SOONERS TOP MOUNTAINEERS TO MOVE TO 4-0

#15 OKLAHOMA 44 #23 MOUNTAINEERS 24

The Sooners moved to 4-0 after their 44-24 win over #23 ranked West Virginia this past Saturday.  This was a good win, against a quality ranked opponent…and as a result, the Sooners find themselves ranked in the top 10 for the first time this season as they travel to Dallas to play the Red River Rivalry game against Texas at the Cotton Bowl.

THE OAS ON ALL THINGS OU-WEST VIRGINIA:

ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT

“We didn’t tackle well today, but we made up for it by not blocking”

– Former USC Coach John McKay

11:00 AM KICKOFF

11:00 AM kickoff’s suck. Still.

RUSHING DEFENSE

While the defense was much improved, The OAS is still very concerned about the fact that the Mountaineers racked up 258 yards rushing on the day (Stats show 196 yards due to 62 yards in sacks)….but then again, The OAS is also very concerned about the fact there are only 8 pop tarts in box when clearly there’s room for 12.

3^RD DOWN SUCCESS BAD

Mountaineers were able to convert on 8 of their 20 third down attempts.  Allowing 40% conversion rate on third down means your defense can’t get off the field.

3^RD DOWN SUCCESS GOOD

The Sooner offense only converted 2 of their 11 third down attempts.  Converting only 18% of your third downs means your defense can’t get off the field

TAKE NO PRISONERS

For the second straight week, the Sooners had an opponent down big and on the ropes, only to let them get back in the game. This team needs to develop more of a “step on their neck” mentality when they have an opponent down early on. 

12 for 134

CHEATERS

The Sooners were flagged 12 times for a ridiculous 134 yards on Saturday.   Maybe it’s just me, but I’ve never found it to be a good thing when a team racked up more penalty yards than it does rushing yards (107). The OU defense gave up 45 yards on one drive alone.  On one play during that drive, Charles Tapper was flagged for jumping off-sides, then made up for it by receiving a personal foul penalty for slamming down the West Virginia QB about 3 minutes after the whistle had blown.  Hell, at that point he should’ve gone ahead and stood over the Mountaineer QB and taunted him…after all, how often does a player get the opportunity to register a “penalty flag hat-trick” on a single play.

OFFENSIVE LINE

Wow. How much longer do we have to watch Ty Darlington & Nila Kasatati continue to get abused? Darlington has just been flat-out dominated all year long…and the only times that Kasatati isn’t getting driven into his own backfield, is when he’s turned around watching the man he didn’t block make a tackle there. 

WELL DONE

“I wake up in the morning and I piss excellence”

– Rickey Bobby in Talladega Nights

AUSTIN SEIBERT

OU won the field position battle because of punter & place kicker Austin Seibert.

Seibert the Punter: The freshman averaged 43 yards per punt, but more importantly, he pinned the Mountaineers back at their 6-, 10- and 14- yard line on three different occasions. West Virginia had eight possessions in the first half and never started a drive past its own 25.  Seibert the kicker: He also connected on three field goals of 40, 25 and 44 yards.

QB ABUSE

For the first time this season the Sooners were able to consistently put pressure on the opposing QB.  On the day, the Sooners sacked Mountaineer QB Skyler Howard 7 times and pressured him on several other occasions. 

TURNOVERS

Coming into the game West Virginia had the decided edge in the turnover margin, but OU turned the table on the Mountaineers by picking off three passes and recovering two fumbles.  Jordan Evans returned one of the fumbles 41 yards for a touchdown, the first for the defense this season.

BRIAN BOSWORTH

I loved seeing Brian Bosworth honored at the end of the first quarter for his being named to the College Football Hall of Fame.  The Irving, Texas product (1984-86) was a 3x All Big 8 selection, 2x Butkus Award winner, and a 2x Consensus All-American who dominated from his strong-side inside linebacker position.  Brian Bosworth was the best college linebacker these bloodshot Sooner eyes have ever seen.

ERIC STRIKER

Striker played his best game since the 2014-15 Sugar Bowl game against Alabama.  On the day, the senior from Seffner, Florida had 13 tackles (3 for a loss), 2 sacks, a forced fumble, chalked the field, sang the national anthem and played trombone for the Pride at halftime.

JORDAN THOMAS

After sitting out the Tulsa game for violating team rules, sophomore cornerback Jordan Thomas was back in the lineup this week…and in a big way.  Thomas had two of the Sooners three interceptions on the day.

THE PLAY

“Baker saw something and gave me the signal to do a little up-and-go and I ran right past their corner and safety and Baker laid it right there for me to catch. It was an easy catch and run and it was fun getting that open.” – Durron Neal

“It was a huge momentum shift and it killed their confidence…we put a dagger into their gut.” – Baker Mayfield

Play of the Game: The Mountaineers had just cut the Sooners lead to three (27-24) when with a minute to go in the third quarter, Baker Mayfield hit Durron Neal on an out and up pattern for a 71 yard touchdown. 

JOE MIXON

Mixon had a nice 35 yard TD run.  I would like to see “Little Joe” get the ball a “Little More”…but then again, the way Darlington and Kasatati are blocking, he may not want it.

BEAUTIFUL SIGHT

OKLAHOMA 44 WEST VIRGINIA 22

IT’S TIME FOR TEXAS…

Just the opinion of one mildly interested guy

Buddy Putty

The Overweight Armchair Sooner