Blake Shapen dominated the Oklahoma State defense in the Big 12 Championship game.
The freshman quarterback completed 17 of 21 151-yard passes with three touchdowns in the first half, then went on to finish the game with 23 completed passes for 180 yards. After the Bears took a 21-6 lead over the Cowboys in 30 minutes, Baylor went on to win 21-16. Shapen was awarded the MVP trophy for his performance in the conference title game.
In the first half, Shapen completed touchdown passes to Tyquan Thornton, Ben Sims and Drew Estrada. He connected with Sims from two yards to give Baylor a 7-3 lead after Oklahoma State quarterback Spencer Sanders hit his first block. His second TD on reaching Estrada from four yards away.
He found Thornton in the final six minutes of the second half and gave Baylor a 21-6 first-half lead with a 13-yard touchdown.
However, Shapen may have picked up a shoulder injury in the second half. After a 28-yard dash that brought Baylor down at Oklahoma State 47 for the first time in the third quarter, Shapen walked into the medical tent to take a look at his right shoulder. He missed a play, then helped Baylor hold on to the win.
Shapen replaced Baylor’s starting quarterback Gerry Bohanon, who has been sidelined with a hamstring injury since the Bears’ 20-10 win over Kansas State on Nov. 20. Oklahoma State’s defence. , allowing a 252-yard pass in their head-to-head game against Oklahoma on November 27, failed to stop Shapen’s momentum in the first half.
The redshirt freshman, who is a four-star Evangel Christian Academy player in Shreveport, La., started his first game for Baylor on November 27, and led the Bears to a 27-24 win ahead of time. Texas Tech.
In his first game against the Red Raiders, Shapen completed 20 of 34 254-yard passes with two touchdowns. Less than two minutes into the game, Shapen hit a 61-yard pass that ran back to Trestan Ebner and put the Bears 7-0 ahead.
