A RUSHIN' TWIST
Stevenson's return can transform Sooners' offense
LUBBOCK, Texas— Rhamondre Stevenson lifted his shirt to reveal a message.
“I' m back ,” Stevenson' s undershirt read.
Stevenson's shirt could've added several more phrases.
OU's running game is back and with it, the So one rs' offense once again becomes otherworldly. With t hat — and plenty of help from the defense — OU is also back in the picture for the Big 12 title and to make a stir nationally, even if chances remain remote for a College Football Playoff berth.
Stevenson and defensive end Ronnie Perkins played for the first time since the Big 12 Championship Game nearly 11 months earlier and injected life into the Sooners on both sides of the ball.
The result was a blowout, a
62-28 thrashing of Texas Tech on Saturday night at Jones AT&T Stadium.
The stage for that was set Friday night, when the Sooners got word that Stevenson and Perkins were cleared to return, then when Lincoln Riley told his team less than an hour later during their meeting the night before.
“The team erupted,” Riley said .“I mean, I thought they were gonna tear the room in half, honestly. They've witnessed it first hand and so it was very, very emotional and not just for those guys, but really the entire team.”
Those emotions seemed to fuel the Sooners a night later against Texas Tech on both sides of the ball.
While Perkins was all over the place defensively, the Sooner sh ad been really good along the defensive front already.
So while Perkins might be the most talented of the duo that returned Saturday, Stevenson was the most important.
The Sooners came into the game averaging just 3.7 yards per carry but the senior quickly changed the dynamics.
From the start he gave OU more toughness and grit, and a combination of size and speed that is unlike any other player on the Sooners roster and certainly in the running back room.
“Adding a back of his cali ber t hat can break tackles and has had some pretty good experience here with our guys so that was huge,” Riley said.
Stevenson had three touchdowns and added a couple of receptions.
Truth is, Stevenson didn't need a T-shirt to announce his presence to the world.
Stevenson's announcement came in the moments before when, on second-andgoal from the 1, he lowered his head and absolutely barreled his way into the end zone.
None of Stevenson's touchdowns came from further than 6 yards out, but it didn't matter.
After he got the ball, Stevenson lowered his shoulder and just attacked forward.
The Sooners averaged 5.5 yards per carry, by far their best number of the season.
Of course they' re going to get better when they add a player like Stevenson, who led the country in yards per carry a season ago at 8.0.
Stevenson' s career number took a bit of a hit Saturday, with 13 carries for 87 yards.
But the touch down run showed just how dominating this Sooners running game still can be and how that the early season problems with the running game seem a lot longer than just a few weeks ago.
The offensive line has come together in a major way, Stevenson's hard-nosed play added something new offensively and suddenly the notion of yet another Big 12 title isn't quite so preposterous.
That's why the team acted the way they did Friday night and why it bled over into Saturday.
“When Coach Riley said that, we all got chills,” Rattler said.
Stevenson transforms the Sooners' offense, not only for what he can do running the ball but for the way the threat of his running opens up holes for the passing game.
And if he keeps being that trans format ive figure, the Sooners will be beyond fine.