Baylor ran into a trio of bad circumstances Saturday night: a bad run of injuries, bad ball security, and the bad luck to face an Oklahoma State team rounding into form. That was more than enough to hand the Bears their first loss of the season, 49-17, Saturday night in Stillwater, Okla.
Cowboys quarterback Clint Chelf was 19-of-25 passing for a career-high 370 yards and three touchdowns, adding a 4-yard rushing touchdown and a 48-yard reception on a throwback pass from wide receiver Josh Stewart.
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That was more than enough for OSU to take control of the Big 12 Conference. A win on Dec. 7 against Bedlam rival Oklahoma will send OSU to the Fiesta Bowl for the second time in three seasons.
Missing their starting left tackle, middle linebacker, two most-experienced running backs and second-leading receiver, Baylor still had opportunities to extend its dream season. On its second possession, BU drove down to the goal line, but running back Shock Linwood got stuffed and fumbled the ball. Capitalizing on the turnover, OSU drove 99 yards the other way for a 7-0 lead.
Another promising Baylor drive ended when quarterback Bryce Petty couldn't fall on a bad snap and cornerback Tyler Patmon took it 78 yards for a touchdown.
Petty was solid, going 28 of 48 for 359 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions with 46 rushing yards on 11 carries. But the lack of big plays in frigid conditions (longest pass was 53 yards; longest run was 27 yards by Petty) made the Bears look surprisingly ordinary.
What was set to be the game's marquee matchup of draft prospects never materialized, as OSU cornerback Justin Gilbert only played obvious passing downs because of a shoulder injury, seeing only limited snaps against Baylor wide receiver Antwan Goodley (10 receptions for 118 yards and one touchdown).
Follow Dan Greenspan on Twitter @DanGreenspan.
