How Oklahoma State 'pressured and confused' Texas Tech's Behren Morton to rally for win
STILLWATER — Over the summer, Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy started to hear some buzz about a quarterback at Texas Tech.
Not Tyler Shough, an Oregon transfer. Not Donovan Smith, who ended last season as the starter.
Behren Morton had to be the guy.
“Obviously, that’s who it was,” Gundy said. “He’s a good player.”
Good enough to certainly give the Cowboys fits in a surprise start.
Seventh-ranked OSU fought back for a 41-31 victory over Texas Tech on Saturday, remaining unbeaten on the year.
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But in the win came an unexpected challenge: A quarterback few expected to start the game, leading to several in-game adjustments that took longer than usual to have success.
“What year is he?” Gundy asked in postgame.
Redshirt freshman.
“That’s not good,” Gundy said.
Morton completed 39 of 62 passes for 379 yards and two touchdowns, while showing an impressive elusiveness under heavy pressure despite being sacked four times. He changed arm angles — showing a side-arm pass similar to former Tech star Patrick Mahomes — and ran for 46 yards on 16 carries.
Pretty impressive for a player who had 17 passes in limited action over four games this season.
And the Cowboys prepared for Morton, just not nearly as much as Smith, who had started the previous four games.
“It’s really different,” OSU defensive coordinator Derek Mason said. “A lot of people don’t understand when you get a different quarterback the dynamics are different. He’s a better thrower and can run as well.”
Morton started hot, completing 24 of 48 passes and throwing both of his TDs in the opening half. But the Cowboys adjusted, limiting him to just 15-of-24 passing in the final half, even getting an interception from linebacker Mason Cobb.
“I think as the game went on, I thought we pressured and confused him,” Mason said. “I think that was the key, like us getting the run under control and not letting these dudes extend drives on third down is what really showed up.”
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Kendal Daniels ejected for targeting
OSU nearly had its second safety in as many weeks when safety Kendal Daniels sacked Morton in the end zone early in the fourth quarter.
Instead, Daniels found himself on the sideline for the remainder of the game and the first half of next week’s game at TCU.
Daniels was ejected for targeting on the hit, which included a helmet-to-helmet blow with Daniels’ head down.
“It was targeting,” Gundy said. “It’s a tough game, but the way the rule is set up, that was targeting. You cannot lower your head. And they know it. And he’s young.
“We talked about it. We talked about it Friday. We talked about it this morning before we came over. Those are things I remind them on all the time.
“But in the heat of the moment, all he knows is he had a dead shot at the quarterback in the end zone. You cannot lower your head. You have to keep your eyes up all the time.”
Daniels, a 6-foot-4, 205-pound redshirt freshman from Beggs, finished with five tackles, a pass breakup and two tackles for loss. Had he completed the safety, it would have been his tackle in the end zone for a second straight week.
Losing him next week puts veteran Sean Michael Flanagan, who starts, on the field more.
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Demarco Jones delivers with fair catch
As soon as Texas Tech kicker Trey Wolff popped the football into the air from the tee with his sights set on a surprise onside kick, OSU defensive back Demarco Jones signaled for a fair catch.
It was perhaps the smartest play of the game.
The ball went 14 yards — far enough to be recovered by the Red Raiders — as Kobee Minor stepped in front of Jones and caught it. But Minor was ruled for catch interference.
OSU maintained the football and gained 15 yards via penalty, setting up a quick two-play touchdown drive that tied the game at 7 less than 5 minutes into the game.
“Pretty smart, huh?” Gundy said. “We’ve practiced it and talked about it. We were fortunate enough we had a guy that played a ton of special teams for a long time, he was mature and he made a play.”
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Preston Wilson suffers injury
On a day the Cowboys got a little beat up physically, losing center Preston Wilson in the first half to a leg injury was the biggest blow.
The redshirt junior has been incredibly steady this season.
His replacement, Joe Michalski, entered and struggled at times with high snaps.
“I thought Joe did OK,” Gundy said. “A couple snaps were up there a little bit.”
Gundy said Wilson’s injury was not significant and he was walking around. The hope is he can return to practice early in the week.
OSU also lost Jones and fellow cornerback Korie Black (hamstring) to injuries, forcing redshirt freshman Cam Smith into extended action. True freshman D.J. McKinney also played.
Linebacker Xavier Benson was also in and out of the lineup with an ankle injury.
Veteran receiver Braydon Johnson started the game but was not targeted. He also left with an unknown injury early and did not return.
OSU’s radio broadcast reported that it appeared Johnson was in concussion protocol.
“He’s fine,” Gundy said. “You know, I don’t know for sure what happened to him. I don’t know. I’m not sure what happened. I need to check on that.”
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Tanner Brown remains perfect
Through the first few games of the season, Cowboys kicker Tanner Brown was getting a little frustrated.
He was getting plenty of extra-point attempts. But getting chances to kick field goals were limited with OSU’s high-powered offense.
“But I was happy that our team was winning,” Brown said.
Big 12 play has Brown more involved.
A week ago, he made two field goals at Baylor. On Saturday, he made four field goals, tying a career high.
And he’s a perfect 8 for 8 on the season.
He’s now 25 of 29 in two seasons with the Cowboys after transferring from UNLV as a walk-on.
“It was nice,” Brown said. “It’s been good for me (at OSU). I think Stillwater’s the perfect spot for me and I love the culture that they’ve built. It’s definitely worked out positively.”
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Jacob Unruh covers college sports for The Oklahoman. You can send your story ideas to him at junruh@oklahoman.com or on Twitter at @jacobunruh. Support his work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OSU football 'pressured and confused' Texas Tech QB Behren Morton
