OU vs. Temple – Soonerguys

Dave: Injuries raise questions about O-line play but defense is dominating

Published on September 5, 2024 by Dave

One would think a 51-3 drubbing would not be cause for any source of worry about the victorious team, no matter who the opponent.

But a big concern for Oklahoma going into the season reared its ugly head last Friday night on Owen Field. While the Sooners did indeed dismantle Temple to the tune of 51-3, the offensive line left more questions than answers.

To be fair, Oklahoma was missing starting tackle Jake Taylor due to injury, and starting center Branson Hickman left with injury after just 10 snaps. Depth was also an issue as guard Troy Everett was a no go with injury as well.

So maybe we should not expect many answers until this unit heals and is able to work together at full strength. But injuries are part of the game. Next man up so to speak.

So, it was disappointing to see the offensive line look so inconsistent. I know that might sound overly critical when OU still rushed for 220 yards and averaged 6.1 yards a carry. But the Sooners were also 1 for 12 on 3rd down conversion attempts, they lost the time of possession battle, and Arnold only threw for 140 yards and was sacked 3 times.

Keep Reading

Sooners do the expected — blow Temple away 51-3

Published on August 31, 2024 by Mike

If there is any takeaway from Oklahoma’s 51-3 win over Temple on Saturday night it was that the defense — which grabbed six Owls turnovers — was everything as billed. But the offense has a ways to go.

“I loved how aggressive and confident our guys were moving around, flying to the ball and being aggressive and knocking the ball loose,” Coach Brent Venables said. “Fantastic job by the defense.”

The Sooners had fumbles recovered by Terry, senior safety Billy Bowman Jr. and junior safety Robert Spears-Jennings.

Concern about the offense, which scored many points, but failed to convert on only one of 12 third downs and saw starting center Branson Hickman get injured (sprained ankle), was not relieved, despite the offense scoring 44 points. In addition Jalil Farooq’s season likely ended when he sustained a broken foot.

Farooq’s injury compounded a depth problem at wide receiver. Top returning receiver Nic Anderson was out for this game and Jayden Gibson suffered a season-ending knee injury in practice.

Keep Reading