Big 12 Championship Superlatives: Game MVPs, Top Play, Stats that Stood Out and More

Texas dominated Oklahoma State 49-21 in the Big 12 Championship on Saturday in Arlington. Although the numbers may not be very pretty for the Cowboys and the great plays were few, here are superlatives from the title bout.

Offensive MVP: Rashod Owens

Owens was on the other end of 2/3 of OSU’s touchdowns in the game. He had four catches for 85 yards and two touchdowns.

Although Brennan Presley led the Cowboys with nine catches and 93 yards, as well as a touchdown, getting in the end zone seemed impossible for the Cowboys at times Saturday. But Owens made it doable with his 6-foot-2 frame, so the fact he was able to really help OSU get points on the board is why he earned Offensive MVP honors.

Defensive MVP: Nickolas Martin

I’ve already ranted and raved enough about Martin, so obviously he was going to get this honor.

Martin led the Cowboys with 13 tackles and had the play of the game for OSU when he intercepted Quinn Ewers and returned it for 27 yards to Texas’ three-yard line to set up a touchdown.

Play of the Game: Martin’s Interception

.@NickMartinPg6 clutch INT! 🤠 pic.twitter.com/DgmUPCeA7J

— OSU Cowboy Football (@CowboyFB) December 2, 2023

Stat that Stood Out: Time of Possession

Marshall actually pointed this out when we were handed postgame stats while waiting for the postgame press conference to start.

OSU possessed the ball for 19:54, compared to Texas with 40:06 time of possession. The Longhorns had the ball in their hands over twice as long as the Cowboys.

The Cardiac Cowboys had become pros at executing comebacks, but that’s difficult, albeit impossible, when you never have the ball to score the points in order to come back.

That also leads me to the next stat that popped out. Texas put up 662 yards of total offense against the Cowboys. It didn’t matter that OSU couldn’t run the ball, the Cowboys wouldn’t have been able to keep up with that.

What’s Next

OSU now waits to learn its 18th straight bowl destination on Sunday. The likely options include the Texas Bowl and Pop-Tarts Bowl, although, the Alamo Bowl could also still be a possibility depending on how the rest of Saturday shakes out.