Sooners Dominate Cornhuskers

Oklahoma 49 Nebraska 14

I was worried about this game. Coming off a loss to Georgia State, the 1-2 Nebraska Cornhuskers were the laughingstock of the college football world. Their head coach, Scott Frost, a former Huskers quarterback and the appointed savior of Nebraska football, had just been shown the door. So badly did the University of Nebraska want him gone, they couldn’t even wait three more weeks until October 1^st, when it would’ve saved the school $7.5 million to do so. Replacing Frost was Mickey Joseph, another former Nebraska quarterback, a guy that by all accounts was extremely popular with the players.  I felt certain that the Cornhuskers, playing in front of their loyal and raucous crowd, would be armed with an ‘us against the world’ mentality and play inspired football for their new interim head coach.  And they did …. For about 6-minutes.

This past Saturday in Lincoln, Nebraska, the #6 ranked Oklahoma Sooners shook off an early 7-0 deficit on their way to a resounding 49-14 victory over the struggling Cornhuskers. To be honest, the final score was not really indicative of how much Oklahoma dominated this game. Using a balanced attack on offense and applying relentless pressure on defense, Oklahoma turned in what, in my opinion, was the most all-around complete game played by a Sooners team in the last 14-years.

Opinions, Observations, Raves, and Rants

- I thought Sooners QB Dillion Gabriel was good, but not great on Saturday. His 60-yard run to tie the score left me almost in a state of shock. Honestly, I thought I would’ve had a better chance of scoring from that distance than he did.  Okay, not really – but only because I haven’t run 60-yards since Ronald Reagan was in office. Throwing the ball, as his 59% completion ratio will reflect, I thought he was a bit erratic. There were times when he threw fastballs when touch would’ve provided a better result. I do love the way he makes it a priority to get Mims involved (6-catches), while also spreading the ball around (10-different receivers caught a pass).

- Gabriel wasn’t the only one spreading it around on Saturday. After starting the game with a Coors Banquet beer, I connected with a couple of Bloody Mary’s, faked play action and took a couple deep shots with homemade Limoncello, mixed in a trick play with a High Noon, then ran out the clock with a large dose of Angel’s Envy on ice. Having that kind of variation to my game makes me tough to defend … or so those around me say.

- I’ve seen the future and possibly the here and now, and its name is Jaren Kanak. The 6’2”, 210-pound true freshman linebacker from Hays, Kansas, who runs the 100-meters in 10.37, came in after DeShaun White was ejected for targeting in the second quarter. All Kanak did was lead the team with 10 tackles, while also forcing and recovering a fumble and registering a quarterback hurry. His speed wrecks complete havoc. He's just learning how to play linebacker,” Venables said. “He has no idea what he's doing yet. But he's made a lot of improvement from fundamentals and the language — and I know things are going a million miles an hour for him. But he did a nice job.” I'll say.

- Proof that coaching and scheme matters? This Sooner defense is the same group of players from last year … only without the player that led them in tackles (Asamoah), sacks (Bonitto), and interceptions (Turner-Yell) – and yet this 2022 version is night and day better. I'd tell Grinch and his Speed D too kiss my ass, but it's hard to kiss what you can't stop.  

- Thank you to my friend Styx, for hosting a few of us for the game. He brought in Nizza Pizza at halftime, which I'd never had before. It was good … But I have to deduct points due to the fact they only offer delivery after 5 PM, which is blatant discrimination against us day drunks. Just sayin'.

- Kudos to the offensive line for their performance on Saturday. I’ve been critical of this group through the first two games – which I’ll admit is ironic considering the fact that I couldn’t block a stuffed animal. For the most part on Saturday, they gave Gabriel plenty of time to throw, and opened holes that were wide enough to spring Larry the Cable guy into the secondary. That’s the way to “Get-R-Done” right there boys!

- I was also impressed with the number of players who got playing time while the game was still competitive. I’m usually rain man when it comes to knowing players via their jersey number – but Saturday, I found it necessary to consult with a roster more than once. You know what they say about depth, rarely is it a bad thing, unless you’re wearing concrete shoes of course.

So, what did the Sooner Nation learn on Saturday? That maybe … the days of an Oklahoma Sooners team consistently playing down to their competition might be a thing of the past. That maybe - this is no longer a program whose only chance to win is predicated on their ability to outscore their opponent. That maybe - this is a team that can take an early punch in the mouth and not pee down both legs. That maybe, just maybe - we’re witnessing the birth of something special in the Brent Venables era … or … maybe the fact is, the Sooners just beat a Nebraska team that sucks like a $2 hooker.  

We will know more soon, but as far as this past Saturday is concerned, there was no maybe about it …  It was most definitely was a good day to be a Sooner.

 

Just the Opinion of One Mildly Interested Guy

Buddy Putty

The Overweight Armchair Sooner