North West Sports Beat

HEART OF DALLAS BOWL STORYLINES

1. Having survived the coaching carousel with Mike Gundy still at the helm, Oklahoma State will be looking for its third straight bowl win and fifth in the last seven seasons. Purdue was not quite as lucky when it came to the coaching turnover and will be led by interim Patrick Higgins after coach Danny Hope was let go. Former Kent State coach Darrell Hazell will take over the program after the contest.

2. The Cowboys suffered four of their five losses on the road this season but will be playing close enough to home in Dallas that they should be able to get the crowd behind them. Either way, the game will likely turn into a shootout. Oklahoma State was fourth in the nation in scoring (44.7 points) during the regular season while the Boilermakers averaged a shade less than 30 points and blasted Indiana 56-35 in their final game to become bowl eligible.

3. Purdue senior quarterback Robert Marve passed for seven touchdowns and one interception during the three-game winning streak that closed the regular season and will be getting a chance to shred a Cowboys' secondary that allowed 285.7 yards in the regular season. The Boilermakers’ bigger deficiency is against the run, where Oklahoma State running back Joseph Randle could do some damage.

TV: 12 p.m. ET, ESPNU. LINE: Oklahoma State -16.5

ABOUT PURDUE (6-6, 3-5 Big Ten): Hope compiled a 22-27 record over four seasons but the Boilermakers struggled against quality competition this season and won only three games in the Big Ten - against teams with a combined conference record of 4-20. Fortunately those three games came in the last three weeks of the season, allowing Marve and the offense to build a little momentum heading into bowl season. The defense was better than only Indiana in the Big Ten but Marve, who missed three games and was limited to a total of 17 passes in two others, won his job back in the final month and went for 348 yards and four touchdowns in the final win.

ABOUT OKLAHOMA STATE (7-5, 5-4 Big 12): The Cowboys were rebuilding after waving goodbye to first-round NFL draft picks Brandon Weeden and Justin Blackmon, but Gundy and company were able to keep the offense rolling right along. Junior quarterback Clint Chelf wrestled away the starting job over the last month but could not keep up with the deficiencies on defense in losses at Oklahoma 51-48 and Baylor 41-34 to close the season. While the quarterback position has been the subject of some debate, Randle’s place in secure. The junior rushed for four scores in the loss to Oklahoma and finished the regular season with 1,351 yards and 14 touchdowns.

PREDICTION: Oklahoma 45, Purdue 28