NORMAN — Hayden Hansen couldn’t help but think back to a year ago Monday night.
Hansen was at Florida then, coming shortly on the heels of a stunning upset win over Texas that failed to generate positive momentum going forward.
It was Oct. 19, 2025 when Gators coach Billy Napier was fired, setting in motion the events that eventually led Hansen to join Oklahoma.
Now, it’s the Sooners who are scuffling, alternating wins and losses, including an upset victory over the Longhorns but also Saturday’s disappointing loss to Kentucky where the Sooners repeatedly turned the ball over in the second half
“I just learned from that that the worst thing anyone could do right now is just like, ‘Oh, we’ve got three losses, the playoffs are kind of far, let’s just fold our cards,’” Hansen said after the Sooners practice Monday. “You can’t do that. You’ve got to show up to work at the end of the day.”
Hansen was far from done.
“You have that Oklahoma logo on your chest,” Hansen said. “It’s the man in the mirror. … Your last name is still on that film that you put out there. You’re playing for everything. You’re playing for this. You’re playing for that slim chance of the playoffs still. You’re playing for the people in the stands. You’re playing for the coaches that believed in you. So there’s still a lot to go. And I mean if we go out there and win these last six games and we go 10-3, that’s not a bad season.”
That’s not impossible, but seems highly unlikely the way the season has gone to this point.
Brent Venables isn't getting fired, but things have not gone well for the Sooners offensively.
Michigan State is the only power conference team averaging fewer yards of total offense this season than Oklahoma (311.5). Only Cal and Hawaii among FBS teams are averaging fewer rushing yards than the Sooners (92.5). Sacramento State, Marshall and Charlotte are the only FBS teams with a worse turnover margin than OU’s minus-1.33.
That last one is perhaps the most concerning.
The Sooners have 14 giveaways this season after turning the ball over just 16 times all last season.
“Most of the time in the SEC, if you don’t win the turnover margin, you lose games,” Hansen said. “And when you turn the ball over like we have, I mean, it doesn’t lead to those results that you should get. And at the end of the day you have to go back and look at it with a critical eye. All these turnovers you see, you might see it’s one way, but it actually could be something else that’s causing it. … It wasn’t pretty on offense by any means, but when you have the No. 1 defensive in the nation, you got Doug freakin’ Deakin coaching special teams, you give yourself a chance. We gotta continuously fix up that end for sure.”
Hansen pointed to the first half of Saturday’s 21-13 loss to the Wildcats as evidence the Sooners can be effective offensively.
Oklahoma had just three first-half drives, with each lasting at least 12 plays and taking up a combined 17:18 of clock.
“That’s kind of the frustrating part and we know that,” Hansen said. “But also how close we are keeps us motivated.”
The Sooners take on Mississippi State at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in Starkville, Miss.
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