Final Score: Kansas State 45, (4) Texas 42

Manhattan, KS (Sports Network) - Josh Freeman threw for three touchdowns, as the Kansas State Wildcats upset fourth-ranked Texas, 45-42, ending the Longhorns' dream of another title on a night the defending national champions also lost their starting quarterback.

Colt McCoy injured his shoulder in the first quarter after rushing for a touchdown on the opening drive, but went a perfect 4-for-4 for 51 yards before departing. McCoy suffered the injury diving into the end zone and did not return.

Freshman Jevan Snead replaced McCoy, finishing 13-of-30 for 190 yards. He was also sacked five times. It was the first action of the year for Snead, who battled for the starter's job prior to the start of the season.

"All of the sudden you're standing over there in the cold weather and you're told you're going to play - get in," said Texas head coach Mack Brown. "It's a little bit of a shock but I'm proud of him (Snead). I think everybody sees the player that he can be. That's part of the game. You have no excuses when you get beat. It's a credit to you when you win and when you get beat you get beat."

The Longhorns (9-2, 6-1 Big 12) pulled within three points on Chris Ogbonnaya's one-yard rushing touchdown with 1:36 remaining, but Jordy Nelson recovered the onside kick for Kansas State. Nelson then followed the play by pulling down a six-yard pass to move the chains and secure the Wildcats' victory.

Yamon Figurs hauled in six passes for 123 yards and two touchdowns for Kansas State. Freeman completed 18-of-30 passes for 263 yards with an interception for the Wildcats (7-4, 4-3), winners of three straight.

"There were a lot of things we did in the game to really try to be aggressive and a lot of those things did not work perfect, but it was a great team we faced," said Kansas State head coach Ron Prince. "I just could not be more proud of our kids. They hung in there and the coaches did a terrific job of getting the kids to practice with purpose this week. I thought it carried us a long ways for everything we had to come up with. My hat is off to those kids and the coaches who are in that locker room. I am really excited and really happy for them right now."

Down 21-14, Texas tied the game on Selvin Young's five-yard burst to open the third.

Kansas State, however, rattled off 21 straight points to jump out to a commanding 42-21 lead.

The Wildcats once again got it done through the air, as Leon Patton hooked up with Cedric Wilson on a trick play down the middle for the 18-yard touchdown reception. The score made it 28-21 with 7:45 left in the third.

On the Longhorns' next possession Young fumbled inside his own 30, and the ball was picked up by Kansas State defensive end Ian Campbell. On the next play Figurs scored his second touchdown of the game, catching a 29-yard strike from Freeman to make it 35-21.

"It was a tremendous effort on the defensive side of the ball. I thought the defensive line played as well as they ever have," said Campbell. "We were getting sacks and hits on the quarterback. Our linebackers were coming up and hitting the running backs hard. Our safeties and cornerbacks played well also. I was just very proud of our defense."

Kansas State followed that up by blocking Greg Johnson's punt as Daniel Gonzalez recovered at the 23. Two plays later Gonzalez caught a 20-yard pass from Freeman to give Kansas State a first-and-goal at the one. Freeman punched it in on the next play for a 42-21 lead with 4:39 remaining.

Jamaal Charles started Texas' comeback with an 18-yard touchdown run later in the third. The score cut Kansas State's lead to 42-28 with 3:43 remaining in the stanza.

The Longhorns added another touchdown to open the final quarter, as Snead hit Limas Sweed with a a 33-yard touchdown pass with 12:52 remaining in the game.

Kansas State then tacked on a 51-yard field goal by Jeff Snodgrass to take a 10 point lead before Ogbonnaya's touchdown capped the scoring

Both teams put points on the board in all four quarters, with the first half serving as a prelude to the wild finish.

The Longhorns jumped out to a 7-0 lead after the opening kickoff. The 14-play, 80-yard march was capped off by McCoy's one-yard rush with the clock at 8:07. The score came on a fourth-and-one, as Texas decided to go for the end zone rather than put three on the board with a field goal attempt.

That play also proved costly, as McCoy got the touchdown but was buried under a pile of defenders on the play. He then left the game, holding his right shoulder.

The Wildcats scratched the scoreboard on the ensuing possession, as Figurs hauled in a 36-yard strike from Freeman to make it a 7-7 contest.

The Longhorns special teams got in on the fun just past the midway point of the second quarter. On fourth down, Wildcats punter Tim Reyer fumbled on his own 30-yard line. Texas came away with the ball and needed just three plays before Charles' one-yard burst into the end zone put the team up 14-7.

Kansas State answered quickly, scoring on their next two possessions to take a 21-14 lead.

The first drive went 86 yards on just eight plays before James Johnson's 33- yard touchdown reception put the Wildcats up 14-7.

Then, Figurs returned a Longhorn punt 53 yards to set Kansas State up inside the ten. Patton followed up the effort by taking the handoff and rushing eight yards to pay dirt. The score put the Wildcats up by seven with 6:17 remaining in the half.

Game Notes

Figurs left the game with a pinched nerve in his neck with just over five minutes remaining...The Longhorns streak of 17 straight road wins and 13 straight Big 12 road victories was snapped..Texas leads the overall series 6-3.