ARLINGTON, Texas – Dezmon Jackson came up inches short on a desperate fourth-down dive in the final seconds for Oklahoma State, knocking the fifth-ranked Cowboys out of contention for a spot in the four-team College Football Playoff.
“Just heartbreak,” Cowboys guard Josh Sills said.
Baylor safety Jairon McVea knocked Jackson out of bounds without letting him reach the pylon with 24 seconds remaining in the Big 12 championship game Saturday, preserving a 21-16 victory for ninth-ranked Baylor at AT&T Stadium, home of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys.
“This moment is something they can never take away,” Bears linebacker Terrel Bernard said.
The Bears improved to 11-2, setting a program record for wins a year after they went 2-7 in coach Dave Aranda’s debut season. Aranda recalled Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy telling him “winning is hard” before an earlier meeting between the teams, and the title game was a clear example of that.
Blake Shapen, starting again for injured Gerry Bohanon (right hamstring) threw three touchdown passes while completing his first 17 attempts as Baylor took a 21-3 lead in the first half. The Cowboys rallied back, though, and went 89 yards on 17 plays on that final drive before their Big 12 and national championship hopes wound up just shy.
Set up with first-and-goal at the 2 after a pass interference penalty, Jackson gained a yard and then was held for no gain before an incomplete pass by Spencer Sanders. On fourth down from the 1, Jackson tried to sweep wide left, but with McVea in pursuit, he barely missed while trying to reach the pylon.
“When I saw the running back with the ball, I thought ‘I’ve got to run this guy down,'” said McVea, who wasn’t even sure where the ball was when the tackle was made. “The ref signaled not a touchdown, so when I saw that I was pretty happy.”
Gundy said Baylor’s defense “made a good play – it’s not 27’s fault” in reference to Jackson.
Sanders threw four interceptions, including one by McVea, and the Cowboys were without leading rusher Jaylen Warren because of his lingering ankle and shoulder trouble.
Third-time Big 12 champion Baylor was in need of chaos via upsets in other conference title games to have a chance to be in the final four for the first time when the CFP rankings come out Sunday. Aranda, the defensive coordinator for LSU during the Tigers undefeated national championship season in 2019, passed on politicking for the playoff, saying “I’m sure it will work out the way it’s supposed to.”
Baylor won with 242 total yards of offense, only 36 after halftime, and Shapen was 23-of-28 for 180 yards.
Oklahoma State had a 3-0 lead on Tanner Brown’s 23-yard field goal set up after all-purpose Baylor back Trestan Ebner fumbled on the opening series of the game. Sanders threw picks on the Cowboys’ next two possessions, setting up Baylor with short fields for three-play touchdown drives that were capped by a 2-yard pass to wide-open tight open Ben Sims and Drew Estrada’s 4-yard catch.
Baylor’s 21-3 lead, and the Cowboys’ largest deficit this season, came after an incredible 13-yard diving catch by Tyquan Thornton with a defender on his back with 5 1/2 minutes left in the first half.
The Cowboys got within 21-16 on Brown’s 20-yard field goal with 8:17 left. That was set up after Ebner muffed a punt recovered by Korie Black, who had ended the first half by deflecting a field-goal attempt that came up woefully short.
McVea had his interception early in the second half, but Baylor failed to get a first down. Instead of punting from their own 36, the Bears went for it on fourth down and Shapen had to just throw the ball away without an open receiver. Eight plays later, Dominic Richardson scored on a 4-yard run for the Cowboys.
“I told the team in the locker room how proud I was that they’ve done everything we’ve asked them to do since January,” Gundy said. “Came up just a few inches short, but I also made them aware of that doesn’t have anything to do with what they’ve accomplished this year.”
The Bears’ season last year ended with a 42-3 home loss to Oklahoma State.
Asked if he could contrast the way last season ended with how his second year played out, Aranada simply said: “No.”