Big 12 Football

The Kansas State Wildcats continue to be a problem for the Oklahoma Sooners after a 41-34 victory at Memorial Stadium on Saturday night.

No. 6 Oklahoma had been cruising to start the season. It won its first three games by a combined score of 127-30, albeit against vastly inferior opponents.

Adrian Martinez led the Wildcats' offensive attack with 382 yards of offense (148 rushing) and five total touchdowns. He ran for 59 yards on the final drive that sealed the win, including a 55-yard scamper on third-and-16.

Martinez scored from one yard out two plays later that gave Kansas State a two-touchdown lead with 1:57 remaining.

The 22-year-old Martinez spent the previous four seasons at Nebraska. He entered the transfer portal in December and opted to play for Kansas State. He came into this matchup with 454 yards of offense in the first three games of the season.

Kansas State was coming off a 17-10 loss to Tulane last week. The offense had just 336 total yards and went 2-of-15 on third downs in the game.

Oklahoma's offense had no problems moving the ball. It racked up 550 yards. Dillon Gabriel threw for a season-high 330 yards and four touchdowns. The junior quarterback has 11 touchdowns without an interception on 117 attempts in four games.

The problem for head coach Brent Venables was the defense and 11 penalties that cost the Sooners 87 yards.

Saturday marked Oklahoma's first home loss to an unranked opponent since Kansas State in September 2020.

Martinez did go up against Oklahoma last year with Nebraska. He was OK with 289 passing yards, 34 rushing yards and two total touchdowns in a competitive game the Sooners won, 23-16.

Wildcats head coach Chris Klieman is doing an excellent job with this program. Now in his fourth season since taking over for Bill Snyder, the 54-year-old has a 3-1 record in four games against the Sooners.

Per Alex Kirshner of Split Zone Duo podcasts, Klieman is 0-4 at Kansas State against ranked opponents outside of Oklahoma.

With Kansas State holding a 27-20 lead early in the fourth quarter, both teams traded touchdowns on the next four drives. The run began with Martinez's 15-yard rushing score with eight minutes remaining.

Oklahoma drove 75 yards in nine plays to cut the deficit down to seven with 4:36 left to play. The Wildcats put the game away with their own 75-yard scoring drive that included Martinez's heroic scamper on third down.

Brayden Willis caught a 10-yard touchdown pass from Gabriel with 35 seconds remaining, but Oklahoma's onside-kick attempt failed, allowing Kansas State to run out the clock.

A marquee win, combined with losses by No. 20 Florida, No. 21 Wake Forest, No. 22 Texas and No. 25 Miami, could push Kansas State into the Associated Press Top 25 for the first time since September 2021.

On the losing end, Oklahoma's playoff hopes are very much up in the air at this point. It will have opportunities for marquee victories, including a showdown with No. 9 Oklahoma State on Nov. 19, but its margin for error is essentially non-existent for the rest of the season.

The Sooners' first chance to rebound will come on Oct. 1 against TCU. Kansas State will host Texas Tech next Saturday.

Texas running back Bijan Robinson continued his phenomenal 2022 season by amassing 123 total yards and two touchdowns against Texas Tech on Saturday.

Unfortunately, Robinson lost a fumble in overtime, and Texas Tech responded with a field goal for the 37-34 win.

The late turnover proved to be the difference, but Texas wouldn't have been in position to win without another great game from Robinson.

The potential future NFL star has gained over 100 total yards in each of his four regular-season matchups thus far, and he was coming off a 202-yard, three-touchdown performance in a 41-20 win over UTSA.

He kept rolling Saturday, gaining 101 rushing yards on just 16 carries. He's now rushed 67 times for 412 yards and seven scores in addition to eight receptions for 154 receiving yards and one touchdown.

Needless to say, many people on college football Twitter were impressed with his efforts.

Some fans were even clamoring for him to get Heisman hype.

However, the game ended disastrously for Robinson and the Longhorns because of the fumble, which is a very rare occurrence.

Still, Robinson certainly has his backers despite the turnover.

Robinson and the Longhorns will look to bounce back Saturday against West Virginia.

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian announced Thursday quarterback Quinn Ewers will travel with the Longhorns for Saturday's road game against rival Texas Tech.

Sarkisian confirmed Ewers is on track to suit up as he nears a return from a shoulder injury but wouldn't say whether he'll start the Week 4 contest.

Ewers suffered the injury during the Horns' 20-19 loss to top-ranked Alabama in Week 2.

The quarterback, who transferred to Texas from Ohio State last December, warmed up before last week's victory over UTSA but didn't play in the game.

He's completed 25 of his 36 throws (69.4 percent) for 359 yards with two touchdowns and one interception across five quarters this season.

