Stormin in Norman
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Oklahoma football: Numbers to know about Oklahoma versus Baylor

By Chip Rouse

Nov 13, 2021; Waco, Texas, USA; Baylor Bears running back Abram Smith (7) tries to elude Oklahoma Sooners defensive back Justin Broiles (25) and safety Delarrin Turner-Yell (32) during the first half at McLane Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 13, 2021; Waco, Texas, USA; Baylor Bears running back Abram Smith (7) tries to elude Oklahoma Sooners defensive back Justin Broiles (25) and safety Delarrin Turner-Yell (32) during the first half at McLane Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /
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When you look at the overall record in the Oklahoma football series with Baylor, it’s easy to conclude that Baylor has been no match for the mighty Sooners.

That may have been the case at one time, but it certainly doesn’t hold true in recent years. And the numbers bear that out.

Oklahoma has a 28-4 all-time record against the Baylor Bears and won the first 20 games in the series. Baylor’s four wins in the series, including a 27-14 victory a year ago on the way to the Big 12 championship, have all come since 2013.

OU and Baylor played for the first time in 1901. Fred Roberts was the Sooners’ head coach that season, the third in Sooner football history. Roberts coached the OU football team just that one season, and a 17-0 victory over Baylor was one of the Sooners three wins in five-game season.

After the 1901 game, the two teams did not face each other for 72 years. The second game in the series was played in 1973 with Barry Switzer’s first Oklahoma team as head coach claiming a 42-14 victory on the road in Waco. The two schools faced each other just five times before Baylor joined the Big 12 in 1996.

Here are some more important numbers to know about the 33rd all-time matchup between Oklahoma and Baylor this Saturday:

.667 — Baylor’s fourth-down conversion percentage this season (18 of 27), tied for 18th best on the country.

1 — Baylor has played 15 games against the Sooners in Norman and won just once, a 48-14 blowout by 10th-ranked Baylor over the 16th-ranked Sooners.

7 — Oklahoma has played seven games since 2010 while being unranked in the Associated Press Top 25. Saturday’s matchup with Baylor will be the eighth game under such circumstances. The Sooners have won six of those previous seven games.

11 — Oklahoma has lost just 12 times in 144 home games since the beginning of the 1999 season, including 11 of the last 12.

14 — Dillon Gabriel has 14 touchdown passes in eight games and just one interception. His counterpart on Saturday, Blake Shapen of Baylor, has thrown for 13 touchdowns with five interceptions.

24 — Baylor ranks 24th in the country in rushing yards per game (201.5). True freshman Richard Reese leads the Baylor rushing attack, averaging 98.9 yards per game. In Baylor’s last two games, both wins, Reese has run for 186 and 148 yards, respectively

30 — When Baylor scores 30 or more points in a game this season, the Bears are 5-1. They are 13-2 in three seasons under head coach Dave Aranda when they score at least 30 points.

33:16 — Baylor’s average time of possession this season, No. 1 in the Big 12. Oklahoma averages a Big 12-worst 26:40 time of possession.

113 — The Sooners rank 113th in the country (out of 131 FBS teams) in total defense, allowing opponents an average of 438 yards per game. The Sooners are 114th in stopping the run, allowing 189.8 yards per game.

2005 — The last time an unranked Oklahoma football team faced the Baylor Bears. OU won the 2005 game, played in Norman, 37-30 in two overtimes.

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