2021 Big 12 Championship Game

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For the Big 12 men's basketball championship, see 2021 Big 12 men's basketball tournament.

2021 Dr Pepper Big 12 Championship Game
20th Big 12 Conference Championship
Baylor Bears Oklahoma State Cowboys
(10–2) (11–1)
21 16
Head coach: 
Dave Aranda		 Head coach: 
Mike Gundy
APCoachesCFP
999
APCoachesCFP
555
1234 Total
Baylor 71400 21
Oklahoma State 3373 16
DateDecember 4, 2021
Season2021
StadiumAT&T Stadium
LocationArlington, Texas
MVPBlake Shapen (QB, Baylor)
FavoriteOklahoma State by 6
RefereeBrandon Cruse[1]
Attendance65,771
United States TV coverage
NetworkABC
ESPN Radio
AnnouncersABC: Sean McDonough (play-by-play), Todd Blackledge (analyst), and Molly McGrath (sideline)
ESPN Radio: Sean Kelley (play-by-play), Barrett Jones (analyst) and Ian Fitzsimmons (sideline)
International TV coverage
NetworkESPN Brazil
AnnouncersMatheus Pinheiro (play-by-play), Weinny Eirado (analyst)
Big 12 Championship Game
 < 2020  2022 > 
2021 Big 12 Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 7 Oklahoma State y   8 – 1     12 – 2  
No. 5 Baylor y$   7 – 2     12 – 2  
No. 10 Oklahoma   7 – 2     11 – 2  
Iowa State   5 – 4     7 – 6  
Kansas State   4 – 5     8 – 5  
West Virginia   4 – 5     6 – 7  
Texas   3 – 6     5 – 7  
TCU   3 – 6     5 – 7  
Texas Tech   3 – 6     7 – 6  
Kansas   1 – 8     2 – 10  
Championship: Baylor 21, Oklahoma State 16
  • $ – Conference champion
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2021 Big 12 Championship Game was a college football game played on December 4, 2021, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. It was the 20th edition of the Big 12 Championship Game, and determined the champion of the Big 12 Conference for the 2021 season. The game began at 11:00 a.m. CST and aired on ABC.[2][3] The game featured the conference's regular season champions, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, and the runners-up, the Baylor Bears. Sponsored by soft drink company Keurig Dr Pepper through its flagship Dr Pepper brand, the game was officially known as the Dr Pepper Big 12 Championship Game.[4]

Previous season[edit]

The Oklahoma Sooners defeated the Iowa State Cyclones 27-21 in 2020, winning their sixth consecutive Big 12 Championship Game. This marked Iowa State’s first ever appearance in a Big 12 Championship Game.

Teams[edit]

The 2021 Big 12 Championship Game featured the two teams with the best conference records; Oklahoma State and Baylor. This was the 41st meeting between the teams; Oklahoma State entered leading the all-time series 22–18.[5] The teams first met in 1914, and have played annually since Baylor joined the new Big 12 in 1996.[6] This was their second postseason meeting, after the teams faced off in the 1983 Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl, resulting in a ten-point Oklahoma State victory.[6]

This was Baylor's second appearance in the Big 12 Championship, following a loss in their first appearance in 2019.[7] Oklahoma State made their first-ever appearance, though the Cowboys won the Big 12 championship in its previous format in 2011.[8] The game was the first Big 12 title game without Oklahoma since 2009; they had appeared in, and won, the last five consecutive championship games, though the Big 12 did not hold a championship game from 2011 to 2016. Further, this was the first title game without either Oklahoma or Texas since 1998.[9] This was the first Big 12 title game without the Sooners under the Championship Game’s new format.

