Stillwater, Okla: No. 10 Texas Tech beats Oklahoma State 52-27 to stay playoff alive

STILLWATER, Okla. No. 10 Texas Tech defeated Oklahoma State 52-27 on Sunday to keep its bid for a return to the Big 12 championship game and the College Football Playoff alive. The Red Raiders built a 21-0 lead early in the first half at Boone Pickens Stadium before withstanding a 17-0 scoring run by the Cowboys. Despite the comeback, the margin grew again after halftime as Texas Tech extended its lead to 28-20 at the break.

Thomas Castellanos passed for 263 yards and four touchdowns for the Red Raiders. Malcolm Simmons opened the game by returning the opening kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown, silencing the home crowd. Castellanos found Simmons again early in the third quarter with a 45-yard pass to extend the lead to 35-20. He later connected with Kenny Johnson on a 30-yard scoring play to make it 42-20 and found Micah Hudson for an 80-yard touchdown after evading pressure.

Oklahoma State quarterback Drew Mestemaker passed for 277 yards and two interceptions in the defeat. He accounted for 186 of those yards in the first half. The defense managed to sack Mestemaker three times in the second half, helping shut down the Cowboys’ offense after the intermission. Mestemaker was replaced by freshman Broderick Vehrs with about eight minutes remaining, and Vehrs led a scoring drive in the final minute to add to the Cowboys' total.

The Cowboys, who entered the week with the Big 12’s top offense at 44 points and 534 total yards per game, outgained Texas Tech 465 yards to 442. However, they settled for field goals on drives of 62 and 70 yards. The game was played in cold and rainy conditions. This marks the 11th time in the last 14 meetings between the two schools that the combined score reached at least 70 points.

Coach Joey McGuire called the performance the Red Raiders’ most complete game against a ranked College Football Playoff team. “We just keep finding ways to win,” McGuire said. “Tonight, I think, was probably our most complete game against a great team, a ranked CFP team. I have a lot of respect for Eric, he's one of my favorite people in the world. But man, our guys responded.”

Oklahoma State head coach Eric Morris, a former Texas Tech player and coach, described the result as an old-fashioned butt-whipping. “I think it started from the very first play for them, so hat's off to Texas Tech,” Morris said. “Obviously, they're who everybody's chasing right now .. the reigning champions. It started off on the wrong foot.” The loss largely ends the Cowboys’ chances in conference play.

Texas Tech improves to 9-1 overall and 6-1 in conference play, while Oklahoma State falls to 6-4 overall and 4-3 in the Big 12. The Red Raiders will travel to Baylor on Saturday, and the Cowboys will face Arizona State at home on Saturday.