A shakeup may be coming to Oklahoma after another rough offensive showing left the Sooners buried in a 42-25 loss to South Carolina on Saturday.
The Sooners were booed throughout a gloomy Halloween afternoon in Norman as the offense stalled again, failing to get to 100 yards until late in the third quarter and not finding the end zone on offense until the fourth. By then, South Carolina had already built a 35-10 lead and had taken control of the game.
Oklahoma entered the day as the favorite at home and was coming off a win at Mississippi State, so there was still some belief that a 4-3 season could be salvaged. Instead, the loss looked like another hard stop for an offense that has too often left the Sooners’ defense carrying the load. With Oklahoma’s slim playoff hopes now gone, there is less reason to keep underperforming coaches in place.
That puts offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle and offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh in the spotlight. Asked afterward about possible staff changes, coach Brent Venables said, "Yeah, I’m not talking about anything like that."
The timing only sharpened the comparison to what happened last season, when Venables made a midseason change on offense after a blowout home loss to South Carolina and replaced Seth Littrell. Two years later, the same opponent has again exposed Oklahoma’s problems.
South Carolina, meanwhile, kept rolling under Shane Beamer, the former Oklahoma assistant under Lincoln Riley. The Gamecocks came in with momentum after Top 25 wins over Florida and Tennessee, and they left Norman with another statement victory.
LaNorris Sellers was the biggest reason why. He passed for 301 yards and three touchdowns while adding 96 rushing yards and two scores on 13 carries. After this performance, South Carolina now has an outside shot at a playoff berth, while Oklahoma is left playing for pride.
The Sooners’ defense, which had been one of the team’s anchors all season and helped deliver a win over Texas, was finally overwhelmed. South Carolina piled up 521 yards against a unit that entered the game ranked 11th nationally in total defense.
Oklahoma did briefly make things interesting early. Linebacker Kip Lewis returned an interception 30 yards for a touchdown to tie the game at 7 in the first quarter.
But South Carolina answered quickly and kept pulling away. Christian Clark scored on a 1-yard direct snap run to make it 14-7 in the second quarter, then Sellers hit DJ Black on an 85-yard touchdown pass to stretch the lead to 21-7.
Just before halftime, Sellers connected with Nyck Harbor with 16 seconds left to send the Gamecocks into the break up 28-10. South Carolina had 307 first-half yards against an Oklahoma defense that had been allowing 273.7 per game.
Oklahoma finally scored twice in the fourth quarter, but by then the damage was done. The bigger question now is whether the changes start with Arbuckle and Bedenbaugh.
In Other News...
Sooners Fans Turned On The Offense As Pressure Mounted Fast
The frustration inside Norman was hard to miss as the Sooners offense labored through a 42-25 home loss to South Carolina, a game that left fans voicing their displeasure from the stands. Oklahoma never found much rhythm, even with John Mateer finishing 26 of 43 for 244 yards and two touchdowns, and the pressure only grew as the night wore on against a Gamecocks team that kept answering with big plays.
South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers helped keep the Sooners on their heels with both passing and rushing touchdowns, turning a difficult evening into a lopsided one. For Oklahoma, the defeat marked its second consecutive home loss for the first time since 2024, and the timing makes the next stretch even more important as the Sooners turn to Florida on November 7. [Read more 🡒]
Sooners Loss To South Carolina Raised A Bigger Problem Than One Bad Night
The loss to South Carolina at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium was ugly enough on its own, but the bigger concern for Oklahoma was how many parts of the offense seemed to be fighting the same battle at once. Quarterback Mateer finished 26 of 43 for 244 yards and two touchdowns, yet the night also brought decision-making issues and protection problems that made it hard for the Sooners to settle in and build any rhythm.
Oklahomas ground game never really gave the offense a way to reset, with no running back topping 32 yards, and the offensive line spent much of the night dealing with South Carolinas defense and its own penalties. One bad result can be shrugged off in a long season, but this was the kind of performance that leaves the Sooners with a lot more to sort through than the final score alone. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahomas Offense Just Became The Center Of Fan Anger
The frustration around Oklahomas offense boiled over in a home loss to South Carolina, a game that turned sour quickly as the Sooners managed only 71 yards in the first half. By the time the scoreboard had tilted to 42-25, the mood in the stadium had shifted from disappointment to open anger, with fans making their feelings known in no uncertain terms.
Ben Arbuckle became the focus of that backlash, as boos rolled through the stands and chants of Fire Arbuckle echoed during the game. The crowd thinned noticeably after halftime, a sign of how fast the patience had evaporated as Oklahomas offense continued to sputter in a defeat that only deepened the pressure around the unit. [Read more 🡒]