Texas 36, Oklahoma 20
Mack Brown might have quieted the critics for a week anyway.
Case McCoy threw two touchdown passes, Daje Johnson returned a punt for a score and Johnathan Gray and Malcolm Brown each went over 100 yards rushing as the Texas Longhorns helped their beleaguered coach with a 36-20 upset of 12th-ranked Oklahoma on Saturday at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas.
It was the best win of the season for Texas (4-2, 3-0 Big 12), which struggled out of the gate with losses to BYU and Mississippi that has had many calling for Brown's job.
The Sooners (5-1, 2-1) lost for the first time this season. They had blown out Texas the last two years, 63-21 in 2012 and 55-17 in 2011.
Texas jumped ahead to stay in the first quarter when defensive tackle Chris Whaley returned an interception 31 yards to put the Longhorns up 10-7.
Texas then outscored Oklahoma 26-10 over the next two quarters to make it convincing.
McCoy hit Marcus Johnson on a 59-yard touchdown pass with 8:46 left in the first half, and Anthony Fera added two more field goals, from 50 and 43 yards, to give the Longhorns a 23-10 halftime lead.
Oklahoma's only first-half touchdown came on Damien Williams' 3-yard run.
The Texas defense shut down the Sooners, holding them to 263 yards and just 2 of 13 third-down conversions. Blake Bell completed just 12 of 26 passes for 133 yards, throwing two interceptions and no TD passes.
Oklahoma cut the lead to 23-13 with Michael Hunnicutt's 37-yard field goal early in the third quarter, but Johnson returned a punt 85 yards for a touchdown and McCoy hit Mike Davis on a 38-yard TD pass at the end of the quarter to put Texas ahead 36-13.
Oklahoma scored the only points of the fourth quarter, on a 54-yard interception return.
Gray ran for 123 yards on 29 carries, and Brown tallied 120 on 23 attempts as the Longhorns piled up 255 yards on 60 carries.
McCoy was 13 of 21 for 190 yards, the two scores and the pick six.
NOTES: Gray, a sophomore, has carried the ball at least 20 times three times in his career and Texas has won all three -- also at Texas Tech in 2012 and against Kansas State this season. ... Brown's 154th victory in 16 seasons at Texas tied coach Bob Stoops' win total in 15 seasons at Oklahoma.
