Oklahoma defends the belt, 61–41, on the road at Oklahoma State.
AP poll, week 14: Oklahoma No. 3 at Oklahoma State No. 11 · No. 1 that week: Michigan State. The belt vs. the polls →
Where this game sits in the lineage
Oklahoma came in 7 days into reign #269, which began with a win over Texas Tech, with no defenses yet; this was its first defense. Oklahoma went on to defend it 1 more time before Florida took it on January 8, 2009, 47 days after the reign began.
For Oklahoma State this was its 5th shot at the belt; it had held the belt once before.
It was the first of 2 meetings between the two with the belt on the line; all-time Oklahoma leads 2–0.
Recap
Oklahoma's high-powered offense overwhelmed Oklahoma State in a defensive struggle turned offensive showcase, with Sam Bradford and the Sooner passing attack proving too much to handle. The game featured several momentum shifts, including an early Oklahoma State touchdown pass to Kendall Hunter in the second quarter and a critical defensive two-point conversion for the Cowboys in the third quarter, but Oklahoma's precision passing consistently found the end zone. Bradford's 73-yard touchdown pass to Jermaine Gresham in the third quarter proved to be the difference-maker, and despite Oklahoma State's efforts to keep pace with field goals and touchdown drives, the Sooners' superior third-down efficiency and turnover-free performance secured the belt.
- Sam Bradford's 73-yard touchdown to Jermaine Gresham in Q3 gave Oklahoma crucial breathing room late in the game
- Zac Robinson's interception to Dominique Franks early in Q1 set up Oklahoma's first touchdown and established momentum
- Oklahoma State's defensive two-point conversion return in Q3 kept the game competitive but ultimately fell short of closing the gap
- Oklahoma's turnover-free performance with 12-18 third-down conversions dominated time of possession and field position throughout
Written by Claude from the box score and play-by-play on this page — a plain-English recap of the numbers below, not a substitute for them.
Team stats
CFBD box scoreFull team box score from CFBD’s /games/teams data. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have team-level stats that far back.
Key plays
CFBD play-by-play| When | Team | Yards | Play |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 13:16 | Oklahoma State | +24 yd | Zac Robinson pass intercepted by Dominique Franks at the OKSt 46, returned for 24 yards to the OKSt 22. |
| Q1 12:49 | Oklahoma | +0 yd | Jimmy Stevens extra point GOOD. |
| Q1 12:49 | Oklahoma | +20 yd | DeMarco Murray rush for 20 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q1 10:14 | Oklahoma State | +26 yd | Zac Robinson pass complete to Damian Davis for 26 yards to the Okla 18 for a 1ST down. |
| Q1 8:41 | Oklahoma State | +28 yd | Dan Bailey 28 yard field goal GOOD. |
| Q2 13:24 | Oklahoma State | +23 yd | Zac Robinson pass complete to Kendall Hunter for 23 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q2 13:24 | Oklahoma State | +0 yd | Dan Bailey extra point GOOD. |
| Q2 7:24 | Oklahoma | +0 yd | Jimmy Stevens extra point GOOD. |
| Q2 7:24 | Oklahoma | +2 yd | Chris Brown rush for 2 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q2 12:17 | Oklahoma | +21 yd | Sam Bradford pass complete to Quentin Chaney for 21 yards to the OKSt 44 for a 1ST down. |
| Q2 7:24 | Oklahoma | +28 yd | Matthew Moreland kickoff for 64 yards returned by Perrish Cox for 28 yards to the OKSt 34. |
| Q2 2:57 | Oklahoma State | +44 yd | Dan Bailey 44 yard field goal GOOD. |
| Q2 0:13 | Oklahoma | +3 yd | Sam Bradford pass complete to Jermaine Gresham for 3 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q2 0:13 | Oklahoma | +0 yd | Jimmy Stevens extra point GOOD. |
| Q3 11:12 | Oklahoma State | +6 yd | Zac Robinson pass complete to Dez Bryant for 6 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q3 12:45 | Oklahoma State | +36 yd | Zac Robinson pass complete to Dez Bryant for 36 yards to the Okla 11 for a 1ST down. |
| Q3 13:15 | Oklahoma State | +23 yd | Zac Robinson pass complete to Damian Davis for 23 yards to the Okla 47 for a 1ST down. |
| Q3 11:12 | Oklahoma State | +25 yd | Dan Bailey kickoff for 70 yards returned by DeMarco Murray for 25 yards to the Okla 25. |
| Q3 11:12 | Oklahoma State | +0 yd | Two-point conversion attempt, Zac Robinson fumble recovered by Frank Alexander and returned for a defensive two-point conversion. |
| Q3 10:13 | Oklahoma | +73 yd | Sam Bradford pass complete to Jermaine Gresham for 73 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q3 10:13 | Oklahoma | +0 yd | Jimmy Stevens extra point GOOD. |
| Q3 6:13 | Oklahoma State | +31 yd | Zac Robinson rush for 31 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q3 6:13 | Oklahoma State | +0 yd | Dan Bailey extra point GOOD. |
| Q3 6:13 | Oklahoma State | +23 yd | Dan Bailey kickoff for 67 yards returned by Juaquin Iglesias for 23 yards to the Okla 26. |
| Q3 1:21 | Oklahoma | +28 yd | Matthew Moreland kickoff for 65 yards returned by Victor Johnson for 28 yards to the OKSt 33. |
| Q3 3:45 | Oklahoma | +21 yd | Sam Bradford pass complete to Ryan Broyles for 21 yards to the OKSt 33 for a 1ST down. |
| Q3 1:28 | Oklahoma | -1 yd | Sam Bradford rush, fumbled, recovered by Okla Sam Bradford at the OKSt 2, Sam Bradford for 2 yards, to the OKSt 0 for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q3 1:28 | Oklahoma | +0 yd | Jimmy Stevens extra point GOOD. |
