Stampede: Horns run down stumbling OU, 28-10

10/8/2006

By BRIAN DAVIS / The Dallas Morning News

Oklahoma had a three-point lead and all the momentum at halftime Saturday against rival Texas. For these Longhorns, there was no panic and no pressure.

"We came in the locker room and said, 'We've got to have some fun,' " UT quarterback Colt McCoy said.

The second half couldn't have been fun for the Sooners.

No. 7 Texas stormed out of the Cotton Bowl tunnel and steamrolled No. 14 Oklahoma. McCoy threw for two touchdowns. The UT defense stuffed Adrian Peterson, holding him to 38 second-half yards. And Aaron Ross converted a botched lateral into a touchdown and had two interceptions that sealed a 28-10 victory.

For the second consecutive year, a UT flag was planted at midfield. Longhorns players wore the Golden Hat Trophy, and Texas fans among the 76,260 stood in the stadium's north end and belted out their fight song.

Texas (5-1, 2-0 Big 12) clearly has the upper hand in the AT&T Red River Rivalry. The Sooners (3-2, 0-1) can only wonder why they hurt themselves. OU had 101 more total yards but also turned it over five times and committed 11 momentum-killing penalties. It was the first time UT hadn't committed a turnover in this game since 1967.

"Turnovers and kicking game, rushing yards and explosives are always critical in a game like this," UT coach Mack Brown said. "Today the turnovers were absolutely huge."

OU coach Bob Stoops said: "You can break games down a million ways, and nothing's ever more important than that. They made the plays and had the turnovers, and we didn't."

Some in OU's camp thought that UT's impressive statistics were the result of playing weak nonconference foes. That theory seemed to have merit after the first half. OU had 179 yards and held UT to just one yard on nine plays in the second quarter.

Peterson had an impressive 29-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, and Garrett Hartley's 35-yard field goal just before halftime gave OU a 10-7 lead.

Peterson had 109 yards total, which took some pressure off OU quarterback Paul Thompson (15-for-27, 209 yards). But McCoy (11-for-18, 108 yards) and the Longhorns asserted themselves after halftime.

It started on UT's first possession. On second down from the Sooners' 33, Limas Sweed saw cornerback D.J. Wolfe move up into tight man-to-man coverage – then changed his route. Instead of running 15 yards and turning back to McCoy, Sweed ran a streak and hauled in a touchdown pass.

On UT's next possession, McCoy hit Jordan Shipley in the back of the end zone, just over Nic Harris' reach, for a 7-yard score.

The Sooners still had a chance early in the fourth. But Juaquin Iglesias fumbled at the UT 16, and Robert Killebrew raced 24 yards the other way. Then OU's defense forced a three-and-out, setting the stage for a wild turnover that effectively ended the game.

On second-and-10 from the OU 17, Thompson turned to throw a simple screen to Peterson. But the ball sailed over his head, and Peterson gave up on the play. Ross scooped up the loose ball at the 3-yard line, raced in for an apparent touchdown and UT led, 28-10.

Replay officials John Davidson and Jim Evans reviewed it and decided the ball was thrown and lost at the 12-yard line. By rule, that's a backward pass, referee Cooper Castleberry told the crowd, and the touchdown stood.

"I thought it was a forward pass, but I guess they saw it differently," Peterson said.

Then it was desperation time. Ross made a sliding interception at the UT 38 on OU's next possession. Then he reeled in Thompson's home run attempt at the UT 12 with 1:10 remaining. All that was left was for Brian Robison and Killebrew to stick the UT flag into the ground at the 50.

"To win, it's just a crazy feeling," Sweed said. "To be in that locker room, we sing our Texas fight song and have our little Longhorn party – that's something special."

E-mail brdavis@dallasnews.com