Oklahoma wide receiver Keontez Lewis collided with the brick wall behind the end zone at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium during the second play of the game between the No. 5 Sooners and Kent State on Saturday.
Lewis dove into the barrier headfirst trying to catch a throw past the end zone. There is no padding on the brick wall.
He was down for over 10 minutes before medical staff put Lewis on a stretcher and carted him off the field. According to Gabe Ikard on the OU radio broadcast, Lewis moved his hands, arms and legs.
The entire OU team huddled in prayer before eventually going over to support Lewis as he was carted off.
Sooners WR Keontez Lewis carted off field
Oklahoma WR Keontez Lewis was carted off the field after a collision with the back wall. pic.twitter.com/yXmEk9bBoB
— ESPN (@espn) October 4, 2025
Chris Plank said during halftime on the radio broadcast that Lewis was walking around in the training room and all X-rays came back negative, so the injury does not seem as serious as it initially seemed during the situation.
According to the SEC Network, OU sent Lewis off-sight to another facility for additional testing out of an abundance of caution.
"He was alert. He was in some pain in his back. I didn't get all the details," OU head Brent Venables said postgame. "He was going full speed and ran into the wall, so you're dang right, I was very concerned. Thankful once I got over there and realized, based on the things the questions he was answering, was very coherent. 'My head's fine, my legs are fine.'
"Probably kind of like being in a car wreck, I would guess. I haven't seen the video of it, but I was thankful because it seemed, it appeared that, all things considered, was OK."
Lewis already suffered one head injury this season. He took a big hit in the second quarter against Temple and did not return, but he was back for the Sooners' next game against Auburn.
Lewis transferred to OU from Southern Illinois this offseason and immediately became a valuable contributor for the Sooners. He caught nine passes for 119 yards and two touchdowns in his OU debut against Illinois State in Week 1.
In four games, Lewis had tallied 17 receptions, 210 receiving yards and those two TDs from the season opener.
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