Spencer Sanders threw for a touchdown and rushed for two more as No. 7 Oklahoma State kept its perfect record intact by beating Texas Tech 41-31 in Stillwater, Okla.
Sanders completed 22 of 45 passes for 297 yards for the Cowboys (5-0, 2-0 Big 12), and also rushed for 56 yards on 17 carries. Perhaps most importantly, Sanders did not turn the ball over. The Cowboys were also boosted by the consistent running of Dominic Richardson, who totaled 67 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries.
Donovan Smith did not start at quarterback for Texas Tech (3-3, 1-2). Smith has a 4-4 record as a starter and had faced an AP Top 25 team in six of those games. Texas Tech told the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal that reports of Smith being injured were "100 percent inaccurate." Smith wound up attempting one pass and lined up as a slot receiver.
Getting the start under center instead for the Red Raiders was Behren Morton. In his first career start, he completed 39 of 62 passes for 379 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Oklahoma State turned that interception -- grabbed by linebacker Mason Cobb -- into a third-quarter field goal.
Texas Tech led 31-23 in the third quarter, and then Oklahoma State scored the next 18 points.
That run began with a 2-yard rushing touchdown by Sanders, and then Sanders found Jaden Bray for a two-point conversion. Cobb's pick set up a 24-yard field goal from Tanner Brown -- his fourth of the day -- and then Richardson's touchdown run with 2:27 to play sealed the win for the Cowboys.
Oklahoma State now has a three-game winning streak against the Red Raiders.
With No. 17 TCU topping No. 19 Kansas 38-31 on Saturday, the Big 12 will have a battle of unbeatens next weekend when the Cowboys meet the Horned Frogs in Fort Worth, Texas. Oklahoma State beat TCU in Stillwater last season 63-17.
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