Oklahoma State vs. Baylor: TV Info, Spread, Injury Updates, Game Time and More
How the Baylor Bears perform Saturday night against the Oklahoma State Cowboys will decide much about the race to the inaugural College Football Playoff.
The Bears have just one loss this season, but a mostly cupcake schedule has done little to separate Art Briles' team from the flock of hopefuls in the same situation. Still, the Bears are fresh off a bye that came after a 48-14 public dissection of Oklahoma, so they might just control their own fate at this point.
Things are a tad gloomier for the .500 Cowboys, a team that enters Saturday riding a four-game losing streak and a 3-4 mark in the Big 12. Bowl eligibility and the chance to play the spoiler can be quite the motivating factors, though.
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With the pressure on against a team with nothing to lose, Baylor might just stumble and ruin everything. Or not, which is the beauty of this time of year—every game matters.
Something to Prove
Baylor quarterback Bryce Petty understands what is on the line Saturday night.
"Each week, we have to go and prove ourselves," Petty said, per STATS LLC, via ESPN.com. "You can't get into the playoffs if you don't win, so these next three games are huge for us."
In other words, the Bears want to put on an offensive fireworks show against the Cowboys to demand the attention of the committee that decides the four teams that will play in the CFP.
It sounds mean, but that may not prove too difficult. Petty leads the nation's No. 1 scoring offense, which averages 50.1 points per game thanks to his 2,421 yards and 21 touchdowns to three interceptions. He is flanked by a number of talented rushers who post gaudy numbers when given the chance:
| Shock Linwood | 177 | 864 | 4.9 | 39 | 12 |
| Johnny Jefferson | 76 | 407 | 5.4 | 23 | 3 |
| Devin Chafin | 55 | 262 | 4.8 | 18 | 5 |
| Silas Nacita | 31 | 191 | 6.2 | 28 | 3 |
| Seth Russell | 25 | 156 | 6.2 | 31 (TD) | 3 |
Now contrast that with the Cowboys, a team that ranks 91st in total defense with an average of 30.0 points allowed per game. Things have been especially bad in recent weeks thanks to a tough schedule that has seen the defense allow a minimum of 28 points in four consecutive losses.
"You can come up on them and try to stop them in the flats, but then they'll throw it over your head," Cowboys Mike Gundy said, per STATS LLC. "If you stay off of them, they'll throw it in the flat. If you throw too many people back in coverage, they'll try to run the ball on you."
The conundrum in front of the Cowboys is a perplexing one, clearly. Then again, a team with its back against the wall and nothing to lose can pull off some pretty lofty feats, so if the Cowboys come out fired up, all numbers may very well go out the window.
Crisis and Hope
Things continue to go from bad to worse for the Cowboys.
Starting quarterback J.W. Walsh was lost for the season earlier this year. Now the Cowboys are in jeopardy of missing a bowl game for the first time in almost a decade with matchups against Baylor and Oklahoma to close the season—and they might have just lost another starting quarterback.
This time it is Daxx Garman, who apparently suffered an injury last week, per Bill Haisten of the Tulsa World.
In other words, the Cowboys may be forced into starting freshman Mason Rudolph. So it goes for a team in shambles at the moment, although there is reason for the reeling Cowboys to have some faith.
This is a road game and the team is down some key players, but think back to last year when the Cowboys took down the Bears, 49-17. The Bears so far since their return to relevance have seemed due for a letdown each November.
In fact, the team has had three serious tests this year. One was a close 61-58 win over TCU. One was the blowout of Oklahoma. The last was a 41-27 loss to West Virginia. For a Cowboys team with nothing to lose, there is solace in the fact that the Bears are nowhere near perfect—they have recent first-hand proof.
When: Saturday, November 22, 7:30 p.m. ET
Where: McLane Stadium, Waco, Texas
Television: Fox
Betting Lines (via Odds Shark):
- Over/Under: 68.5
- Spread: Baylor (-28)
Team Injury Reports
| Kris Catlin | LB | 08/23/2014 | will miss the entire season | Out | academics |
| Ashton Lampkin | CB | 11/16/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Baylor | Questionable | ankle |
| Juwan Offray | CB | 10/24/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| J.W. Walsh | QB | 09/12/2014 | will miss the entire season | Out | foot |
| Troy Baker | T | 10/19/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | knee |
| Desmine Hilliard | G | 10/16/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | wrist |
| Jamal Palmer | DE | 10/06/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | knee |
Injury reports per The Sports Network, via USA Today.
Prediction
A sloppy outing from the Bears, such as the one against the Mountaineers in which they went just 3-of-16 on third down, can doom them Saturday, even against these Cowboys.
Luckily for the program, Petty is not the type of leader who will let something like that happen again.
The Bears have a prolific offense and will feast on weak opposition. Oklahoma State is going to bring a ton of pressure and get in Petty's face, but the attack is too dynamic for the Cowboys to fully halt in any significant manner.
A statement will be heard loud and clear Saturday night, with Petty and other starters likely not playing a full four frames.
Prediction: Bears 42, Cowboys 23
Statistics and info courtesy of ESPN unless otherwise specified.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