| Q4 14:13 | Oklahoma State | +17 yd | Zac Robinson pass complete to Dez Bryant for 17 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q4 14:39 | Oklahoma State | +38 yd | Zac Robinson pass complete to Brandon Pettigrew for 38 yards to the Okla 20 for a 1ST down. |
| Q4 14:13 | Oklahoma State | +0 yd | Two-point conversion attempt, Zac Robinson pass to Dez Bryant GOOD. |
| Q4 14:13 | Oklahoma State | +68 yd | Dan Bailey kickoff for 65 yards returned by DeMarco Murray for 68 yards to the OKSt 27. |
| Q4 10:46 | Oklahoma | +1 yd | Sam Bradford pass complete to Brody Eldridge for 1 yard for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q4 10:46 | Oklahoma | +0 yd | Jimmy Stevens extra point GOOD. |
| Q4 10:33 | Oklahoma | +90 yd | Matthew Moreland kickoff for 60 yards returned by Perrish Cox for 90 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q4 10:33 | Oklahoma State | +0 yd | Dan Bailey extra point GOOD. |
| Q4 10:33 | Oklahoma State | +35 yd | Dan Bailey kickoff for 70 yards returned by DeMarco Murray for 35 yards to the Okla 35. |
| Q4 8:23 | Oklahoma | +25 yd | Sam Bradford pass complete to Jermaine Gresham for 25 yards to the OKSt 25 for a 1ST down. |
| Q4 7:17 | Oklahoma | +17 yd | Sam Bradford pass complete to Juaquin Iglesias for 17 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q4 7:17 | Oklahoma | +0 yd | Jimmy Stevens extra point GOOD. |
| Q4 4:03 | Oklahoma | +20 yd | Chris Brown rush for 20 yards to the OKSt 11 for a 1ST down. |
| Q4 2:55 | Oklahoma | +27 yd | Jimmy Stevens 27 yard field goal GOOD. |
| Q4 0:25 | Oklahoma | +28 yd | Chris Brown rush for 28 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q4 0:25 | Oklahoma | +22 yd | Matthew Moreland kickoff for 59 yards returned by Bo Bowling for 22 yards to the OKSt 33. |
| Q4 0:25 | Oklahoma | +0 yd | Jimmy Stevens extra point GOOD. |
| Q4 0:05 | Oklahoma State | +20 yd | Keith Toston rush for 20 yards to the Okla 47 for a 1ST down. |
Scoring plays, turnovers, and gains of 20+ yards, pulled from CFBD’s play-by-play. This section only appears for belt games with play-by-play on file (2003 onward).
Player stats
CFBD player statsPassing
Oklahoma State
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | QBR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zac Robinson | 17/26 | 254 | 9.8 | 3 | 1 | 93.8 |
Oklahoma
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | QBR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sam Bradford | 30/44 | 370 | 8.4 | 4 | 0 | 93.9 |
Rushing
Oklahoma State
| Player | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zac Robinson | 17 | 90 | 5.3 | 1 | 31 |
| Kendall Hunter | 18 | 84 | 4.7 | 0 | 18 |
| Keith Toston | 3 | 26 | 8.7 | 0 | 20 |
Oklahoma
| Player | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Brown | 19 | 98 | 5.2 | 2 | 28 |
| DeMarco Murray | 15 | 73 | 4.9 | 1 | 20 |
| Sam Bradford | 4 | 16 | 4.0 | 1 | 9 |
Receiving
Oklahoma State
| Player | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dez Bryant | 6 | 91 | 15.2 | 2 | 36 |
| Damian Davis | 5 | 79 | 15.8 | 0 | 26 |
| Kendall Hunter | 5 | 46 | 9.2 | 1 | 23 |
| Brandon Pettigrew | 1 | 38 | 38.0 | 0 | 38 |
Oklahoma
| Player | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jermaine Gresham | 9 | 158 | 17.6 | 2 | 73 |
| Juaquin Iglesias | 8 | 86 | 10.8 | 1 | 18 |
| Ryan Broyles | 5 | 48 | 9.6 | 0 | 21 |
| Quentin Chaney | 2 | 35 | 17.5 | 0 | 21 |
| Manuel Johnson | 2 | 24 | 12.0 | 0 | 15 |
| DeMarco Murray | 1 | 16 | 16.0 | 0 | 16 |
| Chris Brown | 2 | 2 | 1.0 | 0 | 7 |
| Brody Eldridge | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 1 |
Show more stats (4 more categories)
Interceptions
Oklahoma State
No recorded stats in this category.
Oklahoma
| Player | INT | YDS | TD |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dominique Franks | 1 | 24 | 0 |
Kicking
Oklahoma State
| Player | FG | PCT | LONG | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dan Bailey | 2/2 | 100.0 | 44 | 3/3 | 9 |
Oklahoma
| Player | FG | PCT | LONG | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jimmy Stevens | 1/1 | 100.0 | 27 | 8/8 | 11 |
Punt Returns
Oklahoma State
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | LONG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ricky Price | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dez Bryant | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
Oklahoma
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | LONG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryan Broyles | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 3 | 0 |
| Dominique Franks | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
Punting
Oklahoma State
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | TB | In 20 | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matt Fodge | 2 | 79 | 39.5 | 0 | 0 | 47 |
Oklahoma
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | TB | In 20 | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Knall | 3 | 141 | 47.0 | 0 | 0 | 52 |
Full player stats from CFBD’s /games/players data, split out by team. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have player-level stats that far back. Linked player names go to that player’s stat line in every other belt game they’ve appeared in.
Sources Box score at ESPN · Game record: College Football Data (id 283340197) · This game in the downloadable dataset