John Shinn
DALLAS — Oklahoma came to the Cotton Bowl to stake a claim as the Big 12 Conference front-runner. Instead, Texas firmly planted its flag as the dominant force in the conference and at the center of the Cotton Bowl.
The 14th-ranked Sooners buckled under the seventh-ranked Longhorns’ second-half onslaught and fell 28-10 in the 101st edition of the Red River Rivalry.
Texas (5-1, 2-0 Big 12) dominated the second half in ways it has rarely accomplished in recent years.
Selvin Young and Jammal Charles combined for 125 yards on 23 carries. Redshirt freshman quarterback Colt McCoy didn’t dominate the game the way Vince Young did a year ago, but he was effective, throwing for 108 yards while only putting the ball in the air 18 times.
But he didn’t make any mistakes. That was the difference.
The Sooners (4-2, 0-1) put together a comedic performance, but it was the kind of performance only Texas fans found funny.
OU, which dropped its second straight game to Texas in lopsided fashion, committed five turnovers and 11 penalties.
“You can break games down a million ways, but nothing’s more important than that,” Stoops said of the errors.
It was a dismal performance by a team that believed it had turned a corner after a controversial loss to Oregon.
For a while OU made that statement. It dominated the second quarter and took a 10-7 lead into the half.
Adrian Peterson, who rushed for 109 yards on 25 carries, tied the game 7-7 with a 29-yard dash halfway through the second quarter. Garrett Hartley added a 35-yard field goal in the waning seconds before intermission.
At that point, the Sooners appeared well on their way to seizing the game.
Texas took the first lead on Selvin Young’s 15-yard touchdown run midway through the first quarter. But the Longhorn offense went into a shell the rest of the first half, running nine plays in the second quarter and gaining 1 yard.
“We had a great first quarter and they took the momentum away from us completely in the second quarter and right before the half,” Texas coach Mack Brown said. “… We really played as good a second half as I think I’ve seen us play.”
It’s hard to imagine Texas playing any better, or OU playing any worse.
“It’s a four-quarter game,” Stoops said. “You’re going to make plays, they’re to make plays. They were running the same plays in the third quarter they were running in the second quarter. They just executed them better than we defended them.”
That showed from the second-half kickoff.
McCoy hit Limas Sweed for 33-yard touchdown on the Longhorns’ first second-half drive and added a 7-yard toss to Jordan Shipley later.
Those two scores had the Texas end of the Cotton Bowl going nuts. OU did little to move to the enthusiasm to its end.
“They came out in the second half and took the momentum,” OU safety Nic Harris said. “We didn’t have the tenacity in the second half like we did in the first.”
Thompson threw for 209 yards and tried to rally the Sooners early in the fourth quarter. Facing a third-and-13 with a little over 12 minutes left, he hit Juaquin Iglesias with a 14-yard strike down to the Texas 15.
But Tarell Brown jarred the ball loose and Robert Killebrew returned it to the Longhorns’ 40.
“Paul was pressured on the play, so the ball came in a little high,” Iglesias said. “The defender hit me right on the ball as I was coming down.”
The Sooners never threatened again and added to their woes less than 2 minutes later.
It pretty much summed up the Sooners’ afternoon.
Thompson threw a lateral to Peterson, but the junior running back thought it was an incomplete pass. Aaron Ross thought differently, and the officiating crew agreed. Ross scooped it up and returned it 3 yards for a touchdown.
It was the final nail in OU’s coffin and it was driven in with a jackhammer. There was nothing left to see for Sooner fans. OU’s half of the 76,260 in attendance bolted for the exits.
Texas fans remained and celebrated in unison. Those wearing burnt orange knew by then they had their first winning streak over the Sooners since 1999.
The reality hit OU like a ton of bricks.
“It is disappointing,” defensive end Larry Birdine said. “We were a non-factor in the second half. It was frustrating being a senior knowing we can’t ever play them again and redeem ourselves.”
The Sooners will have to wait until next Saturday’s game against Iowa State to do that. But no matter what, they’ll know unless Texas stumbles hopes of a Big 12 title are out of their control.
John Shinn366-3536jshinn@normantranscript.com
