Texas and Big 12 Capsules: Shipley's record day leads No. 2 Texas, 35-3

AUSTIN — At the end of his big day, a group of Texas fans were chanting Jordan Shipley’s name when he was pushed out of a group of Longhorns players, flashed a quick "Hook’em Horns" salute and jumped back into the pack.

For a guy who seldom likes to talk about himself, even he had to acknowledge the best day ever by a Longhorns receiver.

"That was fun," Shipley said. "I was trying to hide in the back but those linemen grabbed me and tossed me out in front of everyone."

Shipley caught 11 passes for a school-best 273 yards and a touchdown as No. 2 Texas shook off a slow start for a 35-3 win Saturday over Central Florida. His total yards smashed the previous school best of 242 set by Tony Jones against Pittsburgh in the 1987 Bluebonnet Bowl.

"He’s the best receiver in the country," Texas receiver James Kirkendoll said. "There’s nothing he can’t do on the field."

Shipley’s biggest moment on a day full of big catches was an 88-yard touchdown pass from Colt McCoy early in the fourth quarter on a drive that started at the 1.

Afterward, Texas coach Mack Brown joked he’d like to get another year of eligibility for his sixth-year senior.

"We’d like to get him a seventh," Brown said. "He just keeps playing so well."

McCoy was very close to a school passing mark as well. His 470 yards was just shy of current running backs coach Major Applewhite’s 473 against Washington in the 2001 Holiday Bowl.

McCoy took his last snap with 9:13 to play. Texas coach Mack Brown briefly considered putting him back in to break the record, then worried it would be bad form didn’t want to risk an injury.

"I just decided no, we’ve got some goals out here and neither of them are passing yards," Brown said.

The goals are much bigger than that: winning Big 12 and national championships. Texas remains in perfect position to chase both.

It took the Longhorns a little while to get up to speed, though.

After three big wins over Oklahoma, Missouri and Oklahoma State, the Longhorns seemed ripe for a letdown. Brown tried to keep his players sharp by talking about the goals in front of them.

But the home crowd was late showing up for the 11 a.m. kickoff and the Longhorns’ offense was slow waking up. Early miscues included a rare missed field goal by Hunter Lawrence and a bobbled pitch by McCoy on a flea flicker. Catch the ball and he had John Chiles wide open behind the defense for an easy score.

"We went into the game expecting a fight," McCoy said. "We should have come out with more of an edge to start the game."

The defense kept things in control until McCoy and Shipley could get rolling. Central Florida (5-4) managed just 151 total yards, the third Texas opponent held under 200 this year.

The Knights started reserve quarterback Rob Calabrese and was without leading rusher Brynn Harvey. Calabrese, who started the first two games of the season before being replaced by Brett Hodges, was 10 of 19 for 76 yards and was sacked six times.

"It’s awesome to play in front of 100,000 people. Not many people can say they have played in a stadium like this." Calabrese said.

McCoy and Shipley eventually found their rhythm. Long passes to Shipley kept Texas’ two scoring drives moving in the first half. Two touchdown runs by Cody Johnson put Texas ahead 14-3.

McCoy then hit Kirkendoll with a 14-yard TD pass in the third before the big strike to Shipley.

Shipley made a double move to slip behind coverage, snared the ball in stride and easily pulled away for the score.

"We gave up too many big plays. Shipley had too many big plays," Central Florida coach George O’Leary said.

McCoy spread the ball around to nine receivers to keep the Central Florida defense guessing where he was going. The play before the TD to Shipley, McCoy hit Chiles for 12 yards to get Texas off the goal line.

Since a bad outing against Oklahoma, McCoy has been sharp the last three weeks.

"I don’t think there’s any doubt this is the way we’ll see him play the rest of the year," Brown said.

Texas is now 9-0 for the first time since 2005, the season Texas went 13-0 and won the national championship.

"Any time you can be part of a team that’s undefeated, that’s what I came back for," Shipley said.

Colorado bounces back to beat Texas A&M 35-34

BOULDER, Colo. — The fans were protesting by wearing powder blue and booing, the Colorado Buffaloes were reeling and Tyler Hansen’s head had to be spinning.

He had just been sacked for the seventh time and was about to go down again when he got off a shovel pass in the nick of time to tailback Demetrius Sumler, bringing up third-and-16 from his own 33 with the Buffs trailing by six and time running out.

It was the start of a frenetic and fantastic finish for the Buffaloes as Hansen overcame his second-straight eight-sack game to lead Colorado to a 35-34 win over the Texas A&M Aggies on Saturday.

On third-and-long, Hansen hit Markques Simas for 45 yards, then threw a strike to tight end Patrick Devenny, whose one-handed grab in the end zone from 22 yards out tied it. Aric Goodman’s conversion sailed through to put the Buffaloes ahead by a point with 2:04 left.

