Shortly after the College Football Playoff rankings came out, many media experts said that the Big 12 needed to produce an undefeated champion in order to get a team in the field.
Naturally, I disagree. I even made the case for it in Friday’s column about what to expect this weekend.
In case you didn’t read that column, the gist of that snippet was that Oklahoma was still very much alive in the College Football Playoff picture if it was to win out.
Saturday night was a huge step forward, as the Sooners handed Baylor its first loss of the season.
Make no mistake about it: this was an impressive victory. Sure, some experts didn’t think much of the Bears because they hadn’t really played anyone this season. While that’s certainly true, the fact of the matter is that Baylor destroyed everyone that it played, and was never really in danger of losing this season. The number of lopsided wins, coupled with an explosive offense that came into the game ranked fourth in rushing yards per game, seventh in passing yards per game, and first in points per game, is exactly why the Selection Committee (correctly) listed the Bears in the top six.
Yet, none of those things mattered on Saturday. The Oklahoma defense rose to the challenge against the Bears’ potent offense, and emerged victorious as a result. Yes, Baylor still managed to rack up 416 yards of total offense, but that was still the lowest output for the Bears this season. After the first series of the game, the Sooner defense did a great job of taking away the BU run game, tackling Shock Linwood (7.81 yards per carry heading into the game) in the backfield for negative plays. The secondary was equally impressive, taking away the deep routes for most of the evening, and recording two interceptions, including a game-icing pick with less than five minutes to play.
As well as OU’s defense played, the offense deserves most of the credit for this victory. After struggling against Baylor the past two seasons, the Sooner offense came out firing on all cylinders. Despite the rainy conditions, Baker Mayfield had a solid outing, completing 24 of 34 passes for 270 yards and three touchdowns — the last one coming on a great play in which he patiently waited for a receiver to break open in the end zone. The Bear defense had no answers for Sterling Shepard, who hauled in 14 passes for 177 yards and two touchdowns.
Of course, the ground game also had a great evening, running for 241 yards against a Baylor defensive front that came into the game 17th nationally in tackles for a loss.
So, what does this win mean in the grand scheme of things?
To be perfectly honest, it makes Oklahoma a national championship contender. Yes, they’re currently 12th, but that will certainly change for the Sooners with Stanford, Baylor, and LSU losing this week. Regardless of where OU ends up in next week’s standings, it still has games with TCU and Oklahoma State to end the season. If it wins those contests, it’s tough to see them missing the field. Remember, no one thought Ohio State had a chance at making it last year, either. Yet, after finishing the season with three wins over ranked opponents, the Buckeyes ended up in the field and winning the inaugural College Football Playoff.
There’s no reason to think that it couldn’t happen again.
