Oklahoma’s second-half burst in Starkville started with one snap and never really let Mississippi State breathe.
After a 96-yard march to close the first half had given the Sooners a 10-0 edge, Ben Arbuckle’s offense came back from the break with the kind of jolt it had been missing in recent games. Tory Blaylock ripped off a 47-yard run - Oklahoma’s longest rush of the season - and two plays later John Mateer hit Rocky Beers for a 32-yard touchdown that pushed the lead to three scores.
That sequence changed the feel of the afternoon. Oklahoma still had to finish off a 23-15 win to get to 4-3 overall and 2-2 in SEC play, but the opening punch after halftime put the Bulldogs in a spot they never fully escaped.
“Coming right out, it was awesome,” Mateer said after the win. “First play, that’s huge.
That’s momentum right there. I thought he was going to score.
He was a 4x100 state record holder, national record holder. I thought he was going to score, and I told him that in the locker room - I’m just messing.”
Once the Sooners established that their ground game could consistently dent Mississippi State, the rest of the offense opened up. Oklahoma ran for 111 yards on 21 carries in the second half, averaging 5.3 yards per attempt, and finished with 184 rushing yards overall. That was the program’s best total since it ran for 192 in last season’s win over Tennessee.
The line got a boost with sophomore Michael Fasusi back at left tackle, but Oklahoma still had to piece things together up front. The Sooners were again without guards Eddy Pierre-Louis and Heath Ozaeta, both of whom have started this season, and center Jake Maikkula left in the second half with an injury.
“Our guys hatted things up,” Arbuckle said. “Our runners ran hard and they were tough to tackle.”
Blaylock led the way with 71 yards on 12 carries. Lloyd Avant added 55 yards on 13 carries, Mateer chipped in 37 yards on nine rushes, and Isaiah Sategna contributed 24 yards on three carries. Freshman Jonathan Hatton Jr. also added value in the passing game with three catches for 19 yards, while Avant caught one pass for nine yards.
The ability to keep the ball on the ground gave Oklahoma more room to vary its approach as the game developed. That was a welcome change after the issues the Sooners had against Kentucky.
“We did a good job of mixing it up,” head coach Brent Venables said. “Again, we created some explosive plays. We put together several really good drives.”
Mateer said the success on the ground made a difference for the whole operation.
“It was good,” Mateer said. “It was awesome to see for the o-line to work it and be successful.”
In Other News...
Sooners Suddenly Have A Real Path Back Into The Top 25
A win over Mississippi State gave Oklahoma a needed jolt in Week 8, and the ripple effect around the rest of college football could make the Sooners road back into the AP Top 25 a little more realistic. The weekends results shuffled the landscape in a way that mattered well beyond Norman, with several ranked teams taking hits and a few others positioned to rise when the new poll comes out.
That kind of chaos is exactly what Oklahoma needed after its own recent slide. With the poll expected to move again after another round of mixed results nationally, the Sooners suddenly have a path to climb back into the conversation if the teams around them keep stumbling and they keep stacking wins on their own schedule. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma Keeps Showing Fight But One Problem Still Wont Go Away
Owen Heinecke gave Oklahoma another snapshot of the grit this team keeps leaning on, playing through illness and still leading the Sooners in tackles during their 23-15 win over Mississippi State. It was the kind of performance that fits the broader tone of the season so far: this group has found ways to answer setbacks, and it has shown enough fight to stay in games and bounce back when things go sideways.
The issue, as coaches and players have made clear, is not toughness. It is consistency. Oklahoma has alternated wins and losses all season, which means every encouraging step seems to come paired with a reminder that the Sooners still have not put together a sustained run, and until they do, they will keep living in the space between resilience and real momentum. [Read more 🡒]
Michael Fasusi Just Changed What Oklahoma Can Be Up Front
Michael Fasusis return gave Oklahoma something it had been missing since Week 1, and the effects showed up quickly in the win over Mississippi State. Back on the offensive line after recovering from the shoulder injury he suffered in fall camp, the true freshman All-American looked every bit like a player the Sooners can build around, handling 39 pass-block snaps without allowing pressure and helping steady an offense that needed a cleaner day up front.
Just as important, his presence helped open lanes in the run game and gave Oklahoma a more complete look along the line. The Sooners piled up 184 rushing yards on 41 carries, their best ground output since the previous season, a sign that Fasusis return could change more than just one game plan. For a team trying to establish itself in the trenches, that kind of reinforcement matters, even if the real ceiling of what this line can become is still waiting to be seen. [Read more 🡒]