The Oklahoma Sooners traveled to face off against Ole Miss on Saturday. While Oklahomans were enjoying a crisp, autumn day back home, things were nice and balmy out in Oxford, Mississippi. The Sooners, in particular, felt the heat and now have to answer the question: Where do they go from here?
Oklahoma Sooners Surprise, Then Stumble at Oxford
Opening Hour at Ole Miss
Oklahoma fans were experiencing flashbacks to the South Carolina game early on. The first two minutes of the game saw the Ole Miss Rebels marching against a sleepy Sooners defense. Before anyone could blink, the Rebels were up on the board and the Sooners were on the back foot.
Instead of being beaten down, the Sooners fought back. Jackson Arnold is still proving why he can be a leading rusher. The Ole Miss defense was regularly clamping down on his receivers, forcing the sophomore to scramble to the outside. Arnold easily bounced off of this adversity and, alongside Taylor Tatum and Jovante Barnes, made great progress down the field.
On an early fourth and inches, though, the Sooners threw that progress away. Instead of slamming the ball up the middle, the call was made for Arnold to throw it deep to Brenen Thompson. As Arnold is no great passer, the ball sailed incomplete and Ole Miss took over again.
Sooners Surprise the World
Who could have been imagining that fresh off of firing Seth Littrell, Oklahoma would perform so well? Their offense was energizing and every man was willing to give it his all. Between Tatum, Arnold, and plenty of Ole Miss penalties the Sooners stampeded into the endzone to tie the game at 7-7 to end the first quarter. Oklahoma didn’t stop there, though, and kept up the pressure.
The defense, equally, is bouncing back. Last week saw a worrying decline in quality that simply wasn’t there in the first half. Danny Stutsman, the nominal team captain, has had such a good season that, as of this game, he is now the record holder for all-time tackles for the Oklahoma Sooners. Ethan Downs rebuffing a scrambling Rebel, just inches from the endzone, gave his teammates enough time to pile on and force the turnover on downs.
From there, the Sooners embark on one of their best drives all season. On their own 10-yard line, they have only a few minutes to take the lead before halftime. Every handoff resulted in four to 10-yard gains, regardless of whether it was through the air or on the ground. Two of the best Ole Miss defenders go down to injury in this drive, the shock reverberating through the team. With just fifteen seconds left, it’s a now-or-never moment for Oklahoma. Arnold, scrambling well outside of his line, passes it to Jacob Jordan. Jordan, himself, having been fighting all the way from the opposite side of the field, catches it for his first career touchdown.
At halftime, the Sooners are now leading 14-10. From their own 10-yard line to the endzone in a matter of minutes is an insane achievement for this year’s team. Oklahoma would never be this high again, unfortunately.
Ole Miss Fires Back
The Rebels put up 13 points in the third quarter with no answer from Oklahoma. At the same time, Ole Miss, as they’ve done all season, kept racking up penalties throughout this game. Whether it was extra points, offensive drives, or punt returns the Rebels were determined to find some form of penalty. Jaxson Dart, already rattled by the Sooners’ defense, certainly could have been happier with his team’s performance.
Still, the Rebels kept winning despite themselves. The fourth quarter saw the end of their scoring bonanza, but, likewise, they were able to keep the Sooners out of the endzone. It wasn’t quite the blowout that Ole Miss was hoping for today, but they overcame an incredibly lackluster first half for the win.
By The Numbers for the Oklahoma Sooners and Ole Miss
Arnold caps off a valiant Sooners effort with a total of 182 yards and 22 of his 32 passes completed. The Sooners walk out of Oxford with 329 total yards of offense, 24 first downs, and a majority possession time at 33 minutes.
Dart ends another Ole Miss victory with 311 total yards and 22 of his 30 passes completed. Overall, Ole Miss comes away with 380 total yards of offense and 18 first downs. They held minority possession time at just twenty-six minutes.
What’s Next for Oklahoma?
The Sooners opened up the game with a level of physicality and energy that we haven’t seen from them this year. Unfortunately, they couldn’t keep this going in the second half. For an offense that was steadily gaining ground through two quarters, they were completely shut out after halftime. After losing Jacob Sexton to injury, the Sooners defense found themselves sputtering out.
The Oklahoma Sooners and Ole Miss game was a competitive matchup that, ultimately, became a shutout in the second half. One can’t help but wonder whether it would be better to have stayed in an embattled Big 12 for just one more year. Further injuries today just add to the list of star Sooners who are out, further compounding Oklahoma’s problems. With Alabama and Missouri coming up on the schedule, Last Word On Sports will be keeping a close eye on a struggling Sooners team.