After defensive back Anthony Perkins picked off Jerrod Johnson’s pass at midfield, the Aggies forced a punt. But backup Terrence Frederick, who replaced regular returner Dustin Harris (ankle), bungled it and Buffs linebacker Marcus Burton recovered with 23 seconds left.

"At first, I’m thinking I’m going to lay him out and then he muffed it. Then there were three guys who (touched) the ball, too, so I’m just like, ‘I want to grab it,"’ Burton said. "I knew the game was ours, take a knee, get the ‘dub,’ come into the locker room and sing the fight song."

Simas had a breakout performance, catching seven passes for 135 yards and Rodney Stewart ran 20 times for 118 yards and two touchdowns for Colorado (3-6, 2-3 Big 12), which held twice near the goal line.

The first time came on the Aggies’ first drive of the game, when they failed to punch it in twice from inside the 1. That factored into coach Mike Sherman’s thinking when he sent out the field goal unit on fourth-and-goal from the 3 in the closing minutes and his team up by three points.

The 20-yard kick by Randy Bullock made it 34-28 and the Buffs got the ball back with 3:53 remaining.

The Aggies (5-4, 2-3) looked like they were about to become bowl eligible when Cyrus Gray, whose 99-yard touchdown on a kickoff return helped them take a 21-10 halftime lead, returned a kickoff 45 yards to midfield in the fourth quarter. Tack on 15 more for a late hit, and the Aggies started their drive at the Colorado 40-yard line.

But they stalled at the 3 and Bullock’s field goal left the Buffaloes within striking distance with four minutes left. That was plenty for Hansen, who threw for 271 yards and ran for 45 more. His running yards would have been higher, but he lost 60 yards in sacks.

"He took some shots out there today and got dinged up and still made some plays," Buffs coach Dan Hawkins said. "Without Tyler’s ability to run, especially early on, we would have been in trouble."

And if not for his strong right arm and sudden elusiveness, they would have been in danger late.

"You can see that he’s a fighter, the way he kept making things happen," said Aggies safety Jordan Pugh, whose interception led to a field goal that gave Texas A&M a 10-point lead with 11 minutes left. "He willed their team to that win."

Despite being on his backside for much of the afternoon.

"He’s a slippery guy," insisted NCAA sacks leader Von Miller, who had two of Texas A&M’s season-high eight sacks, giving him 15½. "He’s a pretty good guy, slippery guy that took control of the game and won it for them."

The Buffaloes had been reeling with Hawkins on the cusp of his fourth-straight losing season and the departure during the week of sophomore tailback Darrell Scott, his prized recruit.

"He’s a great guy," Hansen said, "but it motivated us to prove people wrong. We’re OK as a program."

Some fans in the student sections at Folsom Field wore powder blue instead of gold protest of the program’s slide into mediocrity. It was the color the team wore from 1981-84 when they went 10-34 overall during one of the worst stretches in school history.

But those same fans were among those who stormed the field afterward, making the scrum look very much like the ones Scott hopes to see at UCLA down the road.

"Like I said before the game," Hawkins said, "the real Buffs are wearing black and gold."

-- Arnie Stapleton

Dalton leads No. 6 TCU to 55-12 win over SDSU

SAN DIEGO — TCU rolled over San Diego State to stay in the perfect position for a stretch run to a BCS bowl.

Behind Andy Dalton’s two touchdown passes and a pair of TD runs, and its top-ranked defense, No. 6 TCU ran its winning streak to 12 games in a 55-12 rout of San Diego State on Saturday.

The Horned Frogs (9-0, 5-0 Mountain West) remained in the chase for their first BCS bowl with a dominating performance.

"That’s the big thing," Dalton said. "Our ultimate goal is to end the season undefeated. We have a lot of potential but we have to keep going out and playing like this."

Dalton led an offense that scored on five of its first six possessions and gained more than 500 yards for the second straight game. The Horned Frogs were ahead of fellow undefeated Boise State, from the Western Athletic Conference, in last week’s BCS standings.

The Horned Frogs jumped in front with touchdowns on five of their first six possessions in the first half. Dalton scored on runs of 13 and 7 yards as TCU held a 31-6 halftime lead. He also hit Ryan Christian on TD passes of 44 and 29 yards.

"Early in the season on the road, we didn’t start out fast," TCU coach Gary Patterson said. "One of the things I think we are finally doing, especially on offense, is that we are starting faster. That’s what you have to do in the last half of the season. You let people hang around, anything can happen."

San Diego State (4-5, 2-3 MWC) struggled against TCU’s top-ranked defense, managing just a 30-yard TD pass from Ryan Lindley to DeMarco Sampson and two field goals by Lane Yoshida.

"That was a long day," Aztecs coach Brady Hoke said. "I haven’t been in one of these in a long time. They’re a good football team. We got beat in every phase."

TCU’s 11-game winning streak is the nation’s third-longest behind Florida’s 18-game and Texas’s 13-game streak. Iowa had won 13 straight before losing to Northwestern earlier Saturday. The top-ranked Gators took on Vanderbilt later Saturday.

