Tag: Nic Anderson

Nic Anderson named Big 12 Newcomer of the Week after performance vs. UCF

After a big performance against UCF, Redshirt Freshman Nic Anderson was named Big 12 Newcomer of the Week.

Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver [autotag]Nic Anderson[/autotag] is having an incredible season. On the season, he has 16 catches for 387 yards and eight touchdowns.

In his first start of the year on Saturday, Anderson recorded five receptions for 105 yards and two touchdowns. That performance earned Anderson Big 12 Newcomer of the Week for the second time in 2023.

He was instrumental to the Sooners’ win on a day when the wide receiver group was challenged by a physical UCF secondary. Anderson’s touchdowns sparked the Sooners offense in the first half as the Knights put the No. 6 Sooners on upset alert.

He’s averaging 24.3 yards per reception in 2023, which is second in the nation. Stepping in for the injured Andrel Anthony, Anderson had another big performance in a breakout season.

Saturday marked his second 100-yard day of the season and second multi-touchdown game. He has a touchdown reception in five straight games since not playing against SMU in week 2.

With the Sooners bowl eligible at 7-0, they’ll play at least 13 games this season. If they make the Big 12 title game, that’s at least 14 games in 2023. If Oklahoma only plays 14 games (could play 15 if they make the national championship game), Anderson’s season-long pace of production would be 32 receptions for 774 yards, and 16 touchdowns. Those 16 touchdowns would put him one off the OU single-season record of 17 receiving touchdowns set by [autotag]Dede Westbrook[/autotag] in 2016.

Now in a full-time role, it’s not unreasonable to believe his numbers continue to climb as the Sooners make their march to the Big 12 title game.

Here are some of the best photos of Nic Anderson in 2023.

Report Card: Sooners sleepwalk on offense in UCF scare

Oklahoma took on UCF for the first time Saturday. UCF hung tough but the Sooners pulled it out late. Here is this week’s report card.

Saturday’s performance was an aberration for Team 129. The team we saw on Saturday was eerily reminiscent of the team that took the field 13 times last season to not-so-fun results. Yet, they knuckled up and found a way when it mattered most.

If we’re being honest, last year’s team would not have won that game. But despite the miserable team performance, it never felt like they wouldn’t make the necessary plays to win. That is a true testament to the wholesale changes in mentality, effort, talent, and coaching from last year to 2023.

Let’s get to the bottom line here with the dust settled. Oklahoma won, but it might have been the worst they looked on offense all year. It’s time to pass out grades in this week’s report card.

3 Stars of the Game: Defensive end duo plays inspired ball in Sooners win

Oklahoma escaped UCF’s upset bid on Saturday. While it wasn’t pretty these three players stood out most for their performance.

Oklahoma narrowly escaped on Saturday against UCF in a game many did not foresee as razor-tight. At no point outside of the game’s first minutes did  Oklahoma have control.

Ultimately, that remained the case for the rest of the game. However, somehow, Oklahoma found themselves walking off Owen Field still undefeated and 7-0, surpassing their 2022 win total in October of this year.

While the product was far from pretty, the result mattered, and the Sooners won. A few players from the team stood out, and we have declared them our three stars for this week.

Three Stars of the Game

No. 1 Star – Ethan Downs, DE

Ethan Downs has upped his level of play this season and has become an impact defender along the defensive line for the Sooners.

He had a lights-out performance vs. Texas and was just as disruptive against UCF.

He had a highlight play that saw him blow up two UCF players on a 3rd and 8 in the first quarter and ended up sacking Knights quarterback John Rhys Plumlee.

Downs also had five tackles in the run game and was credited with a tackle for loss. His ability to set the edge was vital in forcing UCF to run between the tackles, where they did not have the physical or schematical advantage against the Sooners.

No. 2 Star – Trace Ford, DL

Trace Ford had arguably his best game of the season on Saturday. He was a disruptive force on the ground and as a pass rusher.

Ford came up with two tackles for loss and knocked down two passes at the line of scrimmage. He was active and energetic.

While he did struggle to contain the edge at times, he was undoubtedly one of the more impactful defenders on Saturday.

No. 3 Star – Nic Anderson, WR

There’s no way to overstate Nic Anderson’s arrival this year, but he’s announced himself in a big way. He’s third on the team in receiving yards, first in touchdowns, and is averaging 24.8 yards per reception.

On Saturday, he scored twice, led the team in receiving yards, and further proved to be a reliable weapon in the passing game.

Anderson is showcasing route running, awareness, and explosiveness.

With Andrel Anthony out for the remainder of this season, Nic Anderson looks like he’s officially a starter for the long haul. Oklahoma will depend on him to make plays going forward. It’s up to Anderson to continue to make the most of those opportunities.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Bryant on Twitter @thatmanbryant.

Five Takeaways from the Oklahoma Sooners 31-29 win over the UCF Knights

Oklahoma pulled out a nailbiter as they hung on to beat UCF 31-29 in Norman on Saturday. Here are our five takeaways from the game.

