College Station, TX – Brandon Weeden threw for 438 yards and ranked Oklahoma State earned a 30-29 comeback ranked Texas A&M in the Big 12 opener for both teams.
Oklahoma State trailed 20-3 at the half, but Jeremy Smith, Justin Blackmon and Tracy Moore each scored a third-quarter touchdown for the Cowboys (4-0, 1-0 Big 12), who notched their seventh consecutive road victory.
Blackmon finished with 11 catches for 121 yards, while Josh Cooper and Hubert Anyiam had 123 and 92 receiving yards, respectively.
Ryan Tannehill threw for 309 yards and two touchdowns, but was intercepted three times, the last of which coming with under two minutes remaining and the Aggies (2-1, 0-1) trailing, 30-27.
Blackmon took a safety as time expired to seal the final margin.
The game was the first top-10 matchup at Kyle Field in College Station since No. 2 Texas A&M defeated No. 5 Texas, 20-10, in 1975.
Early on, the Cowboys, who dismantled Tulsa, 59-33, in a weather-delayed drubbing last Saturday, didn't appear worthy of the high-profile billing.
They sputtered and wheezed their way to a considerable halftime deficit, but emerged from the locker room rejuvenated and opened the third quarter with an 80-yard touchdown drive. Smith's 13-yard scoring run capped the march, making it a 20-10 contest
"At halftime we didn't change anything," said Weeden. "We just started executing and things started going our way. Our guys did a great job up front. In the second half things started clicking."
After a Texas A&M punt, Oklahoma State's offense stayed in rhythm, pulling within 20-17 on Blackmon's 11-yard touchdown catch.
Blackmon snared the pass from Weeden and tiptoed the sideline. He was initially ruled out of bounds, but the call was overturned following a review.
Justin Gilbert recovered Kenric McNeal's fumble at the Oklahoma State 44-yard- line on the second play of Texas A&M's next drive to set up the go-ahead score.
Weeden converted a 3rd-and-1 with a seven-yard pass to Anyiam, then, two plays later, found Moore in the back of the endzone for a four-yard scoring strike. Moore leapt to snare the high pass and landed in bounds, giving the Cowboys a 24-20 lead.
Oklahoma State was poised to add to its advantage following Brodrick Brown's interception at the Aggies 10-yard-line. Weeden found an open Blackmon sprinting towards paydirt, but Blackmon let the ball fall out of his hands and roll out of the endzone for a touchback.
The Cowboys' defense bailed Blackmon out, as Tannehill was again intercepted, this time by Gilbert, in the waning moments of the third quarter.
For the second consecutive year, Oklahoma State outscored Texas A&M 21-0 in the third quarter en route to victory. Last September, the Cowboys used a dominant third quarter to defeat the Aggies 38-35.
In the fourth, Quinn Sharp hit field goals of 24 and 18 yards to give Oklahoma State a 30-20 advantage.
Tannehill and the Aggies finally awoke with a 15-play, 80-yard touchdown drive. Jeff Fuller sealed the march with a four-yard touchdown snag to pull Texas A&M within a field goal, but only 2:20 remained.
The Aggies then forced a punt, but Tannehill was intercepted by James Thomas two plays into the ensuing drive to squander any hope of a comeback.
"That was disappointing," said Texas A&M head coach Mike Sherman. "I fully thought we had played the clock right, the timeouts right, and with the amount of time we had on the clock we were ready for that. The kid broke on the dig...and made a great play."
For Tannehill, the game had a more fortuitous start. He reeled off a 65-yard touchdown run on the Aggies' opening drive for a 7-0 lead.
Oklahoma State countered with Sharp's 27-yard field goal, but Randy Bullock's 43-yard boot gave the Texas A&M a 10-3 lead and Tannehill hit Fuller for a 17- yard scoring strike early in the second quarter to pad the advantage.
Bullock's 35-yarder midway through the quarter gave the Aggies a 20-3 lead. They couldn't maintain the edge, however, and fell in what may be their last conference meeting with the Cowboys, if an expected move to the Southeastern Conference next year is fulfilled.
Game Notes
Oklahoma State has won four in a row over Texas A&M...Aggies linebacker Sean Porter had two sacks...The Cowboys' game against Tulsa last week was pushed back from a 10 p.m. (et) start to 1:16 a.m. and did not finish until 4:35 a.m.
Receive your weekly recap of all the happenings around the world of sports.