The Horned Frogs have outscored their last four opponents, 178-25. TCU, which gained a season-high 578 yards in last week’s 41-0 win at UNLV, had 551 against the Aztecs.

"Right now, we are a confident team," Horned Frogs running back Joseph Turner said. "We feel that no matter what play the coaches call, we are going to be successful."

Turner led TCU with 79 yards on nine carries and scored on a 4-yard run. Ed Wesley added a 5-yard TD run and Matthew Tucker scored from 30 yards.

Dalton, who left the game late in the third quarter, finished 14 of 20 for 239 yards. He also rushed for 44 yards on five carries. Christian had three catches for 106 yards.

"We have so many athletes on this team," Dalton said. "It makes it easy to get the ball to different people and let them do their thing."

TCU ran the ball for 312 yards on 53 carries. It was the second straight game the Horned Frogs topped 300 yards rushing, the first time since November 2000, when LaDainian Tomlinson was a senior.

The Horned Frogs’ defense, ranked first in the country in total defense, produced four turnovers that led to 13 points. The Aztecs, who had their two-game winning streak snapped, gained just 279 yards.

Lindley completed 16 of 34 passes for 164 yards.

Florence’s passing helps Baylor top Missouri 40-32

COLUMBIA, Mo. — A record-setting day from a freshman quarterback who began the season as the third stringer helped Baylor win at Missouri for the first time in 36 seasons.

Nick Florence passed for a school-record 427 yards and three touchdowns and ran for a fourth, spurring a second-half comeback in a 40-32 victory on Saturday.

Baylor had lost 23 straight games when trailing at halftime since erasing an 18-point deficit at Colorado on Oct. 7, 2006, and won at Missouri for the first time in 36 years.

"Nick makes a lot of people believe in him," Baylor coach Art Briles said. "He’s a rally guy. People kind of rally around him."

Kendall Wright set career highs with 10 receptions for 149 yards and two touchdowns as the Bears (4-5, 1-4) ended a 13-game Big 12 road losing streak, beat Missouri for the first time in eight tries in conference play and produced their first road victory against the Tigers since Sept. 23, 1973.

Baylor, worst in the conference against the run, rallied from an 11-point halftime deficit and held Missouri to 10 yards rushing on 25 carries in the game.

"Start fast, play strong, finish strong — that’s all it comes down to," said wide receiver David Gettis, who had eight catches for 110 yards. "When we play fast tempo and keep the ball, give the defense a break, they get to make plays like they did today."

Danario Alexander had a career-high 13 receptions for 214 yards and two scores for Missouri (5-4, 1-4), which has lost three straight at home for the first time since 2004. Alexander’s 84-yard reception in the second quarter, the last 65 yards after bouncing off a tackler, was the Tigers’ longest play of the season.

The first two losses in the streak, to No. 2 Texas and Nebraska in a driving rain, were more understandable to Missouri than this one.

"Your guts are torn out," Missouri coach Gary Pinkel said. "You get what you deserve and we didn’t deserve to win."

Missouri’s Blaine Gabbert passed for the second-highest total in school history, going 30 for 51 for 468 yards and two touchdowns. But he was shut down along with the rest of the Missouri offense in the second half. The Tigers made it to the Baylor 16 in the final minute before running out of downs.

"They did what they thought they’d do," Pinkel said. "I’d like to say they played a whole new offense and defense, but they didn’t. We gave up a lot of big plays on defense."

Missouri has been outscored 38-8 in the second half the last two games, although its 33-3 cushion was enough in last week’s 36-17 victory at Colorado.

"Usually, I’ve taken a lot of pride in fixing problems," Pinkel said. "If you don’t fix them, you’re sitting right where you’re at."

Baylor went without a first-half touchdown three straight games before embarrassing Missouri behind Florence, who climbed the depth chart due to injuries. Florence completed 11 of his first 12 passes and finished 32 for 43, and he broke the school record of 412 passing yards set by Blake Szymanski in 2007 against Rice.

"It’s a win," Florence said. "Who cares what my stats are? I’ll do anything to get a win."

Szymanski started one game after Robert Griffin was lost for the season with a knee injury in late September, and the senior was the backup Saturday after missing two games with a bruised shoulder.

Baylor had gone 26 games without a 300-yard passing game, let alone a 400-yard game. St. Louis Rams rookie offensive tackle Jason Smith, the second overall pick of the draft out of Baylor, took advantage of his team’s week off and watched from the sideline.

Baylor scored on its first two drives. The Bears took a 9-7 lead on their first offensive touchdown in 80 minutes and 4 seconds, Florence’s 8-yard keeper with 2:13 to go in the first quarter.

Gabbert had 322 yards passing in the first half with both touchdowns coming late to help Missouri take a 27-16 lead. The Tigers led 27-16 at the break after Wes Kemp’s 7-yard catch with 1 second to go.

