Oklahoma’s offense may have finally turned a corner, and it happened in the middle of one of the biggest upsets of the season.
The Sooners beat top-ranked Texas 27-24 at the Cotton Bowl on Saturday, and while the win was powered by special teams and defense, the second half offered a real hint that Ben Arbuckle’s group could be headed in a better direction. Oklahoma finished with only 234 total yards, but the split tells the story: 69 yards and no offensive points in the first half, then 169 yards and 13 offensive points after halftime against one of the nation’s best defenses.
What changed was pretty clear. Oklahoma stopped fighting itself and leaned into the run.
That meant getting the ball to Lloyd Avant, who looks every bit like the Sooners’ most dangerous offensive weapon alongside Isaiah Sategna. Arbuckle hasn’t exactly seemed eager to live in the run game, but on Saturday the Sooners did what they had to do.
They ran for 82 yards on 18 carries in the second half and threw only 13 times.
That shift mattered immediately. On Oklahoma’s first drive of the second half, Avant touched the ball on the first play for an eight-yard catch.
Two snaps later, he ripped off a 42-yard run. The drive ended with a field goal, and from there the game felt different.
The run game also took heat off Texas’ pass rush, and that helped John Mateer settle in. When Mateer isn’t forced to improvise constantly, he’s a solid quarterback. The better balance gave him a cleaner operation and a little more breathing room.
Avant finished with 72 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries, plus two catches for eight yards. And the reality is, he didn’t suddenly become a different player on Saturday.
He did what he’s been doing when Oklahoma actually puts the ball in his hands. The Colorado State transfer looked like a real weapon from the start, even if the early carries against UTEP were easy to dismiss as small-sample noise.
The numbers back up the eye test. Avant has 52 carries for 236 yards this season.
The rest of the team has 114 carries for 243 yards. He’s averaging 4.5 yards per carry, while Xavier Robinson is at 3.8, Jonathan Hatton at 2.9 and Tory Blaylock at 2.2.
The Sooners appear to have finally accepted that Avant is the guy. If that holds, it changes the shape of this offense.
The schedule helps, too. Oklahoma has already faced a brutal list of defenses, and the remaining slate looks more manageable. The Sooners have taken on UTEP, Michigan, New Mexico, Georgia and Texas, with national rankings in yards allowed per game of 110, 3, 10, 11 and 13, respectively.
What’s left is a much friendlier group: Kentucky at 100, Mississippi State at 96, South Carolina at 58, Florida at 109, Ole Miss at 108, Texas A&M at 43 and Missouri at 29.
There’s another possible boost coming as well. Oklahoma pulled off the win over Texas without injured offensive linemen Michael Fasusi and Eddy Pierre-Louis. If they return, the Sooners could get more talent and more depth up front, which should help make Mateer more comfortable and cut down on mistakes.
This won’t suddenly become 2017 Oklahoma with Baker Mayfield. But the Sooners do look like a team that has figured out something important about itself.
They seem committed to Avant. They have momentum.
And if the offense keeps moving in that direction while the defense keeps delivering, Oklahoma still has a chance to make this a memorable season.
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