Big 12 Notebook For 10-03-2006 - College Football News And Picks

Big 12 Notebook For 10-03-2006
By Jeff Zell
Posted: 6:00 am PDT 2006-10-03

The Texas A&M defense was nearly flawless in the second half Saturday against high-flying Texas Tech. Yet the Red Raiders found a way.

After giving up 24 points in the first half -- A&M and defensive coordinator Gary Darnell held Coach Mike Leach and the Texas Tech gun-slinging offense to just four first downs and 53 yards passing in the second half until the final drive. On that final drive, Graham Harrell threw a perfectly thrown ball to Robert Johnson from 37 yards out to pull the victory out on the road, 31-27.

"The character that it takes to engineer a comeback like this is big," Leach said. "It's very gratifying.

Harrell ended the game with 392 yards passing and four touchdowns. The gunslinger is now 4th in the nation in individual offense, accumulating 310.2 yards per game and leads the nation's third-best team passing attack.

Recap: Northern Iowa gave Iowa State a scare, but Bret Meyer threw a touchdown pass with 1:05 remaining to secure a one-point victory. Meanwhile, Colorado lost 28-13 to No. 23 Missouri, which pushed the Buffs' losing streak to nine games, including an 0-5 start this season. Nebraska needed overtime to escape at home against Kansas 39-32. Baylor shocked Kansas State, 17-3.

A Milestone: Baylor ended last season with a Big 12 win and began conference play this season with the victory over Kansas State. In the 11-year history of the conference, Baylor had never won back-to-back conference games. Going all the way back to 1995, when Baylor was in the old Southwest Conference, was when the Bears won two straight conference games. Guy Morriss' squad was opportunistic against the Wildcats, gaining five turnovers. Baylor leads the Big 12 in turnover margin with 16 takeaways compared to 10 giveaways.

Red River Rivalry: Texas and Oklahoma meet Saturday to decide which is king of the South Division. The winner of this showdown has determined the South's representative in the Big 12 Championship Game six of the last seven years. Texas has the fourth-best scoring offense in the nation compared to Oklahoma's ninth-best scoring offense. Which quarterback -- Paul Thompson or Colt McCoy -- would you rather have try and engineer the game-winning drive in the fourth quarter? The Longhorns are -4.5 on WagerWeb.com.

A Look Ahead: Besides the Red River Rivalry, a bunch of key games are on the schedule. Iowa State hosts Nebraska in what could decide the Big 12 North; the Huskers are -7 on WagerWeb.com. Missouri has a tough road test at Texas Tech (-4.5): look for lots of scoring. Oklahoma State and Kansas State (+2) are coming off disappointing losses; which team will rise to the occasion? Could Baylor (+5) send Colorado to 0-6?

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