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Oklahoma Football: Learnings From the Big 12 This Weekend

By Chip Rouse

Sep 23, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; TCU Horned Frogs wide receiver John Diarse (9) runs the ball against Southern Methodist Mustangs safety Mikial Onu (4) in the third quarter at Gerald J. Ford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 23, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; TCU Horned Frogs wide receiver John Diarse (9) runs the ball against Southern Methodist Mustangs safety Mikial Onu (4) in the third quarter at Gerald J. Ford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports /
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This past weekend was a quiet one in the Big 12, with three other conference teams joining Oklahoma football with an unusual Saturday off.

Sep 24, 2016; Waco, TX, USA; Baylor Bears wide receiver Chris Platt (14) celebrates his 15-yard touchdown catch during the second half against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at McLane Stadium. Baylor won 35-24. Mandatory Credit: Ray Carlin-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 24, 2016; Waco, TX, USA; Baylor Bears wide receiver Chris Platt (14) celebrates his 15-yard touchdown catch during the second half against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at McLane Stadium. Baylor won 35-24. Mandatory Credit: Ray Carlin-USA TODAY Sports /

Six league teams were in action, however, and that included one conference matchup, a good one between a couple of conference contenders in Oklahoma State and Baylor.

It may have been a bye week for the Sooners, but there was plenty to be learned with Oklahoma kicking off Big 12 play next weekend against TCU.

Texas, which the Sooners meet up with in a couple of weeks in the annual Red River tussle in Dallas, also was off this weekend along with Kansas and Texas Tech, which square off in the next game for both.

The Oklahoma coaches obviously were particularly interested in TCU and got the chance to see the Horned Frogs live on Friday night on the road against SMU.

The Horned Frogs got off to a sluggish start against their crosstown rivals. The score was tied at three after the first quarter, and TCU led by just 6-3 at halftime.

TCU quarterback got the Horned Frogs’ passing game going after intermission, however. Kenny Hill threw for a total of 452 yards for the game, including two touchdowns. That should be of some concern to the Sooners, who have been especially vulnerable to the pass in their losses to Houston and Ohio State.

The Sooner defense is allowing 248.3 yards through the air per game after three games, which ranks 88th in the country among FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) teams. They are 111th in the nation in pass defense efficiency. Don’t think that hasn’t caught the attention of Gary Patterson and his TCU coaches.

TCU’s Hill also does a nice job of spreading the ball around in targeting his receivers. Five different receivers caught five of more passes against SMU.

Stopping the run – something the Sooners were unsuccessful doing against Ohio State – will be imperative if Oklahoma wants to slow down or at least disrupt Hill’s passing rhythm next Saturday.

Sep 17, 2016; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) during the game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 17, 2016; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) during the game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /

Another take away from the TCU-SMU game was the 244 yards the Horned Frogs gave up through the air, and the fact that the Mustang running game was limited to just 76 net yards on the ground. For the season, TCU is yielding an average of 257 yards through the air per game. Baker Mayfield’s passing numbers are right at 265 yards per game for Oklahoma, and that has been against two of the best teams in the country so far this season and only playing a half in the win over Louisiana-Monroe.

The Sooners must be able to chew up ground yards with Samaje Perine and Joe Mixon to effectively open up their Air Raid attack.

I also hasten to point out that Kenny Hill is another dual threat at quarterback, although not in the same league as Ohio State’s uber-talented J.T. Barrett or even Greg Ward Jr. of Houston.

The marquee game of the weekend in the Big 12 took place in Waco, Texas, where the 16th-ranked Baylor Bears hosted Oklahoma State. As expected, the game turned out to be a back-and-forth affair for most of the contest and a wide-open shootout between two high-powered offenses.

What stood out most in Baylor’s 11-point, 35-24 win over the Cowboys was the porous defensive play on both sides between the red zones on both ends of the field. Both teams showed great grit and determination in goal-line stands, which is one reason why the score wasn’t higher despite over 1,000 yards of combined offense.

Oklahoma will be forced to play much better defense if it hopes to prevail this season in its games Baylor and Oklahoma State, which don’t come until November and will be played at Oklahoma.

About 1,400 miles to the east of Norman this weekend, West Virginia and BYU, one of the teams believed to be in the mix of considerations for league expansion, were playing each other at FedEx Field in Landover, Md. The Mountaineers raised their record to 3-0, holding on late for a 35-32 win over the Cougars.

This was another game with lots of offense. West Virginia quarterback Skyler Howard connected on 31 of 40 passes for 382 yards and a touchdown, and the Mountaineers forced four BYU turnovers, which turned out to be the difference in the game.

The Mountaineers’ scored on four of their five trips inside the Red Zone, all touchdowns.

Now its back to business on the practice field and in the film room getting set for the journey the Sooners hope will end with back-to-back Big 12 championships. But before it can end, it must get started, and that comes in OU’s most important game to begin the rest of the season, the next one, against TCU on Saturday.

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