After losing in Norman two weeks ago to Kansas State, Oklahoma did what good teams tend to do. They got up off that mat, dusted themselves off, and then brought the wood to a solid Texas Tech team.
Don't let the final stats fool you. The Sooners only outgained Tech by 20 yards on the night (370 to 350), but for the final two-and-a-half quarters, this game was all Oklahoma's and then some.
Offensively, Texas Tech got off to a nice start and it appeared after one quarter, OU was going to have their hands full. The Red Raiders started the game by putting together drives of nine and 17 plays covering 71 and 78 yards resulting in 10 points and 10-7 lead after one quarter.
Texas Tech picked up another field goal on their first drive in the second quarter but that would be it for the Tech offense until garbage timer rolled around and the game was clearly out of reach.
Following an eight play Tech drive to start the 3rd quarter (which ended with an Oklahoma sack on fourth down), Texas Tech went three-an-out on four of the next five drives and the one that didn't was a two play drive that resulted in a Sooner interception that Javon Harris took back 46 yards for a touchdown. That is what an Oklahoma defense looks like.
Offensively, Landry Jones was back on cue after taking his share of heat following the Sooners performance against Kansas State. Jones completed 25 of 40 passes, threw two touchdowns and didn't throw an interception. Maybe more importantly, Jones wasn't sacked all afternoon.
The OU coaching staff talked during the bye week about wanting to get Damien Williams more touches and it finally happened on Saturday. The junior college transfer had 14 carries for a modest 48 yards but came up big in the passing game with six receptions for another 83 yards.
As for the criticism offensive coordinator Josh Heupel and Jones took following the K-State loss, Bob Stoops wasn't having any of it. "Listen, I don't know why that would be questioned. Josh does a great job, as does the rest of our offensive staff, and Landry's a great quarterback. He's going to go down as one of the greatest we've had here at OU, and that says a lot."
Oklahoma can now turn their sole focus to Texas who lost to West Virginia by a field goal on Saturday night. Win that, and they're right back in the thick of the Big 12 race, not that they were ever really out of it. The Sooners will still need a team or two to knock off Kansas State, but given the depth and talent in the Big 12 this year, just about anything can happen and probably will.
What Oklahoma did on Saturday afternoon is prove to anyone that had written them off after three games that they'll be hanging around the top of the Big 12 race for just a while longer. Not that anyone should be surprised, especially with a defense that looks to be getting more and more comfortable with the changes Mike Stoops implemented in the offseason.
There's little question this league has some of the best offenses you'll see anywhere in the country, but who wins this league is still going to come down to who can play a little bit of defense. That's good news for OU because come season's end, they might end up having the best defense in the Big 12.
"We're not a bad football team," Tommy Tubervill said following the loss. "We looked pretty bad at times, but good teams can make you look bad," which is exactly what Oklahoma is counting on the rest of the way.
