Tag: Jackson Arnold

Can Jackson Arnold build on recent success for Oklahoma Sooners?

The Oklahoma Sooners offense has find a greater rhythm over the last few games as Joe Jon Finley has taken on a bigger role in the offense and as Jackson Arnold has been reinserted into the lineup. Over his last three games, Arnold has exhibited a …

The Oklahoma Sooners offense has find a greater rhythm over the last few games as Joe Jon Finley has taken on a bigger role in the offense and as Jackson Arnold has been reinserted into the lineup.

Over his last three games, Arnold has exhibited a greater level of comfort at the helm for the Sooners than he did in his first four as the starting quarterback. In games against South Carolina, Ole Miss, and Maine, Arnold is averaging 209 passing yards, 59 rushing yards, and has six total touchdowns.

Over his first four starts, Arnold averaged just 134.5 passing yards per game and 41.25 rushing yards per game. He had nine total touchdowns but also threw three interceptions.

Since Finley was promoted to playcaller and Kevin Johns was elevated to co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach after the loss to South Carolina, Arnold’s completion percentage has jumped to 71.2%. And as important, Arnold is limiting the turnovers.

He’s playing with a greater comfort level and the offense has been more efficient. And that’s something Arnold attributes to the promotion of Johns.

“The biggest thing was not playing carefree, but I had nothing else to lose,” Arnold said. “Just having that edge and playing like that has really let me see things better and just play more comfortable and more loose. And (quarterbacks coach Kevin Johns), since he got promoted, he’s been big about us being efficient as quarterbacks.”

Arnold mentioned when he met with the media that the message from Johns has been efficiency. Complete passes and keep the ball moving. And that’s shown up in a big way. Arnold’s been more content taking the dump-offs and underneath options in the passing game. Jovantae Barnes went for 57 receiving against Ole Miss as Arnold got the ball out quickly to his running back in the flat and let him work in space.

There’s still work to do and growth to occur, but Arnold has taken steps since he was benched against Tennessee. And with new voices in the offensive hierarchy providing greater comfort, Arnold’s proving capable of developing into the quarterback his five-star rating believed he could be.

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What did Jackson Arnold say about the potential return of Deion Burks, Jalil Farooq?

What did Jackson Arnold have to say about the potential return of Deion Burks and Jalil Farooq?

Though the Oklahoma Sooners will not be playing to earn a spot in a title game or the College Football Playoff, they have an opportunity to finish the season on a high note.

Starting this week against Missouri, the Sooners play three top 25 teams: the Tigers, Alabama and LSU. And they might be getting right on offense at the right time. Things are clicking a bit better for quarterback Jackson Arnold after he was reinserted against South Carolina, and he might be getting some help this week.

Brent Venables mentioned that wide receivers Deion Burks and Jalil Farooq could return for the Sooners when they make the trip to Columbia to take on old Big 8 and Big 12 foe Missouri.

Speaking with the media on Tuesday night, Jackson Arnold was a little more emphatic, saying, “I feel like on the field, you have two explosive guys coming back that are key pieces to our offense.”

He went on to talk about the confidence it gives the Sooners offense to have the two leaders on the field. Burks and Farooq should open the field for the offense. Burks in the slot and Farooq outside give the Sooners two dynamic playmakers that can make life a lot easier for Arnold and the offense.

Farooq was injured on the first series of the season. He broke his foot and required surgery. Burks went down in the loss to Tennessee. With both possibly returning this week and with what the Sooners have shown on offense the last couple of weeks, the offense might be coming together with three games remaining.

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Oklahoma Sooners captains against Missouri Tigers

The Sooners will be led by some of the biggest names on the team as captains against the Tigers.

The Oklahoma Sooners take the road this week, heading to Columbia, Missouri as they jump back into [autotag]SEC[/autotag] play. The 5-4 Sooners will look to win their second straight game, as they’ll visit the Missouri Tigers for a primetime battle away from home.

OU head coach [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] has announced his game captains for this conference tilt, and his team will be represented by some of the biggest names on the roster in a pivotal contest. Quarterback [autotag]Jackson Arnold[/autotag], tight end [autotag]Bauer Sharp[/autotag], defensive linemen [autotag]Damonic Williams[/autotag] and [autotag]Gracen Halton[/autotag], linebacker [autotag]Danny Stutsman[/autotag] and defensive back [autotag]Billy Bowman Jr.[/autotag] will lead Oklahoma into battle as captains in week eleven.

