The Oklahoma State Cowboys (9-3) stand as the Texas Longhorns’ (11-1) next test. On the surface, Oklahoma State running back Ollie Gordon is the biggest problem for the team to solve.
Gordon has had a tremendous season on the year running for 1,580 yards and 20 touchdowns on 245 carries and 6.4 yards per carry.
The Oklahoma State back certainly isn’t the best running back to wear the orange and black for the Cowboys. Former Heisman winner Barry Sanders’ numbers dwarf what Gordon has done this season. Nevertheless, Ollie is the best running back in college football and a huge reason his team is in the Big 12 title game.
Stopping Gordon might be the initial priority for most teams, but stopping everyone else might be much easier. That’s what Texas did last week against Texas Tech and lead running back Tahj Brooks. Brooks ran for 95 yards on 19 carries while his quarterback Behren Morton threw for just 88 yards on 36 attempts.
The change in defensive approach led to last week’s blowout win over Texas Tech. The Longhorns allowed dominant defensive tackles in T’Vondre Sweat and Byron Murphy to take over on the interior. Linebackers Jaylan Ford, Anthony Hill and David Gbenda cleaned up whatever made it to the second level of the defense. They played aggressive coverage and allowed Tech to get a couple nice runs but little in the way of scoring opportunities.
How does Texas dominate Oklahoma State? Perhaps the best way to beat the team is by allowing the Longhorns defensive front to take on a heavier load and eliminate easy throws for the Cowboys.
Texas hopes to secure its first Big 12 title since the team defeated the Nebraska Cornhuskers 14 years ago.