No. 20 Oklahoma State beats BYU in 2OT to advance to Big 12 title game

Oklahoma State safety Trey Rucker forced a fumble to get the Cowboys to the Big 12 title game.

Rucker stripped the ball from BYU tight end Isaac Rex to preserve a 40-34 double overtime win for the No. 20 Cowboys and get them a matchup with No. 7 Texas in the Dec. 2 championship game.

OSU’s win came after the Cowboys overcame an 18-point second-half deficit until BYU forced overtime with a field goal as the fourth quarter ended.

BYU had a 24-6 halftime lead after Oklahoma State had one of its worst first halves of the season. The Cowboys trailed by 18 late into the third quarter, too, before star running back Ollie Gordon scored his second touchdown of the day.

Gordon went on to score three more times before the game ended. His third touchdown gave Oklahoma State (9-3, 7-2 Big 12) a 27-24 lead with 53 seconds to go, but BYU didn’t fold. Jake Retzlaff led the Cougars down the field and Will Ferrin hit a 48-yard field goal as regulation ended.

BYU scored first to open overtime before Gordon’s fourth TD tied the game and sent it to a second extra period. Gordon had a great cutback and leap across the goal line for his fifth touchdown in the second OT just minutes before Rucker stripped Rex.

Gordon finished the game with 34 carries for 166 yards and also had four catches for 10 yards. Gordon enters the Big 12 championship game with 1,580 rushing yards and 20 rushing TDs; he should be a lock for an All-American spot.

The Big 12 title game trip is the second in three years for Oklahoma State and it's fair to believe that most of the remaining members of the conference will be rooting for the Cowboys. Next week's game is Texas' last in the conference before both the Longhorns and Oklahoma Sooners head to the SEC. Had Oklahoma State lost, Oklahoma would have faced Texas in a Red River Rivalry rematch.

BYU (5-7, 2-7 Big 12) played the game as aggressively as it could knowing that a bowl spot was on the line. The Cougars entered the game as 17.5-point underdogs and punter Ryan Rehkow converted a 36-yard pass on a fake punt to star defensive end Tyler Batty in the first half.

However, the Cougars couldn't do anything in the second half to keep Oklahoma State at bay. BYU punted on its first six drives of the second half before the field goal to end regulation and had just 56 yards of offense before it got the ball back with less than a minute to go.