Arnold has gone from the heir-apparent, to the no-doubt starter, to being benched, to being re-inserted in the lineup, and now back to captain status in a whirlwind month and a half. The sophomore has looked more comfortable since regaining his starting spot, and his play will go a long way toward deciding this week’s game.

Sharp has shown some positive things at tight end, but there’s still plenty to work on for a player still new to the position. The coaching staff clearly trusts him to get the lion’s share of the reps, and he’s been more effective since the offensive coordinator change.

Williams was a big offseason addition for this team, and has been been reliable in the interior of the defensive line. He hasn’t been spectacular, but he’s helped one of the strongest units on the team consistently shut down the inside run game week after week.

Halton has improved so much over the last couple of seasons, and is really coming into his own as another great interior line option on this defense. He’s found a knack for getting into the backfield and making big plays, none bigger than his game-changing safety against Houston all the way back in week two.

Stutsman is the unquestioned leader of this team, and one of the best inside linebackers in college football. He hasn’t seen as many wins in his senior season as he’d like, but he continues to excel no matter how far back against the wall the offense puts the defense this year.

Bowman Jr. hasn’t matched his unbelievable production from a year ago, but he’s still a very good veteran player in the back end of OU’s defense. If he can return to his ball-hawking, turnover-causing 2023 form, it’ll help this team immensely over the final four weeks of the regular season.

The Sooners are putting some of their biggest stars front and center for this game. The noteworthy names, especially Stutsman, Bowman Jr. and Arnold will have to play like stars on Saturday, and the rest of the season, for Oklahoma to begin stacking wins in the SEC.

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Oklahoma Sooners offense trending in right direction

With three games to go, are the Oklahoma Sooners finally hitting their stride on offense?

The Oklahoma Sooners offense certainly isn’t where it needs to be. Nobody is going to mistake the 2024 Oklahoma offense for one that led to four Heismans in this century. However, after switching to Joe Jon Finley as their playcaller, the Sooners have found a rhythm.

Oklahoma scored 14 points in the first half against Ole Miss. That was the most they’d scored in the opening 30 minutes since putting up 21 points in the first half against Tulane. That was back on Sept. 14. Nearly two months ago.

Just before halftime against the Rebels, OU went on a 92-yard drive to take the lead, converting critical third downs and showing good balance. Though there were less than two minutes, the run game kept the Ole Miss defensive line from pinning their ears back. We all saw what happened late in the game when OU was forced to throw. Oklahoma didn’t have nearly as much success in the second half. Chalk that up to an inexperienced playcaller failing to make adjustments or Ole Miss keying in on what the Sooners wanted to do. Either way, it shouldn’t detract from the positive strides the Sooners made in the first half.

Then this week, against Maine, the Sooners started slow with a punt on their first drive, but that was the only time they didn’t have a success. The Sooners scored on all but one drive (the Sam Franklin fumble in the red zone) and put up their highest point total of the season.

In both weeks, Jackson Arnold completed more than 70% of his passes, showing a greater comfort level running the offense. He looked more confident and poised in the pocket and displayed better awareness of when to scramble.

The running game finally found its legs with Finley’s influence increasing. It started against South Carolina, but because of the early 21-point deficit, the Sooners couldn’t fully lean into running the ball.

But against Ole Miss, a team that had only allowed 66 yards per game and two yards per carry on the season, the Sooners had arguably their best day running the football as Jovantae Barnes and Taylor Tatum both averaged more than four yards per carry. Barnes ran for 67 yards. Taking sack yardage out of the equation, Arnold ran for 99 yards, according to Pro Football Focus.

And the run game success continued last week as Barnes ran for 203 yards on 18 carries and the team tallied 381 rushing yards against Maine.

The offense still has room to improve but given the injuries Oklahoma’s suffered on offense, it’s not surprising this year has been a struggle. But here’s hoping they can build off of the last two weeks and finish the season on a high note.

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Relive Oklahoma’s big win over Maine with the best photos from Week 10

Relive the Oklahoma Sooners big win over the Maine Black Bears through these fantastic photos.

Man, the Oklahoma Sooners needed that. Outside of the first offensive and defensive possessions, it was pure domination for the Sooners in their 59-14 win over Maine.

The Sooners outgained Maine 665 to 251 with 381 rushing yards.

