After a shocking Saturday in many respects, here is our Oklahoma vs Kansas State review. Oklahoma traveled to Manhattan, Kansas, but the defense didn’t make the trip. Kansas State came in boasting a very mediocre offense. The Sooners defense, or lack of it, made them look all world. The Wildcats scored on seven consecutive possessions. Clearly, the Sooners defense quit after the first quarter on this Saturday.
With this in mind, here is the recap of Oklahoma vs Kansas State.
Oklahoma vs Kansas State Review
Kansas State
The Wildcats didn’t come into the game with a bag full of gadget plays. Kansas State simply ran the same basic offense they have all year, with limited success previously. The Sooners defense simply didn’t have an answer. Kansas State couldn’t be stopped, especially on third or fourth and long.
At one point the game announcer stated Kansas State ran into the heart of the Oklahoma defense. That seems very unlikely as the Oklahoma defense had no heart on this day.
Clearly, the Wildcats were the only unit with any heart today.
Oklahoma
This was an embarrassing performance by Oklahoma. The defense of the Sooners looked as bad as it has looked at any point in the last three years. The final score of 48-41 was not indicative of how one-sided this game was. The Wildcats took control of this game late in the second quarter. The Sooners were down 25 points with under 13 minutes left in the fourth quarter. The Oklahoma defense clearly quit at halftime.
It’s back to square one for Oklahoma defensive coordinator Alex Grinch. The Sooners defense did absolutely nothing well all game. The offensive statistics for Kansas State bears that out. The defense looked as if they couldn’t care less about playing this game.
With this in mind, the Oklahoma defense the first half of the season was all smoke and mirrors.
Positives
There certainly wasn’t much to take away from this game on the positive side. Oklahoma placekicker Gabe Brkic had a great game, hitting field goals of 25, 39, 44, and 50 yards. Jalen Hurts had another Heisman like performance completing 19-26 for 395 yards, he also ran for another 96 yards. CeeDee Lamb had five receptions for 135 yards and a touchdown.
On the defensive side of the ball, there were absolutely no positives from this game. The Sooners defensive clearly did nothing well. They looked confused in pass coverage. The defense did an extremely poor job of tackling. The defense did not fly to the ball as in previous good performances this year. Most importantly, there was a definite lack of effort by the defense.
Ramifications
There are many ramifications from this debacle. Oklahoma has virtually no chance to get into the College Football Playoffs. With that being said, anyone watching the game could see this team doesn’t deserve to be in the playoffs. Regardless of the positive numbers, he generated this loss will decrease Hurts chances to win the Heisman Trophy. Realistically the only thing Oklahoma has left to play for is a fifth consecutive Big XII title.
The Final Word
Now for the third year in a row, an extremely poor defense is going to cost a great Oklahoma offense an opportunity to play for a national championship. Today it was clearly a lack of effort by the defense that cost the Sooners a win. This is a recurring theme for Oklahoma.
The defense should be embarrassed and ashamed for this beyond poor performance.
The Sooners have two weeks to get ready for the next opponent. Cleary changes are needed on the defensive side. With respect to former Oklahoma defensive coordinator Mike Stoops, coaching wasn’t the only issue with this defense. The players need to take responsibility for a very poor effort.
