Daily Bullets (October 30)

Hidden Strength

If I told you Mason Rudolph and Co. hung 50 on West Virginia and held them below 75 yards rushing, how much would you guess the Pokes won by?

Oklahoma State has made a living lighting up scoreboards under Mike Gundy and putting up staggering passing numbers, but Glenn Spencer’s defense is a big reason this might be one of Gundy’s most balanced teams.

Oklahoma State’s defense hasn’t allowed more than two touchdowns in any of its past three games. The Cowboys completely shut down the Mountaineers’ running game and kept them in third-and-long most of the game. [ESPN]

The defense has rounded into form over the course of the season, collect your winnings if you anticipated feeling remotely as confident in the defense as you would the offense pre-Bedlam.

November to Remember

With four-plus teams legitimately in the running, this last month could be complete chaos in determining who plays for the Big 12 championship.

Nevertheless, it’s hard not to look at the Big 12 and see a bit of chaos right now, especially with a 10th conference game — the return of the conference championship game — for whomever emerges as the top two teams in the standings. Entering November, Iowa State, TCU, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State are all 4-1 in the Big 12.

Iowa State has two losses overall (it lost a heartbreaker to Iowa), and the other three have only one loss each. Iowa State provided TCU and Oklahoma with those only losses. [SportsOnEarth]

House money would generally be on Oklahoma but having to play TCU and Oklahoma State still fogs that picture. What a year to bring back the title game!

A four-way tie atop the Big 12 standings with one month to go. Buckle up! pic.twitter.com/IVAHZpxobe

— Max Olson (@max_olson) October 29, 2017

OSU and NCAA Notes

The Playoff: Oklahoma, Ohio State, and one-loss teams….Points off turnovers made the difference for the Pokes on Saturday….Five best coaching bargains in college football….Notre Dame crashing the CFP and its effects….The fourth quarter in Columbus was unreal this weekend….Ten names to watch for the Florida hire

Boy did Oklahoma State need all 36.

J.D. King's 36 carries were the most by an #OKState player in the Mike Gundy era and the most since at least 2000.

— Mark Cooper (@mark_cooperjr) October 28, 2017

James Washington and JD King taking over was a blast.

?WATCH: The Cowboys are victorious in Morgantown! Check out the replays here: #okstate #GoPokes pic.twitter.com/NxvvVD5wi9

— Cowboy Football (@CowboyFB) October 28, 2017

Here’s briefly your scores from around the league this weekend:

A quick look ? at the action from Saturday.

?⬇️ pic.twitter.com/0ufuUi3U4u

— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) October 29, 2017

It felt like I was watching Little Giants seeing this:

Rashaad Penny literally took a Hawaii defender for a ride. https://t.co/EYiexrC49R pic.twitter.com/iI1DJpFYnV

— Dr. Saturday (@YahooDrSaturday) October 29, 2017

McMurphy responds with the truth after a fan lauds Arizona QB Khalil Tate’s October performances.

Barry Sanders: 1,141 yards in October 1988. Beat that https://t.co/UozczDDdNK

— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) October 29, 2017

What You Missed on PFB

• OSU a four-point favorite over the Sooners in Bedlam
• Bedlam with it all on the line was always the goal
• Check out the Pokes’ rankings headed into week ten
• OSU continuing to run the ball into Bedlam may be an issue
• Gameday is coming to town – and how OSU has historically fared with that

Other Stuff I’m Reading

• Be a Boaz in your business
• NYT takes a stab at the question about your spouse being your best friend