-- R.B. Fallstrom

Hogan’s 51-yard FG lifts No. 13 Houston 46-45

TULSA, Okla. — Case Keenum walked off the field, his hands on his helmet, as No. 13 Houston appeared destined for defeat.

Moments later, the Cougars’ prolific quarterback was given a second chance. And he came through with another comeback to add to his Heisman Trophy resume

Keenum hit back-to-back passes to put Houston in field-goal range and Matt Hogan kicked a 51-yard field goal as time expired to lift the No. 13 Cougars to a 46-45 victory against Tulsa on Saturday night.

It was the latest addition to a series of wild finishes for Keenum and the Cougars.

"This tops the craziest one," Keenum said.

After getting sacked on a potential tying 2-point conversion with 21 seconds left, Keenum bounced back to complete a 14-yard pass to James Cleveland and a 13-yarder to Tyron Carrier to set up Hogan’s kick with just 3 seconds left. He drilled the ball just inside the left upright, igniting the Cougars’ celebration.

The Cougars (8-1, 4-1 Conference USA) rushed onto the field and hoisted Hogan into the air after he connected on the longest kick of his career. He hadn’t made a field goal of longer than 34 yards before his game-winner.

Tulsa (4-5, 2-3) players splayed out on the field after suffering their fourth straight loss.

"It was just chaos," Cleveland said. "They were sprinting on the field, and I just had to sit there for a minute. I didn’t go sprinting on the field. I just had to let it soak in."

Keenum finished with 522 yards on 40 for 60 passing with three touchdown passes. It was the second straight game with more than 500 yards passing for the nation’s most productive passer.

"Our team believes in him," Houston coach Kevin Sumlin said. "Offensively, defensively, everybody does, that no matter what the score is, we’re never out of the game."

Charles Clay scored four touchdowns, and G.J. Kinne threw for a career-best 334 yards and three touchdowns and also ran for a career-high 100 yards for Tulsa (4-5, 2-3). The Golden Hurricane had kept Houston out of the conference championship game the last two years as West Division champions.

The Cougars remained tied for the West lead with SMU with the win, but only after more heroics from Keenum. Last week against Southern Miss, he threw for a career-high 559 yards and five touchdowns — including the game-winner with 21 seconds left, coincidentally.

"We played two ranked teams down to the wire," said Tulsa coach Todd Graham, whose team also lost 28-21 to undefeated Boise State earlier this year. "This one hurts really bad for our players. I thought our guys outplayed them in all three phases."

Patrick Edwards had 11 catches for a career-high 176 yards and Cleveland had 12 catches for 167 yards and three scores. Carrier had a kickoff return for a touchdown for the second straight year against Tulsa, but also had a muffed punt that allowed Tulsa to take a 38-27 lead in the third quarter.

The teams combined for 1,229 yards of total offense — Houston with 695 and Tulsa a season-high 534. The Cougars lead the nation in total offense this year, while Tulsa did so the past two seasons.

The Golden Hurricane had kept the Cougars at bay in the fourth quarter, getting a goal-line stand and then forcing Keenum & Co. to settle for a field goal on their first two drives.

Keenum handed off four straight times after reaching first-and-goal at the 10 with a chance to take the lead. Tanner Antle and Dexter McCoil stood up Bryce Beall on fourth-and-goal from the 1 to get the ball back, but Tulsa then went three and out.

Keenum found Cleveland for a 19-yard pickup on third-and-20 on the next drive, and Sumlin settled for Hogan’s 26-yard field goal to get within 38-37 with 8:08 to play.

Clay jumped into the end zone from 1 yard out to put the Golden Hurricane ahead by eight in the final 3½ minutes, but that only set the stage for Keenum and Hogan.

Keenum led a 61-yard scoring drive, capped by his 1-yard TD throw to Cleveland, then tried to roll to his right to avoid the unblocked Antle.

"I was pretty mad at myself after that play. I should have seen the blitz coming," Keenum said, crediting his offensive line for picking up everyone they were supposed to block.

Tim Monroe recovered the onside kick, after it bounced off of McCoil.

"At that point, you’ve just got to make one play at a time," Keenum said. "You’ve got to just keep leaving yourself a chance. Keep pressing forward and see what happens.

"Matt made the biggest play of the game."

-- Jeff Latzke

Anderson, Tulane top Texas-El Paso 45-38 in OT

NEW ORLEANS — Andre Anderson scored the tying touchdown with one second left in regulation, then rushed for the winning score in overtime as Tulane defeated Texas-El Paso 45-38 on Saturday.

Anderson scored on an 11-yard pass from Ryan Griffin to conclude a nine-play, 86-yard drive and force the extra period, then scored on a 7-yard touchdown run on the first possession of overtime.

Anderson, a senior playing his last home game, finished with 105 yards on 29 carries.

The Miners reached the Green Wave 2-yard line on the ensuing possession, but on fourth down from the 5, Alex Wacha sacked Trevor Vittatoe for a 21-yard loss that ended the game.

Tulane (3-6, 1-4 Conference USA) snapped a four-game losing streak with three road games remaining.

