Big Eight Roundup : Oklahoma Gets Past Colorado, 17-14, With First Field Goal of Season

Oklahoma, one of the few teams in the nation to have gone this far into the season without making a field goal, got one Saturday night when it really mattered.

When a team scores 10 touchdowns in a game--as the Sooners did a week ago--the 3-pointer takes on little significance. But when a team such as Colorado stands toe-to-toe and refuses to blink, the Sooners will take that field goal.

Eric Mitchel and Charles Thompson ran for 21 and 17 yards, respectively, on 3rd-down plays on a drive that set up R.D. Lashar’s 22-yard field goal with 8:15 to play, lifting the 8th-ranked Sooners past the Buffaloes, 17-14.

Lashar, a sophomore who converted 10 of 15 field goal attempts last year but who had attempted only 1 field goal--a 66-yarder--this season, admitted he felt apprehensive when lining up the clincher.

“I was really anxious to get one in,” Lashar said. “I was a little bit nervous, but I was kicking really well in the pregame warmup.

Oklahoma Coach Barry Switzer said his team “overcame a lot of adversity from injuries and penalties.

“What it boiled down to was we controlled the ball in the 2nd half. Colorado played as if this was their big game. They’re much better, and we’re not quite as good as we’ve been in the past. It wasn’t pretty, but we won it.”

Colorado Coach Bill McCartney took some comfort in his team’s gaining 339 total yards and allowing only 379 to the Sooners, who had 829 last week against Kansas State.

The Sooners, 6-1 overall and 3-0 in conference play, extended their winning streak to 12 games over the Buffaloes, who fell to 5-2 and 1-2 in the first night game ever at Folsom Field.

After a 14-14 halftime tie, Thompson, starting his second straight game at quarterback in place of injured Jamelle Holieway, took the Sooners 71 yards in 14 plays for the go-ahead score.

The Sooners appeared to be running out the clock when, with 2:17 left, fullback Leon Perry fumbled and Colorado’s Bruce Young recovered near midfield. But a 19-yard run by Eric Bieniemy was nullified by a holding penalty, and a sack of Sal Aunese by Scott Evans and Curtice Williams took the Buffaloes out of field goal range. Ken Culbertson’s 62-yard attempt with 29 seconds to play was wide.

Nebraska 48, Kansas State 3--Tyreese Knox scored 4 touchdowns as the 5th-ranked Cornhuskers rolled past the Wildcats at Manhattan, Kan., and set a National Collegiate Athletic Assn. record with their 27th consecutive winning season.

Nebraska (7-1), took possession of the Division I-A record it had shared with Alabama and Penn State.

Knox scored on runs of 2, 6, 2, and 26 yards as the Huskers won their 21st consecutive game from Kansas State.

Penn State established the major- college mark of 26 straight winning years from 1939-64, and Alabama matched it from 1958-83.

Kansas State, winless in its last 23 games, fell to 0-7 and 0-3.

Oklahoma State 49, Missouri 21--Hart Lee Dykes caught 2 touchdown passes and became the Big Eight’s career receiving yardage leader as the 15th-ranked Cowboys won at Stillwater, Okla.

Tailback Barry Sanders, the nation’s leading rusher, added 154 yards and 2 touchdowns as the Cowboys improved to 5-1 overall, 2-1 in conference play. Missouri is 2-4-1 and 1-2.

Dykes caught a 32-yard scoring pass in the 2nd quarter to move ahead of former Nebraska star Johnny Rodgers on the league’s career yardage list. Rodgers had 2,479 yards in his career; Dykes has 2,575 after catching 5 passes for 135 yards.

The 6-foot 4-inch wide receiver added a 62-yard touchdown pass that capped Oklahoma State’s 20-point 3rd quarter. He caught Mike Gundy’s pass at the Missouri 40 and outran 3 defenders to the end zone.

Iowa State 42, Kansas 14--Joe Henderson scored a school-record 5 touchdowns and rushed for 141 yards at Ames, Iowa.

Iowa State’s previous record for touchdowns in a game was 4, set by George Amundsen against Oklahoma State in 1971 and matched by Dwayne Crutchfield against Kent State in 1981.

Iowa State is 4-3 overall and 2-1 in the Big Eight. Kansas is 0-7 and 0-3.