STILLWATER, Okla. – There is uncertainty over the status of sophomore quarterback Sam Ehlinger as No. 7 Texas prepares to visit Oklahoma State in Big 12 play on Saturday. Ehlinger suffered a sprained passing shoulder against Baylor on Oct. 13 and his availability won't be determined until late in the week.
TV: 8:14 p.m. ET, ABC. LINE: Texas -3.5
Recommended Videos
(function(d, s, id) {var js,ijs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(d.getElementById(id))return;js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//embed.scribblelive.com/widgets/embed.js";ijs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, ijs);}(document, 'script', 'scrbbl-js'));
Junior Shane Buechele will also be prepared to play just in case the right-handed Ehlinger's shoulder doesn't appear ready for the contest. "If he's healthy and he's himself, then certainly he'll start," Longhorns coach Tom Herman said in a press conference. "We talked awhile (Sunday) about him being very honest with us in terms of his pain because there's an element to his game that's different than a lot of quarterbacks and if we're out there playing cautious and tentative and trying to protect things, I think that plays into the overall effectiveness of him and his game for us." Oklahoma State has dropped three of its past four games and coach Mike Gundy is perplexed over his team's inconsistent nature. "Offensively, we've gone into games where we haven't protected very well, then had games where we haven't run blocked really well. We haven't put it together in a while," Gundy said in a press conference. "Defensively, we go through phases where we don't defend the deep ball really well, then we haven't defended the run very well. We really haven't put that together, so I would like to see us do that. That would be a good start."
ABOUT TEXAS (6-1, 4-0 Big 12)
Buechele was 20-of-34 passing for 184 yards, one touchdown and one interception in the narrow 23-17 victory over Baylor and has started 19 games during his college career. However, he isn't the dual-threat or as efficient as Ehlinger, who has passed for 1,534 yards and 11 touchdowns against two interceptions while also rushing for six scores. Senior defensive end Charles Omenihu leads the team with six sacks and freshman safety Caden Sterns has a team-best four interceptions for a unit that has held four teams to 17 or fewer points.
ABOUT OKLAHOMA STATE (4-3, 1-3)
The Cowboys are averaging 39.4 points per game and junior running back Justice Hill (684 yards, seven touchdowns) has rushed for at least 100 yards in 15 of his past 24 outings. Senior quarterback Taylor Cornelius has passed for 2,014 yards and 16 touchdowns against eight interceptions but had his worst contest of the season in a 31-12 loss to Kansas State on Oct. 13 as he was 17-of-35 for 184 yards and two interceptions. Oklahoma State allows 28.4 points per game but leads the nation with 30 sacks and junior defensive end Jordan Brailford is leading the way with a team-high eight.
EXTRA POINTS
1. Texas holds a 24-8 series edge, but Oklahoma State has won six of the past eight meetings.
2. Longhorns freshman RB Keaontay Ingram had 110 yards against Baylor for his first career 100-yard game and leads the team with 403 rushing yards.
3. Cowboys sophomore WR Tylan Wallace had four consecutive 100-yard outings earlier this season and leads the squad with 40 catches for 718 yards and four receiving touchdowns.
PREDICTION: Texas 45, Oklahoma State 28