Venables, Arbuckle confident that John Mateer will bounce back vs. South Carolina
NORMAN — John Mateer didn’t have his best performance in last week’s loss to Texas. In fact, it might’ve been arguably the worst of his career.
The OU quarterback finished with 197 total yards, the lowest output of any game he’s started. He also threw three interceptions, the most of any game in his career. Mateer’s struggles were the primary reason why the Sooners scored just six points and finished with a season-low 258 yards, as the offense just couldn’t move the ball consistently against the Longhorns.
It certainly didn’t resemble Mateer’s performances through the first four weeks, when he was one of the most productive quarterbacks in football. But the Sooners have seen the response they needed from Mateer since that tough game.
“I’ve got even more respect for him,” OU coach Brent Venables said. “You want to carry all the weight for all your guys, but you can’t do that. That’s part of their responsibility. He wants to take the whole team on his back and that’s not fair to him at all. So, (trying) to help him with his perspective, I think, is important. And then if you don’t play to a standard, shoulder it.
“And that’s OK, he can handle it but he’s always hard on himself. He has incredibly high standards. I haven’t been around him the depth that (OU offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle and OU analyst Jon Kuceyeski) have, but I’ve been made aware of how he’s handled adversity in the past and it’s been really strong… He knows what’s good and what isn’t good and what’s good enough and what ain’t good enough so he’ll go right back to work and did. The guys really respect that. That helps everybody step back in line.”
The main focus for Mateer has been decision making. It certainly didn’t help that it was fewer than three weeks since his thumb surgery, but that’s where Mateer struggled the most. In addition to his three interceptions, Mateer missed a few open receivers down the field and nearly had a fourth turnover on a questionable backwards pass.
“Taking another breath and really seeing the field,” Mateer said on the focus this week. “Knowing the situation, not guessing and doing too much. That’s what came up and I’m obviously not happy about it. Nobody is, nobody should be. But my teammates have my back and I appreciate that.”
Most importantly, this week has been about getting back to the basics. Nobody has more confidence in Mateer than his offensive coordinator, Ben Arbuckle, who has seen him bounce back and play well.
“It’s a mental reset,” Arbuckle said. “Do I trust John Mateer? Absolutely, I do. But I wouldn’t be doing my job as a coach if I just sat back and said, ‘I’m going to just trust that he’s gonna get it right.’ So it’s a mental reset. It’s back to the basics. It’s, whenever we’re doing a walk through, ‘Hey, be great with your feet right here. High detail on your feet. Where am I supposed to be at?’
“And then that translates over to practice reps, and that translates over to good-on-good reps, and then translate over to game reps. So I trust John. Is he gonna put the work in to improve? Absolutely. But I have to do my job as a coach, too, and be on him about those little things.”
The Sooners will need Mateer to bounce back in a big way this Saturday (11:45 a.m. CT, SECN) against South Carolina. The Gamecocks have allowed over 400 yards in two of their last three conference games, but they will pose some challenges, particularly with their defensive line.
Arbuckle’s message to Mateer?
“Stay true to who you are,” Arbuckle said. “Stay true to the process that has gotten you to where you have been in life and as a player. Don’t listen to the outside noise because that’s nothing pertaining to you. Stay true to who you are. Stay true to who you are as a leader. Bond, connect and continue to build all your relationships with your teammates. Strengthen those as much as you can because ultimately, those are the guys that matter.
“And the awesome thing is, the support that those guys have shown John. And that’s one thing I love about this team is these kids have each other’s back and there was zero flinch after that game from those kids, from John Mateer. But that’s the biggest thing you can tell them is you’ve got to stay true to who you are. Fall back onto your basics. Because basics win. Basic footwork wins. Basic timing wins. You just got to be you.”