The Oklahoma Sooners lost a tense game to rival Oklahoma State Cowboys on Saturday in Stillwater.
What did we learn about the Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday?
Sooners Offense Is Not Good Enough
The Oklahoma offense gained 492 yards and averaged 7.7 yards per play. On the surface, those numbers will make it look like the Sooners should have walked away with a win and that the offense had a fantastic day. The truth is that the Sooners left a ton of opportunities on the field and had three critical turnovers. Dillon Gabriel threw an interception and lost a fumble. Oklahoma was 0-2 on fourth down, and the offense failed to find any rhythm that allowed lengthy drives. The time of possession battle was a massive advantage for the Cowboys as Oklahoma State had the ball for more than 37 minutes of the 60-minute contest. Oklahoma did many things right, but questionable play-calling by Jeff Lebby and a lack of dynamic weapons at wide receiver and tight end haunted the Sooners for a second straight week.
Defense Performed Admirably
Oklahoma’s defense struggled in 2022, but head coach Brent Venables has put his stamp on the program by leading a significant improvement on that side of the ball. The Sooners kept red-hot Oklahoma State running back Ollie Gordon in check, holding him to 139 yards on 33 carries. Gordon was good, but he only averaged 4.2 yards, far fewer than what he has done to other opponents. Alan Bowman threw for 334 yards and was reasonably efficient, but did not hit many explosive plays against the Sooners’ secondary and could not find the end zone through the air. The Sooners got a great game from Kip Lewis, who had 15 tackles and was everywhere on Saturday afternoon. They sacked Bowman thrice, and Billy Bowman had an interception that he returned 39 yards. The numbers were not exceptional, but the Oklahoma defense did a solid job that was not rewarded with a win.
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Sooners Big 12 Title Hopes Take Massive Blow
In the final scheduled version of Bedlam, Oklahoma suffered a bitter defeat against their rivals. The Sooners are departing for the SEC, and there are no indications they want to continue scheduling the annual in-state rivalry game. The loss is the second in a row for Oklahoma, and they now sit at 4-2 in the Big 12 with three games remaining. That places them a game behind Oklahoma State, plus the Cowboys have the head-to-head tiebreaker. They are also a game back of Texas, and the Longhorns have a relatively easy final three games. OU is tied with West Virginia, Iowa State, Kansas State, and Kansas, and they already have a loss to the Jayhawks. Oklahoma must win out and get significant help to make the Big 12 Championship Game.
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