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Mike Chiari is the featured Columnist for January 1, 2022, Oklahoma State Football.
AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin
The Oklahoma State Cowboys defeated the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 37-35 in the Fiesta Bowl on Saturday.
The first half was a disaster for OK State, but Spencer Sanders came on in the second half and threw three touchdown passes to Tay Martin to tie the game.
All told, he had 361 passing yards, 125 rushing yards, and four passing touchdown.
Jack Coan set a Fiesta Bowl record with 509 passing yards and five touchdown passes in his final collegiate game.
After Brian Kelly left Notre Dame for LSU, it was a less-than-ideal start to the head coach's career.
Oklahoma State finished the season with a 12-2 record, its best since 2011. The Irish lost to 11-2
Notable facts.
Spencer Sanders, QB, OSU, was 34/51 for 372 YDS, with 4 touchdown and 0 error.
Jack Coan was 38/68 for 509 yards and 5 touchdown.
The receiver for OSU had 10 rec for 104 yds.
Lorenzo Styles Jr., receiver, Notre Dame: 8 catches for 136 yards.
Brennan Presley had 10 hits for 137 YDS.
Chris Tyree had 6 CAR for 18 YDS and 6 REC for 115 YDS.
Jaylen Warren had 19 CAR for 83 YDS and 6 REC for 34 YDS.
Kevin Austin Jr., had 6 catches for 105 yards.
Michael Mayer had 7 catches for 72 yards and 2 scores.
The Big 12 title game performance was poor.
After throwing four picks in Oklahoma State's Big 12 Championship Game loss to Baylor, he had to prove himself in the Fiesta Bowl.
The game looked bleak for the Cowboys as they trailed 28-7 late in the first half, but the momentum of the game changed after Coan's seven-yard touchdown pass to Mayer.
It would have been easy for Oklahoma State to go into the locker room with their tails tucked between their legs, but they showed a sense of urgency and staged a four-play, 75-yard drive that culminated in a nine-yard touchdown pass from Sanders to Martin.
The first drive of the second half ended with a five-yard touchdown strike from Sanders to Martin.
The touchdown ended a 12-play, 87-yard drive that was dominated by Sanders.
Oklahoma State seemed destined to tie the game at that point, and it finally happened with 2:47 remaining in the third quarter, as Sanders hit Martin for an eight-yard score.
Patrick Hayslip, Jacob Unruh, The Oklahoman, and Curtis Fitzpatrick all marveled at the performance.
Patrick Hayslip is a friend of Patrick Hayslip.
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This has been one of the best games Spencer has played. His legs were used with incredible judgement and accuracy. The FiestaBowl has been great.
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Jacob Unruh sent the message.
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Spencer has been great today.
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The person is Curtis Fitzpatrick.
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Spencer was outstanding today. His best game as a Cowboy.
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On the Cowboys' next drive, Brown hit a 38 yard field goal to give them their first lead of the game.
All signs pointed to Coan being the story of the game, but it wasn't.
Notre Dame had no answers once the Oklahoma State offense went up-tempo, but that seemed like a far-fetched scenario in the first half.
The Cowboys fans have been waiting for a performance from the junior, and Saturday was the one they were waiting for. If he can carry that into the off-season, he can make OK State a national title contender again.
Coan ends his college career.
Notre Dame's success was built largely on its running game and defense this season, but with star running back Kyren Williams opting out of the Fiesta Bowl to prepare for the NFL draft, Coan took center stage Saturday.
Coan threw early and often in the first half, taking advantage of Oklahoma State's weak coverage.
Coan's dissection of the Pokes defense started on the first drive of the game, as he needed less than two minutes to march 75 yards and find Lorenzo Styles Jr.
It's ESPN.
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Notre Dame strikes first!
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The Irish made it 14-0 in the second quarter when Coan beat an all-out blitz with a pass to Chris Tyree, who took it 53 yards to the house.
Patrick Engel of BlueandGold.com pointed out how well-prepared Coan and the Irish offense appeared to be.
PatrickEngel replied, "Patrick Engel."
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Oklahoma State went 0 blitz on third and long. Jack Coan made a pass to an uncovered Tyree and burned it.
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Notre Dame looks well prepared for its first game.
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Coan's hot start continued over the course of the entire first half, but Oklahoma State was able to answer with a short touchdown pass.
A touchdown pass from Coan to Michael Mayer gave Notre Dame a 14-point lead.
The Irish led 21 points at the half after Coan hit Mayer on a seven-yard touchdown pass.
It was the first time this season that Oklahoma State allowed more than three offensive touchdown in a game.
Cayden McFarland is a person.
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Oklahoma State is the only defense in the country that has not allowed more than 3 offensive touchdown in a game this year.
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With Coan enjoying his best game of the season and perhaps of his entire collegiate career, it was suggested that he could potentially play on Sundays.
The person is Keith Arnold.
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Jack Coan looks like a quarterback. I think he should chip Tommy off 20%, but Tommy just got paid.
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Coan was highly complimentary of by WGR's Nathan Geary, who compared him to Ian Book.
The person isNate Geary.
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Jack Coan is better than Ian Book.
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The Irish went up 28-7 in the first half, but things went downhill after that.
The Cowboys scored a touchdown late in the first half and went on to score 27 unanswered points to take a 34-28 lead in the fourth quarter.
Everything that worked for Coan and the offense in the first half was shut down by the Oklahoma State defense for much of the second half, as the Cowboys' unit looked far more representative of what it had been all season long before the Fiesta Bowl.
The Irish were driving for a go-ahead score in the fourth quarter, but Coan made his first mistake of the game when he was picked off by Rodriguez.
A turnover on downs put the game out of reach for the Irish, who were already down by a touchdown.
What's next?
Oklahoma State will look to build on its biggest win of the Mike Gundy era as it enters the off-season and prepares for its next season.
The Irish will look to regroup after letting a winnable game slip away.
