SoonerScoop postgame podcast: OU wins comfortably, issues linger

The first game for OU is in the books. You don’t want to overreact, but there were some really good moments for the Sooners. And then some, well, hope that was just Week 1 issues.
The final score looks nice with a 35-3 victory against visiting Illinois State. But if you watched the game, then you know not everything was nearly as smooth as it seemed.
OU is certainly found a quarterback, no question there with John Mateer. However, the state of the total offense is in question.
Was it vanilla on purpose? Or is this what OU fans have to look forward to when the competition gets tougher? It looked better than what we saw on the field for the majority of 2024, but you sure would hope so.
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If you wanted some words to describe that initial game? Maybe cautious, maybe basic. And now we’ll see where everything goes from here.
Let’s break it all down. New season, same podcast. It’s time for the Eskridge Lexus Postgame Podcast from SoonerScoop.
Murdock summary:
John Mateer set the OU school record for passing yards in a debut as he threw for 392 yards and 3 TDs against Illinois State in a 35-3 win. But there were some issues. The running game couldn’t get going and that was largely part to an inconsistent offensive line that saw several players being swapped for others throughout the night. Defensively, it was solid but not dominating up front. And we saw a lot of wrinkles from Brent Venables with different personnel packages. One of the players who really emerged Saturday evening was tight end Jaren Kanak. Who might single handedly save the tight end position at OU. And we think the Sooners might have found a punt returner. Carey, Eddie and George break it all down in your first 2025 Eskridge Lexus Postgame Podcast.