Halftime Huddle: OU leads Texas, 6-3
DALLAS, Texas — It’s a tight game at Cotton Bowl Stadium.
Oklahoma leads Texas, 6-3, going into halftime. The Sooners opened the game with six unanswered points before Texas answered with a field goal late in the second quarter.
This one will likely be hotly-contested the rest of the way. Here’s a look at the highlights and notes:
The Highlights
Key Players, Offense
John Mateer: 13/21 passing, 119 yards, 2 INT
Deion Burks: 4 catches, 43 yards
Isaiah Sategna: 3 catches, 40 yards
Key Players, Defense
Kendal Daniels: 3 tackles, 1 TFL
Taylor Wein: 2 TFL
David Stone: 1 TFL
The Good
— After all of the speculation during the week, Mateer did, in fact, to start for the Sooners at quarterback.
— Keontez Lewis, who left last week’s game against Kent State on stretcher, also made his sixth consecutive start at receiver.
— Outside of a 37-yard run from Texas late in the second quarters, the Sooners have bottled up the Longhorns’ rushing attack. The Longhorns gained eight yards on their other 10 rushing attempts.
— Tate Sandell made both of his field goals in the first half from 42 and 40 yards out, respectively.
Sandell has now made 11 consecutive field goals.
The notable
— The Sooners simply had a disastrous end to the first half.
OU regained possession with 4:29 left in the second quarter but never played with tempo. The offense drove down to the Texas 30-yard line and let the clock drain down to 10 seconds before John Mateer threw his second interception of the game trying to find Jaren Kanak in the end zone.
The clock management and interception likely cost the Sooners three points going into halftime.
— The Sooners’ running game has been ineffective, totaling 43 yards on 17 attempts (2.5 yards per carry).
Tory Blaylock got the start. Jaydn Ott came in for one series in the first quarter, but struggled in pass protection and dropped a screen pass that would’ve been a big play. He hasn’t been on the field since. Xavier Robinson has also seen some snaps.
— With Logan Howland, Jake Taylor, Jacob Sexton and Troy Everett ruled out, the Sooners really can’t afford injuries on the offensive line.
But Derek Simmons went down with a leg injury in the second quarter and hasn’t returned. Luke Baklenko finished the half in his place.
— The Sooners brought in defensive linemen David Stone and Jayden Jackson to help convert a fourth-and-1 in the second quarter. It led to Sandell’s second field goal to give OU a six-point lead.
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