Jovantae Barnes led the way for the Sooners with a career-high 203 rushing yards and three touchdowns. It was a huge day for Barnes, who was injured for much of the 2023 season after a strong start to his career as a true freshman in 2022.

J.J. Hester also had a big day with a career-high 112 receiving yards, featuring a 90-yard touchdown reception from Jackson Arnold.

This win doesn’t mean the Oklahoma Sooners are back or are without questions, but it was a refreshing turn of events that helped break a three-game losing streak.

The Sooners have a challenging trio of games to end the season but they have a chance to end on a high note if they can build on this performance.

Here’s a look at some of the best photos from the Sooners win over Maine

Oklahoma Sooners run wild in big win over Maine

The Oklahoma Sooners ran for over 300 yards in their dominant win over the Maine Black Bears.

It was a dreary day in Norman as the Oklahoma Sooners took on the Maine Black Bears from the FCS. Though Maine scored first, the Oklahoma Sooners ultimately took care of business to pick up the 59-14 win.

The Sooners got the run game going early with [autotag]Jovantae Barnes[/autotag], who ripped off a 73-yard run before being tackled just short of the end zone. Two plays later, Barnes punched it in to tie the game at seven.

Oklahoma then added to the lead on a one-yard run by [autotag]Taylor Tatum[/autotag]. The score capped off a 15-play, 84-yard touchdown drive. Oklahoma converted two third downs and a fourth down on the drive to come away with points and take the lead.

After the Sooners allowed the opening touchdown drive, the defense settled in and took control, forcing punt after punt.

An Oklahoma fumble ruined the Sooners’ opportunity to expand their lead Sam Franklin couldn’t handle the option pitch from Jackson Arnold. But OU’s defense forced a three-and-out, and after a short punt, the Sooners got the ball back in Black Bears territory.

Barnes ripped off another big run to put the Sooners inside the 10, and Jackson Arnold finished it off with a one-yard touchdown to make it 21-7.

Maine was able to pick up a couple of first downs on their next drive but had to punt it back to the Sooners, pinning OU at the 10-yard line. Two plays later, Arnold hit [autotag]J.J. Hester[/autotag] for a 90-yard touchdown as the OU quarterback scrambled to his left.

Another three-and-out gave the Sooners the ball with just under two minutes to play. Oklahoma rode the legs of Jovantae Barnes, who had a huge day. Barnes carried the ball four times for 37 yards and his second touchdown of the day to put Oklahoma up 35-7 before halftime.

After halftime, it was more of the same as the Sooners forced a fumble on Maine’s opening drive and then responded with another Barnes touchdown, his third of the game.

The Sooners scored on every drive of the second half. Tight end Kaden Helms scored his first career touchdown on a nine-yard touchdown pass from Arnold.

Xavier Robinson also scored his first career touchdown on the Sooners’ final drive of the game. OU got Robinson heavily involved, giving him the ball seven times on the eight-play drive. Robinson accounted for 75 yards, including a 46-yard reception from quarterback Michael Hawkins, Jr.

In the win, Arnold was 15 of 21 (71%) for 224 yards and two touchdowns through the air. On the ground, he ran nine times for 45 yards and a touchdown.

Barnes had a career day with 203 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 18 carries. He had just one reception, but it went for 19 yards. He had another great game for the Sooners, showing speed and elusiveness as the Sooners lead runner.

Thanks to his 90-yard touchdown, Hester caught four passes for 112 yards.

The Sooners ran for 338 yards and averaged 7.3 yards per carry in the game. They were 10 of 14 on third down and 2 of 2 on fourth down and gained 665 yards of total offense.

Defensively, Danny Stutsman led the way with six total tackles and a sack. Defensive tackles Davon Sears and David Stone also recorded sacks in the win, as the Sooners’ defense only allowed 251 yards.

Oklahoma’s defense allowed more points than one would expect. Aside from a big play on Maine’s second-to-last drive, the Sooners played solid football while playing several young defenders throughout the contest.

It was a strong performance from the Sooners, who did what they needed to do on both sides of the ball to move to 5-4 on the season. Now, Oklahoma looks to build off of it with a road trip to face Missouri before closing the season with matchups against Alabama and LSU to close the season after the bye.

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Will Jackson Arnold be back for Oklahoma Football in 2025?

At his weekly press conference, Brent Venables expressed confidence in Oklahoma’s future at quarterback.

