Oklahoma State vs. Texas Tech: Winners and Losers from Week 5 Contest

The Oklahoma State Cowboys and the Texas Tech Red Raiders played in an old-fashioned, Big 12 shootout Thursday night, which the Pokes ended up winning 45-35.

The fireworks were flying, as the two teams combined for more than 1,000 yards (though they also had almost 300 yards of penalties), and both starting quarterbacks threw four touchdowns each (along with two interceptions apiece).

Both teams kicked off their Big 12 schedule with a bang, and even though Oklahoma State was the obvious winner here, both programs have quite a few positives (and a fair share of negatives) to take away from this matchup.

Winner: Texas Tech Defensive Line

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Against Arkansas a week ago, the Texas Tech Red Raiders were absolutely gashed in the running game. They gave up 438 yards and seven touchdowns to the Razorbacks' committee of backs. Heck, the battle in the trenches was so one-sided, Arkansas only threw the ball 12 times.

It was different story against Oklahoma State.

Yes, it's true: the Cowboys offensive line is young, inexperienced and truthfully not anywhere near as good as Arkansas'. And that fact probably had a lot to do with Texas Tech holding Oklahoma State running backs to just 3.8 yards per carry, a far cry from the 6.8 they gave up to the Razorbacks.

However, you have to take positives where you can get them, and the Red Raiders did a solid job at holding the Pokes backs to minimal gains.

It will be interesting to see what happens when someone like Oklahoma comes to Lubbock, but for now, Texas Tech looks much improved on the defensive side of the ball.

Loser: Oklahoma State's Secondary Depth

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The Oklahoma State Cowboys came into their matchup with Texas Tech as one of the youngest secondaries in the nation.

After a few early injuries, they were forced to get even younger.

Both Larry Stephens and Ashton Lampkin were hurt in the first half, forcing redshirt freshman Tre Flowers and true freshman Ramon Richards into action against a potent Texas Tech passing attack.

Richards is the big story here, as he held up relatively well considering the circumstances. The freshman was burned a few times but had a few nice breakups and an important interception in the red zone.

Stephens was able to come back later in the game; however, if Lampkin can't come back quickly, this could be become a concern for Oklahoma State, as teams will continuously target Richards.

That said, Lampkin looked to be in decent shape toward the end of the game, celebrating with the team following Kevin Peterson's interception. If that's the case, then this slide turns into a positive because Richards' experience makes him an asset coming off the sideline.

Winner: Jimmy Bean

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There are plenty of guys to praise for Oklahoma State on the defensive side of the ball.

As mentioned, Ramon Richards played well above expectations when he was forced into action due to injury. Kevin Peterson shut his side of the field down with three pass breakups and an interception. Seth Jacobs and Ryan Simmons were all over the field, making plays.

However, I want to pay particular attention to Jimmy Bean. I've long been a fan of Bean's, picking him as a guy who was going to have a great year this past spring.

Bean showed why I placed faith in him with his play against Tech. The young defensive end racked up eight tackles, two forced fumbles, three tackles for loss and two sacks.

If Bean can continue to generate that type of performance, he might make a run for Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year.

Loser: Texas Tech Wide Receivers' Hands

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It's hard to criticize a unit that totaled 394 yards and five touchdowns; however, when you dig deeper, you begin to see that the Red Raiders' performance might have been a little overrated.

Remember how electric Davis Webb was in the first quarter? He could do no wrong, and you would be forgiven if you assumed Oklahoma State would limp into halftime down by a considerable margin.

But then something happened.

The Texas Tech receivers started dropping passes.

It wasn't enough to shift the game on its own (penalties certainly helped), but it did kill the Red Raiders' early momentum.

Further, Tech's receivers almost never made key one-on-one plays. Too many times Webb put the ball up in one-on-one situations, only to see Oklahoma State defensive backs beat Tech receivers. Obviously, you can't expect the offense to win that battle every time, but it just felt like the Red Raiders were never interested in helping their quarterback out.

Winner: Ben Grogan

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Ben Grogan only kicked one field goal Thursday night, but it sure was an important one.

Consider: At that point in the game, Oklahoma State was only up by seven, and Davis Webb had yet to be injured. Grogan, who is not known for his in-game accuracy, was called upon to make it a two-score game with a 42-yard field goal.

Last year (and even early this year), most Oklahoma State fans would know how this one ends. Grogan steps up, kicks the ball with eye-opening power and misses his target wide by a foot or two.

However, Grogan flipped the script and calmly knocked in his only field-goal attempt of the night, putting the Pokes up by 10 late in the game.

It wasn't a huge day for Grogan, but that one important kick suggested that he might be finally ready to take the next step in his development.

Loser: Texas Tech's Discipline

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Sixteen accepted penalties for 158 in total yards lost.

That's pretty much all you need to know about Texas Tech's performance Thursday night.

I'd hesitate to say that the Red Raiders beat themselves, as Oklahoma State played very well; however, you just don't win football games when you're moving backward that often.

And it isn't like this is an outlier for Tech. The Red Raiders had at least 60 yards in penalties in every game they've played this season. It doesn't matter how well you can move the ball; if you keep taking points off the board through stupid mistakes, you're going to be in for a long season.

If there's one thing Kliff Kingsbury focuses on this week, it better be discipline. This offense is too talented to have so many opportunities wasted.

Winner: The Quarterbacks

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Between them, Daxx Garman and Davis Webb threw for 744 yards and eight scores. That's some kind of production.

If you're picking a winner between the two, you have to go with Garman. He attempted four fewer passes than Webb completed and only threw for four fewer yards. Add in his late rushing touchdown to effectively seal the game, and you have your clear winner.

That isn't a knock on Webb, as this game might have looked very different if not for his injury in the fourth quarter.

Webb was playing excellent football and could have brought his team back. Unfortunately, we'll never what would have happened in those last eight or nine minutes had Webb stayed in the game.

That said, both quarterbacks walked out of Boone Pickens Stadium with their head held high. Garman and Webb are two of the best quarterbacks in the Big 12, and they proved it Thursday night in Stillwater.