MANHATTAN, Kan. — Landry Jones and Ryan Broyles helped No. 9 Oklahoma get back on track and spoil 8th-ranked Kansas State’s dream season.
Jones threw for a school-record 505 yards and five touchdowns, his All-American wide receiver caught 14 passes for 171 yards and a score, and the Sooners bounced back from a stunning defeat to beat the previously unbeaten Wildcats 58-17 Saturday.
Kenny Stills added four catches for 101 yards, Roy Finch finished with 73 yards rushing and another 69 through the air, and the Sooners’ potent, fast-paced attack managed 690 yards of total offense against the league’s top-ranked defense.
Jones’ passing total shattered the previous record of 468 yards he shared with Sam Bradford, while Broyles moved into first place on the Big 12’s career list with 4,499 yards receiving.
It wasn’t all good for Oklahoma (7-1, 4-1).
Leading rusher Dominique Whaley was hurt while blocking on the first play of the game. The Oklahoma medical staff put an air cast around his lower left leg and he was removed from the field on a cart. He later returned to the sideline on crutches, but the extent of the injury was unknown.
Little else went wrong, though, one week after everything did.
Their national championship hopes dashed by Texas Tech - along with their 39-game home winning streak - the Sooners were out to spoil the same hopes harbored by the Wildcats (7-1, 4-1). They were off to their best start since 1999, after being picked to finish near the bottom of the Big 12.
Collin Klein was sacked seven times, the Wildcats were penalized an uncharacteristic five times, normally reliable kicker Anthony Cantele missed a chip-shot field goal and a defense that had been assignment sound all season crumbled against Oklahoma’s onslaught.
In other games involving Big 12 teams, Joseph Randle set career highs by running for 152 yards and four touchdowns, Justin Blackmon matched his career best with 13 catches for 172 yards and 2 touchdowns and No. 3 Oklahoma State (8-0, 5-0) beat Baylor (4-3, 1-3) 59-24. ... Redshirt freshman Jared Barnett threw for a touchdown and ran for another, leading visiting Iowa State (4-4, 1-4) to a 41-7 victory over No. 20 Texas Tech (5-3, 2-3). Making his first career start, Barnett’s mobility caused the Red Raiders defense fits. He rushed for 92 yards on 19 carries and completed 14 of 26 passes for 144 yards. ... Freshman tailbacks Malcolm Brown and Joe Bergeron rushed for a combined 255 yards and four touchdowns as No. 24 Texas (5-2, 2-2) ended a five-game home losing streak in the Big 12 with a 43-0 victory over Kansas (2-6, 0-5).
MID-AMERICAN
Keith leads Kent State
KENT, Ohio - Spencer Keith’s 14-yard touchdown pass to Justin Thompson helped seal Kent State’s 27-15 win over Bowling Green on Saturday.
The Golden Flashes (2-6, 1-3) led 10-6 late in the third quarter when the Falcons’ Eugene Cooper fumbled a punt return in Bowling Green territory.
Keith (Pulaski Academy) then found Thompson two plays later for a 17-6 lead with 14:03 remaining.
The muffed punt was one of several miscues by the Falcons (4-5, 2-3) on offense and special teams. Bowling Green turned it over four times, had two kickoffs go out of bounds and missed a pair of field goals.
In other games involving Mid-American Conference teams, Central Michigan (3-6, 2-3) survived a rally by host Akron (1-7, 0-4) to win 23-22 after a failed two point conversion. ... Alex Carder threw for 404 yards and two touchdowns and added another touchdown on the ground, and Western Michigan (5-4, 3-2) stayed undefeated at home with a 45-35 victory over Ball State (5-4, 3-2). ... Zac Dysert finished 20 of 25 passing for 313 yards with 5 touchdowns and 1 interception to lead Miami (Ohio) (3-5, 2-2) to a 41-13 victory over Buffalo (2-7, 1-4).
Sports, Pages 40 on 10/30/2011