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No. 7 OU survives surge from No. 18 TCU to move one win shy of Big 12 title

Across the state, No. 10 Baylor rode a strong second half performance from its third-string quarterback to an important win. That same formula nearly worked to perfection for No. 18 TCU, but Bram Kohlhausen‘s go-ahead two-point pass was batted away by Oklahoma’s Steven Parker and the 7th-ranked Sooners survived, 30-29.

TCU jumped out to an early lead on a pair of long passes from freshman starter Foster Sawyer to Kolby Listenbee, but Oklahoma’s defense and running game dominated the rest of the half as the Sooners cruised to a 23-7 lead.

But OU quarterback Baker Mayfield sustained a head injury after taking a blow to the helmet from TCU’s Ty Summers in the first half, and team doctors pulled the Sooners’ quarterback from the game over halftime.

The complexion of the game completely changed from that moment on.

Oklahoma’s offense ground mostly to a halt with 2014 starter Trevor Knight back under center, producing six punts, an interception, a missed field goal and a turnover on downs on all but one drive. The other? A 72-yard Samaje Perine scoring dash.

Perine’s run pushed Oklahoma’s lead to 30-13 with 7:55 to play in the third quarter, and the score remained that way until Kohlhausen hit Kavontae Turpin for an 86-yard touchdown pass with 8:59 remaining.

The Frogs added a 43-yard Jaden Oberkrom field goal with 6:27 remaining, then a 14-yard scoring toss from Kohlhausen to Emmanuel Porter with just 51 ticks remaining. Instead of playing for overtime, Gary Patterson opted to go for two and the win, and Kohlhausen’s scrambling toss was deflected by Parker.

Sawyer started the game for TCU and played like a freshman making his first start on the road, completing 8-of-18 throws for 107 yards with the early touchdown and three interceptions. Kohlhausen hit 5-of-11 passes for 122 yards with two touchdowns while rushing twice for 10 yards. Aaron Green rushed 23 times for 126 yards and a score.

Mayfield completed 9-of-20 attempts for 127 yards and two scores while rushing 10 times for 42 yards before giving way to Knight. Knight’s performance validated Mayfield’s position as a starter, as he hit only 5-of-16 throws for 76 yards and an interception.

Perine led the way for Oklahoma with 188 yards and a score on 26 carries. As a team, Oklahoma out-rushed TCU 333-161.

The win pushes Oklahoma (10-1, 7-1 Big 12) into a game with Oklahoma State in Stillwater where the Sooners can clinch a Big 12 title and (at worst) Sugar Bowl berth with a victory. In addition to threats from Notre Dame and others, the Sooners will have to battle style points questions after nearly blowing a big lead against a TCU team playing without Trevone Boykin and Josh Doctson.

TCU (9-2, 6-2 Big 12) is eliminated from conference championship contention with the loss, resorting to spoiler status against Baylor’s quest for a third straight Big 12 title Friday in Fort Worth.