OU opened the season with a 51-0 shutout of UTEP on Friday night, and the box score had plenty of good news for Brent Venables’ team before next week’s trip to Michigan. The Sooners looked sharp, physical and, for the most part, clean in a tune-up that featured a little bit of everything - explosive returns, tight end usage, a steady night from John Mateer and even a cameo from Bob Stoops.
The loudest swing of the night came from Isaiah Sategna III, who turned a punt return into a 88-yard touchdown after UTEP punter Brady Braun gave him room to work. Sategna made a couple of Miners miss, and Omarion Robinson plus the Sooners’ blocking set the play up perfectly. It was OU’s first punt return for a touchdown since Gavin Freeman against Arkansas State in 2023, its longest punt return since 2013, and the seventh-longest punt return in program history.
Sategna wasn’t done there. In the third quarter, he got behind the defense for a 34-yard touchdown catch from Mateer that pushed OU to a 34-0 lead. The Arkansas transfer finished with a team-high four catches for 76 yards, and he looked like the kind of player who can change a game whenever he touches the ball.
Mateer had a quieter assignment than he’s likely to face most weeks, but he handled it well enough. He finished 11 of 17 for 225 yards and three touchdowns, and after a couple of early misses - including overthrows to Elijah Thomas and Trell Harris and a throw behind Thomas on a second-and-goal play before halftime - he settled in.
His second-half strikes to Sategna and Harris went for 34 and 48 yards, respectively. OU also stayed away from designed runs for Mateer with Michigan ahead, so the Sooners kept the focus on keeping him upright and efficient.
The offense leaned hard into its tight ends, too. Ben Arbuckle used four tight ends on the opening drive, with Hayden Hansen and Rocky Beers in two-tight end looks.
Jack Van Dorselaer got plenty of run, and Trynae Washington even lined up like a fullback and led the way for Lloyd Avant on OU’s first touchdown. The Sooners looked bigger and more physical than usual, and the plan seemed tailored with Michigan in mind.
Avant was a bright spot in the backfield as well. The Colorado State transfer carried the ball 15 times for 79 yards and scored OU’s first touchdown, taking over as RB1 ahead of Xavier Robinson, who had seven carries.
Avant also flashed as a receiver with a screen catch in the second quarter and a missed tackle forced in space. Rocky Beers, another former Ram, delivered one of the night’s most eye-catching plays when he hurdled into the end zone on a 40-yard catch and run.
He had another touchdown erased by an offensive pass interference call on Jack Van Dorselaer.
On defense, Reggie Powers III stood out with seven tackles, tying Owen Heinecke for the team lead. Powers also blew up a play in the backfield in the second quarter, and while he isn’t usually the first name people mention on that side of the ball, he was one of the Sooners’ most noticeable defenders. OU held UTEP under 200 yards and preserved the shutout with some help from the Miners’ kicking game.
The one ugly moment for the Sooners came from Michael Boganowski. With OU trying to get the ball back before halftime, Boganowski was flagged for a personal foul after some extra shoving, which gave UTEP an automatic first down and kept the Sooners’ offense on the sideline. Brent Venables was not pleased, and Boganowski heard it.
There was also a Bob Stoops moment worth the price of admission. Honored as the Sooner Legend of the Game between the first and second quarters, Stoops grabbed the microphone from Malcolm Tubbs and got the crowd going with a “Boomer, Sooner” chant.
Special teams had its own mix of highlights and oddities. Tate Sandell, sporting one red cleat and one white, knocked through field goals from 33 and 32 yards.
One kickoff went out of bounds, and another hit the crossbar. Liam Evans, a Moore High School product, then made OU’s third field goal from 34 yards to make it 44-0.
Jessyca Lane, a local teacher, also drilled a field goal to win some Chick-fil-A. Lane went 1 for 1, while UTEP kicker Carlos Arreola went 0 for 3.
Whitt Newbauer replaced Mateer with a little more than a minute left in the third quarter and added a 3-yard rushing score to make it 51-0 in the fourth. Bowe Bentley also got on the field.
In Other News...
Danny Saili Is Already Forcing His Way Into Oklahomas Plans
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What has stood out most inside the building is how seamlessly Saili has fit in with the group. Coaches and teammates have pointed to his experience and the way he adds competition and depth, the kind of presence that can matter over the long grind of a season. For Oklahoma, the early signs suggest this was more than just a routine transfer addition. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma Is Counting On Reggie Powers In A Crucial Defensive Test
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Oklahomas Season Opener Said Plenty About This Team Fast
UTEPs season opener in Norman turned into a long afternoon almost immediately, with the Miners falling behind early and never finding a way to make Oklahoma uncomfortable in a 51-0 loss to the No. 10 Sooners. Scotty Walden spent his postgame remarks sorting through the obvious setbacks, with special teams standing out as a particular problem, even as he tried to keep the bigger picture in view for a roster still trying to take shape.
There was at least some encouragement for UTEP on the offensive side, and Walden said he sees room for the group to keep developing after a game like this. The schedule does not offer much time to ease into that process, either, with Michigan, Texas Southern and Oregon State all still ahead in non-conference play, so the Miners will need whatever lessons they can carry out of Week 1. [Read more 🡒]