Lightning Delays Texas Tech-Oklahoma Game

Republicans talk tough on immigration, and a record number of illegal immigrants were deported under President Obama.

Her courage opened the way for meaningful progress against sex discrimination in the workplace.

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Smith Runs Oklahoma State Over Texas 38-26

Smith went 30 and 74 yards for scores and Justin Gilbert returned the third quarter kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown. Gilbert tied the Oklahoma State (6-0, 3-0 Big 12) school record for career kickoff TD returns with four.

Fozzy Whittaker had a 100-yard touchdown return on the ensuing kickoff for Texas, but the Longhorns (4-2, 1-2) never led and lost for the sixth time in their last 10 home games.

Oklahoma State's Brandon Weeden passed for 218 yards with a touchdown to Justin Blackmon.

Texas freshman quarterback David Ash got his first career start and took every snap in the loss after rotating with sophomore Case McCoy the previous three weeks.

Ash was 22 of 39 passing for 139 yards with no touchdowns and two turnovers. The second came on a fumble with 4:34 to play that killed Texas' last chance to rally.

Malcolm Brown ran for 135 yards and two touchdowns for the Longhorns.

Smith's touchdowns were surprising for how easy they were.

The first came in the second quarter on fourth-and-inches when he ran off left tackle. There was no defender to meet him at the line of scrimmage and he coasted to the end zone.

The second came in the third quarter and put the Cowboys ahead 38-24. Smith ran straight up the middle and Texas linebackers Keenan Robinson and Jordan Hicks got washed out of the play, leaving no defender within 10 yards with a chance to tackle him.

Oklahoma State, which had lost 12 in a row to the Longhorns, now have consecutive wins in Austin. A scheduling quirk in the Big 12 put the Cowboys on the road against Texas two years in a row.

Weeden, the second-leading passer in the nation, struggled to find his rhythm for most of the game, but clicked with Blackmon in the second quarter.

Blackmon had a 16-yard catch on fourth down to keep a drive alive, then grabbed a 15-yard TD on the next play when he caught the ball at the 3 and carried Texas cornerback Carrington Byndom into the end zone.

Smith's first touchdown put OSU up 21-10 and the Cowboys seemed primed to put the game away at the start of the third.

Gilbert took the kickoff five yards deep in the end zone, zipped through a seam near the 30 and raced past the defense for a 28-10 lead. Gilbert tied the school record set by Perrish Cox for career kick return TDs.

The Cowboys had only a few seconds to get comfortable with the lead. Whittaker, who returned a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown the previous week against Oklahoma, matched Gilbert's TD to keep Texas in the game at 28-17.

Texas was building momentum when Brown scored his second touchdown to cut the lead to 28-24.

Texas ran the so-called "Statue of Liberty" play where Ash took the snap and faked a throw to his right while tucking the ball low behind his back. Brown grabbed it, scampered to his left and tiptoed on the sideline for the touchdown. The play call by first-year offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin was similar to the one used by Boise State to beat Oklahoma in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl.

Oklahoma State answered with a 22-yard field goal by Quinn Sharp before Smith ripped off his second long TD.

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Texas A&M Wrong Team at the Wrong Time for the SEC

I hate to keep beating the dead horse that is the Texas A&M to the SEC story, but there's simply too much going on not to finesse every fine nuance out of it. While some in the SEC are already picking out who will be an accompanying stablemate, others are quite aware of what such a jump could do to implode college football as we know it. Even this Monday the Aggie administration seemed to backtrack, probably reeling from the vote of the SEC presidents on Sunday to to table the matter for now.

If you're the SEC, feelers from A&M about possible membership is certainly flattering--or at least it was. There was much more at stake last year--like a conference meltdown. This year it seems that the Aggies have made their bed and should be allowed to sleep in it for at least one season. Before the 2010 season, the SEC was being reactionary with their contingency plan to add teams if the members of one or more conferences were all up for grabs. Even the PAC 10-12 threatened to go to 16. The Big 10(11) threatened to add one to three more schools. If BCS conferences were soon to morph into mega-blob blocks that defied geography, tradition and reason, then the SEC was merely looking to preserve their hard-earned place on top of the heap. And maybe, just maybe, some saber rattling from the big boys in the southeast is what quelled the insurrection that was brewing.

But this year is different. There is no panic. There's no threat of dissolution to any of the BCS conferences except to the one that started the calamity last year--the remnants of the Big 12. Texas, angered by the defections of Nebraska and Colorado (not to mention the nice try by Missouri), whored itself out to any and all that would listen as the bargaining chip to get what it wanted--it's precious Longhorn network and the television riches that accompanied it. The Horns probably never realized their culpability in running those two teams off in the first place. Oklahoma and A&M, the two other power brokers in the conference, found themselves in shock and awe over the Horns' decision. They could have bolted, but in the end, decided to stick it out with the Horned devil who now was holding all the cards.

