Oklahoma football: Is OU offense underperforming, or is it better defenses?

One of the lingering Oklahoma football questions three games into the 2021 season is why the Sooners’ high-powered offensive performance has been more hit and miss this year than in recent seasons?

Could it be that we have reached a turning point in college football where the defenses have caught up to the high-scoring, wide-open offensive systems?

Most of the focus has been on OU quarterback Spencer Rattler. The redshirt-sophomore quarterback came into this season with extremely high expectations, including being the preseason favorite to win the 2021 Heisman Trophy and a projected No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft next spring.

So far this fall, the former No. 1-rated quarterback in the 2019 class has been good, but not quite up to the high level that everyone was expecting.

Oklahoma football offense must continue to adapt and evolve

On Saturday, in the much-hyped game against former longtime conference rival Nebraska, Rattler appeared tentative in his approach and more like a game manager than the next best thing at the OU quarterback position that he has been built up to be. It wasn’t until early in the second half that he completed his first pass of longer than 10 yards, and that was on a trick play.

In his postgame press conference, head coach Lincoln Riley had this to say about Rattler’s confidence and ability:

"“I thought he played pretty smart. I think he felt the game a little bit.”"

On Wednesday, during his weekly press conference, Riley was asked to compare how Rattler his performance so far this season compared to the way he played at the end of last season

"“It’s hard to compare because it’s two different groups. You’re talking about a group that played a bunch of games together there last year. There’s not a lot that’s the same out there, and even some of the guys that are the same are at different positions. He’s (Rattler) played good. He’s had (good moments). He can play better. He can play cleaner.“It just feels like the defenses have evolved, and I think you’re starting to see that more widespread. This game always goes in cycles…the defenses always catch up…and things continue to innovate. I think we’re just in the middle of one of those cycles right now.”"

That’s an interesting perspective, and as you look across college football and some of the final scores of top-25 teams over the first few weeks, the number of points being scored is down from the past couple of years. Instead of seeing teams regularly score in the 40s, you’re seeing final tallies in the 20s.

Oklahoma’s 23-16 win over a good Nebraska team with a quality defense is a case in point. The 23 points were the fewest scored by an OU offense since a 20-17 home win over TCU in 2013.

College defenses are definitely evolving, as Riley noted, and getting better. They’ve learned to adapt to all the no-huddle, up-tempo play calls, and RPOs (run-pass option) that have opened up offensive playbooks.

While Riley is keenly aware of the changes going on in college defenses and that defensive schemes are becoming more sophisticated — “I’d say this,” he said. “I don’t see as many bad defenses as I used to see (including his own)” — he’s not about to give in offensively.

“We still expect to play a whole helluva lot better offensively,” he said.