Post Game Thoughts | OU vs ISU
– Super K – Posted on: September 30, 2023
***First, let this sink in, the Sooners aren’t even half way through the season and already they are only one win away from tying last year’s record.
***Offensively, DG came to play. He was chippy. He was running the ball. He took chances downfield. That’s the DG the Sooners need to see every week – a scrappy guy who makes his easy throws clean and gives his guys a chance on the longer throws.
***When they add DG in to the run game, it adds enough to open things up a bit more. There’s still no dominant back but they just need to keep incorporating DG in the run game and given Sawchuk more snaps so he can get comfortable.
***The defense was a bit up and down but what I loved is, once again, the BV plan puts guys in position to get turnovers and they’re doing it.
***At one point, when the game was close, I was telling Charlie that this is the kind of game where Lincoln/Grinch team would’ve made it a nail biter till the end. That didn’t happen here…
***This team is learning how to win and how to put teams away.
***I know it can be a bit frustrating early on but UGA had a tough one today. Texas has gone into the second half with close games against Wyoming (with their back up QB) and Kansas (with their back up QB). In this day of parity, the successful teams are the ones that get stronger as the game goes on.
***Sooners will face their biggest test next week. I’ll still hold the same position I held earlier in the season, I think the Sooners win. I can get it to my reasons why.
***But I’ll mention just one here. The Sooners are going to be playing with a lot less pressure. This is supposed to be a national championship run season for Texas. OU was 6-7 last year and it’ll be a successful second year for Brent if he’s got his guys in the hunt for the Big 12 title by year end. The teams are fairly evenly matched so something as simple as playing fast and free can make a substantial difference IMO.
Sunday Brunch | Checking One Thing Off the List Of Goals
– Charlie – Posted on: October 1, 2023
Last night the Sooners put a beatdown on Iowa State at home in front of a sold-out crowd in an electric atmosphere.
Oklahoma won by a score of 50-20 and it is the first time since 2015 that the Sooners hung half a hundred on the Cyclones. That is pretty wild considering the prolific offenses that have come out of Norman since that time.
One of the goals for the OU fan base every year is to see their team get to the matchup in the Cotton Bowl the second weekend in October with an unblemished record. It was a goal of particular note this season as OU is coming off their first losing season in a long, long time.
Goal accomplished.
The way the Sooners have gone about crafting their 5-0 record has been pretty diverse. Coming into the Iowa State game, the Sooners had two games which featured offensive explosions (Arkansas State and Tulsa) coupled with excellent defensive performances in those games. They also had two games that featured less offense, but the defense maintained their level of play as they helped carry the offense to victory (SMU and Cincinnati).
Last night was a bit different as we saw the first sustained period of defensive lapses in the first half where they allowed 20 points on 270 yards with several big plays allowed. Do not get it twisted, the defense had some shining moments in the first half with one of the biggest plays of the game coming on Iowa States first offensive snap as Billy Bowman intercepted a pass and returned it for a touchdown. But overall, the first half was a bit of a mess defensively.
In the first half last night the Sooners allowed plays of 51 yards and 67 yards which represented the two longest plays from scrimmage against the OU defense on the year. In the second half, they allowed a total of 82 yards of offense and if you take out the last Iowa State drive of the game, when the backups backups were in for OU, OU had only allowed 54 yards of offense in the second half with three minutes left in the half.
For years, Sooner fans…and players…have longed for the day when the coaching staff would make adjustments that had a real and tangible impact on the game during the game. While the staff made the adjustments to the scheme and calls defensively, the players went out and implemented and executed the adjustments at a high level. That is money in the bank for the players, the staff, and the fans as in the future, should things get off track, they now know they have the ability to make changes that can and will work. You love to see it.
Offensively, the Sooners put up 41 points on the Cyclones and they did it in a variety of ways. Dillon Gabriel had another impressive statistical night as he went 26 for 39 for 366 yards with 3 touchdowns and 1 interception. In my opinion, the most impressive part of his game last night was his grit and determination in the run game as not only did he score two touchdowns on the ground running the ball, he had several other important carries in the game which moved the chains for Oklahoma and extended drives.
The use of Gabriel in the run game helped the Sooners run for 157 yards on the night and while it didn’t always look pretty, the run game did have its moments. More importantly, the threat of the run game helped the offensive line limit the Iowa State pass rush and while OU gave up one sack on the night (on a blown assignment by Mettauer/Guyton) Gabriel had a relatively clean pocket to distribute the ball from and the Cyclones only had four tackles for loss, two of which were on bubble passes that they diagnosed and blew up.
