Sam Bradford wasn’t sure how his injured shoulder would hold up to a full day’s work.
After 49 throws in No. 19 Oklahoma’s 33-7 win over visiting Baylor yesterday, the 2008 Heisman Trophy winner is ready for next week’s rivalry game against No. 2 Texas in Dallas.
“I think that’s something that we were all curious around here, how I would react to 3 1/2-4 hours in my pads, on and off, not throwing the whole time, kind of sitting on the bench, coming back and making some throws,’’ Bradford said. “I felt like my arm responded great, and I felt good out there.’’
Bradford threw for 389 yards and a touchdown after missing the last month with a sprained AC joint in his right (throwing) shoulder. It was the 14th 300-yard passing game of his career, matching the school record set by 2000 Heisman runner-up Josh Heupel.
And he could have had even bigger numbers if the Sooners’ receivers didn’t have trouble handling his passes. Bradford had a career-high 22 incomplete passes, most of them coming on flat-out drops or passes that at least hit his receivers’ hands.
Bradford ended up matching the second-most passes he’d thrown in his career with a 27-for-49 performance. He had never had more than 19 incomplete passes in a game.
Chris Brown’s touchdown runs of 1 and 4 yards in the second quarter gave Oklahoma (3-2, 1-0 Big 12) a 14-0 advantage. Jimmy Stevens hit four field goals to tie a school record before Bradford connected with Adron Tennell in the back of the end zone for a 3-yard score with 4:03 to play.
“I felt good just the way my arm responded, the way I was able to play four quarters and the way I was able to make some throws in the fourth quarter that had some heat on them,’’ Bradford said.
Texas 38, Colorado 14 - At Austin, Texas, Earl Thomas returned an interception 92 yards for a TD and Ben Wells recovered a blocked punt for another score to help the No. 2 Longhorns pull away in the second half.
Texas (5-0, 2-0 Big 12) also got a 74-yard punt return for a TD by Jordan Shipley, who also caught a 39-yard scoring pass from Colt McCoy just before the half.
Colorado (1-4, 0-1) took a surprising 14-3 lead early in the second quarter behind two TD passes by Cody Hawkins.
Alabama 22, Mississippi 3 - The third-ranked Crimson Tide (6-0, 4-0 SEC) intercepted Jevan Snead four times and did just enough offensively in Oxford, Miss., to turn back the No. 20 Rebels.
Mark Ingram rushed for 172 yards and the game’s only TD and Leigh Tiffin hit five short field goals, one shy of Alabama’s game record. The Tide’s Cory Reamer also blocked a punt and recovered a fumble on a punt return.
Ole Miss (3-2, 1-2) wasted a strong defensive performance with early offensive mistakes. Snead’s four interceptions matched a career high.
Ohio St. 31, Wisconsin 13 - Kurt Coleman and Jermale Hines returned interceptions for TDs and Ray Small scored on a 96-yard kickoff return for the ninth-ranked Buckeyes, who pulled away from the formerly unbeaten Badgers in Columbus, Ohio.
Coleman was the only person near Scott Tolzien’s pass in the first quarter and returned it 89 yards. After Wisconsin (5-1, 2-1 Big Ten) made it 14-10 early in the third quarter, the Buckeyes (5-1, 3-0) padded their lead when Hines tipped a pass, pulled it in, and followed a glut of blockers on a 32-yard return.
TCU 20, Air Force 17 - Playing in an icy mist, the 10th-ranked Horned Frogs (5-0, 1-0 Mountain West) had two short TD runs early and Andy Dalton passed for 198 yards to help hold off the host Falcons (3-3, 2-1).
Iowa 30, Michigan 28 - The No. 12 Hawkeyes (6-0, 2-0 Big Ten) are off to their best start since 1985, getting 284 yards passing and two TDs from Ricky Stanzi to survive the Wolverines (4-2, 1-2) in Iowa City.
Oregon 24, UCLA 10 - An explosive start to the third quarter propelled the No. 13 Ducks (5-1, 3-0 Pac-10) in Pasadena, Calif. Kenjon Barner returned the second-half kickoff 100 yards, Talmadge Jackson returned an interception 32 yards for another score just 13 seconds later, and Jeff Maehl took a short reception 20 yards for Oregon’s third TD in less than four minutes.
Penn St. 52, Eastern Illinois 3 - All went according to plan for the No. 14 Nittany Lions (5-1) in State College, Pa., getting three TD passes and a scoring run from Daryll Clark in dominating their Championship Subdivision opponent.
Oklahoma St. 36, Texas A&M 31 - Missing their top two playmakers, the 15th-ranked Cowboys got two TD passes from Zac Robinson to prevail in College Station, Texas.
Robinson completed 14 of 25 passes for 279 yards and Keith Toston ran for 130 yards to help Oklahoma State (4-1, 1-0 Big 12) make up for the absences of All-America receiver Dez Bryant, who was ruled ineligible by the school last week, and Kendall Hunter, the Big 12’s leading rusher in 2008, who sat out with an ankle injury.
Kansas 41, Iowa St. 36 - A Todd Reesing-led aerial attack sparked the 16th-ranked Jayhawks (5-0, 1-0 Big 12) at home. Reesing tied his school record with 37 completions (on 49 attempts) and finished with 442 yards and four TDs.
Arkansas 44, Auburn 23 - The host Razorbacks (3-2, 1-2 SEC) handed the No. 17 Tigers (5-1, 2-1) their first loss, getting 145 yards rushing and a TD from Michael Smith and two TD passes from Ryan Mallett.
BYU 59, UNLV 21 - The No. 18 Cougars (5-1, 2-0 Mountain West) piled up 611 total yards and got three TD runs from Harvey Unga to hammer the Rebels (2-4, 0-2) in Las Vegas.
South Carolina 28, Kentucky 26 - At Columbia, S.C., Stephen Garcia threw for three TDs and ran for another, and the No. 25 Gamecocks (5-1, 2-1 SEC) stopped a tying 2-point conversion in the fourth quarter to keep coach Steve Spurrier undefeated in 17 games against Kentucky.
