Knee-Jerking: Oklahoma Sooners 56, Tulane Green Wave 14
A week after going on the road to beat Ohio State in an emotional game, a matchup with Tulane was begging for an uneven performance by Oklahoma.
That about sums up what the Sooners did in a 56-14 rout of the Green Wave. OU struggled early in the game with Tulane’s option offense, allowing the underdogs to hang around for most of the first half. The Angry Wave still had no shot at slowing the Sooner O, which produced touchdowns on four of OU’s first five drives.
Tulane scored touchdowns on its first two possessions, covering a total of 140 yards. After that, OU’s defense settled in: The visitors didn’t score again and only gained 151 yards the rest of the way.
Baker Mayfield didn’t have his best stuff. It wasn’t needed – he still completed 17-of-27 passes for 331 yards and four touchdowns.
All in all, a workmanlike effort with a long list of walking wounded.
Other observations:
Offense
*Trey Sermon looked like a revelation at running back versus OSU. A week later, he gets seven carries for 23 yards, primarily in mop-up duty. Meanwhile, Abdul Adams, who was apparently benched versus the Buckeyes for fumbling, leads the team in rushing against Tulane.
I expect Lincoln Riley and Jay Boulware will stick to riding the hot hand this season when it comes to divvying up the snaps in the backfield. One hand might tend to get hot more often as the season wears on.
*Similarly, after tearing up Ohio St., fullback Dmitri Flowers touched the ball zero times against the Green Wave.
*Mayfield appeared intent on showing off his cannon, as he frequently passed up easy completions for taking shots downfield.
*After three games, CeeDee Lamb (four receptions, 131 yards, two touchdowns versus Tulane) is building a compelling case as the best freshman wide receiver in the history of the program. Even considering the fact that he scored an 82-yard touchdown on an obvious bust in Tulane’s secondary, he still looks like the most reliable and dangerous target in the passing game.
*Nothing really stuck out to me about the line play. The big uglies had Tulane’s defensive front outmatched pretty severely.
Defense
*Mike Stoops appeared to shift the defense between a three- and four-man fronts throughout the game. I didn’t really notice if one was more effective than the other, although it looked as though Tulane had some success going after the backside gaps early on.
*The linebackers got off to a rough start. Eventually, though, they started diagnosing plays and assignments faster, enabling them to play more decisively against the option. It’s particularly encouraging to see Kenneth Murray’s ongoing growth (eight tackles, one tackle for loss).
*The biggest story on D might have been Parnell Motley, which is a theme this year. On his pick-six in the first half, he recognized the receiver’s route and jumped it with ease.
Jordan Thomas isn’t seeing many balls thrown his way; going after Motley can’t look all that enticing to opposing offensive coordinators now, either.
*I didn’t hear much talk about Matt Romar’s injury after the game. OU still feels so thin on the defensive line – just one more game until Amani Bledsoe returns to action, which should help shore up the unit.
*Ogbonnia Okoronkwo continues to show that he has taken major steps forward. He always had the physical abilities to be a terror off the edge, but he has refined his pass-rushing. He might be the best defensive player in the Big 12.
TV
*Sheesh. FOX sent OU the interns for this one. I doubt that kind of thing is a deal-breaker to anyone willing to shell for the game on pay-per-view. Still, it's frustrating to get that level of quality when you know what the price tag is.