My biggest takeaway from last nights game boils down to one thing…this is the first time this year that we really saw the offense pick up the defense in a situation of need as OU had yet to have been pushed defensively to that point of the year. While it didn’t feel like it at the time, last night was a great learning experience for the entire team and a big-picture display of complementary football over a full game. Again, that is money in the bank for the team and coaches mentally as they know, if given help from the other side of the ball, the one that is struggling has the opportunity to get things right and do their share as the game goes along.
While the score indicated a blowout, which in reality it was, it took a minute to get there and the process the team went through in order to steady the defensive side of the ball is something that will pay off for them down the road. If last nights game was played in previous years and under a different regime…we all know that it likely would have ended up being a much closer game and a much higher-scoring affair!
The adjustments were such a joy to watch take place and when you look at the bigger picture of the first five games of the season, now, every player and coach on this team knows that they will have the opportunity to get things right when they are a bit off while, no matter which side of the ball they play on, and the other side will do their best to pick them up and step up and carry the team when needed. We have seen it in previous games with the defense carrying the offense and last night we saw the offense carry the defense for a half.
So refreshing.
Position Group Progress Report | ’23 Game 5: Iowa State
– Charlie S – Posted on: October 2, 2023
Checking out how the position groups performed in the Sooners victory over Iowa State. Coming into the game, OU was a big favorite over the Cyclones and they covered the game time spread.
This will be the fifth progress report of the season. I will include the previous week’s ranking at the top of each position group’s report.
Let’s see how things shook out against Iowa State.
QB: 4* (Last week Low 3*)
Dillon Gabriel delivered what I believe could have been his best pass as a Sooner when he hit Jayden Gibson in the seam over a defender and in front of another defender on time. This was beautiful. There was only one place to put the ball and he put it there.
Gabriel had another very good statistical night as he went 26 for 39 for 366 yards with 3 passing touchdowns and 2 rushing touchdowns with 1 interception.
I was very impressed with his demeanor and his determination in the running game in particular. The threat alone of Gabriel being an effective ball carrier will help to continue opening up the Oklahoma offense and he was very good with his decision making and vision on his runs. Very good.
Dillon Gabriel was not perfect. He threw the one interception and tried his damnedest to throw at least two others with a couple of bad choices (Double coverage and underthrow to Brenen Thompson as one example) and a couple of bad throws (Late read and pass to Stogner as one example here).
Let me be clear…
I will take the version we saw of Dillon Gabriel on Saturday night over the version of Dillon Gabriel we saw against SMU and Cincinnati all day every day.
He was a bit more decisive in his reads and a bit quicker in pulling the trigger at times. I like the swag he displayed and I feel like he is elevating his play at the right time as you head into the Cotton Bowl. Gabriel will be the best QB that Texas has faced to this point of the year.
RB: 2* (Last week 3*)
Look…apparently, it is what it is when it comes to the Oklahoma run game. What it is right now appears to be one running back who the staff trusts (Marcus Major) to not mess up, one running back who works well in concert with the offensive line (Tawee Walker), one running back who is rusty and still learning the pass pro game (Gavin Sawchuk) and one running back who is not at full capability due to recovering from injury (Jovantae Barnes).
Marcus Major is probably a really good teammate and a nice guy. He does not possess the skillset and vision to be a featured back. He shows no decisiveness and a tendency to prefer to run into guys rather than away or through guys…including his own blockers.
Tawee Walker is currently the best option that OU has as he has displayed the ability to work in concert with the offensive line to choose the correct holes and he has displayed good vision and decision-making…he just doesn’t have game breaking skills and is a workhorse type of back. Still, he is the most effective back OU has right now and generally gets positive yardage.
OU tried to feature Sawchuk, but he looked lost at times in regard to his blocking responsibilities and he is still getting a feel for the speed of the game and using his vision to choose the right holes. I like having him in there, and I would play him more than Marcus Major, but he needs a good week of practice and time in the film room.
Barnes is still recovering from his foot surgery (according to Venables) and just isn’t right at this time for one reason or another. So he was a no go but something tells me you could see him on Saturday.
This is not a good room right now. It could change any week, and hopefully, it does soon as OU cannot afford to go into the RRS and be completely one-dimensional. This is where the increased run game of Gabriel could really help balance the OU offense out.
