Sanders Makes All The Difference
Spencer Sanders faked a handoff to Chuba Hubbard, charged right and bounced outside to avoid a penetrating defender, used a block on the edge and sprinted to the pylon with Iowa State’s Isheem Young in hot pursuit.
Touchdown.
Fourteen Yards.
Go-ahead score and statement run in a statement game.
Spencer Sanders is back, and so is the full Oklahoma State offense, as the No. 6 Cowboys stand alone atop the Big 12 Standings following Saturday’s 24-21 win over No. 17 Iowa State at Boone Pickens Stadium.
“I was really frustrated with myself for getting hurt, but I’m glad I’m back,” Sanders said after playing for the first time in more than month.
Anybody in orange should be glad he’s back. This Cowboys’ win, their first over a ranked team this season, pushed them to 4-0 overall and 3-0 as the only Big 12 unbeaten. And it featured plenty of positives.
The defense handled the Cyclones for most of the afternoon, holding Brock Purdy to 162 yards passing and harassing and hitting him often. OSU posted three sacks, seven tackles for losses and four pass breakups. ISU’s electric tailback, Breece Hall, broke loose for two long runs on his way to 185 yards, but was mostly bottled up otherwise, while the Cyclones went 3-for-13 on third-down conversions.
Hubbard ran tough, going for 139 yards and a score, often creating his own running room.
Tom Hutton shined, too, on a strong afternoon for the Cowboys kicking game, although Alex Hale did miss a field goal for the first time.
But Sanders was the difference.
“He’s so dynamic,” OSU offensive coordinator Kasey Dunn said.
And this season, as Mike Gundy pointed out, Sanders is much more composed.
“He leads by example, especially,” Hubbard said. “There’s times when he makes plays and you think, ‘What’s this boy doin’?’ He just keeps pushing and pushing…”
Sanders wasn’t perfect Saturday, with rust evident from more than a month away from game action. Bill Haisten of the Tulsa World pointed out that Sanders hadn’t played a full game in 51 weeks.
Still, Sanders showed he remains special, most notably on that run-pass option romp, which followed a 40-yard strike to Tylan Wallace that required patience and vision.
“His ability to run and make plays kept us in the game,” Gundy said.
Put them in front and kept them in front, at least from an offensive standpoint.
Sanders completed 20 of 29 passes for 235 yards and a touchdown, a nice lofted ball to Cowboy Back Jelani Woods covering 34 yards. He threw two interceptions, which were the two regrets on the day.
“If he wouldn’t have done that, you’re talking about a big-time day,” Gundy said. “But he hadn’t played in a while. I was pleased with him. I was mostly pleased with his ability to keep his calm and he was cool throughout the game.
“Spencer’s ultra-, ultra-competitive. He wants everything to be right all the time. It’s not going to be that way in college football. I’ve got the same problem. I do that sometimes on the headphones with coaches.”
After the second interception, which led to an Iowa State TD to tie the game 14-14, Sanders immediately led the Pokes on the go-ahead drive, complete with his dash to the end zone.
Overall, Sanders ran 15 times for 71 yards, clearly showing he’s healthy following the high ankle sprain that took out early in the season opener against Tulsa.
“You want to use what’s his real strength, and that’s running the football,” Dunn said. “He can throw it, too, but we needed (the running ability) at times. And he was able to deliver with his feet.”
It had been a while since we’d seen Sanders showing his full set of skills. A long while.
Spencer Sanders is back. And better. And hungry, too.
“I haven’t felt that adrenaline rush in a long time,” he said. “I felt good. I felt comfortable.
“At this point, I’m just itching for another game.”