Oklahoma State[edit]

Main article: 2021 Oklahoma State Cowboys football team

Led by head coach Mike Gundy in his 17th season, Oklahoma State entered the season with a narrow defeat of FCS-ranked Missouri State.[10] They followed up with another narrow comeback win against Tulsa after scoring three touchdowns in the fourth quarter alone,[11] and then took to the road for their first away game against Boise State, which resulted in a one-point win for the Cowboys.[12] They faced their first conference opponent the following week, No. 25 Kansas State,[13] and the Cowboys pulled the upset to move to 4–0 and jump into the rankings at No. 19.[14] Oklahoma State then faced No. 21 Baylor, whom they defeated by ten points, which led into a bye week.[15] The Cowboys then travelled to No. 25 Texas, overcoming an early deficit to win by eight and vault themselves into the top ten, at No. 8.[16] Another road game saw Oklahoma State drop their first game of the year, as they lost to Iowa State by three points.[17] The Cowboys rebounded with a dominant win over Kansas,[18] and held West Virginia to a field goal the following week in a three-touchdown win.[19] They continued on their win streak with another dominant win, this time over TCU,[20] and followed with a shutout win in their final away game of the season against Texas Tech; this victory clinched them a spot in the championship game.[21] They finished their season with a four-point home win against No. 10 Oklahoma,[22] their first win in the rivalry series since an overtime victory in 2014. The Cowboys, ranked No. 5, also had a potential College Football Playoff spot on the line, where they needed a win in the Big 12 Championship coupled with either an Alabama loss in the SEC Championship, a Michigan loss in the Big Ten Championship, or a Cincinnati loss in the AAC Championship to get into the Top 4. However, given the CFP Committee's alleged bias against Group of 5 teams, it is possible that a 12-1 Oklahoma State would have jumped a 13-0 Cincinnati for the 4th Playoff spot. [23][24]

Baylor[edit]

Main article: 2021 Baylor Bears football team

In their second season under head coach Dave Aranda, the Bears entered 2021 looking to respond from a disappointing 2–7 campaign the year prior.[25] They began the season with a road win against Texas State,[26] and won their home opener in dominant fashion against Texas Southern.[27] They opened conference play in the season's third week, as they took down Kansas on the road by 38 points,[28] and the Bears returned home to finish September with an upset victory against the No. 14 Iowa State Cyclones, whom they defeated by two points.[29] The Bears suffered their season's first loss the following week, when they fell to No. 19 Oklahoma State in Stillwater by ten points.[15] Baylor finished the month strong, however; in three consecutive home games, the Bears defeated West Virginia by 25 points[30] before defeating No. 19 BYU in their third and final non-conference game, which also marked Baylor's homecoming.[31] Now ranked No. 16, the Bears defeated Texas by a touchdown to improve their record to 7–1.[32] The following week, Baylor fell to TCU by two points, marking their second loss on the season,[33] though they were able to respond with a two-possession upset victory over No. 8 Oklahoma.[34] In their final away game, the Bears defeated Kansas State by ten,[35] which put them in the top ten in the rankings for the first time in the season.[36] Their home finale saw the Bears narrowly escape an upset bid from Texas Tech in a three-point win to finish the regular season 10–2.[37] By virtue of Oklahoma State's win over Oklahoma on November 27, Baylor finished the regular season tied with Oklahoma in the Big 12 standings, and, due to their head-to-head victory over Oklahoma, advanced to the title game over the Sooners.[38]

Game summary[edit]

2021 Dr Pepper Big 12 Championship Game
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 9 Baylor 7 14 0021
No. 5 Oklahoma State 3 3 7316

at AT&T Stadium • Arlington, Texas

Scoring summary
Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score
Plays Yards TOP Baylor Oklahoma State
1 7:52 14 68 4:22 Oklahoma State 23-yard field goal by Tanner Brown 0 3
1 3:21 3 11 1:27 Baylor Ben Sims 2-yard touchdown reception from Blake Shapen, Isaiah Hankins kick good 7 3
2 14:54 3 37 1:54 Baylor Drew Estrada 4-yard touchdown reception from Blake Shapen, Isaiah Hankins kick good 14 3
2 5:29 9 47 4:09 Baylor Tyquan Thornton 13-yard touchdown reception from Blake Shapen, Isaiah Hankins kick good 21 3
2 3:34 10 69 1:55 Oklahoma State 23-yard field goal by Tanner Brown 21 6
3 7:09 8 36 3:20 Oklahoma State Dominic Richardson 4-yard touchdown run, Tanner Brown kick good 21 13
4 8:17 10 27 4:30 Oklahoma State 20-yard field goal by Tanner Brown 21 16
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 21 16

