WE'RE BACK!
UConn headed back to playoff as Huskies fend off pesky Cowboys in 30-17 decision, win first Big 12 Title
Coming into last night’s Big 12 Title Game against Oklahoma State, UConn head coach Bob Diaco, at one point, stood alone in AT&T Stadium. And he started to reflect. He remembered how hurt his team was after their loss in this exact same game a year ago. In the exact same place. Against the exact same team. He couldn’t let it happen again.
With the College Football Playoff on the line, UConn came into Jerruh World on December 5, 2020 and put the demons of 2019 behind them once and for all. Facing the Oklahoma State Cowboys again,
Luke Williamson ran for a career-high 217 yards and a pair of scores to help UConn to a 30-17 victory, winning their first Big 12 Title while clinching their spot in the 4-team playoff, set to kick off on New Year’s Day.
Williamson’s rushing deluge was much needed on a day when quarterback
Isaac Jackson took a step back from his record nearing performance against Houston, today completing just 13 of his 22 passes for 216 yards, a score and a pick.
Thanks also to Williamson, UConn was able to take control early and overcome a sluggish second half by posting 24 of their 30 points in the opening two stanzas, including 17 in the second quarter.
Marcus Bradford quickly got rolling on defense, picking off Oklahoma State's senior QB
Kenny Greenwood to spoil an eleven play opening drive that got inside the UConn 35. Though
Brad Brown picked off I-Jax immediately thereafter, UConn held the Pokes to only a field goal, giving OK State a 3-0 lead.
UConn got on the board next with a 74 yard touchdown pass from Jackson to
Jeff McNeal. McNeal got some great blocking from the wideouts and fullback
Alfred Hart to spring the speedy senior utility man loose.
UConn had some big offensive plays on the day. (LEFT) Luke Williamson drags in defenders on his 27 yard TD run. (CENTER) Jeff McNeal flips into the end zone on his 74 yard catch. (RIGHT) Rashad Harris makes an acrobatic catch along the sideline.
With momentum turning to their side, the Husky D forced a three and out, and Williamson capped off a ten-play drive with a one yard TD punch up the gut.
Williamson would also run in a score from 27 yards out on a four-play drive to stretch the lead to 21-3 midway through the second quarter. That would be all the offensive power UConn would need, as Oklahoma State struggled to get points on the board all game long.
Greenwood completed 25 passes and moved the ball well, but threw 3 INT’s, star running back
Lonnie Wright was held to under 100 yards and top wideout
Parke Lanoer was held in check all game by
Shavlion Wade (who didn't record an INT for the second straight game).
Joey Stetson kicked two field goals to net all six first half points for the Cowboys, and tacked on another in the third to get Oklahoma State to nine after the third quarter elapsed.
Oklahoma State managed to hang around in part because of the struggles of UConn’s offense in the second half. Late in the going, Greenwood fired a TD pass to
Nick Hayden and converted the two point try to pull within 11 points (26-17). However, the UConn D came up with two late INT’s from
Vic Castalanetta and the dagger from
Sammie Leonard to wrap up any slim hopes the Cowboys had.
Highlights were far between for the Cowboys, but Nick Hayden dragged in a few UConn defenders for the Cowboys' only touchdown. (RIGHT) Brad Brown picks off I-Jax early in the going.
UConn will be going to the playoff for the second time, having previously been in 2017, their final season in the American Athletic Conference. UConn defeated Oregon in the Sugar Bowl, and then defeated Florida for the program's first national championship in football.
