Oklahoma finally played complementary football on Saturday.
Such an unexpected development produced a completely predictable result.
The Sooners nearly dominated a Southeastern Conference opponent on the road, rolling to an early lead and holding off Mississippi State 23-15 at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville.
OU had just a 3-0 lead as halftime approached but the Sooners finally got a burst of offensive support with a touchdown just before halftime and another coming out of the break, giving them a 17-0 lead that arrived like a thunderclap.
Meanwhile, Brent Venables’ defense yielded almost nothing against former offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby’s Bulldog offense before Mississippi State came to life in the final minutes.
The Sooner compiled a season-high 467 yards, surpassing the 401 they posted in the season opener against UTEP.
OU improved to 4-3 overall and 2-2 in SEC play, while Mississippi State fell to 4-3 and 2-3.
Quarterback John Mateer not only had his best game of the season with 283 yards on 22-of-29 passing with two touchdowns and zero turnovers, he also put together the best drive of his two-year career in Norman — 15 plays, 95 yards — capped by a 36-yard touchdown to Isaiah Sategna. He then opened the third quarter with a 32-yard TD pass to Rocky Beers.
OU was headed for another potential score when Beers fumbled while trying to hurdle a defender at the end of a 21-yard reception.
The Sooners’ first turnover led directly to Mississippi State’s first score, an 18-yard touchdown pass — on a double pass trick play — that cut it to 17-7.
Oklahoma responded right away with a field goal drive that was sparked by a 54-yard Mateer-to-Sategna connection, giving the Sooners a 20-7 lead.
Sategna later hauled in a 47-yard toss from Mateer. Sategna finished his day with 164 yards and a TD on eight receptions.
After being shut out 31-0 last week at LSU, the Bulldogs struggled on offense again as quarterback Kamario Taylor tried to return from injury but left after he was hit by Owen Heinecke on first quarter scramble. Backup Parker Puckett was largely ineffective against the Sooner defense.
Here’s the OU stock report from Saturday’s game.
UP: QB John Mateer
Mateer didn’t turn the football over in the first half, and he finished the first 30 minutes with a clutch, 15-play, 95-yard drive — both the longest of Mateer’s two seasons in Norman — that ended with one of his all-time highlights.
He escaped pressure in the pocket, stiff-armed a defender, rolled to his left and threw a jump pass complete to Isaiah Sategna while taking a huge hit. Sategna caught the ball at the 22, turned into traffic and navigated his way to the end zone for a 36-yard touchdown. That gave OU a 10-0 lead with 39 seconds on the clock.
On the play before, Mateer converted a fourth-and-1 with a tough run.
Mateer completed 12-of-15 in the first half for 88 yards through the air, then took it to another level in the second half.
Mateer hit the jackpot — a TD to close the second quarter and a TD to open the third — with a 32-yard scoring toss over the middle to a wide open Rocky Beers for a 17-0 lead.
His scramble late in the fourth quarter picked up one crucial first down, and his third-down throw to Rocky Beers clinched the game.
DOWN: K Tate Sandell
OU’s first Groza Award winner was terrible against the Bulldogs, missing three field goals (45 yards in the second quarter, 45 and 41 in the fourth quarter) and making two (42 in the first quarter, 30 in the third quarter).
He did finish strong with a 38-yard field goal with 4:26 too play to give his team a 23-15 lead.
Sandell made the first four kicks he attempted this season, but then missed from 41 against New Mexico and missed from 54 at Georgia before missing from 53 against Texas.
He drilled a 53-yard boot against the Longhorns, then delivered a 47-yard game winner in Dallas and seemed to have fully restored his confidence.
Now, after six misses in seven games, Brent Venables and special teams coordinator Doug Deakin will need to evaluate their trust in Sandell.
UP: RB Tory Blaylock
Blaylock led the Sooners in rushing as a true freshman last year with 480 yards, but he came into Saturday with just 45 yards on 17 carries this season.
He surpassed that total on the first play of the third quarter, racing untouched up the middle and racing down the left sideline for a 47-yard gain.
Two plays later, Mateer threw to a wide-open Rocky Beers for a 17-0 lead.
Blaylock finished with 71 yards on 12 carries.
UP: LT Michael Fasusi
Oklahoma’s 5-star offensive tackle was back in the starting lineup after missing all but 17 snaps (all in the opener) this season due to a shoulder injury.
Fasusi looked a bit rusty at times but clearly was a key component in OU’s sudden offensive success.
It was Fasusi who threw the key block on Lloyd Avant’s 19-yard run early in the fourth quarter, and he didn’t give up a sack.
Fasusi did commit a false-start penalty after Peyton Bowen’s fourth-quarter interception.
DOWN: Pre-snap penalties
While somewhat understandable as OU started its sixth different combination along the offensive line, three false start penalties by Michael Fasusi, Peyton Joseph and tight end Hayden Hansen were costly. So were two illegal formation penalties.
The Sooners also committed a pair of personal foul infractions — one by Joseph on offense and one by Taylor Wein on punt return.
The OU defense added three costly penalties: offsides by Wein on a fourth-and-1 stop, pass interference by Trystan Haynes on a third-and-4 incompletion, and an odd delay of game against David Stone “clapping” when it looked like he was trying to communicate with the sideline.
UP: S Peyton Bowen
Bowen had a good day statistically but drove home his real impact with a pair of tackles on third down (2 yards) and fourth down (0 yards) to end a Mississippi State drive in the fourth quarter.
He then pulled down a crucial interception in the end zone with 8:07 to play — and even returned it 24 yards.
Bowen finished with seven tackles, but came out of the game after his runback “in quite a bit of pain,” according to ESPN sideline reporter Tori Petry.
DOWN: Coverage on deep throws
In the fourth quarter, both cornerback Trystan Haynes and safety Michael Boganowski used poor technique in defending deep throws by Puckett.
Both times, the OU defender didn’t turn around and play the football. Haynes’ resulted in a 15-yard pass interference penalty. Boganowski’s ended up as a 42-yard touchdown to Sanfrisco Magee with 2:10 to play. That score and a 2-point pass to Magee cut OU’s lead to just 23-15.
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