STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) -With his background as a former pitching prospect for the New York Yankees, No. 12 Oklahoma State had no doubt in Brandon Weeden's right arm.
What knocked him down to No. 3 the depth chart was something less tangible.
Instead of Weeden, it was junior Alex Cate who got the call when starting quarterback Zac Robinson was unable to play Thursday night against Colorado due to a shoulder injury and lingering effects from a blow to the head.
Weeden, however, came on in the second half and saved the day, throwing two touchdown passes as OSU rallied from 11 points down to win 31-28.
Cowboys coach Mike Gundy defended his decision to go with Cate, based on what he'd seen from the two backups in practice.
``(Weeden) doesn't practice poorly, but he almost looks like he gets somewhat bored at practice,'' Gundy told reporters Friday.
Cate was 0 for 9 with an interception in the first half before being replaced by Weeden, a 26-year-old who was taken by the Yankees in the second round of the 2002 baseball draft.
``I know there will be some talk about Alex Cate not playing real well, and he really didn't play that well, and he understands that,'' Gundy said. ``He's very much a part of this team and he's worked very hard, and he deserved the right to have an opportunity to play.
``I know that question was going to come at me of why we started him because he's been in this program a number of years and we felt like he was the one that was next in line. That's the decision we went with, and that falls on me as the head coach.''
Gundy said he expects Robinson to be able to play in the Bedlam rivalry game Nov. 28 at Oklahoma - a game that could earn the Cowboys (9-2, 6-1 Big 12) an at-large BCS bid - but he gave the same prognosis for this week's game. If Robinson can't play again, Gundy said Friday that Weeden had ``earned the No. 2 spot'' and would get additional practice time ahead of Cate.
With the game on the line, Weeden showed an ability to be a playmaker and not just hand the ball off. He led two go-ahead scoring drives in the fourth quarter, punctuating the second by scrambling and turning a broken play into a 28-yard touchdown pass.
``He's got a great arm and puts some balls in the air that probably he's the only guy on this team that could throw a couple of those balls,'' offensive coordinator Gunter Brewer said. ``They don't get head high and they travel 40 or 50 yards. He's blessed with that, and that's probably why he was in pro baseball.''
Justin Blackmon, who caught the decisive pass, said he expected Weeden to tuck the ball and run instead of launching it into the back, right corner of the end zone.
``That's something you just don't see out of any typical quarterback,'' cornerback Perrish Cox said. ``Probably any other quarterback probably would have threw it away.''
What Gundy wants to see is a new level of focus from Weeden, including a commitment to practicing and studying to better prepare for games.
``The good ones that play at this level and beyond are into it every single day and every step in practice and every read and every call they make,'' Gundy said.
Weeden, who had to give up pitching because of shoulder issues, admitted his shortcomings after leading the comeback.
``I'm not a practice player. I'm more of a game-type player. It's just more fun,'' Weeden said. ``You get out there and it just happens so fast. You just try to stay in the flow with everything.''
Gundy hopes that will change after Weeden's first chance to take significant snaps since he quit baseball and enrolled at Oklahoma State prior to the 2007 season.
``He's been around here two years and hasn't had a chance to play, so you would think that if he got a taste of it, it would make him want more,'' Gundy said.
Even if his practice habits haven't been the best, Weeden has proven he can make the plays when the lights are on. That could make him the front-runner to start next season after Robinson's college career is over.
``I really don't know much, but they tell us that he really didn't know the playbook like the other players do,'' Cox said. ``But he's got the total package: The size, he can read defenses and especially the main thing - he can throw the ball.''
