Let's hand out some hardware for a big week across the Big 12.
Best offensive performance: Oklahoma State QB Clint Chelf. He completed his first 12 passes and set the tone for a special night in Stillwater. It was one of the best performances we've seen from a Big 12 QB all season, and helped OSU rout Baylor, 49-17. He finished with 370 yards and three touchdowns on 19-of-25 passing. He also caught a 48-yard pass on a trick play. More on that later.
Second-best offensive performance: Kansas State WR/KR Tyler Lockett. Lockett broke his own school record with 278 yards and three touchdowns on 12 catches, and was only 34 yards short of the all-time Big 12 single-game record. He finished with 440 all-purpose yards, but he was uncoverable in the second quarter, catching TD passes for 90, 48 and 30 yards. His first-half total of 206 yards was 22 more yards than any other Big 12 receiver has in a game this year.
Best defensive performance: OSU DC Glenn Spencer. You can't point to one defender, but that performance from Oklahoma State's defense was a thing of beauty. OSU's defensive backs stayed over the top of Baylor's receivers and confused Bryce Petty often with tons of pre-snap movement. The defensive line stuffed the running game and grabbed three turnovers, including two inside the red zone and one returned for a touchdown. The scheme was sound, and Spencer's defense executed it to perfection and capitalized on Baylor's mistakes.
Third-best offensive performance: Oklahoma's offensive line. Why did the Sooners score 41 points and win in Manhattan? The big guys up front. Oklahoma set the tone early with a 14-play, 98-yard drive that didn't feature a pass attempt, and didn't stop running the ball. The Sooners ran 52 times for 301 yards, including Brennan Clay's first 200-yard day. He's the first OU back to do that since DeMarco Murray back in 2010 against Utah State.
Best play: Josh Stewart to Clint Chelf. How about the trickery from Oklahoma State? When this play works to perfection, you know a whole lot is going right for you. Josh Stewart caught what looked like a swing pass but stopped and threw it back to Chelf, who rumbled behind some blocks for a 48-yard gain. Two plays later, a short run from Kye Staley put OSU up 28-3.
Worst play: Bryce Petty. Who knew just how big that play would be? Petty broke loose for what looked like a walk-in touchdown, but the turf monster reached up and got him, sticking the Bears just short of the goal line and a 7-0 lead. Shock Linwood fumbled later in the drive and Baylor didn't get back on the scoreboard until just before halftime.
Best team performance: Oklahoma State. What more could you ask from both sides of the ball? OSU won the turnover battle 3-0 and routed a top five team to take control of the Big 12 race. OSU's defense turned one of the best performances in college football this year and the offense had one of its most efficient outings of the year.
Worst team performance: Kansas. Baylor suffered a big loss, but was undone by some silly mistakes, lowlighted by a pair of turnovers deep in OSU territory. Kansas hardly even showed up in Ames. A week after beating up on West Virginia, KU looked listless in a 34-0 loss to Iowa State. It's the only shutout all season in Big 12 play.
Biggest X factor: Mother Nature. It was cold in Stillwater, but the weather didn't affect that game much. In Ames, though? A wind chill of 1 degree at kickoff and a solid dusting of snow meant a frozen solid field that had players slipping and sliding and fighting for footing for 60 minutes. Ugly.
Best dance moves: Another big Oklahoma State win, another uh, performance from Mike Gundy. What did I just watch? Take it away, sir.
Best quote: Art Briles. He summed up the night on an Oklahoma State program that showed it could handle a big stage better than the Bears. "Without question there are rodeos, and this is not their first one," he said.