Summary[edit]

The ending of the game was particularly notable as a result of a goal-line stand from the Baylor defense. Facing 1st and goal from the Baylor 1 yard line, the Bears defense repeatedly denied the Cowboys, as they had done previously in the game, culminating with a mad dash towards the pylon on 4th and goal, where the Cowboy running back was ruled inches short of a touchdown and potentially a Big 12 title. Baylor’s victory marked their first Big 12 Championship since 2014, their first unshared Big 12 title since 2013, their first win in a Big 12 Championship Game, and their third overall.

Statistics[edit]

Team statistics[edit]

Team statistical comparison
Statistic Baylor Oklahoma State
First downs 15 26
First downs rushing 7 8
First downs passing 7 14
First downs penalty 1 4
Third down efficiency 6 of 14 12 of 20
Fourth down efficiency 0 of 1 0 of 1
Total plays–net yards 61–242 87–333
Rushing attempts–net yards 33–62 40–70
Yards per rush 1.9 1.8
Yards passing 180 263
Pass completions–attempts 23–28 32–47
Interceptions thrown 0 4
Punt returns–total yards 1–5 0–0
Kickoff returns–total yards 2–40 0–0
Punts–total yardage 5–263 4–180
Fumbles–lost 3–2 2–0
Penalties–yards 7–49 6–50
Time of possession 28:37 31:23

Individual statistics[edit]

Baylor statistics
Bears passing
C–A Yds TD INT
Blake Shapen 23–28 180 3 0
Bears rushing
Car Yds TD Avg
Abram Smith 17 63 0 3.7
Bears receiving
Rec Yds TD Avg
Tyquan Thornton 6 71 1 11.8
Oklahoma State statistics
Cowboys passing
C–A Yds TD INT
Spencer Sanders 31–46 257 0 4
Cowboys rushing
Car Yds TD Avg
Spencer Sanders 13 33 0 2.5
Cowboys receiving
Rec Yds TD Avg
Tay Martin 9 88 0 9.8