The win marks UConn's first football championship in the Big 12 conference, this being their third year as members. Their record now sits at 12-1. The full bracket and bowl slate will be revealed next with the final CFP poll.
| Oklahoma State Cowboys at Connecticut Huskies |
| Dec 5, 2020 | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Oklahoma State Cowboys (8-5) | 3 | 3 | 3 | 8 | 17 |
| #1 Connecticut Huskies (12-1) | 7 | 17 | 0 | 6 | 30 |
| Team Stats Comparison |
| OKST | CONN |
| Total Offense | 325 | 437 |
| Rushing Yards | 134 | 221 |
| Passing Yards | 191 | 216 |
| First Downs | 18 | 16 |
| Punt Return Yards | 8 | 26 |
| Kick Return Yards | 59 | 20 |
| Total Yards | 392 | 483 |
| Turnovers | 3 | 1 |
| 3rd Down Conversion | 5-16 (31%) | 7-16 (43%) |
| 4th Down Conversion | 1-1 | 0-0 |
| 2-Point Conversion | 1-1 | 0-0 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals | 3-1-2 (100%) | 5-1-3 (80%) |
| Penalties | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Possession Time | 16:40 | 19:20 |
| Scoring Summary |
| FIRST QUARTER SCORING | OKST | CONN |
| 3:46 | (OKST) Stetson 33 FG | 3 | 0 |
| 2:49 | (CONN) Jackson 74 pass McNeal (McCray kick) | 3 | 7 |
| SECOND QUARTER SCORING | OKST | CONN |
| 8:00 | (CONN) Williamson 1 run (McCray kick) | 3 | 14 |
| 4:50 | (CONN) Williamson 27 run (McCray kick) | 3 | 21 |
| 2:48 | (OKST) Stetson 20 FG | 6 | 21 |
| :44 | (CONN) McCray 32 FG | 6 | 24 |
| THIRD QUARTER SCORING | OKST | CONN |
| 1:07 | (OKST) Stetson 41 FG | 9 | 24 |
| FOURTH QUARTER SCORING | OKST | CONN |
| 3:38 | (CONN) McCray 24 FG | 9 | 27 |
| 5:43 | (OKST) Greenwood 14 pass Hayden (conversion good) | 16 | 27 |
| 2:01 | (CONN) McCray 20 FG | 16 | 30 |
| Oklahoma State Cowboys | | PASSING | C/A | YDS | TD | INT | | Kenny Greenwood | 25-38 | 191 | 1 | 3 | | RUSHING | ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | | Lonnie Wright | 19 | 96 | 5.0 | 0 | | RECEIVING | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | | Nick Coley | 7 | 75 | 10.7 | 0 | | Jason Hayden | 5 | 39 | 7.8 | 1 | | Parke Lanoer | 3 | 47 | 15.6 | 0 | | DEFENSE | TACK | SACK | INT | TD | | D.J. Key | 11 (3) | 1 | 0 | 0 | | Brad Brown | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | | Alex Zeigler | 6 (3) | 1 | 0 | 0 | | Bakari Stanton | 2 (1) | 1 | 0 | 0 | | KICKING | FG | XP | PTS | LONG | | Joey Stetson | 3-3 | 0-0 | 9 | 41 |
| | Connecticut Huskies | | PASSING | C/A | YDS | TD | INT | | Isaac Jackson | 13-22 | 216 | 1 | 1 | | RUSHING | ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | | Luke Williamson | 33 | 217 | 6.5 | 2 | | RECEIVING | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | | Jeff McNeal | 4 | 119 | 29.7 | 1 | | Rashad Harris | 4 | 66 | 16.5 | 0 | | Royce Archie | 2 | 10 | 5.0 | 0 | | DEFENSE | TACK | SACK | INT | TD | | John Cox | 13 (3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Sammie Leonard | 6 (1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | | James Mandrell | 4 (2) | 2 | 0 | 0 | | KICKING | FG | XP | PTS | LONG | | Tyler McCray | 3-3 | 3-3 | 12 | 32 |
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We didn't have any problems getting pressure. We only got a couple of sacks in total I think, but it turned out well nonetheless. We forced Greenwood into some throws late, and the Cowboys didn't seem to want to test us deep. I was frustrated to see them not run on us more, they had good success running Wright early in the game (like they have the past two seasons) but I understand the need to throw more trailing in the second half.
I used the stats comparison in the game preview for the Natty a couple years ago but haven't used it since. I'm thinking about overhauling the game preview graphics for next year, and the stats comparison might become a regular feature, so I appreciate the comment on that.