WR/TE: 5* (Last week 4*)
The Sooners did not have a 100 yard receiver on the game, yet they still get a 5* rating?
You betcha.
This group did have three guys who caught multiple passes and averaged 25 yards or more per catch.
Brenen Thompson (2 for 62 for a 31 yard average)
Nic Anderson (2 for 56 for a 28 yard average 1 TD)
Jayden Gibson (2 for 50 for a 25 yard average 1 TD)
Jalil Farooq had a helluva catch that landed him at the one-yard line and he had a total of five catches which led the team along with Drake Stoops who hauled in five of his own.
Heck even Austin Stogner was targeted (once, early) and picked up a 19 yard catch.
They blocked well, they caught the ball (only one drop) and they made big plays when asked.
I can confidently call them the best group on offense to this point in the year…what a turnaround from being the glaring weak spot last year.
OL: Low 4* (Last week 3*)
Some of you aren’t going to want to hear it.
Some of you will fight it.
But the offensive line played a good game against what is probably a top 3 defense they will face. (maybe top 4 depending how TCU comes along).
This is not just my opinion, I went to several other people whose opinions I value to corroborate what I came away with after watching the game again.
There are holes there to be had in the running game and they continue to be very good in the pass protection game.
Tyler Guyton is leading the way, but the addition of Troy Everett (which I didn’t necessarily agree with initially) added a nice piece to the OL as he plays with high energy and is much more physical than I expected him to be.
Were they perfect? No. But for all those who think they are bad, we will have something for you in a podcast coming up this week to hear about it from another voice.
DL: High 4* (Last week High 4*)
Hello Jordan Kelley! Wow, what a game for him. Kelley was only credited with one tackle on the game but his impact far exceeded the stat line. He made the most of his 20 snaps and was consistently in the backfield forcing Becht into some bad decisions and moving him off his spots.
As a whole, the defense was only credited with one sack, but PJ Adebawore was a menace once again off the edge. As I predicted, Adebawore’s snap count climbed closer to one-third of total defensive snaps (25) and you could see him becoming more of a factor before your very eyes as the game progresses.
Isaiah Coe also stood out to me and I thought Jacob Lacey and Da’Jon Terry had their moments.
Have to give Ethan Downs a shout as he has really been playing some solid ball of late and is doing a much better job assignment wise and holding his assignment while also managing to get some pressure.
Feel good moments for Davon Sears at the end of the game as he was all up and through the Iowa State backfield on the last two snaps of the game.
LB: Low 3* (Last week High 4*)
Not gonna sugarcoat this one. The linebackers were all sorts of bad in the first half and that gives me some concern for the game this week. I’m not hitting the panic button as they have been so good for the vast majority of the season this year, but some alarm bells definitely sounded for me.
Time after time in the first half you saw both Stutsman and Kanak look more like the ’22 version of themselves than the ’23 versions we had seen leading up to the first half of the Iowa State game.
I attribute a lot of that to Stutsman and Kanak being overly aggressive and throwing a bit of caution to the wind as they were not assignment sound and making their run fits. Stutsman did lead the team with six tackles and Kanak had three of his own, but in the first half, they were running themselves out of position at times while also falling for some eye candy that got them caught up in the trash and moved out of the play by Iowa State.
Now…they did clean that up, almost completely in the second half, but you know Steve Sarkisian is going to scheme some things up early next week to have their heads spinning and take advantage of their overly aggressive nature if he thinks he can get away with it.
Again, not ready to push the panic button and it was encouraging to see them rebound in the second half, but the first half was a half to forget for them.
Cheetah: High 3* (Last week 4*)
Dasan McCullough didn’t have a major impact on the game statistically, but he did do one thing that should give you some encouragement and that is that he was very good in coverage against a team that likes to use their tight ends and running backs in matchups with linebackers/Slot defenders.
McCullough was targeted three times as a defender. He covered two passes against tight ends which went incomplete and a pass to a running back which was completed for no gain.
The other guys who played Cheetah on coverage downs did well enough, but to be honest, I haven’t watched closely enough to see who spent the most time at Cheetah (Dolby/Pearson/Bowen) while McCullough was out, overall, the three of them played well but not spectacular throughout the night. Pearson did have one really nice open-field tackle though so that was nice to see.