The Green Wave’s rally ruined a 343-yard, four-touchdown game by the Miners’ Donald Buckram. He rushed 34 times for 234 yards and three touchdowns and caught three passes for 109 yards, including a 72-yard touchdown.

After Tulane took a 14-10 lead early in the second quarter, Buckram scored UTEP’s next four touchdowns on his 72-yard catch from Vittatoe, and runs of 28, 36, and 10 yards. The last touchdown gave the Miners a 38-31 lead with 5:12 remaining.

Following an exchange of punts, the Green Wave took over at its 14 with 1:13 remaining and no timeouts. Griffin drove Tulane into UTEP territory, but faced third-and-17 from the 37.

Griffin completed a 26-yard pass to Jeremy Williams. After an incompletion to stop the clock, Griffin threw a swing pass to Anderson, who sliced through the defense and dove across the goal line with one second left.

McNeal scores twice as SMU beats Rice 31-28

DALLAS — Shawnbrey McNeal rushed for 88 yards and two touchdowns to lift SMU to a 31-28 win over Rice Saturday afternoon.

The Mustangs (5-4, 4-1 Conference USA) blocked three kicks. After Sterling Moore blocked one as time expired in the first half, Bryan McCann returned the ball 74 yards for a score, giving SMU a 21-20 halftime lead. McCann’s score helped SMU erase a 13-point first-half deficit.

Defensive end Margus Hunt blocked an extra point attempt and a field goal attempt by Rice (0-9, 0-5).

McNeal scored on a 9-yard run in the fourth to give SMU a 31-20 lead. Rice narrowed the SMU lead to 31-28 with 1:47 left when Nick Fanuzzi threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to Toren Dixon and the Owls converted the 2-point conversion.

Mustang quarterback Kyle Padron finished 17 of 24 for 234 yards and one touchdown. Padron started his second consecutive game for the injured Bo Levi Mitchell. He’s won both games.

SMU’s Emmanuel Sanders led all receivers with 136 yards receiving on six receptions and one touchdown. Sanders also became the active leader among all Division I Football Bowl Subdivision players with 30 career receiving touchdowns, one ahead of Oklahoma State’s Dez Bryant.

Fanuzzi completed 29 of 42 for 250 yards and three touchdowns. He threw first quarter touchdown passes of 33 and 11 yards to Patrick Randolph in the span of 1 minute, 15 seconds.

Charles Ross also scored for Rice with a 1-yard touchdown run in the second.

SMU needs one more victory to become bowl eligible. The Mustangs last appeared in a bowl in 1984.

Louisiana-Monroe takes 33-6 win over North Texas

DENTON — Trey Revell and LaGregory Sapp hooked up for a pair of touchdown passes and Greg James picked off three throws as Louisiana-Monroe snapped a two-game slide with a 33-6 victory Saturday over North Texas.

ULM tailback Frank Goodin ran for 102 yards and 2 TDs, the last of which came with 2:38 to play to cement the Warhawks’ fourth win in their last five against the Eagles (2-7, 1-5 Sun Belt).

The James-led defense allowed just 268 total yards and held the conference’s top scoring offense to two field goals. Louisiana-Monroe (5-4, 4-1) held UNT to 79 yards on the ground.

Two of James’ interceptions came in the second half. His 16 career interceptions are the most in school and Sun Belt history. He is also the NCAA’s active leader.

Revell, who threw for 282 yards on 14-of-22 passing, hit Sapp for scoring passes of 12 and eight yards.

Texas State gets past Central Arkansas 27-24

CONWAY, Ark. — Bradley George threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Darius Bolden with 27 seconds remaining as Texas State edged Central Arkansas 27-24 in a back-and-forth game Saturday night.

The contest featured six lead changes and neither team led by more than six points.

George’s winning TD pass was his third of the game, and he also completed 27 of 39 passes for 301 yards for the Bobcats (6-3, 4-1 Southland). Daren Dillard caught nine passes for 147 yards and a score.

Brent Grimes had 166 rushing yards and two touchdowns for the Bears (5-4, 2-3). His second TD, which came on a 2-yard run, put Central Arkansas up 24-20 with 1:40 left.

The Bears’ defense couldn’t hold, though, and Texas State drove 50 yards on eight plays for the winning score.

Late rally lifts Stephen F. Austin to 31-27 win

NACOGDOCHES, Texas — Jeremy Moses’ 6-yard touchdown pass to Duane Brooks with 2:45 remaining highlighted a 10-point fourth-quarter rally as Stephen F. Austin defeated Nicholls State 31-27 on Saturday.

Moses was 36-of-47 for 366 yards and four touchdowns for the Lumberjacks (7-2, 4-1 Southland Conference).

Nicholls State (1-8, 0-5) was led by Marlin Meeks’ 144 yards and a touchdown on 16 rushing attempts but was held scoreless after leading 27-21 at halftime.

