The countdown and anticipation of the return of Oklahoma football and Week 1 of the 2025 season is less than 20 days away. Periodically throughout the season, we will offer brain busters from Sooner football history as a way of looking back and reflecting on the rich tradition and historical accomplishments of one of the all-time great programs in the history of college football.
Today's question and fun fact involves receiving, something that hasn't been a key component of Oklahoma's offensive attack for most of the Sooners' 130-year history. In fact, legendary Sooner head coach Barry Switzer, during the Wishbone era, liked to refer to the famous quote most often credited to Darrell Royal, himself an OU alum and former player but more notably associated with Texas Longhorn football.
The former Texas head coach and later athletic director was once quoted as saying: "Three things can happen when you throw a pass, and two of them are bad."
Only three players in Oklahoma history have recorded 1,000 or more receiving yards in a season, and 12 of them have been since Bob Stoops and Mike Leach arrived in Norman with the Air Raid attack. That's when the passing attack really became a more significant part of the Sooner offense.
Since 2001, Oklahoma has not thrown for less than 3,000 yards in a season. By contrast, in the Sooners' three national championship seasons during the Switzer era (1974, 1975 and 1985), OU totaled 2,271 passing yards combined.
That brings us back around to today's brain buster: Two different times in Oklahoma football history, the Sooners have had three receivers gain at least 100 yards in the same game. What year was that, who was the opponent and who were the three players?
Answer: The first time was in 2012 in a 51-48 overtime win over Bedlam rival Oklahoma State. Jalen Saunders, Justin Brown and Kenny Stills each gained more than 100 receiving yards in the game.
It happened again in 2023 when Dillion Gabriel threw for 421 yards and five touchdowns in a 66-17 win over Tulsa. Jalil Farooq (126 yards), Nic Anderson (120 yards) and Andrel Anthony (112 yards) were on the receiving end of 358 of Gabriel's 421 passing yards. All three of Anderson's catches were for touchdowns.
Ironically, all three of the OU receivers are still playing college football, but not at Oklahoma. All three also missed the entire 2024 season with injuries and transferred this past offseason. Farooq is now at Maryland, Anderson transferred to LSU and Anthony will finish his college career at Duke.
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