Baylor Football Beats Oklahoma in Norman for Second Time Ever
NORMAN, Okla. — Baylor football (6-3, 4-2) leaves Sooner country with a 38-35 win, its second road victory over Oklahoma (5-4, 2-4) in history.
Dave Aranda has a brand. That brand includes running the football, doing it again and then doing it some more. It has become apparent that it doesn't matter who is doing the running, it's just about running.
Today, Sqwirl Williams was the star. Facing an Oklahoma defense that boasts the 107th rush defense in the nation, Williams carried the ball 25 times for 192 yards and two touchdowns at 7.7 yards per carry.
Parlay that with three Dillon Gabriel interceptions in the first half alone, and you get a great recipe for victory. For the third straight week, Baylor took the ball away and held it.
Unpacking the first half, Blake Shapen threw for 64 yards. Gabriel threw for 208 yards. Oklahoma had 334 yards in general. Baylor only ran 35 plays and had the ball for 16:15. The Sooners also did not punt.
Baylor led the game 24-21 at the break.
Just... wow. Oklahoma got mostly whatever it wanted offensively, but Baylor's three interceptions in the first two quarters were the difference.
Williams' existence did not hurt. In the first two quarters, the junior running back tallied 113 yards and two scores on 12 carries.
The second half started with a masterful drive from offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes. The Bears ate up 4:04 on a nine-play, 75-yard drive that ended in a Richard Reese touchdown.
Though they harbored a 31-21 lead, the Bears were not out of the woods. Oklahoma pulled the game within three on numerous occasions, most notably with 4:05 remaining in the game.
Cue Winfield Scott's Anaconda Plan. Hold the ball. Chew the clock. Suffocate the Sooners. The clock hit zero, and Oklahoma was trailing 38-35. That was it.
Brent Venables' team had 499 yards of offense and went 10-15 on third down. It didn't matter. Five rushing touchdowns for the Bears were plenty enough.
See you next week for Baylor and Kansas State in Waco at 6 p.m. CT.
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