No. 2 Okla. Tops Colo. for Big 12 Title

Posted 12:00AM on Sunday 5th December 2004 ( 20 years ago )

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Super offense. Dominating defense. Perfect opponent. It would be almost impossible to deny Oklahoma a chance at the national championship after this performance. The second-ranked Sooners were nearly flawless Saturday night, getting three touchdowns passing from Jason White and three more running from Adrian Peterson to dismantle overmatched Colorado 42-3 in the Big 12 title game. Next, barring some kind of massive mix-up, comes a trip to the Orange Bowl where Oklahoma (12-0) will play for its eighth national title. The opponent will almost certainly be No. 1 Southern Cal. USC and Auburn - the other national-title wannabe - each took care of business Saturday. The Trojans defeated UCLA 29-24, and the Tigers beat No. 15 Tennessee 38-28, but neither contender was anywhere near as impressive as coach Bob Stoops' Sooners. "They came out ready to play," Stoops said. "They had an edge to them all week, you could tell. They came out and played that way." White finished with 254 yards and threw all his touchdowns over the first 15:07. Two went to Mark Clayton, who made a sweet, reaching, fingertip catch on the second for a 21-0 lead. Clayton finished with eight catches for 106 yards. Peterson surpassed the century mark in the second quarter for his 11th 100-yard rushing game, an NCAA record for a freshman. He finished with 172 yards and saved the best for last - breaking six tackles for a darting, spinning 32-yard score and a 42-3 lead. Peterson and White did the Heisman voters no favors; they entered the weekend as two presumed favorites, and leave it just the same way. In Colorado (7-5), the Sooners had the perfect foil for a statement game like this. The Buffs turned their year of turmoil - dogged by a sex and recruiting scandal and the spring suspension of coach Gary Barnett - into a feel-good story by capturing the Big 12 North with a stirring, late-season, three-game winning streak. But their appearance in the title game couldn't mask the fact that they are, at best, only the fourth- or fifth-best team in a conference where all the good teams played in the other division. "I'm embarrassed by the performance," Barnett said. "It was inept at best. We played very, very poorly in a venue where we needed to play great." Joel Klatt threw for 52 yards for the Buffs, Bobby Purify had 7 yards on 12 carries and CU took until the 9:35 mark of the third quarter to get their first first down not via penalty. Meanwhile, White and Peterson overmatched the CU defense from the get-go. Oklahoma drove 80, 63, 53 and 40 yards for touchdowns and a 28-0 lead after its first five drives. Later in the second quarter, the Sooners made a first down off a fake field goal - why waste it on this game? - and were looking to go ahead 35-0, but White threw a lob into the end zone that was intercepted by Terrence Wheatley. That was one of three turnovers the Sooners committed, the last of which resulted in Mason Crosby's field goal that kept the Buffs from being shut out. OU also got called for 90 yards in penalties, including a personal foul that resulted in the ejection of defensive lineman Remi Ayodele for punching a Colorado lineman. Stoops tore off his headset and tore into Ayodele as he came to the sideline. The scene made for good TV, but did little to tarnish Oklahoma's overall performance in this one. "We made a few penalties that we probably shouldn't have, but that is something we can fix and we will," Stoops said. Oklahoma won its 39th conference championship. Assuming no surprises in the Bowl Championship Series voting Sunday, the Sooners will make their 18th trip to the Orange Bowl - which in the old days was the traditional stop for the Big Eight champs - and will play for at least a share of the national title for the third time in five seasons. In the 2000 season, the last time the title was decided at the Orange Bowl, OU defeated Florida State 13-2. Last season, Oklahoma played for it all despite a 35-7 loss to Kansas State in the Big 12 title game. After that, Oklahoma lost 21-14 to LSU in the Sugar Bowl. A team that started 11-0, just like this one, and had been touted as one of the best in history went home without a title. White was bitterly disappointed, and the failures compelled him to return for his senior year even though he won the Heisman. It's looking like a great decision. Now, he has his conference title, another shot at the Heisman and a chance to play for college football's biggest prize of all.

http://accesswdun.com/article/2004/12/145796