DB: High 3* (Last week 5*)
First defensive play of the game for the Sooners was a pick six from safety Billy Bowman yet the grading is a high 3 star?
Yep.
Too many guys running free and too many big plays allowed after play one snap one defensively.
Again…felt like the backend followed the lead of the linebackers and started out way to aggressively in the first half and that was apparent on busts from Key Lawrence and Billy Bowman.
Key, who may have played the best game of his career last week, had one of the most bizarre looking plays you will see as he went streaking across the face of a WR who went up and caught a pass and turned it into a big play. Where was he going? No idea, but he had put himself in a no win situation as if he had arrived at the point of contact it would have been prior to the pass arriving and he took such a bad anghle that his make up speed would not allow him to have simply turned the play into a first down reception. Just bad football.
Billy Bowman later had a similarly poor angle and he wound up taking Gentry Williams out of the play which again, went for another chunk play and score.
The corners were not immune either as both Woodi and Gentry had a couple instances where they let guys get behind them, luckily however, Iowa State could not pay them off.
I like the big plays, the interceptions, and points from pick-sixs, but they need to tighten things up responsibility-wise and get back to taking better angles. To their credit, they played much more soundly in the second half, so hopefully we can chalk it up to being over-aggressive on the night.
ST: High 3* (Last week 2*)
Kickoffs were good.
Missed a field goal, the rest of the kicks went through.
Punting was shaky at best.
Not much in the return game.
Peyton Bowen Blocks punts at a high rate. Love seeing that, but the missed kick and the bad punt make this group slightly above average.
Keys to the Game | RRS | Part 1 – Make Him Move
– Charlie S – Posted on: October 2, 2023
The Sooners head to the Cotton Bowl for the Red River Shootout this weekend and instead of doing the typical ‘One on One’s’ this week, we will be dropping a series of ‘Keys to the game’.
***The first Key for OU is in regard to slowing down the Texas offense.
***Quinn Ewers leads a high-octane Longhorn offense that is loaded with skill position players at wide receiver, tight end, and running back.
***So far on the year, Ewers’s stat line reads as 97 completions on 147 attempts which is good for a 66% completion percentage for 1,358 yards with 10 touchdowns to just 1 interception.
***The Key for OU will be simple…make him move by getting pressure on him.
***When Ewers faces pressure, he is a 50% passer. He also tends to make some questionable decisions under duress and several passes this year could have (should have been) intercepted.
***Ewers has been sacked 9 times this season (Bama inexplicably had zero sacks). Rice and Baylor got him 3 times each, Kansas picked up 2 sacks and Wyoming had a sack on him.
***Wyoming and Rice really did a nice job on limiting Quinn and that should serve as the blueprint for the Sooners as both programs threw a bunch of different looks at him and created some turnover opportunities.
***Obviously OU has better athletes than Rice and Wyoming and if they can make Quinn move, some of those opportunities could be cashed in on.
Keys to the Game | RRS | Part 2 – Keep Him Upright
– Charlie S – Posted on: October 3, 2023
The Sooners head to the Cotton Bowl for the Red River Shootout this weekend and instead of doing the typical ‘One on One’s’ this week, we will be dropping a series of ‘Keys to the game’.
You can read Part 1 | Make Him Move HERE.
***The second Key for OU is in regard to allowing its offense to function.
***Dillon Gabriel has had a very impressive statistical season for the Sooners through the first five games. His stat line reads 118 completions on 157 attempts which have gone for 1,593 yards with 15 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. Gabriel has only been sacked 4 times on the year.
***Why is it imperative that the Sooners continue to protect Gabriel? The Sooners have thrown 172 passes…as stated above, Gabriel has thrown 157 of those passes. Jackson Arnold is untested and has only thrown 15 passes on the season. This is not the game you want to throw a kid into the fire after throwing four passes over the last four weeks.
***Oklahoma cannot afford to have Dillon Gabriel go down to injury. They must keep him upright and healthy.
***Right or wrong, this is where OU is at as they enter the Cotton Bowl. One experienced QB. That is not to say Arnold would come in and be a lost puppy, or come in and light it up, we simply do not know and this game is not the game you wanna find out.
***While the Oklahoma pass protection has been very good, over the last two weeks, Gabriel has taken to running the ball more frequently than he did over the first three weeks of the season. While I am a fan of him running the ball, it does have its dangers.
