Even In Bedlam Loss, Youth Shined for OSU

A youthful pair of Pokes made veteran plays against Oklahoma Saturday night. The future looks bright for Brodrick Brown and Shaun Lewis.

Thursday, May 26th 2011, 12:04 pm

By: News On 6

Even In Bedlam Loss, Youth Shined for OSU

Originally Published: Nov 28, 2010 6:24 PM CDT

Bobby Lewis
Oklahoma Sports Reporter

STILLWATER, Oklahoma – The first half didn’t have much to smile about on the Oklahoma State sideline. The Cowboys failed to move the football on the ground and dropped passes on offense. The only thing keeping the Pokes in the game was the effort by some of the young guys on defense.

Trailing 14-3 in the second quarter, the Cowboys got a spark from linebacker Shaun Lewis. The speedy freshman jumped in front of a Landry Jones pass on 3rd-and-8 and raced 52 yards for the Cowboys’ first touchdown of the night.

“He’s a freshman, but he’s playing like a senior,” said defensive lineman Richetti Jones. “He made a big time play in a big time game.”

Brodrick Brown also stepped up against the Sooners. The sophomore defensive back came up with a first-half interception that cut down a promising Oklahoma drive. Later in the game, he made one of the most outstanding plays of the season.

Leading 21-10 and looking for more, the Sooners faced a third down near midfield. Jones dropped back to pass but was being pressured heavily by the OSU defensive front. Jones tried to throw the ball out of bounds, but Brown timed his jump, leaped in the air and batted the football back onto the field and right into Lewis’ outstretched hands. Lewis returned the ball 15 yards.

“I knew I couldn’t get to it,” Brown said after the game. “The best thing to do was bat it back in bounds, you know, in our player’s hands and that’s what it did. [Lewis] was aware of it. He made a play. I made a play.”

The youthful duo, who entered the game with two interceptions between them this season, came up with three against the Sooners. Lewis added a dozen tackles. Brown had five.

“Some young guys made plays,” said head coach Mike Gundy. “It’s just experience. As we continue to grow in our football team, they’ll learn to play better in situations that we’re in at the end of the games.”

The Cowboys will now have to wait to hear what bowl game they will be invited to. The most likely landing spots, depending on the outcome of the Big 12 Championship game between Oklahoma and Nebraska, would be the Insight Bowl, Alamo Bowl or Cotton Bowl.