The Oklahoma Sooners didn’t envision needing to answer the question of who would be their quarterback in 2025, but this season has been one of many surprises.

Brent Venables removed starting quarterback Jackson Arnold after three turnovers in first half of the loss to Tennessee. Venables then went back to his former five-star in the first quarter against South Carolina after turnovers by Michael Hawkins Jr. on the Sooners’ first three possessions. Despite the yo-yo that the quarterback position has found itself in, Venables doesn’t believe there’s any reason to worry about whether or not Jackson Arnold will return to quarterback the Sooners in 2025.

At his weekly press conference, Venables said, “Dang right, he wants to be back. Why would he not? That’s the way I look at it….  you’re the starting quarterback at Oklahoma. This is your dream. You turned down a lot of good people to come here, and now that you’ve faced some headwinds, now you’re just going to quit? I don’t see that in him, and I don’t see that in guys in our locker room.”

Arnold is now just five starts and six games into his collegiate career. There have been some growing pains, but he’s looked really good at times, including in Saturday’s loss to Ole Miss. There was enough to like from his performance on the road against a good Ole Miss team that the Sooners should feel comfortable continuing to develop Arnold and looking to him to be their quarterback in 2025.

Arnold stayed ready to roll for the Sooners and it showed in his relief appearance against South Carolina and in the first half against Ole Miss. Venables isn’t concerned about Arnold or anyone else in the locker room losing focus despite the difficulties they’ve faced this year.

At one point, it felt like Oklahoma’s promising quarterback situation was unraveling. But as the season has come along, it became clear that the Sooners’ offensive struggles had less to do with the quarterbacks and more to do with the issues around them along the offensive line and at wide receiver.

The Sooners offense has a lot of growing to do, but after Arnold’s performance against Ole Miss, the Sooners can feel confident in the direction at quarterback once again. Arnold looking to return next season takes a major need off the transfer portal recruiting board.

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3 offensive performances against Ole Miss that Oklahoma can build on

Who are three players on Oklahoma’s offense that stood out in Saturday’s loss?

It’s no secret that the offense for the Oklahoma Sooners this season has been bad. It’s the worst unit OU has fielded on that side of the ball since 1998, and one of the team’s two offensive coordinators was fired seven games into the year by head coach [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag].

Despite only putting up 14 points in Saturday’s loss against the Ole Miss Rebels, Oklahoma’s offense improved from what we saw versus Texas and South Carolina. Though they were shut out in the second half and the offensive line allowed a school-record 10 sacks, there were some positives to take away, albeit small ones.

The Sooners played some of their best offensive football in weeks in the game’s first half, and though it fell apart at the end of the game, there are a few players on that side of the ball that rose to the top and had positive outings, despite the chaos.

Here are three players on OU’s offense who deserve credit for the way they played against Ole Miss.

1. Jacob Jordan, WR

Despite being a true freshman walk-on, wide receiver [autotag]Jacob Jordan[/autotag] caught six passes for 38 yards on Saturday. He’s currently OU’s most effective wideout, and he possesses the combination of being able to get open and being able to catch the ball.

All of Oklahoma’s other wide receivers had exactly one catch in the game (J.J. Hester) and Jordan deserves even more snaps and targets than he’s already getting. Despite less experience this season than OU’s other reserve wide receivers, he’s had more impact in two games than they have all season.

2. Jackson Arnold, QB

Quarterback [autotag]Jackson Arnold[/autotag] should be applauded for not sitting and pouting when he was benched in favor of Michael Hawkins Jr. earlier this year. Instead of redshirting, transferring, refusing to play, or sulking, Arnold continued to stay ready for the team. In this day and age of college football, that’s extremely rare and speaks to the high character Arnold possesses.

He’s now burned that redshirt, and has become OU’s starter under center again. He displayed some really good things on Saturday, despite being under pressure most of the day. He played well in the first half, but was under constant duress when the Sooners were blanked in the second half.

He went 22-for-31 with 182 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions through the air. Take the sack yardage out and Arnold ran for 99 yards, according to Pro Football Focus.

The potential that the staff raved about with Arnold can be seen in glimpses. Let’s see if he can start to put the pieces together over the final four games of 2024, and then see what happens after that.