The winning score culminated a seven-play, 61-yard drive for Stephen F. Austin in which Moses completed all five pass attempts.

Brooks’ eight receptions (for 59 yards) tied for a team high. Contrevious Parks had 111 yards on six catches.

Quarterback LaQuinton Caston ran and passed for scores for Nicholls State, but the Colonels were held to 122 yards in the second half.

Parks, Aaron Rhea and Tyrone Ross caught the other scoring passes from Moses.

Prairie View beats Alabama A&M 33-27

PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas — KJ Black threw for three touchdowns and Prairie View survived a late rally by Alabama A&M to defeat the Bulldogs 33-27 Saturday night.

Prairie View (5-4, 2-3 Southwestern Athletic Conference) got out to an early lead, scoring on the opening drive when Gabe Osaze-Ediae caught a 21-yard pass from Black.

Black found Osaze-Ediae again to score on a 72-yard pass and connected with Anthony Weeden on a 21-yard scoring throw, all before the half.

The Bulldogs’ only first-half score was a 42-yard rushing TD by Ulysses Banks. They trailed 24-7 at halftime.

After giving Prairie View a safety and allowing a 4-yard rushing score by Donald Babers in the third, Alabama A&M (5-4, 2-3) turned it on.

Deaunte Mason scored on a pair of 1-yard runs, and Rashad Johnson caught a 4-yard TD pass from Kevin Atkins. But the Bulldogs couldn’t close the gap.

McNeese State defeats Sam Houston State 63-42

LAKE CHARLES, La. — Toddrick Pendland rushed for 171 yards and four touchdowns and McNeese State rolled up 608 yards of offense in a 63-42 victory over Sam Houston State on Saturday night.

It was the highest scoring game in McNeese State history, surpassing Sam Houston State’s 52-47 victory over the Cowboys in 2004.

Pendland averaged 8.6 yards a carry and McNeese State averaged 10 yards a carry as a team as the Cowboys (7-2, 4-1 Southland Conference) rushed for 418 yards.

Derrick Fourroux added 118 yards rushing and tied the school record for combined touchdowns with 90, rushing for one and throwing for another. He was 8-for-16 for 190 yards.

McNeese State led 28-14 at halftime and the teams exchanged touchdowns in the third quarter before the Cowboys took command with 21 fourth-quarter points.

Blake Joseph led the Bearkats (4-5, 2-3) with 300 yards passing and four touchdowns.

Big 12

Neb. intercepts OU’s Jones 5 times in 10-3 win

LINCOLN, Neb. — No matter how ugly, a victory against Oklahoma is always special for Nebraska. Just ask Cornhuskers coach Bo Pelini.

"I’ve had some great ones, but this ranks right up there," Nebraska’s second-year coach said.

Matt O’Hanlon had three of the Huskers’ five interceptions against Landry Jones, and they squeezed enough production out of their struggling offense to beat No. 20 Oklahoma 10-3 on Saturday night.

Nebraska snapped a four-game losing streak against its longtime rival.

"That game could have gone a lot of different ways, and we just found a way to hang in there and hang in there, and we made enough plays to win the football game," Pelini said.

The Sooners (5-4, 3-2 Big 12) failed to score a touchdown for the first time since a 29-0 loss to Texas A&M in 1998.

The Sooners had 325 total yards, but they moved inside the Nebraska 20 just once, turned over the ball three times on downs, missed two field goals and had another one blocked.

Then there were those interceptions.

Nebraska picked off five passes in a game for the first time since 2003 against Texas A&M, and O’Hanlon became the first Huskers player since 1979 to intercept three.

"They made the plays they needed to win the game," OU coach Bob Stoops said. "It would have been hard for our defense to play much better. Offensively, we moved the ball quite frequently, but we couldn’t produce points. We didn’t execute well enough or they’d execute better than we did in the red zone."

The Cornhuskers (6-3, 3-2) won despite getting just seven first downs and 180 total yards. They were able to get a yard when they really needed it, after Prince Amukamara returned an interception to the OU 1 in the second quarter. Zac Lee threw to Ryan Hill for Nebraska’s fourth offensive TD in four games.

Oklahoma’s last two possessions ended on interceptions, including O’Hanlon’s third, which he grabbed at the Nebraska 7 with 27 seconds left.

O’Hanlon ran back his first interception 30 yards to set up Alex Henery’s 28-yard field goal.

"Personally, it can’t get much better," said O’Hanlon, who also had a team-leading 12 tackles.

Roy Helu Jr. ran for 138 yards on 20 carries for Nebraska, which beat Oklahoma for first time since 2001.

After Lee took a knee to end the game, Helu and a band of teammates dashed to the end zone stands to do their own version of the "Lambeau Leap" to celebrate with fans.

The Cornhuskers moved to within a half-game of first-place Kansas State in the Big 12 North race.

Jones, who completed his last 14 passes against Kansas State a week earlier, missed on 10 of his first 12 and finished 26 of 58 for 245 yards.