***In the first three weeks Gabriel had 10 carries, over the last two weeks he has doubled that with 20 carries.
***So not only will solid pass protection continue to be important, but Oklahoma could use some good fortune when it comes to the run game as Texas has some very large humans who will be looking to get to Gabriel in one manner or the other.
***The Texas defense has 13 sacks on the year. While it’s not an overwhelming number, they are good at consistently getting pressure on the QB so OU will do their best to limit that.
***Keep Gabriels uniform as clean as you can.
Keys to the Game | RRS | Part 3 – Limit The Run Game
– Charlie S – Posted on: October 4, 2023
The Sooners head to the Cotton Bowl for the Red River Shootout this weekend and instead of doing the typical ‘One on One’s’ this week, we will be dropping a series of ‘Keys to the game’.
You can read Part 1 | Make Him Move HERE.
You can read Part 2 | Keep Him Upright HERE.
***The third key to the game, in my opinion, is found on the defensive side of the ball and it relates to something Oklahoma has done well to this point of the season.
***Currently the Sooners are ranked 28th in total rushing defense (105.2 yards per game) and 26th in yards per carry (3.15) averaged against.
***The Sooners would greatly benefit from being able to replicate those stats in limiting the Longhorn’s rushing attack as the Texas running game is really feeling themselves following their performances over the last couple weeks.
***I know one of the knocks on the Sooners coming into the game is that ‘OU hasn’t played anyone’. Well, they have played a Top 10 rushing team in Cincinnati (they are still top 10 even after facing OU) and an SMU team that is in the Top 45.
***OU held Cincinnati close to 100 yards under their season average in a game that was close enough where the Bearcats were not forced to abandon the run game. OU just played better than Cincy did.
***Texas comes into the game with the 34th-ranked rushing offense and they are led by Jonathon Brooks who has 86 Carries which have gone for 597 yards which is good for a 6.9 yard per carry average with a long run of 67 yards with 5 touchdowns.
***Brooks has really come on in the last three games (Wyoming, Baylor, Kansas) as he has 60 rushes for 487 yards which is around an 8 yards per carry average.
***Mind you…Wyoming is ranked 86th in rush defense, Baylor is ranked 118 in rush defense, and Kansas is ranked 73 in rush defense. Texas had a hand in pushing those defenses down, but they still are not great rush defenses in any way shape, or form.
***If the Sooners can limit the effectiveness of the Longhorn running game, they will be in a better position to disguise some things in the passing defense as they look to keep the explosive and talented Texas receivers and tight ends in check while forcing Ewers into some tough positions.
***Alabama limited the Horns to 105 yards on the ground and Rice held them to 158. OU has the chops to limit the run game, but as I said, the Horns are playing with a lot of confidence in the run game so they will come out and test the Sooners and it is imperative that Oklahoma shows up and answers the call.
***Steve Sarkisian will likely try to devise a plan to attack the aggressive nature of the OU linebackers and he is very good at his job. The backers will have to deal with a lot of eye candy and motion and they need to be assignment sound and make their fits at a solid clip. If they over pursue or allow themselves to get caught up in the trash, Brooks and company will make them pay.
Update | ’24 DB Reggie Powers
– Charlie S – Posted on: October 3, 2023
As I mentioned back on September 27th HERE the Sooners were aggressively pursuing a visit from ’24 DB Reggie Powers (6’1 200) out of Dayton, Ohio who recently decommitted from Michigan State.
“As of this time, we have not received word of a visit being locked in, but source believes it is a matter of ‘when’ and not ‘if’ a visit to Norman takes place.”
We have confirmed that the official visit is now locked in and set for the UCF weekend, October 20th – 22nd.
Clarifying my Previous RRR Post
– Super K – Posted on: October 4, 2023
I know I said a lot in my previous RRR post (here) leading up to my point, so perhaps the finale got lost.
In the end my prediction is pretty simple, I believe Brent is going to get Sark at some point this season. And I think he’s going to probably do a masterful defensive job in doing it.
I think it’s either going to happen this upcoming weekend and if it doesn’t I believe it’s going to happen in the Big 12 championship.
My point was simply that if it’s going to happen only once, you want it to happen in the second game. Learn all you can in the first, continue to grow and get back to Dallas when it really really matters.
Game Within the Game | Red River Shootout 2023
– CJ Vogel – Posted on: October 5, 2023
I will attempt to paint a picture of the tendencies of both teams five weeks into the season. There will be multiple chapters to this, so prepare for a rather long article – you can thank my flight to Minneapolis for this.