Getting back to conference meltdowns, there is no longer the risk of Word War I-like results if team defections started falling like dominoes. I'm pretty sure the SEC is just fine with the way their conference has been working the last 20 seasons since realignment, and now that their position has been tempered from that of reactionary to preemptive, I don't see the SEC Kaiser taking up arms to declare war on the Allied Powers of CFB just because Arch Duke A&M got their feelings hurt by Texas's TV contract. The SEC has the perfect formula for this sport. Why would they want to tinker with it in the absence of intense pressure from the rest of CFB?

Besides, A&M, you negotiate from a position of strength, not weakness. Let me get this straight: You've had one or two top ten finishes in the last twenty years and you think you have something to add to the best football conference in the land? Sure, you have to like the way they split the loot up among all the members, and if you did win the conference, you'd have a shot at a national championship, but there are many better qualified candidate schools a whole lot closer than you if the SEC truly did want to expand. The SEC doesn't really need the Texas TV market because they already control the national market and have already made serious inroads into your state with recruiting. 

The only way the SEC would really want the Aggies was if they brought Oklahoma in a nice two-fer, but that's not going to happen. OU belongs where they are, especially with recruiting in Texas being their top priority. They couldn't afford to leave, and honestly, we don't need nor can we afford to add another historic top five team into our league. It's a hard enough conference schedule as it is. If you're looking for parity, the SEC has it in spades.

So adding A&M would necessitate the SEC poaching from another BCS conference, probably the ACC, and that might cause that conference to go into a tailspin, not to mention possibly even the SEC itself, as the collateral damage shook out. Old scores with some SEC members and teams like FSU and Georgia Tech linger in the shadows, begging to be settled. Maybe they might look at some of them down the road, but in the deep south, we measure time a little differently. Things, i.e. schedules,  just move slower.

Besides, with the fickleness that A&M has shown this off season protesting the agreement they just signed into with Texas, who's to say they wouldn't go running back to mama soon enough? Texas A&M is the consummate 'little brother' team, forever dwelling in the Longhorn's shadow. You seem too fixated on your cross state rival to the point that you almost stalk them and the only way you're ever going to catch up is to still play them and be by their side, through thick and thin, like a little brother should be. Take the pain, A&M. Then take a long look in the mirror and tell me how you see yourself. Is it good bull, or bull-something else? Posted by War Eagle Atlanta

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What awaits Texas A&M in the SEC?

Football Outsiders' Brian Fremeau crunched the numbers for ESPN Insider to project Texas A&M's future in the SEC .

They're interesting numbers I'll admit I don't fully understand, but you can always ask the man himself on Twitter about them. Here's what he had to say:

On average, an SEC conference schedule should result in a loss of about one extra game per year for the Aggies. In terms of the likelihood of competing for a national championship, the road through the SEC is so much more difficult. A team of Texas A&M's strength would have a small (2 percent) chance of running the table against its Big 12 schedule this year. Against Arkansas' schedule, that small opportunity all but vanishes (0.2 percent).

All these figures are based on the current ratings of SEC teams, and it is difficult to predict whether the Aggies will be able to improve their program power strength or whether they may take a step back. Heading into the season, Texas A&M ranked No. 56 in Program FEI, a five-year weighted measure of program strength and the baseline for preseason projections. Only top-20 Program FEI teams can expect to compete for a national championship the following season.

The Aggies would carry an FEI rating of No. 6 in the Big 12, but would be ahead of only Vanderbilt in the SEC.

Of course, those Program FEI ratings are based on a five-year period in which Texas A&M wasn't particularly strong. But for each of those Aggies teams, the grind of an SEC schedule would have been even tougher than the Big 12 road it faced. That's almost entirely because the middle and lower tiers of the SEC have been consistently stronger than those of any other conference.

That might be something we've heard before, but it's always interesting to see it expressed via data analysis. What do you think?

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Final: Oklahoma State 30, Texas A&M 29

Down 20-3 at halftime, No. 7 Oklahoma State scored 27 consecutive points in the third and fourth quarters to beat No. 8 Texas A&M 30-29 in College Station, Texas, on Saturday.

Oklahoma state quarterback Brandon Weeden completed 47 of 60 passes for 437 yards and two touchdowns. The Aggies turned the ball over three times during the third quarter when the Cowboys outscored them 21-0. They also turned it over on their final drive of the game.

