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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Saturday, October 24, 2009

CFB: Brown, No. 25 Oklahoma beat No. 24 Kansas 35-13


DOUG TUCKER
AP Sports Writer

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Chris Brown scored three touchdowns, and No. 25 Oklahoma throttled Todd Reesing and the nation's second-leading offense en route to a 35-13 victory Saturday over No. 24 Kansas.

The Sooners (4-3, 2-1 Big 12) intercepted Kansas' career passing leader on the Jayhawks' first three possessions. Dominique Franks set the defensive tone with an 85-yard touchdown return of the second interception of the NCAA's fifth-leading passer.

Landry Jones, starting for injured Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Sam Bradford, threw two touchdown passes and had little trouble with a Kansas defense that has been undergoing a midseason overhaul. Kansas (5-2, 1-2) hurt itself with penalties as well as turnovers and had only two field goals until Reesing's 5-yard TD run with 4:27 left.

Oklahoma's powerful defense held Kansas almost 200 yards below its season average of 503 yards. The Jayhawks had hoped for a victory that would elevate them to Big 12 contender status, but it was another Oklahoma domination, the Sooners' sixth straight victory over them.

Kansas' Dezmon Briscoe, the nation's leading receiver with 134 yards per game, was held to 60 yards on seven catches — 209 fewer yards than he had in a record-breaking day against the Sooners last year.

Jones' stats — 26 of 38 for 252 yards — were similar to Reesing's 22 of 42 for 224. But he was not sacked and he threw only one interception, and it was not his fault. Reesing, who had averaged 356 yards in his last five conference games, was sacked three times and hurried constantly.

On the game's first play, Quinton Carter picked off Reesing's pass and gave the Sooners the ball on the Kansas 46. Brown eventually scored on fourth-and-goal from the 1.

The Jayhawks had a second-and-goal from the 13 three plays into the second quarter when Franks left his man and started to creep up behind wide receiver Bradley McDougald in the right flat. Timing his jump perfectly, he grabbed the ball in front of McDougald and sped 85 yards without being touched or hardly even challenged, giving the Sooners a 14-0 lead.

Oklahoma, in the meantime, was making plenty of mistakes of its own, but the Jayhawks just couldn't take advantage.

A botched punt gave Kansas the ball deep in Oklahoma territory, but all it could manage was Jacob Branstetter's 39-yard field goal. Then an interception that bounced off receiver Cameron Kenney's hands gave Kansas another short field. But the Jayhawks could not move the ball and Branstetter kicked a career-long 57-yarder as time expired in the first half, making it 14-6.

The Sooners put away the game with two long scoring drives in the third quarter.

Aided by a roughing-the-passer call on Jeff Wheeler and the first of D.J. Beshears' pass interference penalties, Jones moved Oklahoma 75 yards in nine plays, capped by his 9-yard TD pass to Adron Tennell.

On their next drive, Jones hit his first three passes for 36 yards and then Beshears was called again for pass interference. An 18-yard pass to Tennell got it close and Brown scored his second touchdown with an 8-yard pass.

Jones connected with Ryan Broyles for 45 yards in the fourth quarter and then Brown broke loose on a 26-yard touchdown run, making it 35-6 with 11:10 to go.