No. 9 Football Set for Rematch with No. 5 Oklahoma State in Big 12 Title Game
12/2/2021 12:15:00 PM | Football
Baylor is Playing for The Big 12 Championship for the Second Time in Three Years
GAME 139/9/9 BAYLOR (10-2, 6-2 Big 12) vs. 5/5/5 OKLAHOMA STATE (11-1, 8-1)
DEC. 4, 2021 • 11:00 a.m. CT • Watch: ABC and ESPN App • Listen: ESPN Central Texas & TuneIn App
Arlington, Texas • AT&T Stadium (80,000) • Social Media: @BUFootball | #SicEm
Story lines
• Baylor makes its second Big 12 title game appearance at 11 a.m. CT Saturday vs. Oklahoma State.
• Since the Big 12 Championship game was reinstated in 2017, Baylor is the only school to earn title game berths after being picked in the lower half of the Big 12 preseason media poll (6th in 2019, 8th in 2021).
• Baylor is 18-22 all-time vs. OSU, including a 2-1 mark in neutral sites (last neutral meeting in 1983).
• Baylor is seeking its 3rd Big 12 Championship (2013, 2014), but its first in a year with a title game.
• BU has reached the 10-win mark for the 6th time in the last 11 years (2011, 2013-15, 2019, 2021).
• BU can tie a school-record with an 11th win – BU went 11-2 in 2013 and 2014 and 11-3 in 2019.
• BU is coming off a 27-24 win vs. Texas Tech, the Bears' 3rd-straight game with 35+ minutes TOP.
• Baylor controlled the ball for 77% of the 2nd half (22:57) vs. TTU, running 54 plays to Tech's 22.
• Baylor is 1 of 6 teams with 3 ranked wins this season – Baylor, Oklahoma State, Iowa, Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi State. BU looks to tie a school-record with a 4th ranked win (4-3 in 1974).
• Baylor's only losses this season were at Oklahoma State and at TCU. BU had the ball down 3 or fewer points in the 4th quarter of both games before falling 24-14 at OSU and 30-28 at TCU.
• Baylor is 1 of 5 teams to not allow more than 30 points this season (BU, UGA, Cincy, Clemson, Iowa).
• BU's defense is holding opponents to 11.6 points/game below their scoring averages in all other games.
• Baylor is 1 of 6 Power-5 teams ranked top-30 nationally in scoring offense and defense (BU, Alabama, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State, Utah). BU is 30th in offense (33.4) and 17th in defense (19.4).
• Baylor ranks 7th nationally with 22 fourth-down conversions, including 8 times in its own territory, and BU is the only Power-5 team with at least one 4th-down conversion in every game this season.
• BU's offense ranks 5th nationally with 5.48 yards per rush and 17th nationally with 6.55 yards per play.
• BU is 8th nationally with 227.4 rushing yards per game after ranking 123rd last season (90.3 ypg).
• Baylor's O-Line has allowed 12 sacks, tied for 9th-fewest nationally (5th in Power-5).
• Baylor's defense has forced a turnover in 20-consecutive games and the Bears are +16 in turnovers in 21 games under Dave Aranda (37 turnovers forced, 21 turnovers allowed).
ADDITIONAL NOTES
• Baylor is making its 2nd Big 12 Championship game appearance, joining Oklahoma as the only teams with multiple appearances since it was reinstated in 2017. The Bears lost 30-23 in overtime against Oklahoma in 2019.
• Abram Smith national rushing ranks: 7th in yards (1,366), 12th in yards per carry (6.35), 32nd in TDs (12).
• Jalen Pitre is the nation's only player with 3+ forced fumbles, 3+ fumble recoveries and 2+ interceptions.
• Baylor's offensive line has allowed only 6 sacks in the Bears' last 206 attempts to pass (last 7 games).
• BU had one 10-win season in the program's first 109 seasons before doing so in 6 of the last 11 seasons.
• Baylor has 88 wins since 2011, 3rd-most in the state of Texas behind TAMU (92) and Houston (89).
• BU is bowl-eligible for the 10th time in the last 12 seasons following a 15-season drought (1995-2009).
• This year is the first time Baylor has defeated 3 ranked teams in the first 10 games of a season since 1974.
• Eight different Baylor players have intercepted passes this season, accounting for a Big 12-best 12 INTs.
• The Bears welcomed four new assistant coaches for 2021 – Jeff Grimes (Offensive Coordinator/TEs), Eric Mateos (Offensive Line), Chansi Stuckey (Wide Receivers) and Kevin Curtis (Cornerbacks).
• The Bears added a pair of experienced O-Line transfers with Jacob Gall (13 starts at Buffalo) and Grant Miller (16 starts at Vanderbilt). Four members of the O-Line now have a combined 123 career starts.
• BU is playing its 120th season of football and holds a 619-586-44 (.513) all-time record. Baylor has scored in a school-record 186-straight games, doubling the previous record of 89 games from Dec. 31, 1979 - Oct. 23, 1987.
• The Bears are the only team ranked in the Big 12's top-3 in scoring offense (3rd) and scoring defense (2nd).
• BU's win over No. 4 Oklahoma was its first top-5 win since 2015 at No. 4 Oklahoma State.
• BU scored 21 unanswered to overcome an 11-point 3rd-quarter deficit in a 31-24 win over Texas.
• BU had 534 yards of offense and played its first-ever penalty-free game in the win over No. 19 BYU.
• BU defeated No. 14 Iowa State on Sept. 25 for its first ranked win since 2015.
OKLAHOMA STATE SERIES HISTORY
• Baylor and OSU are meeting for the 41st time and the first time at a neutral site since the 1983 Bluebonner Bowl.
• Baylor is 18-22 all-time against Oklahoma State, including 7-14 in Stillwater, 9-7 in Waco and 2-1 at neutral sites.
• BU is 6-4 against Oklahoma State in the last 10 meetings after starting 1-15 against OSU as Big 12 opponents.
• The three previous neutral-site meetings were in Wichita Falls (1938 – Baylor won 20-6), Oklahoma City (1942 – Baylor won 18-12) and Houston (1983 Bluebonnet Bowl – Oklahoma State won 24-14).
For full version of Game Notes, click here.
