The Oklahoma Sooners traveled to face the Auburn Tigers on Saturday. The atmosphere was electric in Jordan-Hare stadium as the Sooners and Tigers looked to bounce back. There were plenty of unanswered questions going into this game, were any of them answered?
Oklahoma Sooners Defeat Auburn Tigers in 27-21 Thriller
Oklahoma and Auburn’s First Drives
Head Coach Brent Venables’ announcement on Monday that Michael Hawkins Jr. would be taking over the starting position certainly raised some eyebrows. However, the only other option was to rely on Jackson Arnold. The sophomore’s degrading performances over the past few weeks didn’t cast a favorable light on that, though.
In Oklahoma’s first drive of the game, that decision wasn’t in much doubt. Hawkins broke away for a massive forty-eight-yard run for a touchdown. Auburn, comparatively, hadn’t made an impact in their first drive. His breakaway ability was proving just as advantageous here as it was at Tennessee. In the air, he could even make some decent passes for great gains. Hawkins proved himself competent enough to stay on the field the entire game- an impressive endorsement of his ability and the faith of the Sooners’ coaching staff.
Oklahoma’s Penalty Playbook
Hawkins could have carried this offense to success. It’s unfortunate, then, that the rest of his team couldn’t play a clean game. Oklahoma’s offense claimed nearly every penalty, and each one cost them dearly.
A Hawkins pass to Bauer Sharp could have converted on downs and kept a Sooners drive alive. Instead, their drive ended after offensive pass interference from Jake Roberts. Later on, Hawkins ran to convert another set of downs but found himself re-running the play after Jaquaize Pettaway received an illegal blocking penalty. In the red zone, an illegal motion penalty forced the Sooners to settle for a field goal. To say the penalties nearly cost Oklahoma the game is not an understatement. This issue was only compounded by Oklahoma’s woeful offensive playbook.
Auburn’s Quarterback Battle
Over the past few weeks, Auburn has been waging its quarterback battle. Inconsistent performances from both of their top choices meant that the starting position has been in constant contention. Payton Thorne and Hank Brown have traded the position on and off lately, but Thorne started tonight against the Sooners.
Head Coach Hugh Freeze kept Thorne in the game despite a few rough drives. Thorne took this faith and turned it into a game-long lead over Oklahoma. There were some questionable decisions, including a wildcat play on the goal line, but these weren’t indicative of Thorne’s abilities.
In fact, while nearly every Oklahoma drive ended in a punt, Auburn was driving up and down the field. Thorne was a major factor in this solid performance. By the end of the third quarter, it looked like Thorne had sealed the win for Auburn.
The Comeback Kids
In the fourth quarter, Auburn was ready to pull away. An unanswered second quarter meant that they opened the second half up 14 to 7. A field goal narrowed the gap, but a big touchdown pass from Thorne widened it once again. With just under five minutes to go, a failed two-point conversion meant the Sooners were trailing 16 to 21. All Auburn had to do was take it slow and run out the clock.
That’s when Kip Lewis intercepted a pass and ran 63 yards for a pick-six. In the gutsiest move of the game, Hawkins then flipped over the defensive line for the two-point conversion. The Oklahoma defense stepped up one more time and put the game away for good, ending it all in a 27-21 victory.
By The Numbers
As the old saying goes, a win is a win. Hawkins completed ten out of fifteen passes for 161 yards. He also came out as the leading rusher of the night with 69 yards on the ground. Oklahoma put up a total of 291 yards of offense and held minority possession time at 24 minutes.
Thorne gave Auburn 338 total yards through the air and completed 21 out of his 32 passes. Jarquez Hunter was the leading rusher with 97 yards on the ground. In total, Auburn put up 482 yards of offense. They also held the majority possession time at 35 minutes.
Well-Earned Reprieve
It was by no means a clean win for the Oklahoma Sooners, but they can leave with their heads high nonetheless. Talking to The Franchise after the game, a hoarse-voiced Venables said, “For as many guys as I was mad at today, I’m incredibly grateful for their spirit and their fight.”
After two weeks in the SEC, Oklahoma has earned a reprieve in the form of a bye week. Once that’s over, however, it’ll be time for The Red River Rivalry. The #1-rated Texas Longhorns are eagerly awaiting that day. Until then, the Sooners can enjoy this hard-fought victory.
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