(Sue Ogrocki/AP photo; previous weekly reviews here)
Texans 24 Raiders 17
The banged-up Texans (4-5) gamely beat a dreadful Raiders (2-6) team in front of a few close friends and relatives in a nearly-empty Oakland Coliseum. Although the Raiders are one of the worst teams in the NFL along with Miami and St. Louis, the Texans played hard and overcame injuries to their starting QB (Matt Schaub), their best defensive back (Dunta Robinson) and their best running back (Ahman Green). The Texans get a badly-needed bye week next weekend before returning weekend to face the revived Saints (4-4) at Reliant.
As one columnist put it:
Texas A&M chewed up considerable chunks of Owen Field turf with precise execution Saturday night.
And then the Aggie Band left the field.A comment from an Aggie friend pretty well sums up how far the Aggies (6-4/3-3) football expectations have fallen under Coach Fran: “Well, at least it wasn’t 77-0.”
With less than 9 minutes to go in the 3rd quarter, with the Aggies already down 28-0 and with a first down on the Oklahoma 44, check out the following sequence:
1st and 10 at TA&M 47 — Jorvorskie Lane rush for 9 yards to the Okla 44.
2nd and 1 at OKLA 44 — Stephen McGee pass incomplete.
3rd and 1 at OKLA 44 — Stephen McGee pass incomplete.
4th and 1 at OKLA 44 — Justin Brantly punt for 27 yards, fair catch at the Okla 17.
4th and 1, in Oklahoma territory, down by 28, and Coach Fran doesn’t have the Aggies go for it? My sense is that the Aggies have surrendered. Another lopsided loss is likely at Missouri (8-1/4-1) next week before the Aggies’ regular season mercifully ends on the Friday after Thanksgiving in College Station against UT (8-2/4-2).
Texas Longhorns 38 Oklahoma State 35
With under 12 minutes to go, the Cowboys (5-4/3-2) led the Horns (8-2/4-2) 35-14 and had outgained the Horns 495 yards to roughly 300 yards. Less than 8 minutes later, the Longhorns had tied the score and, a couple of minutes later, Longhorn K Ryan Bailey kicked the winning field goal to pull out the victory.
During that 4th quarter, Texas had 311 of its season-high 589 yards of total offense and scored on all four possessions, including drives of 91 and 99 yards. QB Colt McCoy completed all eight of his passes in the 4th quarter for 145 yards and came up with a 14-yard scramble that put the Horns within range of Bailey’s game-winning field goal.
But the real story was RB Jamaal Charles, who had an incredible 4th quarter for the second straight week. Charles had 125 of his 180 rushing yards and two touchdowns in the 4th quarter, which means that he has 340 rushing yards and five TDs in the 4th quarter during the last two games!
As noted a couple of weeks ago, this relatively mediocre Longhorns team remains in the hunt for a BCS bowl game if they can beat Tech (7-3/3-3) at Austin next Saturday and the Aggies in College Station on the Friday after Thanksgiving. On the other hand, this Horns team is eminently capable of losing both games. Now, that’s entertainment!
The Cougars (6-3/5-1) dodged an inspired bullet in beating the Mustangs (1-8/0-5) in the ESPN Sunday night game at the Rob. The Mustangs, who clearly were playing with enthusiasm for their recently-fired head coach (Phil Bennett), gave the Coogs all they could handle. Only a revived Houston defense in the 4th quarter and the usual 500+ of total offense from the Coog offense pulled this one out. And, oh yeah, the Cougars all-everything RB Anthony Alridge even threw for a TD in this one. The Cougars go on the road for their C-USA showdown game with Tulsa (6-3/4-2) next Saturday.
How on earth did the Owls (2-7/2-3) manage to win this game despite committing seven turnovers and allowing UTEP to recover two onside kicks? QB Chase Clement was outstanding (395 yards passing and six TDs; 103 yards rushing and two TDs), while WR Jarett Dillard (11 receptions for 168 yards and two TDs) was merely very good (he lost a fumble after a 60 yard catch and run). Ever since last year’s Rice-UH game, I’ve been a big Clement fan, so it would not surprise me if the Owls win their final three games of the season (at SMU (1-7/0-4), at home against Tulane (2-7/1-4) and Tulsa (6-3/4-2)), particularly if the Owls can mount any meaningful defense in those games. Clement and Dillard are the real deal.