The case of the Bedlam massacre

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Oklahoma State needed to make a statement this weekend if they had any hope of leap frogging No. 2 Alabama to face LSU in the BCS national championship game.

But 495 total yards and five forced turnovers later, the Cowboys hoped they had made their case by dismantling their arch-nemesis, the Oklahoma Sooners, 44-10.

Notorious for putting up video game-like numbers in passing, Oklahoma State showcased their tandem of sophomore running backs in Joseph Randle and Jeremy Smith against a helpless Sooner defense, running for 278 total yards and scoring two touchdowns apiece.

Oklahoma State quarterback and Heisman candidate Brandon Weeden finished his final regular season game with the Cowboys passing for 217 yards. Wide receiver Justin Blackmon led the team in receiving yards with 95.

The Cowboys’ win ends an eight-game losing streak in the Bedlam rivalry to the Sooners and Bob Stoops. It also marks the first time Oklahoma State has won a conference title since 1948, when they were the Missouri Valley Conference.

Sooner quarterback Landry Jones could not orchestrate a single significant drive against Oklahoma State. He threw for 250 yards, but was responsible for four of the five Oklahoma turnovers. Oklahoma’s lone touchdown score was in the final minutes of the fourth quarter, on a 26-yard run by six-foot-six, 245 pound freshman quarterback Blake Bell.

Now, all the Cowboys can do is wait and hope that their body of work Saturday night and regular season resume can sway the voters to favor them over Alabama. Both Oklahoma State and Alabama each lost one game, with Oklahoma State losing to Iowa State in a double-overtime and Alabama to No. 1 LSU in a low-scoring, defensive showcase.

Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy made his case to the voters after the game, saying their win in convincing fashion merits his team a No. 2 ranking.

“The honest answer is we didn’t deserve it,” Gundy said to ESPN. “And if we’d have won this game 17-14, I don’t know if I’d have said it… When you win by 34 points, you deserve it.”

The jury announces its verdict Sunday night. Hopefully, they will find Oklahoma State guilty of manslaughter to the preseason No. 1 team, Oklahoma, and sentence the Cowboys to the national championship in New Orleans.

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