That was not the performance anyone was expecting from the Oklahoma Sooners, but they came away with a hard-fought 16-12 win over the Houston Cougars on Saturday night.
It was a game where the offense struggled to move the football against an underrated Houston defense. But the OU defense bailed them out throughout the game. But the defense won’t be able to do it all for the Sooners this season. OU needs to find an offensive identity quickly as they get ready to take on the Tulane Green Wave next weekend in Norman.
As we do each week, here are this week’s five takeaways from the Oklahoma Sooners win over the Houston Cougars.
1. How bout that defense?
If the Oklahoma Sooners are anything, they’re a defensive team. Sure, Houston was able to move the ball some using a lot of misdirection and the quick passing game. Ultimately, the Sooners gave up 12 points and held Houston to under two yards per carry on the night.
It took a coverage bust at the start of the second half to give Houston’s offense any sort of chance at a touchdown. Otherwise, Oklahoma would have held them to two field goals.
This is the team’s strength, but there’s certainly more work to do with tougher offenses still to come down the road.
2. But that offense though…
It’s been a long time since the Oklahoma Sooners had an offensive performance that bad at home.
The Sooners were gifted great field position after Houston return man Mekhi Mews was ruled to have touched the football on a punt. Lewis Carter smartly fell on the ball, and OU had it at the 10-yard line. Oklahoma cashed in on a touchdown strike from Jackson Arnold to Brenen Thompson.
The Sooners offense mounted just one other scoring drive, an eight-play, 86-yard touchdown drive in the second quarter. And that was it. That’s all the offense could put on the scoreboard.
That wouldn’t cut it in the Big 12, and that’s definitely not going to cut it in the SEC.
3. Jackson Arnold has to be much better
It was only his third start, and he’s still down several wide receivers who were projected to have a big role in the offense. But that doesn’t excuse some of the throws. At times, it looked like he wasn’t on the same page with his wideouts and others, Arnold simply forced the ball downfield.
For a lot of the game, Arnold had plenty of time in the pocket and room to work, but he was off target on a number of occasions and not really giving his targets an opportunity to make a play. He just has to trust his arm more and get the ball in spots where his receiver can go make a play.
He completed less than 60% of his passes and averaged just 5.43 yards per attempt. Arnold threw for 174 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. Has to be better.
4. Where’s the running game?
But for as bad as Arnold was, the Oklahoma running game was worse. The Sooners ran the ball 29 times and averaged just 2.6 yards per carry. Jovantae Barnes was the Sooners most effective runner, carrying the ball 12 times for 40 yards. He also caught three passes for eight yards. But all in all, when the Sooners needed their run game to take a step forward, it took a step backward.
Though Arnold appeared to have more time in the pocket, the Sooners couldn’t ever establish the running game. And that’s as alarming of a reality as anything else going on offense.
One way to help Arnold and the passing offense to be more effective is for the Sooners to figure out a way to run the ball.
5. Defensive Tackle Group comes up big again
After a strong week one performance against Temple, the Sooners defensive tackle rotation had another big week. Gracen Halton had two tackles and two tackles for loss, one of which led to a safety and helped seal the win for the Sooners. Damonic Williams had two tackles and a sack. Da’Jon Terry and Jayden Jackson combined for three tackles.
It’s a huge development for the Oklahoma Sooners defense. They’ve spent the last three years trying to put together a dominant defensive front. And they may have it.
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This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: 5 takeaways from Oklahoma’s 16-12 win over Houston
