Oklahoma vs. Kansas State: Sooners Cage Pesky Cats, Win by 21
By Chip Rouse
For the past five seasons, Oklahoma vs. Kansas State has resulted in a victory for the visiting team.
That story line came to a screeching halt in Norman, Okla., on Saturday as the Sooners followed up their 55-0 demolition of Kansas State last year with a second straight offensive blowout and a 38-17 victory over the visiting Wildcats.
K-State came into Saturday’s Big 12 home opener for Oklahoma, leading the conference in scoring defense and total defense. The Wildcats had held their five previous opponents to an average of 17.6 points and 310 total yards of offense. The Sooners produced close to 300 yards on offense in the first half alone and ended up with 510 for the game, 175 more than Kansas State.
Mindful that Kansas State had beaten Oklahoma in its last two trips to Norman, the Sooners struck fast, going 63 yards in seven plays to go out in front 7-0 with just two and a half minutes gone in the game.
Six minutes later, following a K-State three-and-out in its first offensive possession, the Sooners made it 14-0 on a short, eight-yard touchdown catch and run by Joe Mixon.
K-State got on the board for the first time, grinding out an 89-yard drive in 17 plays, with Wildcat quarterback Jesse Ertz taking it the final couple of yards for a Kansas State touchdown.
Oklahoma responded with a 77-yard TD drive of its own on the very next possession, the final 26 yards coming on a halfback pass by Mixon to a wide-open Dede Westbrook for the score.
Both teams added a second-quarter field goal and Oklahoma went to the locker room at the half with a 24-10 advantage. The Sooners first-half offensive explosion included 15 of 17 passing by quarterback Baker Mayfield and two touchdowns. Nine of the 15 OU pass receptions in the opening half were for 16-plus yards.
The Kansas State defense stiffened more in the second half, but the Sooners were never really in much trouble, leading by 14 or more points the entire second half. Westbrook, who was the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week after a career receiving day against Texas, made a strong case to win the award a second week in a row with another stellar performance on Saturday.
The senior Sooner wide receiver caught 10 passes for an Oklahoma school-record 232 yards in the OU win over Texas and followed that up with nine catches for a game-high 184 yards and three more touchdown receptions against K-State.
Westbrook raced by the K-State secondary to haul in an 88-yard touchdown catch late in the fourth quarter to deliver the final nail in the Wildcats’ coffin and seal the win, Oklahoma’s fourth of the season and third in the Big 12 without a loss.
Samaje Perine scored the Sooners’ opening touchdown, catching a short swing pass from Mayfield and taking it 25 yards to the house, diving and stretching out just inside the right end-zone pylon. Perine left the game one play into Oklahoma’s second possession, however, limping off with what appeared to be a leg injury. He did not return the remainder of the game but stayed on the sidelines.
K-State also lost a key contributor. Starting QB Jesse Ertz hurt his shoulder late in the first half. He left the field on his own and was taken to the locker room for evaluation. Backup Joe Huebner. who was the Wildcat starter at the quarterback position most of last season, replaced Ertz for the rest of the first half.
Ertz made a go of it, taking the field on the Wildcats’ opening possession of the third quarter, but lasted just one play. He sailed a pass well right of his intended receiver in the flat, and left the field immediately thereafter, indicating that his shoulder was bothering him when he threw the ball.
Oklahoma’s offense, employing an effective mixture of running and passing plays, was able to move the ball with much efficiency for most of the game. The Sooners scored on six of their 11 possessions with five touchdowns. With the exception of one long touchdown pass to K-State receiver Dominique Heath, the OU defense, still down three starters this week, also played a fairly strong game.
After committing four turnovers a week ago in their win over Texas, the Sooners turned the ball over just once against Kansas State. That came on a pass by Mayfield in the third quarter that bounced off of the intended Sooner receiver and was picked off at the K-State 15-yard line by Wildcat defensive back Duke Shelley. Kansas State was unable to capitalize on the OU turnover, however, failing to advance the ball after the change of possession.
Three Big 12 opponents down, and six more to go. The 19th-ranked Sooners (4-2, 3-0) will now set their sights on a trip to Texas Tech next weekend.