Jones’ five interceptions came after a run of three games in which he completed 64 percent of his passes with seven touchdowns and three interceptions.

"Obviously, I’d like to have a couple of those plays back," he said. "I missed a couple of throws high. Goes over the receiver’s head and the safety was right there. The ball was sailing on me a little bit."

Oklahoma turned the ball over on downs three times inside the Nebraska 25. Twice the Sooners were unable to convert fourth-and-1s at the 20, including one messed up by a false-start penalty on left tackle Trent Williams.

"Offensively, we took care of the football, and we were playing well defensively," Pelini said. "I just felt like we were in control. Even when they got down there close, I felt we were in good shape."

O’Hanlon dropped what looked to be a sure interception on the play before he picked off Jones to finish off the Sooners. O’Hanlon flung the ball into the air, drawing an excessive celebration penalty, and then the Huskers ran out the last few seconds.

Nebraska led 7-3 at half and had made only one first down.

Quarterback Cody Green, who made his first start in last week’s 20-10 win at Baylor, led the Huskers’ first five possessions. With the freshman in charge, the Huskers generated no first downs and 19 total yards.

Lee replaced Green after Amukamara’s interception and connected with Hill for the touchdown on his first pass.

"How about our defense?" Lee said. "It’s fun to watch when you have a defense like that. It’s good to know as a quarterback that they can lock down a game."

-- Eric Olson

No. 18 Oklahoma State cruises past Iowa State 34-8

AMES, Iow — Oklahoma State needed a bounce-back performance and Keith Toston helped the Cowboys deliver one.

Toston ran for a career-high 206 yards and three touchdowns, Zac Robinson threw a touchdown pass and No. 18 Oklahoma State came back strong from its drubbing by Texas with a 34-8 victory over Iowa State on Saturday.

Oklahoma State (7-2, 4-1 Big 12) controlled with game with solid play on both sides of the ball and reached seven victories for the fourth straight season, the first time in school history that has happened.

"We’ve always been able to bounce back, and that’s just how our team is," Robinson said. "We’ve faced a lot of adversity this season, I mean, more than anybody ever expected. And to see us bounce back again from a tough loss last week to a great win today, it’s just a tribute to the leadership we have and guys just stepping up."

Toston, who carried 25 times, scored on runs of 2 and 17 yards as Oklahoma State built a 27-0 lead, then topped off his big day with a 1-yard TD plunge in the fourth quarter. That came three plays after he broke loose on a 69-yard scamper to the ISU 2 for the longest run of his career.

A 6-foot, 214-pound senior, Toston became the Cowboys’ main back when Kendall Hunter was sidelined by a sprained right ankle in the second week of the season. He twice had topped 100 yards, but had never approached the number he put up against the Cyclones.

His previous career best was 148 yards against Missouri State last year.

Hunter, the Big 12’s leading rusher last season, saw his most extensive action since getting hurt and showed some of his old elusiveness while carrying nine times for 47 yards. The Cowboys rolled up a season-high 331 yards on the ground.

"It’s great to see all our backs and the offensive line play so well," Robinson said. "We felt good about our running matchup today and did a good job using that to our advantage."

After throwing four interceptions in the 41-14 loss to Texas, Robinson was on the mark in this one and replaced his coach, Mike Gundy, as Oklahoma State’s career passing leader.

Robinson finished 19 of 24 for 142 yards, including a 10-yard touchdown strike to Tracy Moore. He already had been the school’s career leader in touchdown passes and total offense and now has thrown for 8,065 yards.

"I’m really happy for Zac," Gundy said. "Zac’s been really good for our football program. He’s been a strong leader and he’s led this football team in the right way, so anything that he earns I think is very well deserved."

Iowa State (5-5, 2-4) was blanked until the fourth quarter and has only three touchdowns to show for its last 13 quarters. The Cyclones managed just 54 yards rushing. They had been averaging a league-best 200.3.

"I thought their front seven controlled the game," Iowa State coach Paul Rhoads said.

Oklahoma State stalled on its first two drives and settled for field goals of 42 and 48 yards by Dan Bailey. But Robinson took the Cowboys on an 14-play, 98-yard drive the next time they had the ball for a 13-0 lead and their defense, along with Toston, did the rest.

Robinson capped that drive by finding Moore all alone in the left corner of the end zone, getting rid of the ball just before Iowa State’s Christopher Lyle leveled him. That moved him past Gundy, who threw for 7,997 yards in his career.

"I joke with Zac — that’s back when we only threw about 21, 22 forward passes a game," Gundy said.

Toston’s 2-yard TD run capped an 80-yard, 11-play drive that was helped when Iowa State’s Bailey Johnson was called for a horse-collar tackle on Robinson, who threw an incomplete pass on the play.

Oklahoma State made it 27-0 after getting the ball at the Iowa State 46 following a punt that went only 21 yards. The Cowboys needed just six plays for the touchdown, Toston speeding the final 17 yards untouched.