More to come later.

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Beebe: Texas, OU decisions 'anticipated'

Big 12 commissioner Dan Beebe released a statement on Monday evening in response to Texas and Oklahoma's announcements that they have authorized their respective presidents to act on behalf of the university in matters pertaining to conference realignment.

"The actions taken today by the governing boards of the universities of Oklahoma and Texas were anticipated. It is my opinion that the case for the Big 12 Conference continues to be as strong today for all of our current members as it was last year, especially considering the welfare of those to whom we owe the greatest responsibility-the student-athletes. We continue to apply all effort and resources toward assuring our members that maintaining the Big 12 is in the best interest for their institutions."

After Monday's regents' meeting at Oklahoma, OU president David Boren said he had spoken with Pac-12 officials, calling them "warm and productive discussions."

Pac-12 deputy commissioner Kevin Weiberg, essentially the Pac-12's No. 2 man behind commissioner Larry Scott, served as Big 12 commissioner from 1998-2007.

From our report:

Boren made it clear that OU had not notified the Big 12 Conference it was leaving and that remaining in the Big 12 was "still on the table." He added, however, that the threat of litigation by other Big 12 members had not affected OU's position of exploring realignment.

"Obviously, we do not want to continue to have these kinds of situations where our membership in a conference has to be revisited every year," Boren said.

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Two Texas Tech defenders leave team

Senior linebacker Sam Fehoko and sophmore defensive lineman Pearlie Graves have voluntarily left Texas Tech's football team, the university announced on Monday.

Fehoko made seven starts a year ago, moving around between linebacker and defensive line. He started seven games and played in all 13 games for Texas Tech in 2010, making 48 tackles with two sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss. He looked like a starter before the season began, but he has yet to record a statistic in the 2011 season.

Graves, a native of Tulsa, Okla., hasn't cracked the depth chart all season, but appeared in seven games last season, making 14 tackles with two sacks and 4.5 tackles for loss. He did not travel to Texas Tech's win over New Mexico on Saturday.

Neither is a monumental loss for Texas Tech, but it looks like a standard playing time issue. Fehoko, a senior, looked like he'd be a major contributor this year and isn't.

Why not? Who knows. But if neither player is doing what they thought they'd do this year, it's not too surprising to see them figure it's not worth the effort in practice if there's no promise of payoff.

It's tough to see Fehoko leave with no eligibility left, but don't be surprised if Graves surfaces at a school in his home state, if not somewhere like Tulsa. The 6-foot-2, 285-pounder definitely has the physical skills to play at the FBS level, if not in an AQ conference.

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Texas, OU presidents authorized to act

The boards of regents from Texas and Oklahoma both authorized university presidents to act on behalf of the university at Monday afternoon meetings.

The moves clear the way for the Sooners and Longhorns to apply formally to the Pac-12, with whom they have been undergoing discussions in recent days on how to make the schools' addition to the conference work.

On Sunday, those talks were still a long way from the point at which Pac-12 leadership would be comfortable recommending the move to the league's presidents, a source told ESPN.com's Andy Katz. The proposed expansion would include fellow Big 12 schools Oklahoma State and Texas Tech.

Nothing's official yet, of course, but Texas A&M made this same decision on August 15 before formally withdrawing from the Big 12 on August 31.

Texas's president is Bill Powers. Oklahoma's president is David Boren.

The steps are in place for Oklahoma and Texas to follow the Aggies out the Big 12 door, but like Texas A&M, this is just one important step among many before either school joins a new conference.

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Top Texas commit keeping options open

Christian Westerman is the nation's No. 4 overall recruit and the best offensive lineman in the 2011 class.

The offensive tackle is also Texas' top commit.

The Arizona native pledged to Texas and Mack Brown back in April, but his position coach, Mac McWhorter was forced to retire at the end of the season. Though he's still committed, the 6-foot-5, 290-pounder looks like he's keeping his options open.

He's headed for a visit to Auburn today, and might be taking a look at Oregon later, though he also plans to come back to Austin for a visit in January.

The Longhorns have six offensive line commitments, but Westerman is by far its highest-rated. He's also one of just two current Texas commitments -- the Longhorns have 23 total -- who lives outside the state lines.

It's hardly a time for panic, and we've addressed what the exit of coaches (and wins) from Texas could mean on the recruiting trail, but Westerman's apparent wandering eye can't be reassuring to anyone in Texas' program, especially considering Westerman's strengths and Texas' struggles in 2010.

