "There's a lot there that may be
a factor. I don't believe it is, but I know this: It's all behind
us. Now our guys see the light at the end of the tunnel."
Now, the light is even brighter. Oklahoma's next game will be in
the Orange Bowl, for the national championship.
That looked iffy at times Saturday night. After Heupel scrambled
7 yards for a touchdown to give Oklahoma a 17-10 lead, Aaron
Lockett returned a punt 58 yards to tie the score.
The game turned for good on the first play of the fourth
quarter, when the Sooners faced fourth-and-1 at the Kansas State
39. Heupel went down the line with the ball and, just as he got
hit, flipped it to Quentin Griffin, who went 22 yards.
On the next play, Heupel threw a strike to Andre Woolfolk for a
17-yard TD and the lead for good.
"There's a certain chemistry on this football team," Heupel
said. "We just find a way to win, do enough to win, and that's
something special."
Heupel's line wasn't eye-popping -- 24-of-44 for 220 yards, with
the three interceptions and two TDs -- but Stoops said the
performance should have helped Heupel's Heisman chances.
"He made plays in the second half, again in this game, to put
us over the top," Stoops said. "Our players look to him in these
tough games for the leadership and he gives it to them."
| ALSO SEE
Sooners win Big 12 title, will play for national championshipKansas State falls short of BCS bid for third straight season | ||
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