Regardless, let’s dive in,
Importance of Offense Clicking Early
Oklahoma is the No. 1 team in the country at scoring in the first quarter. The Sooners are averaging a blistering 18.2 points per game in the opening quarter. Jeff Lebby’s script is cash money to begin ballgames and the Sooners have yet to really struggle out of the gates in the opening 15:00.
The Longhorns on the other hand, fit right inside the top 50 (49th actually) nationally in first quarter scoring with 6.0 points per first quarter this season.
First Half Scoring
This is just a continuation of the first point, just add the second quarter. Oklahoma is still elite at getting points on the board early in ballgames.
In games where OU has played a team with a pulse (Cincinnati, Iowa State and I’ll even throw SMU into that), the Sooners have scored 10, 40 and 14 points respectively.
- OU is 3rd in 1H scoring: 29.4
- Texas is 40th in 1H scoring: 16.0
Regardless, it is crucial for both teams to come out executing early. Get the crowd on your side and stroll into halftime with a lead. It is a must.
OU Defense Feasts on Throws Behind LOS
This has been a common staple of the Steve Sarkisian offense since his arrival to Austin – get your playmakers the ball quickly and let them make a play. If you recall the Xavier Worthy 75-yard touchdown on the first play of the game in 2021, it will be a part of the Texas gameplan.
Texas has not had as much success in this regard in 2023 compared to a year ago, but it will return. I mentioned during the Kansas game it felt like their was a scripted screen play going for a 5-yard loss every week so far this season.
Here are Ewers’ numbers on throws behind the LOS, whether it be a missile WR screen, or a TE/HB slip screen:
- 38/41 passing
- 92.7% completion
- 338 yards
- 8.2 YPA
- 1 TD – Worthy TD vs. Wyoming
A look at throws outside the numbers behind the LOS:
- 11/12 passing
- 91.6% completion
- 115 yards
- 9.6 YPA
- 1 TD – Worthy TD vs. Wyoming
Oklahoma has been tremendous this season in preventing screen plays from turning into explosive plays. Gentry Williams and Woodi Washington have been disruptive and the Sooners have two safeties that are very quick to run the alley in this regard.
Oklahoma’s defensive numbers on screen plays are quite impressive. First on all passes behind the LOS:
- 20/24 passing
- 83.3% completion
- 69 yards
- 2.88 YPA
- 0 TD
These numbers get even more impressive when teams attempt to go out wide on the Sooners in the quick game:
- 8/9 passing
- 91.9% completion
- 14 yards
- 1.55 YPA
- 0 TD
Texas will not have an easy time running the quick game against OU, especially if the perimeter blocking remains inconsistent.
Run Game – Texas D vs. Oklahoma O
This will be an area of the game that I think could end up turning the tide in favor of the Longhorns. Oklahoma has not had a great first five weeks of running the football. Sure, Cincinnati and Iowa State are solid up front, but I am of the belief T’Vondre Sweat and Byron Murphy are the best interior defensive line duo in the conference.
Sweat especially has played like the best iDL in the conference this season. I believe PFF has him as the highest rated iDL in the country for those who put stock into their grading.
I liken the Oklahoma offensive line to Alabama’s a little bit, though inversely. The Tide were susceptible to being beat on the outside in pass protection and it showed in the pass game. Oklahoma has much better tackles, but the guards are graded as the two lowest among the two teams’ starting ten OL in the running game.
Oklahoma has shown a three-back rotation this season. The trio of Marcus Major, Tawee Walker and Gavin Sawchuk collectively average 4.41 yards per carry.
On rushing attempts up the A Gap – where Sweat and Murphy work the most – the trio average just 3.53 yards per carry with a long of 19 (Major). Surprisingly to me, Tawee Walker has been the most efficient in up the gut rushing attempts.
Texas is Suspect to the Deep Pass
The Longhorns were burnt against Kansas last week for 58-yard TD when S Kitan Crawford was slow to flip the hips and commit to a post-route. The Longhorns were beat deep twice against Baylor as well.
Texas secondary is a byproduct of the pass rush more or less. If Dillon Gabriel has time to throw, it is more than likely he will be able to connect with Andrel Anthony or Nic Anderson deep a handful of times this weekend against the Longhorn secondary.