Hudson Card has filled the void admirably, nearly leading Texas to the upset of Alabama before a lopsided 41-20 win over UTSA. He's thrown just one touchdown in 50 attempts, however, so it's unlikely he's a threat to Ewers' job once the starter is cleared.

Ewers, a Texas native, was 247Sports' No. 1 prospect in the 2021 recruiting class when he selected Ohio State, but he was unable to secure the Buckeyes' starting job given the presence of Heisman Trophy contender C.J. Stroud before leaving to join the Longhorns.

"This has, obviously, been a dream for me," he told reporters before the season. "Growing up, I was a huge Longhorn fan. I'm just excited to have the opportunity. God blessed me and I'm just super humbled and excited."

Getting Ewers back for the start of the Big 12 portion of the schedule would be a big boost for UT, which has the talent to compete with Oklahoma and Baylor atop the conference.

If he's kept out of the lineup Saturday despite suiting up, his next chance to return would come Oct. 1 when the Longhorns host West Virginia.

All signs point to Ewers leading the Texas offense against the Red Raiders, though.

The longstanding Bedlam rivalry between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State will officially come to an end when the Sooners depart for the SEC in 2025, but Cowboys head coach Mike Gundy wants to make it clear his school is not to blame.

Per ESPN's Dave Wilson, Gundy said Tuesday that Oklahoma State "has no part" in the rivalry ending.

From the perspective of Oklahoma athletic director Joe Castiglione, it's the Cowboys who are calling it quits on the historic rivalry, which has been around since 1904 with 116 meetings between the schools.

"Oklahoma State has shown no interest to schedule any future games in football, so we're moving on," Castiglione said.

Gundy denied the accusation and believes it's not something that is worth discussing because it all hinges on Oklahoma's decision to depart the Big 12.

"Bedlam is history, we all know that. We've known that," Gundy said, "because OU chose to follow Texas and the money to the SEC. It's OK. So now, we're having what I think are childish discussions, in my opinion, over something that's done. And I would like to make this the last statement that I have because I have no hard feelings."

The 55-year-old continued: "But what's going on now is almost a situation with a husband and a wife, or a girlfriend and a boyfriend when you know you're dead wrong and you try to turn the table and make them think they're wrong, when Oklahoma State has no part in this."

While it sounds like Gundy has accepted fate, Castiglione said Tuesday that he hasn't given up on the Bedlam rivalry and he believes it could return "at some point in the 2030s."

As far as Gundy is concerned, the onus doesn't fall on the Cowboys to figure it out because they weren't involved in the "multibillion-dollar conversations" between Oklahoma and the SEC.

"So, everybody needs to get over it and move on and quit trying to turn the tables," he said. "It's somewhat comical that they still want to bring us into this equation. Let's not turn the tables. Let's just say, 'Hey, look, we chose to follow Texas and take the money and we're going to the SEC.' It's all good. Let's quit talking about it. Let's talk about football."

The Sooners will host the Cowboys in what could be one of their final meetings on Nov. 19.

The Bedlam series between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State will come to an end in 2025.

Athletic directors Chad Weiberg of Oklahoma State and Joe Castiglione of Oklahoma told Brett McMurphy of The Action Network there are no plans to continue the rivalry when the Sooners leave the Big 12 for the SEC.

"It (playing Oklahoma) presents logistical issues under our current (scheduling) structure," Weiberg said. "We don’t have any openings to play them. We’re full. Unless there are significant undertakings to make the game happen, it can’t happen."

According to Castiglione, Oklahoma State "has shown no interest to schedule any future games in football" and his program is "moving on" to other potential opponents.

Conference realignment has upended several rivalry games that took place annually across college football. Oklahoma and Nebraska went 11 years between games from 2010 to 2021 after the Cornhuskers left the Big 12 for the Big Ten. The two teams did reunite for a home-and-home series in 2021 and 2022.

The Backyard Brawl between West Virginia and Pittsburgh was on ice for 11 years after the Mountaineers left the Big East for the Big 12. They played their first game against each other since 2011 on Sept. 1, with Pitt getting a 38-31 win.

The Lone Star Showdown featuring Texas and Texas A&M hasn't been played since 2011, though it will likely make a comeback when the Longhorns join their in-state rivals in the SEC in 2025.

Per McMurphy, the biggest reason Bedlam won't continue is because the schools share similar scheduling philosophies, with Oklahoma State expected to maintain a nine-game Big 12 schedule and the SEC expected to implement a nine-game conference schedule when Oklahoma and Texas join.

The board of regents at Oklahoma and Texas unanimously voted to accept an invitation to the SEC in July 2021. The move is expected to happen on July 1, 2025, after the Big 12's current media rights deal expires.

