A real Red River shutdown
Sooners’ improved defense dominates in a game far less competitive than the score suggests
DALLAS — Somewhere near the eye of a burnt orange-and-crimson maelstrom, referee Mike Defee hurled a yellow flag skyward. Issuing an unsportsmanlike conduct foul to every single player on both teams 30 minutes before kickoff was his way of trying to pre-empt potential violence.
“You will play this game with sportsmanship,” Defee demanded as Texas and Oklahoma captains gathered at midfield for the coin toss. “Are we clear?”
What became crystal clear on an unseasonably brisk Saturday afternoon at the Cotton Bowl was how improved these multifaceted Sooners are compared with last year’s Kyler Murray-led squad. The key difference: Oklahoma finally has a defense.
The final score — No. 6 Oklahoma 34, No. 11 Texas 27 — made the 115th chapter of the Red River Showdown seem evenly matched. It wasn’t.
This defeat, the Longhorns’ second straight to their archnemesis, was borne of miscommunication, miscues and missed opportunities. Texas was fortunate to lose by a single score.
Twice in the first half, the Longhorns forced Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts into red-zone turnovers, and twice Texas came away with nothing on the scoreboard. Quarterback Sam Ehlinger spent most of the afternoon with Sooners, particularly linebacker Kenneth Murray, breathing down his neck. And the Longhorns looked downright unprepared in the return game, which left the offense facing a long field more often than not.
“The reason it happened is because we didn’t play our best; we didn’t show up when we needed to,” said Ehlinger, who threw for 210 yards and ran for two scores. “That’s the most upsetting part.”
The Sooners weren’t perfect. If they were, this game might have been over in the first 15 minutes.
Alabama graduate transfer Hurts said he wasn’t going to be rattled on this stage. He’d played in Iron Bowls and College Football Playoff games and SEC championship clashes before — surely he could handle this.
Handle it he did, though those red zone turnovers kept Sooners fans on edge for longer than necessary. Hurts threw for 235 yards, ran for 131, and accounted for four touchdowns, three of them passes to gamebreaking receiver CeeDee Lamb (10 receptions, 171 yards).
The Longhorns couldn’t corral Lamb as he weaved around and brushed off would-be tacklers. In fact, Texas couldn’t really corral anyone.
Hurts averaged 7.7 yards per carry. Tailback Kennedy Brooks picked up 107 yards on just 10 touches. Fellow running back Rhamondre Stevenson added 37 yards on six carries. The trio’s highlight reel featured a slew of Longhorns getting outrun and outmaneuvered, repeatedly lunging in vain.
“I thought we pressed,” coach Tom Herman said. “Obviously we’ve got to tackle better. You know, way too many missed tackles.”
Oklahoma’s offense was its typical prolific self, averaging 7.7 yards per play and putting up 511 total yards against an outgunned Texas group.
The more important development was the arrival of this Sooners defense under new coordinator Alex Grinch. Murray has been unleashed, and his final stat line (five tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack) doesn’t really do him justice.
Ehlinger was sacked nine times; Murray felt like a presence on each.
“Incredible player,” Ehlinger said. “Every year he continues to develop and get better. It did seem like every time there was a big play, he was right around it. Much respect to him.”
Meanwhile, Ehlinger’s teammates and coaches didn’t do him many favors.
There were drops by receivers Brennan Eagles and Collin Johnson and some questionable play calls from the sideline. And the junior quarterback never really had an opportunity to get into a rhythm with the Sooners swarming from all angles.
Herman’s offense finished with a season-low 310 total yards while averaging 4.2 yards per play
“We knew how good they were,” Herman said. “There was no taking them lightly. We knew their defense had improved.
“Everybody knows the ‘what,’ right? The ‘what’ is we didn’t play well and we pressed, and we’ve got to figure out why.”
Still, even with Oklahoma dominating all three phases, Texas clung to life deep into the fourth quarter.
True freshman Roschon Johnson exploded through the line, then dragged OU linebacker DaShaun White into the end zone for a 57-yard score to tie the game at 1010 early in the second half.
After Lamb danced his way through the defense on a 51-yard flea flicker touchdown and Gabe Brkic booted a 34-yard field goal, Texas forced a turnover on downs at its own 39-yard line.
A 23-yard run by Johnson and a pair of Oklahoma penalties set up Ehlinger’s 2-yard touchdown run on the final play of the third quarter.
After a Dicker field goal and a 3yard rushing score from Hurts, Ehlinger’s 4-yard TD run with 1:49 to play made it a seven-point game. But Texas couldn’t execute an onside kick and couldn’t prevent Hurts from picking up one final first down.
The Longhorns didn’t linger at the State Fair long after this. They loaded onto team buses as quickly as possible and began the return trip to Austin. With six regularseason games left, the Longhorns know they have work to do.
“When times get hard, you can either come together or you can separate,” Ehlinger said. “So we’ll figure out who really wants to win and who’s really about it.”