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• Buffs and Pokes lock horns in Stillwater

  
  

  Stillwater, OK (Sports Network) - The 12th-ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys will look to take advantage of the struggling Colorado Buffaloes this Thursday night, as the two Big 12 clubs clash in Stillwater.

  The Cowboys have enjoyed a terrific campaign up to this point and they are coming off another solid win, capturing a 24-17 victory over Texas Tech this past weekend.

  "I'm very proud of our football team," said head coach Mike Gundy. "Obviously, we've had great games with Texas Tech over the years." The win was the team's second in a row following OSU's lone league loss to Texas back in late October. At 5-1, the Cowboys remain in sole possession of second place in the Big 12 South standings, with only rival Oklahoma remaining on their regular season schedule.

  As for the Buffs, their miserable campaign continued last weekend, when the team suffered a 17-10 loss at Iowa State.

  "I thought they were great and we were very focused, but clearly I don't think we started great again," said head coach Dan Hawkins.

  The loss was Colorado's 10th straight in true road games and its 12th in a row outside the state of Colorado, as the team was eliminated from postseason contention at just 3-7 overall.

  Colorado does lead the head-to-head series with the Cowboys, 26-18-1, but OSU won last season's meeting by a 30-17 score.

  The Buffs gained 390 yards of total offense, but only managed 10 points in a loss to ISU over the weekend. Colorado, one of the most penalized teams in the nation, committed 11 for 110 yards lost and only produced one field goal in four trips to the red zone.

  "We went from being one of the better teams in the red zone in the country to one of the worst," said coach Hawkins. "One score in four trips combined with turnovers is what kills." Colorado had three turnovers in the loss and they have now committed 27 on the year. Tailback Rodney Stewart had fumbled just twice in 150 prior carries this season, but he lost two last weekend. The sophomore back still ran for 85 yards on 19 carries and he now has 673 yards on the season, surpassing his freshman total of 622.

  Quarterback Tyler Hansen accounted for the other giveaway on an interception. He threw for 258 yards and a score, but was inconsistent, converting just 18- of-38 pass attempts. For the season, Hansen has made good on 56.7 percent of his tosses, with just three touchdowns against four picks.

  Scotty McKnight, the team's leading pass catcher with 62 receptions for 708 yards, cracked the century mark with 107 yards on eight catches last weekend. Markques Simas added seven receptions for 128 yards and a touchdown, giving his back-to-back 100-yard efforts.

  Colorado's defense did a good job slowing down ISU last weekend, holding the Cyclones to just 310 total yards, including only 116 through the air. The unit came away with a pair of takeaways and two sacks, but didn't get much help from the team's offense.

  For the season, Colorado has been up and down and is giving up 373.9 total ypg, including 155.8 ypg on the ground. The unit has compensated for some of those yards by recording 24 sacks and forcing 20 turnovers.

  Jeff Smart heads the defense with 86 tackles, to go with 2.5 sacks, and but he had only one tackle in last weekend's loss.

  The Cowboys got off to a slow start on offense, but turned things on in the second half and used 243 rushing yards to posses the ball for over 37 minutes and keep Texas Texas' potent attack off the field.

  Keith Toston ran for 76 yards and a score and Kendall Hunter added 68 yards and 17 attempts. For the season, Toston heads the team with 958 yards and 10 scores, as he has done a nice job picking up the slack for Hunter, who has had a slow recovery from ankle/foot injury. Hunter, the Big 12's rushing leader last season, is getting healthier each week and that is good news for an already potent ground attack that is averaging 200.7 ypg on the year.

  Quarterback Zac Robinson is part of this successful ground game and he actually led the team with 99 yards on 19 carries against Texas Tech. He completed just 9-of-21 pass attempts for 90 yards and a score before being forced out late in the game on a big hit.

  "Any time you have a quarterback who can make something happen with his legs, that is big," said Toston. It helps his offense as well." Robinson, who is probable for this game, ranks second on the team with 302 yards on the ground and he is just as effective with his arm, completing 63.5 percent of his pass attempts for 1,922 yards and 15 touchdowns.

  With star wideout Dez Bryant out for the season, Hubert Anyiam has become the go-to-guy in the passing attack with 38 receptions for 455 yards and three scores. He had three receptions for 39 yards and a touchdown last weekend.

  OSU's defense has been criticized heavily at times, but the unit was outstanding last weekend, limiting Texas Tech to just 357. Texas Tech, which is averaging nearly 400 ypg through the air, was only able to pass for 307 yards against the Cowboys, who also had three interceptions.

  "I'm really proud of our defense, said Gundy. "I mentioned to them in the locker that I haven't been around a group of guys that can rally around each other like they have." Patrick Lavine even returned one of the picks for a score to add to the terrific performance by the defense, which has recorded 14 interceptions on the year. The run defense has also been especially good for OSU, holding foes to just 89.6 ypg on the season.

  Donald Booker paces the defense with 71 tackles and four sacks, while Lavine comes in with 59 stops, to go with a team-best five picks. Lavine had eight stops to go with his pick last weekend, and Booker even finished with eight tackles.

  11/18 11:10:04 ET