NCAA Football Oklahoma State

Let the Dez Bryant/NCAA debate begin.

Just or unjust? Excessive or just plain over the top?

Whatever side you fall on, the NCAA has made it's decision where Oklahoma State All-American receiver Dez Bryant is concerned. The governing body turned down the final appeal on the junior's one-year suspension for lying, likely ending his college career.

STILLWATER, Okla. --- Texas coach Mack Brown normally demands his teams stay in the moment.

But in the week leading up to Saturday night's game against 13th-ranked Oklahoma State, Brown wanted to make certain the third-ranked Longhorns remembered where they were at this point last season and what they lost against Texas Tech.

They were different opponents, but presented a strikingly similar scenario a year apart.

STILLWATER, Okla. -- So much for the down-to-the-wire games between Texas and Oklahoma State and the chance for the Cowboys to finally break through.

Texas forced OSU quarterback Zac Robinson into four interceptions, two of which were returned for touchdowns and the third was converted into a touchdown as the third-ranked Longhorns cruised to a 41-14 victory in front of 58,516 at Boone Pickens Stadium on Saturday night.

This was a meeting of the Big 12 South's two top teams, but it was clear from the outset the Longhorns are by far supreme as they took a major step in locking up the division title while staying in step for the coveted BCS championship bid. Texas (8-0, 4-0) just needs to run the table against Baylor, Kansas and Texas A&M after next week's non-conference game against Central Florida to be in position for the opportunities it was denied last season after one lapsed moment against Texas Tech.

STILLWATER, Okla. -- It almost seems uncanny, the parallels between tonight's Texas-Oklahoma State Halloween showdown and last season's matchup between the Longhorns and Texas Tech.

A hostile road environment that will be filled with rowdy fans. Night game. National TV audience. The fourth game of an unforgiving four-game stretch that includes Colorado, Oklahoma, Missouri before this one.

A bid for the Big 12 South title and a shot at the BCS national championship game also hang in the balance.

There is nothing new about Bob Stoops matching coaching wits with old mentor and boss Bill Snyder. They've done plenty of that over the years in Big 12 cross-divisional play.

But that doesn't mean Stoops isn't a little surprised to see Snyder, 70, back on the Wildcats sideline. The longtime Kansas State coach retired four years ago to pursue opportunities outside coaching, but was lured out of retirement last winter.

Stoops, whose 22nd-ranked Sooners host the Wildcats on Saturday, admits it's a little unexpected to be going up against his old boss again, but he was stunned when Snyder was no longer there, too.

It seemed a little harsh Monday when Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy told reporters "I think everybody has given up," when asked about the chances of All-American receiver Dez Bryant coming off indefinite suspension.

As it turned out, Gundy was more prophetic than pessimistic.

The NCAA officially ended the junior wide receiver's season Tuesday night, refusing to reinstate his eligibility until Sept. 2010 after Bryant misled investigators his interaction with former NFL star Deion Sanders.

Oklahoma State is appealing the decision.

Oklahoma State wide receiver Dez Bryant will not have his eligibility restored this season, the NCAA announced Tuesday night.

Bryant, a preseason All-American, was suspended four weeks ago by Oklahoma State after the school learned he had lied to the NCAA about a meeting with former NFL star Deion Sanders. The NCAA later ruled him ineligible Oct. 7.

"I made a mistake by not being entirely truthful when meeting with the NCAA," Bryant said in a statement at the time. I sincerely regret my mistake and apologize to my teammates, coaches, OSU fans and the NCAA."

Oklahoma State is appealing the ruling and expects a decision next week.

Bryant's eligibility will be restored by the NCAA next September, though the junior is expected to be among the first wide receivers selected in the NFL Draft.

In so many real ways Texas has been the hump the Oklahoma State Cowboys have needed to clear but for any number of reasons just haven't.

In recent years they've come oh-so-close only to fail to come away with the coveted win. A turnover here, a missed tackle there and a failed opportunity somewhere else have been all that's prevented the Cowboys from success.

"There is no question it's been frustrating to be in a situation we've been in with them and just not been able to finish the deal," OSU quarterback Zac Robinson said Monday. "We know we've been really close the past few years and just haven't been able to finish it off."

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I'm convinced there's an epidemic currently afoot in America that receives no attention: Cell phones dropped in the toilet.

I have five different friends who have confessed to this via sheepish e-mails (presumably not from the toilet-ed phones). They're trying to reprogram a new phone. This problem is of epic importance, particularly with the importance of smart phones, which can cost upwards of $500. Do you know how much money we've lost by having to replace a BlackBerry or an iPhone because of fumbles during urination? If this happened to Warren Buffet, and he hadn't backed up his information, we'd need a new stimulus package. What if Obama's BlackBerry vanished down the toilet?

I'm convinced that every day in America we throw away the equivalent of the GNP of Moldova in dropped cell phones in toilets. The issue struck me on Saturday as I tailgated and went inside a disgusting port-o-potty. Because a drop here is even worse. How much would it ruin your day if instead of the home bathroom your cell phone went into a port-o-potty? Because, be honest, you might be willing to reclaim a phone dropped at home? But a port-o-potty? It's with the effluvium for all eternity.

It's just three weeks into the full-swing of Big 12 play but the North Division is looking like any of the six teams could win the race.

That doesn't necessarily bode well at all for the weaker half of the two-division league.

Nebraska and Kansas came into the season as the presumed favorites to represent the North, but after two weeks of inconsistent play neither seems as powerful. The same can be said for two-time North champion Missouri, which started the season a surprising 4-0, but has dropped its first two games of the Big 12 season.