AnniePokely
01-01-2008, 09:21 AM
Jacob Longan - NewsPress
TEMPE, Ariz. — For two seasons, Oklahoma State’s offense has drawn comparisons to the 1988 version, the Cowboys’ best scoring unit ever.
OSU ended the Adarius Bowman-Dantrell Savage era the same way it finished the Barry Sanders-Mike Gundy-Hart Lee Dykes era — with a blowout bowl win.
The Cowboys pounded Indiana, 49-33, at the Insight Bowl in Tempe, Ariz., on Monday. It was OSU’s most lopsided postseason win since the 1988 Holiday Bowl, when the Cowboys blasted Wyoming, 62-14.
It also marks the first time the Cowboys (7-6) won back-to-back bowl games since the Holiday and the 1987 Sun Bowl, when Gundy, Dykes and Thurman Thomas edged West Virginia, 35-33. This time, the Cowboys scored touchdowns on their first five possessions and led IU, 35-10, at the half.
“We felt like that we would be faster than them in space and it would be difficult for them to tackle us if we just got our guys out in space, so that was our game plan,” said Gundy, now the program’s coach.
“Obviously, we ran the ball effectively and threw the ball down the field. We were able to get big plays from (receivers) Dez Bryant and (Adarius) Bowman.”
The Cowboys amassed 513 yards of total offense against IU (7-6) with quarterback Zac Robinson stealing the show. He completed 24-of-34 passes for 302 yards, three touchdowns and an interception.
He also carried the ball 15 times for 74 yards and two scores to earn the Offensive MVP award.
“We knew we wanted to get off to a good start,” Robinson said. “We knew they would come out fired up early, and so we just wanted — they came out with exactly what we thought they would do.
“And so when they — we had to check, Coach Gundy and the rest of the coaches got us to the check that we needed, we executed it and didn’t turn the ball over.”
In his final collegiate game, senior running back Dantrell Savage carried 23 times for 100 yards and a touchdown. It marked his 10th straight game with at least 100 yards. Bryant, a freshman, caught nine passes for 117 yards and two scores, while Bowman hauled in six for 74 and a TD.
Defensively, linebacker Donovan Woods was named the MVP after recording nine tackles — including a game-high eight solos — and one for loss.
Safety Andre Sexton added a team-high 10 tackles. Most importantly, the Cowboys held Indiana to 220 passing yards. All-Big Ten receiver James Hardy was held to five catches for 50 yards.
“We tried to press (Hardy),” said defensive coordinator Tim Beckman. “We were playing a guy over the top of him a lot of times when we were in man. We tried to help with all that stuff.”
Virtually all of IU’s offense came from quarterback Kellen Lewis, who completed 22-of-43 passes for 204 yards and two touchdowns. He also carried the ball 10 times for a team-high 83 yards and a score.
“We did have some concerns about their quarterback, which held to be true,” Gundy said. “(Lewis) is very active and he is very elusive.”
Indiana’s other big-name player is defensive end Greg Middleton, whose 16 sacks led the nation. He not only didn’t have a sack, but he had no tackles. The Hoosier defense, which was tied for third nationally with 42 sacks, had zero.
“As a line, we did pretty good protecting Zac and limiting the hits on him,” said OSU left tackle Russell Okung, who blocked Middleton. “Coaches have been making fun of me all month about this guy.
“I’m not really thinking about confidence, I’m thinking about shutting up those guys — (offensive line coach Joe Wickline) and (tight ends coach Doug) Meacham because I took care of business (Monday).”
TEMPE, Ariz. — For two seasons, Oklahoma State’s offense has drawn comparisons to the 1988 version, the Cowboys’ best scoring unit ever.
OSU ended the Adarius Bowman-Dantrell Savage era the same way it finished the Barry Sanders-Mike Gundy-Hart Lee Dykes era — with a blowout bowl win.
The Cowboys pounded Indiana, 49-33, at the Insight Bowl in Tempe, Ariz., on Monday. It was OSU’s most lopsided postseason win since the 1988 Holiday Bowl, when the Cowboys blasted Wyoming, 62-14.
It also marks the first time the Cowboys (7-6) won back-to-back bowl games since the Holiday and the 1987 Sun Bowl, when Gundy, Dykes and Thurman Thomas edged West Virginia, 35-33. This time, the Cowboys scored touchdowns on their first five possessions and led IU, 35-10, at the half.
“We felt like that we would be faster than them in space and it would be difficult for them to tackle us if we just got our guys out in space, so that was our game plan,” said Gundy, now the program’s coach.
“Obviously, we ran the ball effectively and threw the ball down the field. We were able to get big plays from (receivers) Dez Bryant and (Adarius) Bowman.”
The Cowboys amassed 513 yards of total offense against IU (7-6) with quarterback Zac Robinson stealing the show. He completed 24-of-34 passes for 302 yards, three touchdowns and an interception.
He also carried the ball 15 times for 74 yards and two scores to earn the Offensive MVP award.
“We knew we wanted to get off to a good start,” Robinson said. “We knew they would come out fired up early, and so we just wanted — they came out with exactly what we thought they would do.
“And so when they — we had to check, Coach Gundy and the rest of the coaches got us to the check that we needed, we executed it and didn’t turn the ball over.”
In his final collegiate game, senior running back Dantrell Savage carried 23 times for 100 yards and a touchdown. It marked his 10th straight game with at least 100 yards. Bryant, a freshman, caught nine passes for 117 yards and two scores, while Bowman hauled in six for 74 and a TD.
Defensively, linebacker Donovan Woods was named the MVP after recording nine tackles — including a game-high eight solos — and one for loss.
Safety Andre Sexton added a team-high 10 tackles. Most importantly, the Cowboys held Indiana to 220 passing yards. All-Big Ten receiver James Hardy was held to five catches for 50 yards.
“We tried to press (Hardy),” said defensive coordinator Tim Beckman. “We were playing a guy over the top of him a lot of times when we were in man. We tried to help with all that stuff.”
Virtually all of IU’s offense came from quarterback Kellen Lewis, who completed 22-of-43 passes for 204 yards and two touchdowns. He also carried the ball 10 times for a team-high 83 yards and a score.
“We did have some concerns about their quarterback, which held to be true,” Gundy said. “(Lewis) is very active and he is very elusive.”
Indiana’s other big-name player is defensive end Greg Middleton, whose 16 sacks led the nation. He not only didn’t have a sack, but he had no tackles. The Hoosier defense, which was tied for third nationally with 42 sacks, had zero.
“As a line, we did pretty good protecting Zac and limiting the hits on him,” said OSU left tackle Russell Okung, who blocked Middleton. “Coaches have been making fun of me all month about this guy.
“I’m not really thinking about confidence, I’m thinking about shutting up those guys — (offensive line coach Joe Wickline) and (tight ends coach Doug) Meacham because I took care of business (Monday).”