2007 Texas Vs. Oklahoma State Football Game - Analysis

Analysis

Fox Sports selected Jamaal Charles and Jacob Lacey as their player-of-the-game for Texas and Oklahoma State, respectively. Charles rushed for 180 yards and averaged 11.3 yards per carry. ESPN remarked, "For the second straight week, Jammal Charles led a late charge for the 15th-ranked Longhorns. He scored two of his three touchdowns in the fourth quarter as Texas (No. 14 AP) outscored Oklahoma State 24-0 in the final 15 minutes." OSU's leading rusher was Dantrell Savage with 102 yards and 1 touchdown on 23 carries. McCoy was 20 of 28 passing attempts for 283 yards. He had one touchdown pass and three interceptions; he also rushed for 105 yards. Zac Robinson was 30 of 42 for 427 yards, 1 touchdown, and no interceptions. Robinson's passing yardage broke the school record, previously held by current head-coach Mike Gundy. Together, the teams had 1,170 yards of offense. The 594 yards allowed by Texas was the most in the 2007 season. Oklahoma State ran 87 plays and used 35:11 minutes of ball possession, compared to 70 plays and 24:49 for Texas.

Alan Trubow of the Austin American-Statesman reported, "It was hideous before it was pretty. It was one of the worst performances before it was one of the best finishes. It was so bad. Yet it ended so good." Kirk Bohls, also writing for the Statesman, said "Texas may be the prettiest ugly team in the country, but winning hides a lot of blemishes". Bohls pointed out that Texas had won five games (during 2007) in which the team has trailed and that three times Texas has had to recover an onsides kick to preserve their win. He credited Texas' customary no-huddle, hurry-up offense and their confidence for seeing them to victory in pressure packed games. He also opined that the Horns might be the best two-loss team in college football and that they might make it into a Bowl Championship Series game. Trubow said that the punting by OSU's Matt Fodge may have been the most impressive performance of the game.

The Longhorns suffered several injuries according to the Statesman, "Center Dallas Griffin left the game with a knee injury, linebacker Jared Norton left with a right shoulder injury and Eddie Jones left with a shoulder injury. Brandon Foster injured his chest in the third quarter, and Drew Kelson left the game with a left knee injury." The paper reported that the loss of Griffin may have contributed to several mistakes in snapping the ball to McCoy and that UT might not have been able to win had any of the bobbles ended up being turnovers for Texas.

For the Cowboys, the loss dropped them to 5–4 overall, 3–2 in the Big 12, and likely eliminated their chance of winning the Big 12 Conference South Division. The Cowboy coaches appeared shaken-up after the loss. OSU offensive coordinator Larry Fedora called the loss "gut-wrenching". Mike Gundy said "There's nobody whose heart has been ripped out more right now than myself." He said he could not explain how the Longhorns were again able to come from behind except "they made the big plays in the fourth quarter and we didn't." Defensive coordinator Tim Beckman added, "I’m extremely disappointed for the seniors, the fans and for everybody involved with Cowboy football."

The Stillwater News Press reported, "It’s almost too much to take, hearing that Twilight Zone music playing as it happens in front of you. There’s not enough antacid in this community for Oklahoma State football fans, as they were witness to another gut-grinder at Boone Pickens Stadium on Saturday afternoon...24 unanswered points, all coming in a 311-yard fourth quarter for the Longhorns. It was the kind of comeback that probably made a lot of people in attendance want to puke."