"This is a great team we played," Cyclones safety James Smith said. "They found some holes and they slipped through them."

Iowa State had hoped to get a spark with quarterback Austen Arnaud returning after he missed two games with a bruised throwing hand. But the Cyclones didn’t top 100 yards until the 7-minute mark in the third quarter and avoided being shut out for the first time in 64 games when running back Alexander Robinson turned a swing pass into a 45-yard touchdown play.

Arnaud finished 14 of 27 for 188 yards and three interceptions. He was sacked three times.

"We started slow and came out flat," Arnaud said. "You can’t expect to beat a good team in the Big 12, or any team, when you start out flat and only score eight points."

Thomas leads K-State to 17-10 win over Kansas

MANHATTAN, Kan. — Bill Snyder orchestrated a massive turnaround in his first stint at Kansas State’s coach, transforming a team with more losses than any other into a national title contender.

After a rough start, his second reclamation project seems to be going well, too.

Daniel Thomas ran for 185 yards and a touchdown, and the Wildcats harassed Todd Reesing into three turnovers to remain in control of the Big 12 North with a 17-10 victory over rival Kansas on Saturday.

Picked to finish at the bottom of the Big 12, Kansas State (6-4, 4-2) has won three straight games against Big 12 North opponents and is 5-0 in the Little Apple since Snyder returned to the stadium that bears his name.

The Wildcats stayed close against Kansas by forcing two fumbles and an interception by Reesing in the first half, then took over in the second behind Thomas’ bruising running to end a three-game losing streak to Kansas (5-4, 1-4) in the 107th version of the Sunflower Showdown.

Two games from the finish, Kansas State is inexplicably in position to reach its first Big 12 championship game since 2003.

"It’s about trying to build whatever it is you’re trying to build, kind of put one stone on top of the other," said Snyder, who is 14-4 against Kansas. "Hopefully, over a period of time, it’ll take us where we’d like to be. This is a step."

Reesing had another forgettable game a week after being benched, undone by early turnovers, occasionally wobbly passes and a few drops.

He finished with 241 yards on 27-of-41 passing, most of it on short throws between the 20s. Reesing was only able to get the Jayhawks into the end zone once and Jacob Branstetter missed 30-yard field goals in each half, giving Kansas its first its four-game skid since 2006.

"It goes without saying that when we lose to our rival, it hurts more than losing to someone else," said Reesing, the fifth player in Big 12 history to throw for over 10,000 yards (10,204). "We enjoyed a pretty good stretch there for three years in a row. It’s the first time I’ve had a loss to K-State and that’s not what you want."

The Jayhawks might have had a chance if they could have stopped Thomas in the third quarter.

The junior college transfer dashed for 40 yards up the middle to open the first drive of the second half, setting up his 5-yard touchdown run that put the Wildcats up 17-7. Thomas had 105 yards in the quarter, becoming the ninth player in Kansas State history to eclipse 1,000 yards in a season with 1,087

He later helped Kansas State close out the victory, teaming with Grant Gregory to grind out the final 5:20 after Branstetter hit a 46-yard field goal, giving the Wildcats their ninth straight home win over Kansas under Snyder.

"Nobody expected us to be where we are today," Thomas said. "We were picked at the bottom of the Big 12 in every poll, but we knew what kind of team we were. We showed it today."

Reesing was a Heisman Trophy candidate through the first five games, throwing for over 1,600 yards and 13 touchdowns with three interceptions.

His season started to come unhinged with a strained groin against Colorado, leading to seven turnovers over the next three games. A three-year starter, Reesing was benched for the first time in the fourth quarter against Texas Tech last week after being sacked six times and failing to move the offense.

It didn’t get any better.

Reesing was dropped for a 12-yard loss on Kansas’ first drive after Darrell Stuckey returned the opening kickoff 67 yards, then threw a nowhere-near-his-receiver interception inside Kansas State’s 10-yard line on the second drive. He closed out the first quarter by doinking a side-armed shovel pass off Toben Opurum’s facemask.

Midway through the second quarter, Reesing finally found a rhythm.

Getting cornerback Joshua Moore to bite on a play-action fake, he threw a receiver screen to Dezmon Briscoe, who turned it into a 17-yard touchdown and a 7-3 lead.

The success was shortlived.

Reesing fumbled on the next drive, stripped from behind by Jeffrey Fitzgerald on a scramble inside the Kansas 25. Next drive, same thing: Trying to get extra yards on a scramble, Reesing had the ball jarred loose by a hard hit with 36 seconds left in the half.

Josh Cherry missed a 39-yard field goal after the first fumble, but Reesing and the Jayhawks weren’t so fortunate after the second. Gregory hit Lamark Brown on a 31-yard touchdown to put the Wildcats up 10-7.

"He was just playing hard," coach Mark Mangino said of Reesing. "He is a great player. He gives us the best chance to win at that position. He tries hard, he gives you everything he has. I’m not going to be critical of a player who gives his heart and soul to the program."

-- John Marshall