3. Jovantae Barnes, RB

Running back [autotag]Jovantae Barnes[/autotag] is the offensive player I’ve been the most proud of over the past two weeks. He plays as hard as anyone on the team, and runs with physicality whenever he has the ball in his hands. His effort against Ole Miss kept the OU offense on the field on multiple occasions.

Barnes had 16 carries for 67 yards and added five catches for 57 yards, to lead OU in yards through the air and on the ground. He doesn’t have the speed or elusiveness that other players in the running back room posses, but he’s so tough and powerful when he gets moving north and south.

Ole Miss has a good defensive front that is one of the nation’s best against the run. Barnes certainly didn’t have a record-breaking day, but he showed that his effort and tenacity won’t stop and that he can be a focal point for this offense moving forward.

Jackson Arnold tough under pressure against Ole Miss

The Oklahoma Sooners offense was better against Ole Miss and in large part because of Jackson Arnold’s performance.

The Oklahoma Sooners offense had scored just 12 points in their two previous games. Oklahoma made a coaching change, removing Seth Littrell, handing play-calling duties over to Joe Jon Finley and promoting Kevin Johns to co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.

Amid all the changes, [autotag]Jackson Arnold[/autotag] was named the starter once again ahead of Ole Miss and played valiantly in the 26-14 loss.

He finished the day 22 of 31 for 182 yards and two touchdowns. According to Pro Football Focus, Arnold also ran for 99 yards on 15 attempts when you take the sack yardage out of the equation. Arnold showed improved decision-making and escapability while under pressure on 42.9% of his dropbacks.

Under pressure, he was 8 of 11 for 52 yards and a touchdown, according to PFF.

His touchdown throw to Jacob Jordan showed his ability to make a play under pressure, avoiding the Ole Miss rush and escaping to the right. Arnold made a really nice throw on the move to hit Jordan in the front corner of the end zone for his second touchdown of the day. That came after Oklahoma started with the ball on their eight-yard line and Arnold helped orchestrate a strong two-minute drill to give the Sooners the lead just before halftime.

“Quite honestly, that’s one of my favorite drives of the year so far,” Arnold said after the game. “Even though we lost today, that drive, that will be in my mind forever, honestly. That was a fantastic drive.”

Though the offense couldn’t carry that momentum over into the second half, Arnold showed improved poise and decision-making. He was much more under control, commanding the offense, and leading the Sooners on drives that showed they could be a capable offensive unit despite some of the personnel issues they’re dealing with.

After sitting on the sidelines, Arnold has returned to the lineup with much more confidence.

“I think it’s just playing carefree,” Arnold said. “Don’t get that mixed up with not caring about what I’m playing for. But we have nothing to lose right now. It’s just a different mindset that I’m kind of attacking it with. A different level of confidence. And really just going out there and playing free.”

Over the final four games of the season, the Sooners will need Arnold to play with the same demeanor to have success on offense.

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Oklahoma’s run game provides offense with a boost

The Oklahoma Sooners may be finding their ground game in the second half of the season.

The Oklahoma Sooners run game has begun to find some answers. Facing an Ole Miss team that was No. 1 in the nation in rushing yards allowed per game and yards per carry, the Sooners ground game came through in a big way.

According to Pro Football Focus, who takes sack yardage out of the rushing totals, the Sooners ran for 208 yards on 40 carries. That’s an average of 5.2 yards per carry. Barnes was quick to find the whole and churned out a lot of positive runs, even if they didn’t all go for big gains. He ran for 67 yards on 16 carries, averaging 4.2 yards per carry.

Arnold showed off his athleticism and toughness picking up 99 rush yards, 71 of which came in the scramble game.

True freshman running back Taylor Tatum had a solid performance as well. He carried the ball nine times for 42 yards. He lost a fumble, highlighting some ball security issues, but has shown he’s got the talent to be a dynamic weapon in the Sooners offense. He just has to protect the ball better.

New play caller and co-offensive coordinator Joe Jon Finley was pleased with the success Oklahoma had in the run game.

“Nobody rushes the ball on these guys like we did,” new offensive coordinator Joe Jon Finley said after the game. “Those are things you can build upon … It’s in there. We just got to be more consistent. Do it for one half, now we got to do it for a complete game.”

While the Oklahoma Sooners offensive line struggled to pass protect on the final few drives, they did a great job in the ground game, providing better lanes for Barnes, Arnold, and Tatum to run through.

Over the final four games, the Oklahoma Sooners will need their run game to continue to be efficient for them.

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