That was an incredible day of football. Here's what I took away after the smoke cleared on Saturday.
Cherish what TCU and Baylor showed you on Saturday. I don't even know where to start with that game. Baylor's 61-58 win was one of the best Big 12 matchups we've seen in a long time and by far the best of 2014. Was poor defense a part of it? Yes, but great offense was just as responsible. Baylor's defense has major question marks and a lot to fix, but I wonder what this does for the Bears mentally. The game wasn't over when Baylor trailed by 21 with less than 12 minutes to play, but Baylor had to make every play possible to climb out of its hole. That's exactly what happened the rest of the game. The defense got stops, the offense produced three quick-strike scoring drives and the Bears rallied. That's the kind of win that can make you feel invincible and play inspired for weeks to come. Baylor only played one game decided by single digits last season. This team's experience in close games is minimal, but Saturday's result will only embolden this team in tight spots going down the road.
TCU can still contend for a Big 12 (and maybe a national) title. This loss stings, Frogs. The 21-point lead, the phantom offensive PI and questionable lack of PI on the final offensive play leave room for endless "What if?" questions. But like I told the Oklahomans a week ago, those national title dreams are not gone. TCU's most difficult games are behind it and the Frogs are good enough to run the table. They'll need to catch some bounces and win some close games along the way, but the Frogs are a complete team who challenged Baylor at home more than anybody has done in two seasons. That's as quality a loss as any team in the country will have come December. TCU will drop in this week's polls, probably outside of the top 10, which is a shame. It's also the middle of October. College football trends toward madness, and if the Frogs keep winning, teams ahead of them will lose and they'll find themselves floating up near the top five in the final weeks of the season. They won't be a slam dunk, but an 11-1 TCU team with or without a share of the national title will be a strong candidate for a playoff spot.
Tyrone Swoopes finally took another step. When Swoopes took over for David Ash, he pleasantly surprised by being good enough to not lose Texas games. Over the last month, we hadn't seen much growth. He was still just good enough to not be the guy that lost Texas games. He was much more on Saturday in the Cotton Bowl, when he out-dueled Trevor Knight and only made one bad mistake in an atmosphere that often intimidates first-timers. He completed 27-of-44 passes for 334 yards with two touchdowns and ran for 50 yards with another score, not including a 73-yard run that got called back in the first quarter.
"Tyrone, he played a really good game, but you look around him and there's a lot of people," Strong said. "The offensive line did a great job of blocking."
Texas trusted him enough to put the ball in his hands on 55 of 84 snaps on Saturday and he delivered. I don't think I believe Swoopes will blossom into a QB who Texas can ride to a Big 12 title, but he's taken some baby steps this year and Saturday was another move in the right direction.
Kevin White is on a historic tear. White has caught at least nine passes in all but one game (Kansas) this season, but he's topped 100 yards receiving in every game. That's a six-game streak, which surpassed Stedman Bailey's school record at WVU this week. White caught a season-high 13 passes for 123 yards and a score in WVU's dramatic, come-from-behind 37-34 win over Texas Tech and it's possible WVU still isn't getting him the ball enough. His consistency is remarkable and he makes it look a lot easier than it really is. He's a joy to watch and as well as Clint Trickett has played, WVU doesn't win this game without White and probably doesn't beat Maryland without him, either. Mario Alford has had a great start this year, but he was slowed with two catches for 24 yards on Saturday. White picked up the slack.
Kansas may have found some life (and a quarterback). Every year, KU has a conference win or a close call, but I'm inclined to believe Saturday was more for the Jayhawks. You can't expect KU to not get blown out the rest of the season, but Clint Bowen has made two major changes since Charlie Weis was fired. Last week, Michael Cummings took over for Montell Cozart at QB. Today, he seized a firm grasp on the starting spot with a 288-yard day on 20-of-37 passing.
He also moved Tony Pierson back to playing some running back and the result is more touches for KU's best playmaker. Pierson had a quiet day on Saturday (36 yards, 10 carries) but more touches for him is something KU struggled to do when he was playing traditional receiver under Weis. That will pay off down the line. Considering how much has changed since Weis' departure, I wonder how much Bowen and other coaches on the staff wanted to make them when he was still there.
Sometimes, speed bails you out. Consider yourselves lucky, Oklahoma State. Young teams will do weird things, and this was an ugly clunker. Kansas is improving and somewhat unpredictable under a new coaching staff, and I can see it being difficult to get up for a road game at Kansas. The offensive line struggled to get a push against KU and free Desmond Roland and Rennie Childs. You can feel Joe Wickline's void there. The offense can get in lengthy funks that might cost OSU eventually, but sometimes, Tyreek Hill is fast enough to make sure it doesn't matter.
Sam Richardson had his best game as a Cyclone. Yes, it was Toledo, but the Rockets are one of the best teams in the MAC and Saturday was a quality win. Richardson completed 37-of-53 pass attempts for 351 yards, three scores and no interceptions. Don't forget: He's doing all this without his best receiver, Quenton Bundrage. I was impressed how well he spread it around. Four receivers caught at least five passes and nine players had at least one reception. Iowa State needs him to play efficient football and move the chains. He did that on Saturday. The Cyclones' 34 first downs were 13 more than ISU had in any game this season. Well done.
