Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboys Fall to Missouri in 2 OTs, 51-50
April 14, 2003 | Cowboy Football
Quarterback Corby Jones dashed 15 yards to give Missouri (5-3, 3-2 Big 12 North) a 51-44 lead after its second possession of overtime. The Cowboys (6-1, 3-1 Big 12 South) answered as Lindsay scrambled six yards for a score.
Oklahoma State opted to go for the win as Lindsay dropped back to pass in the "swinging gate" formation, but scrambled for the goal line. Cracraft led a charge of three Missouri defenders who stopped Lindsay at the three. The Cowboys, who were off to their best start since going 9-0 in 1945, failed to hold a 37-30 lead in the final 1:57 of regulation.
"That's something that we've been practicing on since the beginning of the season," said Oklahoma State coach Bob Simmon. "If I had the decision to try and win it, that's something that I would try to win it with. All the quarterback has to do is throw the ball when we have a three-on-two on the outside, but he made the decision not to throw it. I wanted to win the ballgame. I'm not second-guessing myself."
"Not really," responded Missouri coach Larry Smith when asked if he was surprised that Simmon went for two. "They (coaches) feel when the other team has the momentum they have to make a play."
The loss leaves top-ranked Nebraska as the only unbeaten team in the Big 12 Conference. This was the final game of a five-game homestand for Oklahoma State, which now has road games at Texas A&M and Oklahoma in the next two weeks. The Cowboys remained tied atop the South Division with Texas A&M.
Missouri led 30-7 less than three minutes into the second half as Jones dashed 23 yards for a score. But the Cowboys pulled within 30-22 by the end of the third quarter as Nathan Simmons bulled in from two yards and Lindsay, who ran for the two-point conversion on that score, fired a 34-yard scoring strike to Sean Love with 1:47 left.
Oklahoma State tied the game in the first minute of the fourth quarter as Lindsay hooked up with Alonzo Mayes on an eight-yard scoring play and found Willie Grissom for the two-point conversion.
The Cowboys concluded their run of 30 consecutive points when Lindsay and Mayes combined for a nine-yard scoring pass with 1:57 to go, giving Oklahoma State a 37-30 lead. But Missouri stormed 80 yards on eight plays, capped by a 38-yard TD toss from Jones to Ricky Ross.
Oklahoma State had the first possession of overtime and took a 45-38 lead when Lindsay swung a pass to Jamaal Fobbs on the left side and Fobbs did the rest, racing 21 yards for the score. But the defense could not stop Missouri, which tied the game on a one-yard plunge by Brock Olivo.
Jones accounted for 316 yards and six total touchdowns for Missouri, which topped 50 points for the first time since a 52-21 victory over Kansas State on October 8th, 1988. Jones completed 13-of-25 passes for 231 yards and four touchdowns and added 85 yards rushing with two TDs on 12 attempts.
"That was a wild one," Smith admitted. "We have been involved in overtime games, but one that wild... I don't know if I have ever been involved in one of those. All of the credit goes to our football team."
Oklahoma State, which has scored at least 31 points in all of its last six games, hit 50 for the first time since a 62-14 romp over Wyoming in the 1988 Holiday Bowl.
"We had the chance to get it done," Simmon added. "In the past, we've done that. Today, we didn't get it done. What we have to do is go back and look at the film and see where we came up short and then move on to next week's ball game against Texas A&M."
The Cowboys took a 7-0 lead with 6:48 to go in the first quarter when wide receiver and two-way player R.W. McQuarters scampered 56 yards for a score. But Missouri scored the final 24 points of the half as Jones hooked up with Eddie Brooks, Torey Coleman and Kent Layman on scoring passes of 20, 33 and 37 yards, respectively. Scott Knickman added a 27-yard field goal in the second quarter for the Tigers.
Lindsay, a freshman, completed 10-of-18 passes for 210 yards and a career-high four scores. He entered the game with three TD passes in 52 attempts. Mays finished with eight receptions for 126 yards and two scores while Simmons rushed 22 times for 99 yards.
"I think we beat ourselves," said McQuarters. "We had the chance on defense. We just didn't step up and make the big play. The second half, we played a little bit better, but in the first half, we sucked."