"Westerman is the dominant type run blocker who knocks defensive lineman back where they came from. His size and athleticism are what we like to see at the major level of competition," reads Westerman's profile on ESPN's recruiting site, powered by Scouts Inc. "This guy has the agility to handle inside quickness and change of direction moves. Demonstrates very good pull/trap mechanics; can get to the edge, seal and play on his feet well in space. When he locks up with linebackers it usually results in a pancake as his excellent upper body playing strength becomes evident. We also like his effort to finish and look for a second blocks downfield."

Texas might hitch its proverbial wagon to incoming running back recruit Malcolm Brown, a Cibolo, Texas native whose high school performance has drawn comparisons to Adrian Peterson, but recruits like Westerman are what could eventually help Brown fill that potential.

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Could TCU open up Texas recruiting base?

ESPN Recruiting's Jamie Newberg takes a look today at how the addition of TCU to the Big East could affect recruiting for the league.

Obviously, having a pathway to an automatic BCS bid now helps the Horned Frogs immensely as they make pitches to prospects. It could also mean that Big East schools benefit from the exposure in Texas and start signing players from that talent-rich area.

"I can't speak for the other schools in our league but I think we are going to try and take advantage of it," Syracuse coach Doug Marrone told Newberg.

My take: I think that this could open doors for a few prospects here and there, but it's certainly not going to open any floodgates. The best players in Texas will still go to Texas, Texas A&M and Oklahoma, and the idea of playing in the East Coast probably will not be that appealing to many of them.

But any extra pipeline can help. West Virginia got quarterback Jeremy Johnson out of Texas last year, though he quickly got homesick and ended up transferring. A more successful example is Louisville starting center Mario Benavides, who's from Los Fresno, Texas.

Big East coaches now have some additional recruiting tapes to comb through.

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Instant analysis: Texas A&M 24, Texas 17

I'd say that's about what most expected, no? Texas A&M finished off a red-hot stretch with a 24-17 victory to end its regular season, and is now in great position for a big-time bowl game.

Here's some instant analysis:

How the game was won: Texas A&M (9-3) shook off a slow start offensively, and rode Cyrus Gray to a win for a second consecutive week. The Longhorns (5-7) had a final chance late, but Von Miller intercepted a tipped ball from Garrett Gilbert to seal the game. Texas recovered a muffed punt and blocked another to produce 10 second-half points, but it wasn't enough to overcome Gray's career-best night. After a first-quarter touchdown drive that featured two completions of longer than 30 yards, the Longhorns offense didn't reach the end zone again.

[+] Enlarge AP Photo/Eric GayTexas A&M running back Cyrus Gray rushed for 223 yards and two touchdowns against Texas.Player of the game: Cyrus Gray, RB, Texas A&M. Gray finished with a career-high 223 yards on 27 carries and scored on runs of 84 and 48 yards. The first tied the game at seven in the second quarter, and the second run gave the Aggies a 24-14 lead on the first play of the possession after Texas got within three in the third quarter.

Stat of the game: Yards per carry. Texas' time of possession advantage of nearly eight minutes doesn't count for much. A big reason for that advantage was Cyrus Gray's big runs. Texas A&M runners averaged 6.6 yards per carry. Texas averaged 3.7.

Unsung hero of the game: Texas A&M's offensive line. Gray played well, but he wasn't exactly bowling over multiple defenders on his touchdown runs. Texas' defensive line features big talents in Sam Acho and Kheeston Randall, but the Aggies' improving offensive line, featuring two freshman tackles in Jake Matthews and Luke Joeckel, dominated them up front and gave Gray big holes to burst through.

What it means for Texas: Texas will most likely be home for the holidays for the first time since 1997. There are 64 bowl-eligible teams in America, and 70 slots for bowl teams. Eleven more teams will play over the weekend to achieve bowl eligibility. Want to keep an eye on your fate, Longhorns? Here are the remaining teams playing for bowl eligibility this week: Colorado, Louisville, Houston, Western Michigan, Oregon State, California, Tennessee, Georgia, Troy, Florida International and Louisiana-Monroe.

What it means for Texas A&M: Texas A&M finishes their regular season on a six-game winning streak in Big 12 play that featured two road wins and two wins over top 10 teams. If Oklahoma beats Oklahoma State on Saturday, the Aggies will be in a three-way tie for first in the Big 12 South. Here's more on how that tiebreaker will be settled. The Aggies aren't completely eliminated, but in all likelihood, the winner of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State on Thursday will advance to the Big 12 title game next Saturday at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Record performance: Cyrus Gray was the first Texas A&M player to top 200 yards rushing since Leeland McElroy in 1995. That's the fifth-best performance in Texas A&M history.

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