Oklahoma football: Five takeaways from a game that was TAKEN away
By Chip Rouse
No one group escapes the blame in this one
The old cartoon that has everyone pointing the finger at everyone else is an apt illustration of where the fault lies in the Sooners’ stunning loss to Kansas State on Saturday. Everyone shares in this disturbing loss.
The offensive performance was dominant for a good portion of the game, until it went into hibernation in the final quarter. The defense was nonexistent in the fourth quarter, leading to 17 unanswered points and whipping out a 35-21 Oklahoma advantage to begin the final quarter.
The last time I looked, college football was a 60-minute game, and on this day, Oklahoma only showed up for a little over 40 minutes.
Four K-State takeaways led to 14 Wildcat points, which was easily the difference in the game.
Special teams also was a contributing factor to the loss. Oklahoma’s first punt of the game didn’t come until the 8:27 mark in the fourth quarter with Oklahoma holding on to a 35-28 advantage.
A Kansas State edge rusher came in unabated to OU punter Reeves Mundschau, blocked the punt, and a K-State defender recovered the loose ball at the OU 38-yard line. One play later, a 38-yard untouched dash to the end zone by Kansas State running back Deuce Vaughn and a successful point-after tied the score at 35-all. It was the first time the Sooners have had a punt blocked in seven years.
The players play and the coaches coach, as they say, but you don’t end up with a loss like this one without the coaching staff, including head coach Lincoln Riley, deserving more than a fair share of the blame. The responsibility for the breakdowns in the fourth quarter in all aspects of the Sooners game — offense, defense and special teams — falls on the players, but the accountability belongs with the coaching staff.
"“We just made critical errors that gave them a chance,” Riley said in his postgame press conference. “Give Chris (Klieman) and Kansas State a lot of credit. When we made errors, they made is pay.”"
Indeed they did. And how!
Oklahoma has a lot to work on and improve before the next game, which will be at Iowa State on Saturday.