Baylor Crumbles against Oklahoma State in Waco, Loses by 11
WACO, Texas — The No. 16 Baylor Bears (3-2) opened their October with a 36-25 loss at the hands of No. 9 Oklahoma State (4-0) in Waco.
The Cowboys led this game by as many as 20 points, but Baylor had its chances to mount a comeback throughout the second half. Trailing just 33-25 in the third quarter, the Bears never could fully recover from their early deficit.
Despite the loss, Blake Shapen logged a 28-40 performance for 328 yards, two scores and two interceptions while Richard Reese ran the ball 17 times for 85 yards and a score.
The first half was bad for Baylor. Offensively and defensively, it was just bad. After taking a 3-0 lead on the first possession, the Bears' offense effectively stalled. 156 yards of offense and a 2-7 clip on third and fourth down was not doing it.
Defensively, Baylor could not stop the run. After not allowing over 100 yards rushing in a game this season, Oklahoma State logged 112 in the first half alone. Sanders had 72 of those yards on 10 carries. When he got out of the pocket, Baylor was in trouble.
Aranda's squad entered halftime trailing 16-3 after a one-yard Sanders run for a score with under 30 seconds remaining in the half.
To open the third quarter, Oklahoma State returned the kickoff for a 98-yard touchdown. At 23-3, a portion of fans began their head start to the car.
But not so fast, cue a Shapen 49-yard dime to Monaray Baldwin for a touchdown, a Christian Morgan interception and a Reese score to make it 23-17. It took just 4:25 for this game to be flipped on its head.
Subsequently, a two-play, 50-yard drive ensued.
Oh, but the fun was surely not over there. Oklahoma State would notch a field goal soon after, but a 16-point deficit was not way cool with Shapen. Cue more Baldwin.
While the window to win was there, Baylor didn't have enough magic late. A Shapen interception in the fourth quarter on the possession that could have tied the game effectively sealed this outcome. The Cowboys remain unscathed with a 36-25 win.
The Bears get plenty of rest before meeting West Virginia for a night game in Morgantown on Thursday, Oct. 13.
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