Oklahoma State Crushes West Virginia’s College Football Playoff Dreams
It was your typical Big 12 shootout in Stillwater between two teams desperate for a win for two completely different reasons. One team had playoff and conference title aspirations on the line, while the other was trying to play spoiler on senior day and get bowl eligible. No matter which team you were rooting for, this was Big 12 entertainment at its finest.
The Mountaineers didn’t mess around on their first drive, as they put together a ten-play drive that resulted in a touchdown from running back Kennedy McKoy. Both teams traded a couple punts and the Cowboys finally got on the board thanks to a touchdown pass from Taylor Cornelius to Tylan Wallace to tie the game at seven. To no one’s surprise, the high-flying Mountaineers offense answered right back in just four plays as Will Grier hit Gary Jennings Jr. for a touchdown to go back up 14-7.
Then came a crucial mistake by the Cowboys offense as they fumbled the ball and gave West Virginia great field position deep in Cowboy territory. Eventually, the Mountaineers made the Cowboys pay for that costly mistake by scoring a touchdown to take a two-score lead right before the first quarter ended.
Give the Cowboys credit because they responded well after the fumble as Taylor Cornelius found Logan Carter for a touchdown to cut the lead back to seven. West Virginia would score one more touchdown before the half ended, while Oklahoma State quarterback Taylor Cornelius struggling, throwing two picks in the second quarter. West Virginia went into the half leading 31-14.
Oklahoma State got the ball to start the second half and they cashed in as Taylor Cornelius found Chuba Hubbard for the score to cut the lead down to 10. The Mountaineers fumbled on the next drive and the Cowboys were able to knock in a field goal from the turnover and just like suddenly it was a one score game at 31-24. West Virginia would later knock in a kick to make it 34-24, but once again the Pokes offense stepped up when Cornelius found Tyron Johnson for a touchdown to cut the lead back down to three.
Both offenses would trade touchdowns and with two and a half minutes left in the game, Oklahoma State had the ball on its own 25-yard line down 41-38. Then the magic started to happen as Taylor Cornelius led the offense down the field and hit Tylan Wallace for the touchdown strike as the Cowboys went up 45-41 with 42 seconds left to play. The Mountaineers would get within striking distance, but Will Grier’s last-second pass was broken up by A.J. Green as the clock expired and the Cowboys pulled off the upset, 45-41.
Taylor Cornelius threw for five touchdowns and even though he had a few turnovers, he stepped up when his team needed him most. Cornelius even rushed for 106 yards and a score. Overall, both offenses put up over 550 yards of offense, but somehow, some way, the Cowboys once again beat a top 10 team in a crazy season to get bowl eligible. Meanwhile the Mountaineers dropped to 8-2 and find themselves in (practically) a must-win situation against Oklahoma next weekend to have a chance to reach a Big 12 title game come December. The only way West Virginia can lose to OU and reach the Big 12 title game is if Kansas beats Texas and Kansas State beats Iowa State.
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