Oklahoma Sooners Numbers Game: 31-40
For the Oklahoma Sooners, with such a rich history of great players on great teams, this is quite the arguable list. With that being said, there’s no way everyone will agree with what is said here. With this in mind, any and all comments or input are welcomed. Let us begin the debate in our latest edition of the Oklahoma Sooners numbers game.
#31 Ogbonnia Okoronkwo
At the bare minimum, Okoronkwo makes the all-difficult to pronounce team. This guy was a great example of guys hanging in there and waiting for his turn. After limited playing time in his freshmen and sophomore seasons, Okoronkwo began to blossom his junior year. During his junior campaign, he recorded 71 tackles, 12 tackles for losses, and nine sacks. Voted the Big XII player of the year in 2017, with 75 tackles, 17 tackles for losses, and eight sacks concluded a standout career.
#32 Samaje Perine
Perhaps one of the classiest Sooners of all time, Perine epitomized what a student-athlete should stand for on and off the field. With this said, Perine excelled on the field. Being a model of consistency the Jackson, Alabama native ended his career at Oklahoma with 4122 yards and 49 touchdowns on the ground. The NCAA single-game rushing yardage record also belongs to this Sooner fan favorite.
#33 Eddie Hinton
One of the lesser know Sooner great receivers was Hinton. For 35 years Hinton was Oklahoma’s only 1000-yard receiver from 1968 until 2003. Hinton was a great receiver in the days when Oklahoma and most college football teams didn’t throw the ball very much by today’s standards. As one of the early dual threats Hinton had career numbers of 1822 receiving yards and 629 rushing yards.
#34 Spencer Tillman
Just another great running back in a long line of Sooner ball carriers. Tillman had only one year of being a 1000-yard rusher, in 1983. Although he never put up huge numbers, Tillman was a dependable hard running sure-handed back. He finished his career with 22 touchdowns on the ground and one receiving touchdown. Tillman continues an excellent career in the booth as an outstanding color commentator.
#35 Billy Vessels
Among the many awards garnered by Vessels was consensus All-American honors and Oklahoma’s first Heisman trophy winner. College football was played a little differently in the 1950s, so it’s difficult to compare statistics. The game was not so specialized as Vessels rushed, passed, received for a total of 35 touchdowns during his three-year career at Oklahoma. Vessels also starred on the Sooners 1950 national championship team.
#36 Steve Owens
Just another Heisman trophy winner wearing the crimson and cream! In a time when it was possible to win a Heisman trophy on a mediocre team, Owens garnered the award in 1969. A hard-nosed rusher, he totaled 1523 yards and 23 touchdowns by Owens his senior year. Career totals of 3928 yards and 57 touchdowns were Sooner bests until the wishbone era.
#37 Ben Hart
As we continue with the Oklahoma Sooners numbers game, there is another player that played in the offensively conservative era was Hart. In a time when teams didn’t score as much, Hart had career numbers of 915 yards receiving with six touchdowns. He also added an additional 231 yards rushing.
#38 Roy Williams
In the opinion of many, this was quite possibly the second-best player to ever don the crimson and cream. Awards garnered by Williams included 2001 big XII defensive player of the year, 2001 Bronko Nagurski award, 2001 Jim Thorpe award, 2001 consensus All-American. With all the awards Williams is most remembered for the “superman” play against Texas.
#39 Kevin Murphy
One of the great Sooner defensive ends, Murphy was a three-time all-big eight defender. All-America honors were earned in 1985. On the all-time down lineman list, Murphy ranks third in tackles for loss with 36 and second with 342 tackles.
#40 Darrell Reed
A record four-time big eight performer in 1987 All-American defensive end Reed, is an overwhelming choice at #40. In a time when the defense was a premium in Norman, Reed was one of the great defensive ends at Oklahoma. Not to mention being a great defensive player, Reed was one of the classy Sooners of the ’80s.
