Countdown to Kickoff: Cowboys Come Up Short in Arlington

Oklahoma State’s 2021 season is one of the best in school history, but it is still remembered for a heartbreaking finish.

The Cowboys entered 2021 with limited expectations and began the year unranked. OSU steadily rose the rankings before a midseason loss at Iowa State blemished the team’s record.

Still, the Cowboys responded and had one of their most dominant seasons under Mike Gundy, particularly defensively. The Cowboys finished the regular season with a memorable 37-33 win against Oklahoma in Stillwater to move to 11-1 and set up a matchup with Baylor in the Big 12 Championship.

OSU beat Baylor in the regular season 24-14 but posed challenges in the early October meeting. As the No. 5 team, OSU entered the game as favorites to win the conference and was on track to make its first trip to the College Football Playoff.

OSU had a rough start, trailing 21-3 in the second quarter. Baylor’s two first-quarter touchdowns were set up by a couple of Spencer Sanders interceptions. While he finished with 257 passing yards and was the Cowboys’ leading rusher, Sanders threw four interceptions in one of the worst performances of his career.

Despite the early adversity, OSU battled back and recovered a fumble to set up a drive down by eight points in the fourth. For the third time that afternoon, OSU had to settle for a field goal to make it 21-16. That would remain the score going into OSU’s final drive after forcing a punt with just over three minutes left.

OSU marched down the field and had a first and goal from the 2-yard line. The Cowboys failed to get into the end zone after a couple of Dezmon Jackson runs and an incomplete pass.

With one play to decide the season, OSU went with Jackson. Star running back Jaylen Warren was out with an injury, leaving the Cowboys’ backup in position to make a play on a run to the outside.

However, Baylor stuffed Jackson on his dive for the pylon on the left side and won 21-16. Despite the crushing loss, OSU responded with a 21-point comeback win in the Fiesta Bowl a month later to cap off a 12-win campaign.

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