NORMAN — All momentum is out the window.
The Sooners succumbed to No. 15 Kentucky 21-13 Saturday at Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, and while there were good moments for the offense, OU’s offensive line situation is deteriorating.
Entering the contest, Oklahoma was already down left tackle Michael Fasusi, who has played 17 snaps all year, and guards Eddy Pierre-Louis and Heath Ozaeta.
Things were made worse when Ryan Fodje got hurt at the end of the third quarter.
The sophomore tried to tough it out, returning with a wrap on his right ankle that was the size of a thick cast, but his return only hurt the offense, as he was clearly immobile.
The house of cards has finally fallen down.
Entering the year, Fodje was projected to start at right guard.
When Jake Maikkula got hurt in fall camp, Fodje emerged as the backup center, despite OU adding Western Kentucky transfer center Caleb Nitta, who also battled through his own injuries during spring ball.
Fasusi’s injury meant that Fodje would slide from right guard or center over to the left side of the line.
In the initial snaps that he missed against the Wildcats, it was actually Peyton Joseph, the Georgia Tech transfer and backup guard, who momentarily replaced Fodje. Fred Hinton, who is actually an offensive tackle, eventually took over.
It’s the kind of rotating door that would doom Toledo, and it’s a situation that is unacceptable at Oklahoma.
Brent Venables identified the issues up front ahead of playing Texas, but Saturday night he was hesitant to pile on his unit after the game.
Perhaps Venables is resigned to the fact that things aren’t magically going to get better over the coming weeks.
Fasusi’s return is close and it would be huge; his teammates can’t wait for the captain to get back on the field.
“Fasusi’s an animal,” freshman defensive end Jake Kreul said after the loss. “He has made me so much better, especially in the run game, because I don’t think there’s a better run blocker than that dude. A guy like Mike, no one wants to be on the field more than him. I see him every day fighting to get back on the field and I want him back on the field because he makes me better and he makes our team better.”
But it’s unrealistic for the sophomore to step in and save the season.
Even if Ozaeta is able to return next week, the Sooners could still be down Fodje — and that does nothing to address the fact that Arkansas transfer E’Marion Harris has been a disaster at right tackle.
A lineup with Fasusi, Noah Best, Maikkula, Ozaeta and Harris resembles a starting line that could have been conceivable at the start of the year, but with multiple guys juggling injuries and no depth in sight, the Sooners will have to grit their teeth and find a way to try and infuse the floundering unit with confidence yet again.
The schedule is unforgiving. Outside of a lengthy absence, there’s little opportunity for guys to get back to 100% by balancing practice with physical SEC contests each week.
The reality is that whoever is on the field will be playing through, at the very least, bumps and bruises, which is concerning for a unit that has shown little sign of getting better under Bill Bedenbaugh since moving to the new league.
“This is a team sport. It’s not an individual sport. So we’ve got to stay together no matter what,” Kreul said. “… I think they’re gonna get those things fixed, get those things together. And once they get that, they can be as good as anyone in the country.”
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