The Oklahoma Sooners are on a two-game losing streak after losing to the Oklahoma State Cowboys. It was a bitter end to a rivalry that dates back to 1904 in a series the Sooners have dominated to the tune of a 91-20-7 record.
It’s a loss that stings. For the second time in three years, the Cowboys knocked the Sooners out of College Football Playoff contention and have Oklahoma on the ropes in the Big 12 title race.
After working their way into the top 10 after a win over Texas, the Sooners haven’t played as well. It’s not simply that they’ve lost games, it’s more that they’ve made a ton of mistakes along the way. And that’s as troubling as the two losses.
In ESPN’s updated power rankings after week 10, the Oklahoma Sooners have fallen all the way to No. 18.
The Sooners couldn’t make the plays when they needed them most, fumbling a direct snap to [autotag]Jovantae Barnes[/autotag] at the OSU 34, ending a drive in the first quarter and then failing to convert a fourth-and-5 play with 1:01 left in the game when [autotag]Drake Stoops[/autotag] was stopped for a 3-yard gain with Oklahoma trailing by three at midfield. [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag] was 26-of-37 for 344 yards and a touchdown, and [autotag]Gavin Sawchuk[/autotag] reeled off a 64-yard scoring run en route to 111 yards rushing. The Sooners loaded up to stop Ollie Gordon II, who ran 33 times for 137 yards, but Alan Bowman made them pay with 334 yards passing as the Sooners lost the last scheduled Bedlam game, one that will sting for a while, while also putting OU in a logjam with two losses in the Big 12 race. – Dave Wilson, ESPN
There’s still a lot to like about the Sooners. They’ve made significant progress as a defense and there are building blocks to an offense that has looked really good at different times throughout the season. But so much of how this season is viewed will be determined by how the Sooners finish the season.
With games vs. West Virginia, at BYU, and at home against TCU to close the regular season, Oklahoma can still finish with a 10-win season as Brent Venables and his staff continues to rebuild a program devoid of talent when they arrived.
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