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Officiating crews for the 2021 college football conference championship games". footballzebras.com. November 30, 2021. Retrieved December 4, 2021.
  2. ^ "Big 12 Announces 2021 Football Conference Schedule". Big 12 Conference. February 11, 2021. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  3. ^ Kelley, Kevin (February 11, 2021). "2021 Big 12 football schedule announced". FBSchedules. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  4. ^ "Big 12 Football Championship Network and Time Revealed". Big 12 Conference. September 22, 2021. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  5. ^ "Oklahoma State Football Game Notes - Dr Pepper Big 12 Championship" (PDF). Oklahoma State Cowboys Football. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  6. ^ a b "2021 Baylor Football Media Almanac" (PDF). Baylor Bears Football. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  7. ^ "Baylor football makes Big 12 Championship game for 2nd time in 3 years". BaylorProud. November 29, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  8. ^ "Oklahoma State Set for Dr Pepper Big 12 Championship Game". Oklahoma State University Athletics. November 29, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  9. ^ "Big 12 Gets Title Game Without Texas or OU Before They Leave". U.S. News & World Report. Associated Press. November 30, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  10. ^ Wheeler, Wyatt D. (September 4, 2021). "Oklahoma State survives Missouri State football's late scare in opening night thriller". Springfield News-Leader. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  11. ^ "Oklahoma State holds off rival Tulsa 28-23 in Sanders' return". ESPN. September 11, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  12. ^ Harris, Matt A. (September 19, 2021). "Oklahoma State survives the blue turf at Boise State in 21-20 win". SB Nation. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  13. ^ Morse, Jon (September 25, 2021). "Oklahoma State 31, K-State 20: Lousy Reception". SB Nation. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  14. ^ "Cowboy Football Lands at No. 19 in First Appearance in AP Poll". Oklahoma State University Athletics. September 26, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  15. ^ a b Nagel, Cody (October 3, 2021). "Quick Recap: Oklahoma State defeats Baylor 24-14". 247Sports. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  16. ^ "Oklahoma State vs Texas score: Cowboys win as Longhorns blow another double digit lead". The Athletic. October 16, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  17. ^ Salvador, Joseph (October 23, 2021). "Iowa State's Fourth Down Stop Squashes Oklahoma State's Undefeated Season". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  18. ^ Guskey, Jordan (October 30, 2021). "Kansas football vs. No. 15 Oklahoma State: Jayhawks lose 55-3 on road against Cowboys". The Topeka Capital-Journal. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  19. ^ Carey, Greg (November 7, 2021). "Mountaineers no match for No. 11 Oklahoma State in 24-3 loss". WV MetroNews. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  20. ^ "Jaylen Warren, No. 10 Oklahoma State roll past TCU, 63-17". CBS Sports. Associated Press. November 14, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  21. ^ Lederman, Eli (November 21, 2021). "'Big accomplishment': OSU shuts down Texas Tech, earns spot in Big 12 title game". Tulsa World. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  22. ^ Simon, Nick; Vaidya, Chinmay (November 27, 2021). "No. 7 Oklahoma State survives Bedlam, topples No. 10 Oklahoma 37-33". DraftKings Nation. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  23. ^ Jeyarajah, Shehan (November 28, 2021). "Oklahoma vs. Oklahoma State score, takeaways: Cowboys win wild Bedlam game for first time since 2014". CBS Sports. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  24. ^ Prince, Patrick (November 21, 2021). "See every Bedlam score since the rivalry began in 1904". Tulsa World. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  25. ^ "2020 Baylor Bears Schedule and Results". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  26. ^ Cooley, Marquis (September 5, 2021). "Baylor pulls out win against Texas State despite mistakes". Baylor Lariat. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  27. ^ Kaut, Kendall (September 11, 2021). "Baylor Blasts Texas Southern 66-7". SB Nation. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  28. ^ "Baylor rides solid ground game to 45-7 victory over Kansas". ESPN. December 1, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  29. ^ Peterson, Randy (September 25, 2021). "Analysis: No. 14 Iowa State, especially its special teams, must improve immediately after Baylor loss". USA Today. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  30. ^ Carey, Greg (October 9, 2021). "West Virginia loses 7th straight road game at Baylor, 45-20". WV MetroNews. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  31. ^ Drew, Jay (October 16, 2021). "Baylor showed BYU has a lot to work on before it enters the Big 12". Deseret News. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  32. ^ Hibbard, Robb (November 27, 2021). "Highlights: Baylor 27, Texas Tech 24". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  33. ^ Lewis, Barry (November 6, 2021). "FROGS WIN! Down Goes #12 Baylor". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  34. ^ Hawkins, Stephen (November 13, 2021). "No. 18 Baylor 27-14 win ends No. 4 Oklahoma 17-game streak". ABC News. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  35. ^ Robinett, Kellis (November 20, 2021). "Three things we learned from Kansas State's uninspiring 20-10 defeat against Baylor". The Wichita Eagle. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  36. ^ Moore, Mark C. (November 23, 2021). "Baylor Rises to No. 8 in CFB Playoff Rankings". SB Nation. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  37. ^ Mainville, Ryan (November 27, 2021). "5 takeaways from Texas Tech's loss to Baylor: Red Raiders get in own way once again". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  38. ^ Chapman, Ryan (November 20, 2021). "Oklahoma's Big 12 Championship Scenarios After Baylor's Win at Kansas State". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 1, 2021.

External links[edit]

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