The Oklahoma football game at Kansas on Saturday is a huge game for both teams, but not necessarily for the same reasons.
For Kansas, it would provide a homecoming win against an Oklahoma program that has completely dominated the series with Kansas and snap a streak of 18 consecutive victories over the Jayhawks. More importantly, though, it would assure the Jayhawks of no worse than a .500 record in the regular season and move them just one win away from what would be their first winning season in 15 years.
The stakes are even higher for Oklahoma and its fans because it continues the Sooners unbeaten record and keeps them in contention for a 15th and final Big 12 Championship as well as a College Football Playoff berth.
Kansas has played the Sooners tough in the two games it has played against Oklahoma with Lance Leipold as head coach. OU probably should have lost a game it won two years ago in Lawrence. The Sooners trailed in that game 17-7 with just over a minute remaining in the third quarter. A 21-point fourth quarter and the remarkable play of freshman OU quarterback Caleb Williams late in the contest enabled OU to come up with some Sooner Magic and escape with a 35-23 come from behind win.
Last season in Norman, the Sooners never trailed, but Kansas scored 14 of the final 17 points to close within 10 late in a 52-42 OU win.
Here is the tale of the tape on how the two programs stack up statistically this season with the national ranking in parentheses):
OU Kansas
Scoring offense 43.1 (4) 35.4 (21)
Scoring defense 16.1 (13) 27.4 (82)
Rushing offense 168.3 (51) 212.0 (12)
Rushing defense 118.7 (33) 161.1 (93)
Passing offense 328.6 (7) 231.1 (66)
Passing defense 240.4 (87) 235.0 (76)
Total offense 496.9 (7) 443.1 (29)
Total defense 359.1 (53) 396.1 (94)
3rd-down conversion offense 50.5% (11) 53.4 (4)
3rd-down conversion defense 28.6% (6) 44.4 (107)
Red zone offense 86.5% (51) 89.3% (32)
Red zone defense 71.4 % (15) 100% (107)
Turnover margin +10 (2) +2 (44)