NORMAN, Okla. - Oklahoma’s offense keeps dragging the Sooners back into the same conversation, and Saturday’s 42-25 loss to South Carolina only sharpened the issue Brent Venables has to solve before this season is over.
The boos at home were part of the picture. So were the stalled drives, the lack of a run game and the familiar frustration that has followed Oklahoma through much of this fall. Since the win over top-ranked Texas in the Red River game to open October, the offense has slipped right back into the same rut that has defined too many stretches of the season.
That leaves Venables with a hard question: what exactly does Oklahoma want to be on offense under coordinator Ben Arbuckle?
The Sooners are 4-4 overall and 2-3 in the SEC after the loss, and they’re only one game over .500 in conference play under Venables at 20-19. Without a strong finish, they’re staring at a third losing season in five years.
Against South Carolina, the first half told the story fast. Oklahoma had no real rushing threat early, and quarterback John Mateer went 7 of 12 for 25 yards before halftime.
Most of those throws were short perimeter looks, with nothing getting into the second level. By intermission, the Sooners had more penalty yards than offensive yards and were trailing 28-10.
Their only score before the break came on Kip Lewis’ interception return for a touchdown in the second quarter.
Venables left the field talking about execution and explosive plays, which has become a familiar refrain. He hired Arbuckle after the 2024 season to jump-start the offense, and Arbuckle brought Mateer with him from Washington State to lead it. But the return on that pairing has faded.
Oklahoma did make the College Football Playoff last season, but the offense was uneven even then, with the defense carrying most of the load. Down the stretch in November, the Sooners had 47 offensive possessions over four games before the CFP first round.
Twenty-five ended in punts, five in turnovers and one on downs. Nine possessions ended with field goals and seven with touchdowns, but only two of those touchdown drives lasted five or more plays.
The same problems have shown up again this fall. Oklahoma came into Saturday last in the SEC in total offense and rushing offense, and 15th in scoring offense - worse than last season. According to TruMedia, the Sooners’ three-and-out rate was 34.1% entering the game, which ranked 120th nationally.
“It ain't changing,” Oklahoma grad and analyst Dari Nowkah said at halftime from the SEC Network set. “You'll see No. 10 trot back out there. That's been the story every game of John Mateer's career; there are opportunities, they're just not being discovered.”
The offense has had scattered flashes, but not enough of them. Oklahoma scored 13 points in a loss to Kentucky two weeks ago, settled for field goals after red-zone stalls in a 23-15 win at Mississippi State in Week 8, and didn’t find any real rhythm against South Carolina until the game was already out of reach and the Gamecocks were playing backups.
The late push made the final numbers look better than the game felt. Oklahoma scored three points across its first eight offensive possessions, then got a pair of fourth-quarter touchdown passes from Mateer to Ivan Carreon, his first scores of the season. Mateer finished 26 of 43 for 244 yards, but much of that came after the outcome had already been decided.
Looking ahead, the roster picture only makes the pressure sharper. Unless Oklahoma lands a major quarterback addition in the transfer portal for 2027, the Sooners are headed toward an offseason with two true freshmen, senior Whitt Newbauer and sophomore Bowe Bentley among the options. Newbauer and Bentley have combined for two passing attempts this season.
That makes it hard for Venables to ask the fan base for another offseason of patience. Arbuckle is in the second season of a three-year deal as play-caller, and the scheme has shown some openings. The problem is that the execution keeps breaking down, and the Sooners still haven’t settled on an offensive identity.
Venables knows what a championship defense looks like. He coached plenty of them at Clemson and had one last season in Norman. Now he has to make the offense fit with the rest of the program instead of leaving the defense to carry the load every week.
Running this back in 2027 and expecting a surge offensively isn’t going to work, unless Oklahoma lands a quarterback who can execute what’s called or Arbuckle takes an identity first mindset into the offseason and hammers it home with the players.
In Other News...
South Carolina Suddenly Has A Huge Backfield Problem After Oklahoma
Matt Fullers breakout season took a hard turn in the first quarter against Oklahoma, when the South Carolina running back left with an ankle injury and later was found to have a broken bone in his foot. He is expected to have surgery, which likely ends his season and leaves the Gamecocks without one of their most productive backs at a time when the offense had been leaning on him heavily.
Fuller had already piled up 513 rushing yards and five touchdowns before the injury, giving South Carolina a reliable presence in the backfield and a steady option in the run game. In his absence against Oklahoma, Jabree Coleman, Christian Clark and Isaiah Augustave all got work, and the Gamecocks now have to sort out how they replace Fullers production moving forward. [Read more 🡒]
Dabo Swinney Blasts Fan Stunt He Says Crossed The Line
Clemsons win over Florida State was supposed to be the headline, but Dabo Swinney spent part of his postgame attention on something floating above the stadium instead. A banner calling for the firing of coach Mike Norvell and trustee Peter Collins drew Swinneys criticism, with the Clemson coach pointing out the misspelling of Norvells name and saying he was disappointed by the stunt. The message was reportedly crowdfunded by a fan and cost $3,550.
Swinneys reaction fit a broader point he has made before about what should and should not happen when a team is struggling. He stressed that the focus ought to stay on supporting the players, not turning losses into public campaigns aimed at getting people fired. In a rivalry-driven sport where emotion runs high, the banner became a reminder that the line between venting frustration and crossing into something uglier can be a thin one. [Read more 🡒]
LaNorris Sellers Has South Carolina Back In A Bigger Conversation
South Carolinas latest win did more than keep a streak alive. By beating Oklahoma 42-25 for a third straight victory, the Gamecocks pushed themselves back into a more meaningful conversation, and LaNorris Sellers was at the center of it. The quarterback delivered a dynamic performance with 301 passing yards, three touchdown throws, 96 rushing yards and two more scores on the ground, giving South Carolina the kind of offensive spark that can change the tone around a season.
At 5-3, the Gamecocks have created some breathing room, but the next stretch will say plenty about how far this run can go. The schedule ahead brings tougher tests that will shape their postseason chances, and the question now is whether Sellers and South Carolina can carry this momentum into games that carry far more weight than a November win in October. [Read more 🡒]