Texas defense big plays allowed through the air:
- vs. Kansas: 58-yard TD (Kitan Crawford in coverage) – post route
- vs. Baylor: 55 yard pass (Ryan Watts in coverage) – post route
- vs. Baylor: 39 yard pass (Ryan Watts in coverage) – go route
- vs. Alabama: 34 yard pass (Jahdae Barron in coverage) slot fade
- vs. Alabama: 49-yard TD (Jerrin Thompson in coverage) corner route
- vs. Alabama: 39-yard TD (hole in zone coverage) 15-yard dig route
- vs. Rice: 39-yard pass (David Gbenda) – mesh route freed up via zone coverage
Already this season Oklahoma has shown they can pass the ball deep.
Gabriel is the best deep-passing quarterback in the conference with some staggering early numbers on passes beyond 20 yards:
- 13/22 passing
- 548 yards
- 3 TD
- 1 INT
Texas is susceptible to the deep pass and Gabriel is more than capable of making them pay.
Know Your Opponent | Texas – 2023
– Charlie S – Posted on: October 5, 2023
Head Coach – Steve Sarkisian (3rd year in Austin)
Offensive Coordinator – Kyle Flood (3rd year in Austin)
Defensive Coordinator – Pete Kwiatkowski (3rd year in Austin)
The Longhorns are 5-0 on the year and they own arguably the most impressive win on the season across the entire country as they went down to Tuscaloosa and beat Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide. They also have victories over Rice, Wyoming, Baylor and Kansas.
On offense…
This is Steve Sarkisian’s offense, not Kyle Flood’s or anyone else’s. The Horns run an attacking-style offense in which Sarkisian attacks areas of weaknesses that he uncovers in the opposition. It is an RPO based offense with a ton of skill players at his disposal and an emerging running threat in Quinn Ewers at QB. Ewers is not going to carry the rock often, but when he has this year, he has been very effective.
QB #3 Quinn Ewers backed up by #6 Maalik Murphy
RB #24 Jonathon Brooks
RB #4 CJ Baxter
– Ewers has a ton of potential and he has had two and a half signature games in his year plus as the starting QB at Texas…2022 Alabama until he got hurt, 2022 Oklahoma, and 2023 Alabama. It seems like the kid plays best when the lights are brightest. He has a ton of potential, but has a tendency to sleepwalk through some games for one reason or another, but not the big games, he has been very, very good in marquee matchups.
– The loss of the great Bijan Robinson is not something that anyone believed could be overcome with any ease. Brooks has stepped up his game of late as we talked about in our ‘Keys to the game’ pieces, but when healthy, Baxter is another dynamic running back who may have a higher ceiling.
On paper, the Longhorns receiving corps is one of the best units in the country. Add the talented tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders and you see a wide array of top end targets for Ewers.
WR #1 Xavier Worthy
WR #5 Adonai Mitchell
WR #13 Jordan Whittington
TE #0 Ja’Tavion Sanders
– Worthy is the straw that stirs the drink as you just cannot teach his speed and the OU defense will have to account for him at all times. Worthy has had massive ups and downs (huge numbers and costly turnovers) against the Sooners and is familiar with the big stage that the Cotton Bowl is. He leads the team with 26 catches.
– Mitchell came over from Georgia and has fit right in and become the second leading receiver for the Horns with 22 catches and 4 touchdowns. Mitchell is a big body who is very good at finding the soft spots in a zone.
– Sanders is one of the best tight ends in the country and a matchup nightmare for any team he faces. Sanders is nursing an ankle, but you have to believe he will give it a go on Saturday…and how can you not root for a guy like J Whitt even if you are a Sooner fan? I am sure some will find a way, but Whittington is a guy who has persevered through some injuries and is just a solid individual.
The offensive line is big and has a high ceiling. It is still a work in progress and there are some aspects of it that could allow Oklahoma to have some success in getting pressure on the QB and find some success in stopping the run.
They are a physically massive line and have been solid for the most part in pass protection and over the last two weeks, they have really worked well in the run game.
LT #78 Kelvin Banks Jr.
LG #76 Hayden Conner
OC #65 Jake Majors
RG #52 DJ Campbell
RT #70 Christian Jones
– You can almost view this group as a carbon copy of the Oklahoma offensive line as the tackles are very good for the most part and the interior is questionable at times.
– Banks is a monster at left tackle and Jones generally does a fine job on the right side.
– DJ Campbell has an incredibly high ceiling and he will be a very good player one day, but right now he has his moments of inconsistency.
