The Oklahoma Sooners nearly had the game slip away from them on Saturday against Auburn, but there wasn’t just one player who helped OU storm back to take the lead and hold off the Tigers.
Quarterback [autotag]Michael Hawkins Jr.[/autotag] shined in his first career start, providing the Sooners with enough big plays to get the win.
Linebacker [autotag]Kip Lewis[/autotag] made a play of the year candidate, intercepting a pass and returning it for 63 yards to give OU a lead it didn’t relinquish.
Safety [autotag]Robert Spears-Jennings[/autotag] had a pivotal sack that pushed Auburn’s offense back once the Sooners took the six-point lead.
But it was defensive end [autotag]R Mason Thomas[/autotag] who came up huge on back-to-back plays when the Sooners led by just three.
With the Tigers facing a third-and-5 at their 44-yard line with two minutes left, Thomas came around the edge and sacked Payton Thorne for a 6-yard loss. Head coach Hugh Freeze decided to roll the dice and try to pick up a fourth-and-11 and extend the drive.
Yet again, Thomas dealt a crushing blow to Auburn’s hopes. He chased Thorne all the way back to the Auburn 25, sacking the quarterback after it looked like Thorne might escape the pressure.
The two massive plays allowed OU to kick a field goal after Freeze was forced to burn his timeouts. Backup kicker [autotag]Zach Schmit[/autotag] drilled the ball through the uprights, and the Sooners held a six-point lead. The Tigers ran just five more plays, completing a Hail Mary well short of the end zone.
Thomas, who has become the best pass rusher on this team, stopped any momentum Auburn had, preventing the Tigers from getting anywhere close to field goal range. He had a similar performance a few weeks ago in OU’s win over Tulane, taking over in the late stages of that game when the Green Wave were trying to mount a comeback.
Oklahoma’s pass rush hasn’t gotten home very often this year. The Sooners have relied more on their run defense and sending extra defenders when it was time to get after the passer. Twice now, Thomas has risen to the occasion when the opponent had a chance to drive for a score at the end of the game.
The Sooners entered the season needing a “closer” to emerge from their defensive line. After five games, they may have found just that in Thomas.