Jackson Arnold haunted by old problems as Sooners set sack record in his return

Just like he was expected to when he signed with the Oklahoma Sooners in 2023 as a five-star recruit, quarterback Jackson Arnold was part of OU football history on Saturday.

After transferring to Auburn this offseason, Arnold and his No. 22 Tigers lost to the No. 11 Sooners 24-17 in his return to Norman as OU's defense sacked Arnold a program-record 10 times.

Oklahoma sets program record with 10 sacks vs. Auburn

Down 22-17 with 4:47 left, Arnold had the chance to get sweet revenge and march the Tigers down from their own eight-yard line to mount a game-winning drive in his return. After three plays and converting a first down to get to the 23-yard line, Arnold rushed for no yards, almost counting as another sack if it was any shorter.

On 2nd-and-10, Arnold was sacked by David Stone and Taylor Wein before an accepted holding penalty backed the Tigers up and erased the play. That was immediately followed by a false start to put Auburn back on its own eight. The next play, Arnold again rushed for no gain.

Gracen Halton then got to Arnold on third down to tie the school sack record at nine and pin Auburn at the four-yard line. Then, it was ultimately R Mason Thomas who sacked Arnold for a record-breaking 10th time on fourth down for a safety that covered the spread for those who put money on the Sooners.

Thomas didn't even play the first half because of a suspension from a targeting call against Temple last week. He still finished with two sacks and two tackles for loss in a half of play. Jayden Jackson led the Sooners with 2.5 sacks. Stone, Wein, Kip Lewis, Owen Heinecke, Gracen Halton and Marvin Jones Jr. were also all part of the record performance.

As if returning to Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium didn't give Arnold enough haunting flashbacks, he was also sacked 36 times last season as the Sooners' QB1 while OU was one of the worst pass blocking teams in the country.

Many, including Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze, have proclaimed OU was the problem last year, not Arnold. The Sooners had five of their best receivers injured most of last season and consistently cycled through different offensive line combinations. But there's also been video of Freeze furious at Arnold for holding on to the ball too long during practice, and there were plenty of instances of that Saturday, too.

The Sooners have again had a carousel along the offensive line this season. However, on Saturday, new OU quarterback John Mateer was sacked just once.

Arnold might not have been the problem, but it would be ignorant to say Arnold also wasn't part of the problem, because even though he wore a different jersey in Oklahoma on Saturday, he still had the same issues.

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