No. 23 Texas A&M 34, Oklahoma St. 33, OT

STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) _ The cold weather meant Red Bryant felt a little extra sting when his right arm collided with the football. <br/><br/>But the Texas A&M defensive lineman was too busy celebrating

Sunday, October 22nd 2006, 1:52 pm

By: News On 6

STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) _ The cold weather meant Red Bryant felt a little extra sting when his right arm collided with the football.

But the Texas A&M defensive lineman was too busy celebrating with his teammates to worry about a the pain. Bryant's block of Oklahoma State extra-point attempt in overtime allowed the 23rd-ranked Aggies to escape with a 34-33 win Saturday night.

``I just stuck my arm up and he kicked it low,'' the 6-foot-5, 324-pound Bryant said. ``It's a great feeling that I was able to make a play to help the team win.''

Bryant's heroics wouldn't have been possible without those of quarterback Stephen McGee. His 2-yard touchdown pass to tight end Joey Thomas with 3 seconds left forced the extra period.

Texas A&M (7-1, 3-1 Big 12) had the ball first in overtime and needed only three plays to score, with Jorvorskie Lane plowing in from a yard out for his Big 12-leading 16th touchdown of the season and second of the game. Layne Neumann's extra point put Texas A&M ahead 34-27.

Oklahoma State (4-3, 1-2) quickly answered, with backup quarterback Zac Robinson throwing his third touchdown pass, a 15-yarder to Adarius Bowman, to pull the Cowboys within 34-33.

But Bryant, positioned in the middle of the line, leapt and batted down Jason Ricks' kick. Oklahoma State also botched an earlier extra-point try in the first quarter on a bad snap by Zach Allen.

``There is no excuse for those mistakes,'' Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy said. ``As the head coach, I will take responsibility for that and we will do what we need to do to get things fixed.''

Oklahoma State took a 27-20 lead with 3:24 left on a 60-yard touchdown run by Dantrell Savage. But McGee rallied the Aggies, completing a 17-yard shovel pass to Lane on fourth-and-13 from the Texas A&M 32 before hitting Thomas for the tying score.

``We could have finished it off right there,'' Gundy said of the fourth-down play.

McGee completed 17 of 26 passes for 192 yards and two touchdowns and also led the Aggies in rushing, with 17 carries for 86 yards.

Texas A&M improved its record in overtime games to 6-4 and the Aggies are 7-1 for the first time since 2001.

``This is very typical of these young men,'' Texas A&M coach Dennis Franchione said. ``They will never give up. We found a way to make one more play and that's based on spirit and character. Jorvorskie Lane made a big tough grab on fourth down and then Red Bryant blocked the extra point. I couldn't be more proud of this group of guys.''

Savage carried 13 times for 134 yards for Oklahoma State. Robinson, a freshman who replaced the injured Bobby Reid, finished 7-of-16 passing for 94 yards in his first extended action.

Reid, who entered the game as the Big 12 leader in pass efficiency, left the game early in the second quarter after sustaining what Oklahoma State officials said was a mild concussion after being tackled following a 6-yard run. He did not return.

In the first quarter, the game appeared it might be an offensive show. Texas A&M drove 74 yards on its opening possession before settling for a 23-yard field goal by Neumann.

Grant Jones returned the ensuing kickoff 41 yards to the Texas A&M 47. A bad snap cost Oklahoma State 13 yards on its first play, but the Cowboys recovered and went ahead 6-3 on a 1-yard touchdown run by Mike Hamilton. Allen's bad snap foiled the extra-point attempt.

The Cowboys threatened again on their next possession, reaching the Aggies 31 before Danny Gorrer intercepted Reid's pass in the end zone.

Midway through the second quarter, Oklahoma State's Donovan Woods returned the favor, intercepting a halfback pass by Pierre Brown at the Cowboys 3.

Texas A&M, going against Robinson, forced a quick Oklahoma State punt, and took advantage of the short field. Martellus Bennett caught a short pass from McGee and bulled into the end zone to complete the 10-yard scoring play with 1:18 left in the half, giving the Aggies a 10-6 halftime lead.

Robinson threw second-half touchdown passes of 22 yards to Bowman and 12 yards to John Johnson.

Oklahoma State's last overtime game came in October 2001. The Cowboys are 1-5 in overtime affairs, having lost their last five after winning the first OT game in NCAA Division I-A history.