A 52-27 win over TCU in Fort Worth has cured the “Texas hangover” as No. 8 Oklahoma keeps climbing in the national polls.

After a bitter three-point loss to the Longhorns, OU had two weeks to prepare for the Horned Frogs. Another complication was the firing of former Defensive Coordinator Mike Stoops.

Now, if OU wins the next five Big 12 games they will be assured a spot in the Big 12 Championship – maybe in a rematch with Texas, who is atop the league standings.

But first, Oklahoma will host a potentially dangerous Kansas State team with a 2:30 p.m. kickoff Saturday in Norman.

“Coach Snyder does a tremendous job each year,” OU coach Lincoln Riley said Monday. “New faces. They’ve got two new coordinators this year. They’ve got some changes but their program is still so steady, so solid. Guys play so hard and so physical.

“We had a tremendous battle up there with them last year. It was certainly a tale of two halves. We have to be able to play the way we know we can for a long period of time against this team. And they are coming off a bye week and a big win against Oklahoma State. They have some good momentum like we do right now.”

The Wildcats, who were off last week, beat Oklahoma State in Stillwater and had narrow losses to Texas (14-19) and Baylor (34-37).

On Monday, Riley said they were still evaluating the injury status of starting running back Trey Sermon. Sermon had 110 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries (6.5 yards per rush). Riley did say that wide receiver Marquise Brown was fine.

Except for a few lapses, the OU defense looked improved against TCU.

“I’m really proud of the staff,” OU defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill said Saturday. “A lot of staffs don’t react well during a transition. I’m even prouder of the boys. I’m just a spokesperson for them. I thought the effort was very close to what we talked about and expected of them. We talked about fundamentals with them, making plays. We had opportunities out there, facing a very talented TCU team, one of the fastest teams in the country skill wise. Whatever call we make, they’re the call and they take ownership.”

Oklahoma held TCU to three points in the second half and to 20 points the whole game. TCU scored one of their touchdowns on a kick return.

“We took some steps defensively on the whole,” Riley said. “We played a lot of 11-man football.”

OU quarterback Kyler Murray was the Big 12 offensive player of the week while OU running back Kennedy Brooks was the Big 12 newcomer of the week.

Murray, who has been the Big 12 offensive player of the week four times this season hit 19-of-24 passes for 213 yards and four touchdowns. He rushed nine times for 51 yards at TCU.

“It’s tough because you always have to have a guy that is watching him,” TCU linebacker Ty Summers said about Murray. “That takes things away from coverage and that makes things more open. He’s definitely a threat and that’s why Oklahoma has a good offense.

“They have some physical running backs; Oklahoma always does. They’re not guys that we can’t tackle; we can, and we can do better at it, but they ran hard and gave us their best.

“They just have a bunch of difference makers on their team at pretty much every position; quarterback, running back, receiver and they have some physical o-lineman. That’s why they’re always one of the top [offenses] in the nation. You have got to meet that level with that kind of intensity.”

Brooks rushed 18 times for a career-best 168 yards and a score at TCU. The redshirt freshman averaged 9.3 yards per carry.

“I was really proud of Kennedy Brooks,” Riley said Saturday. “He continues to grow and mature and you see some of the explosion he has when he’s on the field. It seems like every other touch with him is a big play and that’s kind of how he is in practice too. We’re growing and we’re getting more in sync with our O-line. You see that group starting to gel together as a whole.”

OU wide receiver Lee Morris caught just two passed but both were for touchdowns against TCU. Amazingly, Morris has eight TDs on 12 career receptions.

Against TCU, OU jumped out to the 28-7 lead early in the second quarter but TCU rebounded to close to within four points at halftime. The OU defense held the Horned Frogs to three points in the second half while OU’s offense scored 24 points.

“I thought defensively we played really well all day,” Riley said. “We gave up the return, we had a couple times of bad field position, we gave up the screen and then the fade ball, but really other than that we made things tough on them. I thought our players responded, I thought we tackled better, made some plays in coverage and got some key pressure.”

TCU was overmatched in a game they really needed to stay in the hunt for a league title.

“You have to give Oklahoma all the credit,” said TCU coach Gary Patterson. “They are a good enough offense so you can’t give them points. This is the second time in three years when they came here they had two weeks to prepare. They did some things in their first three drives that they have never done — ever, ever.”

Oklahoma is ranked No. 9 in the AP Poll. But No. 1 Alabama and No. 4 LSU still have to play each other. And if No. 7 Georgia wins their division in the SEC, they probably will have to play the winner of the Alabama/LSU game.

And if OU and Texas both win the rest of their games, they will have a rematch in the Big 12 Championship.