The Sooners and Cowboys have a rivalry that dates back to 1900 if you include track and field. Their football series began in 1904 with a total of 116 games played. The only years they haven't met on the gridiron were 1905 and 1909.

Oklahoma has dominated Bedlam on the football field. The Sooners have a 90-19-7 edge in the series, but Oklahoma State won last year's game 37-33. This year's matchup will be played on Nov. 19 at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman.

Texas Tech linebacker Bryce Ramirez was carted off the field and taken to the hospital after suffering a leg injury during Saturday's game against North Carolina State.

Per the Associated Press, the injury occurred when Texas Tech defenders tackled Wolfpack running back Jordan Houston, and the pile rolled over Ramirez's left leg as it was planted in the field turf.

The AP noted the game had to be stopped for approximately 10 minutes while Ramirez was loaded onto a cart.

The ESPN telecast said Ramirez was being transported to the Wake Trauma Center to be treated for the injury.

Players from both teams came up to Ramirez to offer well-wishes to the junior linebacker.

Per Don Williams of the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, Ramirez is a former walk-on who earned a scholarship and made his first career start on Saturday.

Ramirez enrolled at Texas Tech for the 2019-20 academic year. He was a member of the Red Raiders' scout team in his first two seasons and didn't appear in a game.

The Texas native appeared in seven games during the 2021 season, recording three tackles on special teams. He had three tackles in the Red Raiders' 33-30 double-overtime win over Houston on Sept. 10.

Texas may not be able to pay Arch Manning to play for the Longhorns, but the university reportedly opened up the vault for the top recruit to make him feel like the king of Austin.

Sam Khan Jr. of The Athletic reported Texas spent nearly $280,000 during Manning's two-day official visit in June. The visit included eight other prospects, but there was no question the school was rolling out a Benjamin Franklin-printed carpet for Manning.

The lavish weekend included a stay at a luxury hotel, two dinners averaging over $30,000 and a pair of open-bar parent socials that totaled five figures.

While it's standard for recruits to visit the campus and receive elevator pitches from coaches, this was a first-class wine-and-dine experience designed to impress parents just as much as the players.

The weekend was, from a recruiting standpoint, an unmitigated success. Manning announced his commitment to Texas days after the visit, and he'll be joined by 3-star high school teammate Will Randle, who was also on the trip.

The exorbitant tab for the weekend may open eyes across the country, but it's merely the cost of doing high-level business in college football.

Manning will arrive at Texas as one of the most touted prospects in program history, equipped with every tool necessary to be a star and the pedigree of his last name as the nephew of Eli and Peyton Manning. We'll have to wait until next year to see whether he lives up to the massive investment.

Recruit ratings via 247Sports.

Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian borrowed a line from Nick Saban after his team nearly upset Alabama on Saturday, losing 20-19 on the Crimson Tide's game-winning field goal with just 10 seconds remaining.

"First of all, to quote my old boss, we've got to be careful of the rat poison of people telling us how good we are, which is important," Sarkisian told reporters.

"A week ago, everyone told us how bad we were. Now this week, everyone wants to tell us how good we are. We've got to be careful to quiet the noise outside of our building and focus on us."

Back in 2017, Saban categorized positive media coverage of his team as "rat poison."

"I'm trying to get our players to listen to me instead of listening to you guys," he told reporters. "All that stuff you write about how good we are, and all that stuff they hear on ESPN, it's like poison. It's like taking poison ... like rat poison. So, I'm asking them, 'Are you going to listen to me, or are you going to listen to these guys about how good you are?'"

Texas, which has started the season 1-1, will next face a tough UTSA team that went 12-2 last season and finished as Conference USA champions. The Roadrunners are not an opponent the Longhorns can afford to look past.

"I definitely wanted to address it because, you know, I'm getting the text messages too," Sarkisian said. "I'm getting the phone calls. 'Hey, you guys are great, man. You look great,' this and that. Thanks, but you know, we got more work to do."

Sarkisian, 48, is trying to reverse years of mediocrity at Texas. Since Mack Brown's final season in 2013, the Longhorns have had four losing seasons—including 5-7 last year in Sarkisian's debut—and just one year reaching 10 wins.

Charlie Strong was just 16-21 in his three seasons. Tom Herman improved on that, going 32-18, but didn't manage to win a Big-12 title in his four years on the job. For a proud Texas program, the past decade—combined with Oklahoma's dominance—has been a tough pill to swallow.

The supposed "rat poison" of praise might go down a bit easier initially for this Texas team, but as Saban once warned and now Sarkisian has echoed, the long-term effects could be toxic.