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Oklahoma football: Kennedy Brooks is back in prime tackle-busting form

By Chip Rouse

Oklahoma's Kennedy Brooks (26) runs for the game-winning touchdown the Red River Showdown college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) and the University of Texas (UT) Longhorns at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021. Oklahoma won 55-48.Ou Vs Texas
Oklahoma's Kennedy Brooks (26) runs for the game-winning touchdown the Red River Showdown college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) and the University of Texas (UT) Longhorns at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021. Oklahoma won 55-48.Ou Vs Texas /
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This week in the Oklahoma football 2021 story is all about who will start the second half of the season at quarterback for the Sooners.

Preseason All-American and Heisman candidate Spencer Rattler started the first six games for Oklahoma this season and the Sooners are 6-0 and ranked No. 4 in the nation in the latest Associated Press poll (No. 3 in the Coaches Poll).

Despite the Sooners’ record at the midpoint of the season, Rattler has had trouble with turnovers this season, including two in OU’s crazy 21-point comeback win over Texas last Saturday. Rattler was replaced in the second quarter of the Texas game by backup Caleb Williams, who finished the game and led the Sooners to the improbable win.

So we may see a changing of the guard at quarterback on Saturday to start the second half of the season.

Of equal note this week, however, is the return of Kennedy Brooks to the starting role at running back in the Oklahoma offense. After last Saturday’s explosive offensive display, piling up 662 yards of total offense in the win over Texas, Sooner fans are hoping the hit-and-miss OU offense has finally found its footing, both on the ground and in the air.

It took a little while for Brooks to get going this season, having opted out all of last season because of COVID-19 health and safety concerns. His performance last weekend against Texas was his best game running the ball since gaining 160 yards in a November 2019 OU win over Oklahoma State.

For the first five games of the season, Brooks had been sharing running back duties with Tennessee transfer Eric Gray. The Texas game was Brooks’ first start of the season and he had 22 carries to just six for Gray. Brooks’ 217-yard performance was the first time he has rushed for over 200 yards in his OU career, and it was the first time a Sooner running back has gone over the 200-yard mark since Trey Sermon did it with 206 rushing yards in 2018.

Brooks’ productivity against Texas included runs of 15, 17, 65, 18 and 33-yards and an average of 8.7 yards per carry for the afternoon. His 33-yard run produced the winning touchdown, one of two Brooks was credited with in the game.

The former All-Big 12 selection (2019) has rushed for 535 yards in six games and six touchdowns. In his first two OU seasons, Brooks exceeded 100 yards rushing both years

It appears Brooks has regained the form that made him one of the top running backs in the Big 12 in 2018 and 2019. At his current pace, he is well on his way to breaking into the top 10 of all-time Oklahoma rushing leaders. That would put him ahead of former Oklahoma greats Greg Pruitt and Stanley Wilson.

But first things first. We still have six more regular-season games and a postseason for Brooks to show off his stuff and be the spark that the Sooners’ have been looking for to boost the lethargic Oklahoma offense.

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