– Left guard and center can be good, and they were against Alabama, but they are a bit more inconsistent than the tackles and keep in mind that Bama didn’t use a lot of disguise and blitzing to get pressure.
– Both Rice and Baylor had a lot of success in getting pressure and even Wyoming and Kansas were able to get some positive things done against this line.
On defense…
Pete Kwiatkowski has done a nice job in turning this defense around, despite the Texas fan bases naysayers who wanted to give Gary Patterson all the credit. Kwiatkowski and his 2-4-5 have been finding their groove over the last year and a half and now they are one of the better overall units in the game. Don’t get it twisted, the 2 is actually 4 (linemen) and the 4 is actually 2 (linebackers) and it really is just semantics and responsibilities but there is a lot of flexibility with assignments built-in and thus you have personnel packages for different situations.
DE #91 Ethan Burke
DT #93 T’Vondre Sweat
NT #90 Byron Murphy II
DT #95 Alfred Collins
JACK #88 Barryn Sorrell
– Sweat and Murphy are the handfuls in the middle that OU will be most concerned with as they are guys who are going to be where they are supposed to be no matter what situation and what personnel package the Horns go with. They are both big, strong, and fast and they have 29 tackles (15 and 14 respectively) and 3.5 sacks between them. That is a lot of production for interior defensive linemen.
– Burke and Sorrell have combined for 25 tackles of their own (13 and 12 respectively) and have added 3 sacks to the team stats.
The linebackers are led by Jaylan Ford who is one of the best MIKEs in the country, in my opinion.
WLB #33 David Gbenda and #0 Anthony Hill Jr.
MLB #41 Jaylan Ford
SLB #43 Jett Bush
– As noted, Ford is the leader of the group and he is a good one. He leads Texas with 32 tackles and he is really good in coverage as he has picked off 2 passes.
– Freshman phenom Anthony Hill has been being brought along slowly, but he is up to about a third of the snaps defensively and he is a menace when Texas takes the opportunity to have him rush off the edge. He has 17 tackles and 2 sacks to his credit already and he absolutely could pose a problem with his speed for the OU tackles, backs and tight ends who are charged with blocking him.
As we have noted, the secondary is the area that OU may be able to take advantage of but they do have a very good player who roams around the back end in SPUR Jahdae Barron.
CB #8 Terrance Brooks
FS #11 Jalen Catalon
BS #28 Jerrin Thompson
CB #6 Ryan Watts
SPUR #23 Jahdae Barron
– Terrance Brooks is a good one at corner and Watts can be a physical presence when it comes to run support.
– Thompson is liable to the big play at times and Catalon is a heat-seeking missile but has some struggles in coverage at times.
– Barron is the third leading tackler on the team (20) and when something good happens in the secondary for Texas, he is generally involved or has a hand in causing the good fortune. He has one interception on the year as well.
Overall thoughts…
– Cutting to the chase…this is the one and only game this year where OU is facing an opponent with as much or more talent on their roster as they have.
– On the surface, this one comes down to the trenches as most games do.
– I think OU will make Ewers move with pressure, likely from the backers, and I believe they can do a good job defensively against the run. They HAVE to turn him over to have a chance to win the game, in my opinion.
– I believe the Texas front will be able to make Gabriel uncomfortable and that is where my largest concern lies for the OU offense as we have seen them struggle to maintain drives and put points on the board against SMU and Cincinnati.
– The Sooners need to be able to play the vertical game. I am not talking about balls having to be thrown 50 yards in the air but they need to hit on those 20 yard seam routes in the middle of the field consistently.
– Expect the Sooners to come out and try to run the ball and they don’t need to have a massive day on the ground to be in the game, but they need to be effective enough to keep the Texas defense engaged in focusing on stopping the run in order to buy Gabriel some more time.
– Texas would be my pick to win the game right now with them scoring between 31-35 points and OU scoring 21-24 points.
– However, I will caveat that by saying if the Sooner offense can score in the mid 30’s, I like their chances. Special teams could play a big role in this one as well…maybe Peyton Bowen will make the decision to block a punt or two.
TFB Shootout Podcast | Red River Shootout Week 2023
– CJ Vogel – Posted on: October 3, 2023
Welcome to OU-Texas week!
Ryan and Charlie are joined by special guest, JY, for a breakdown of the Oklahoma offensive line and run game situation and they touch on the Red River Shootout!