Oklahoma State Beats TCU

via The Sports Xchange

FORT WORTH, Texas — Oklahoma State’s climb up the College Football Playoff rankings needed a boost, if not a shove. 
The No. 11 Cowboys did their best self-propelling act Saturday, posting a 31-6 road rout of TCU at Amon G. Carter Stadium. 
Oklahoma State won its seventh straight game, improving to 9-2 overall and 7-1 in the Big 12 behind a big second half performance. The Cowboys get a shot to boost their stature even more Dec. 3, with a game at Oklahoma that carries Big 12 championship implications. 
“I’m loving it,” said Cowboys wideout Chris Lacy, who posted a game-high 109 receiving yards, with a touchdown. “We were real fired up going into this game, knowing that if we get the win we have an opportunity to play for a Big 12 championship. 
“I’ve been saying forever that we were going to make a big drive for the rest of the season and hopefully, and I shouldn’t say this, but I’m hoping we get to the playoff. Keeping hope.” 
For the Horned Frogs, who fell to 5-5 and 3-4, there’s still work to do to secure a bowl bid. TCU visits Texas next week, before closing the regular season at home against Kansas State, needing one win to make the postseason. 
After a low-scoring first half, the Cowboys produced three unanswered touchdowns on their first three possessions to pull away in a game that saw them enter as a three-point underdog. 
Oklahoma State did it with defense and an emerging running game. 
TCU’s only touchdown drive consisted of six yards and the Horned Frogs, who averaged 510 yards of offense entering the day, were limited to 343 by the Cowboys, who picked off quarterback Kenny Hill twice. 
Oklahoma State ran for 334 yards, its most since 2013, with tailbacks Chris Carson and Justice Hill both going for more than 100 yards. 
“It’s the best defensive effort, game plan, execution, tackling against some pretty elusive skill players that I’ve seen in a long time,” said Cowboys coach Mike Gundy. “And we ran for almost eight yards a carry. That sums it up pretty great.” 
Hill finished with 154 yards, while Carson added 146 and a touchdown. The Cowboys averaged 7.4 yards per rush, contributing to TCU’s worst home loss as a member of the Big 12. 
“It’s simple. They kicked our butts,” said Horned Frogs coach Gary Patterson. “You’ve got to be able to run the football when you get inside the 5, and you’ve got to tackle. 
“It’s been a long time in the 19 years I’ve been here where we got our butts kicked at home. That was one of them.” 
In Patterson’s 16 years as head coach, TCU has only missed a bowl game twice. 
“Now you’ve got to get ready to go,” Patterson said. “You’ve got Texas and then Kansas State. We’ve got two good football teams left to play. You want to win both of them. 
“It’s a lot more than bowl eligible. You get per diem, you get bowl gifts, you stay at school for a month, you eat better. There’s a lot of things that go along with going to a bowl game. Going to a bowl game is about a way of life. It’s not just about going to a bowl game. It’s a way of life.” 
Mason Rudolph passed for 207 yards and a touchdown, and ran for two more scores. Wide receiver Chris Lacy caught four passes for 109 yards and a touchdown for the Cowboys. 
TCU’s Hill passed for 166 yards and a touchdown, before being replaced by Foster Sawyer. Hill also led the Horned Frogs in rushing with 79 yards on eight carries. 
Oklahoma State led 10-6 at halftime in a start unexpectedly dominated by defense, with both teams ranked among the nation’s top 25 in total offense and scoring offense.