Oklahoma escaped by the skin of its teeth on Saturday as they downed Big 12 newcomer UCF 31-29. It was a game that came down to the waning minutes of the fourth quarter.

Considering how well Oklahoma has looked all season, it was a jarring performance. Especially after the Sooners had a bye week to put the Texas win behind them. Yet, on Saturday, after a relatively solid start, a pair of missed field goals kept the door open for UCF to run through. Before long, Oklahoma was fighting for its life and the right to stay undefeated.

When the dust cleared, the Sooners came out on top. A late surge in the fourth quarter was enough for Brent Venables’ team to get it done.

Here are five takeaways from the Sooners’ win.

Social media reacts to the Oklahoma Sooners narrow victory over the UCF Knights

“A win is a win” “Social media reacts to the Sooners 31-29 win over UCF.

It took a complete effort for four quarter from the Oklahoma Sooners to hang on and survive a scare from the UCF Knights.

The Big 12 newcomer had an opportunity to tie the game at the end, but Oklahoma stopped the 2-point attempt to hang on for the win.

Coming out of the bye week, the Sooners took the best the Knights had to offer and still came out on top. It wasn’t the cleanest game for the first-place team in the Big 12, but they were able to move to 7-0 on the season.

There’s a lot to clean up for the Sooners, who struggled on offense during the third quarter. Oklahoma still couldn’t figure out their running game until the fourth quarter despite UCF coming into the game with one of the worst run defenses in the country.

As we enjoy this latest win, here’s a look at some of the best reactions on social media.

Oklahoma Sooners survive, beat the UCF Knights 31-29 to stay unbeaten

It wasn’t pretty but the Oklahoma Sooners remained unbeaten with a 31-29 win over the UCF Knights.

The Oklahoma Sooners hung on to beat the UCF Knights 31-29 in a game that came down to the wire.

The Sooners’ defense started it off with a three-and-out but after a dropped direct snap and dropped pass by [autotag]Gavin Sawchuk[/autotag], the Sooners’ offense also went three and out.

The Sooners’ defense forced another three and out after a 3rd down sack by [autotag]Ethan Downs[/autotag]. UCF shanked the punt, and the Sooners started their next drive at UCF’s 40-yard line.

The Sooners offense couldn’t get anything going after a first down and [autotag]Zach Schmit[/autotag] missed a 38-yard field goal. While Sooners’ offense has looked out of sync, the defense has looked solid again as they forced another three and out. After another bad punt, the Sooners’ offense started the drive at the UCF 45-yard line.

Oklahoma cashed this time as [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag] found [autotag]Nic Anderson[/autotag] for a 29-yard score. The defense forced another three and out and had great field position again. But the offense couldn’t capitalize once again and Schmit once again missed the 43-yard field goal.

The Knights responded with a big run that put the ball first and goal on the Sooners’ one-yard line. Oklahoma’s defense came up big again and forced the Knights into a 4th and goal at the 2, but [autotag]Jaren Kanak[/autotag] was called for an unsportsmanlike penalty giving the Knights a first down.  [autotag]John Rhys Plumlee[/autotag] tied it up at seven with his touchdown run.

After an Oklahoma punt, the Knights had a 1st and goal from the six but the Sooners’ defense held and forced a field goal. The Knights took a 10-7 lead late in the second quarter.

The Sooners finally got something going on offense as Gabriel hit Anderson again this time for a 42-yard touchdown pass.

[autotag]Woodi Washington[/autotag] got caught playing the run instead of the run-pass option, and UCF threw an 86-yard touchdown pass to regain the lead.

Gabriel led a great drive before the half, where Schmit finally cashed in with a field to tie it up at 17 going into halftime.

The Knights outgained the Sooners 232 to 226 in the first half.

The Sooners started with the ball, and Gabriel threw it to [autotag]Drake Stoops[/autotag], who got hit as he was trying to catch it, which resulted in an interception. The defense forced a three-and-out, but the Knights were already in OU territory and kicked a field goal to take the 20-17 lead.

For a lot of the second half, the Sooners couldn’t get much going on offense.  Their first four drives of the second half ended with an interception and then three straight punts.

UCF added another field goal to make it 23-17 going into the fourth.

With 11:24 to play in the game, the Sooners finally got something going in the run game. Gavin Sawchuk picked up 23 yards on three carries and Marcus Major had two carries for 26 yards to help the Sooners get down the field before Drake Stoops took the screen pass from Gabriel for a touchdown.

With the score 24-23, the defense would get a stop after a huge sack by [autotag]Peyton Bowen[/autotag] to force a UCF punt.

The Sooners’ offense would take over and bleed the clock before Sawchuk busted it for a 30-yard touchdown run to put the Sooners up 31-23 late in the 4th Quarter.

UCF marched down the field and scored on a 4th down pass but the Sooners held on the two-point conversion to stay up 31-29.

The Sooners survived to remain unbeaten. The offense gained 442 yards of offense and held UCF to 397 total yards.

Dillon Gabriel had another solid day in the win, throwing for 253 yards and three touchdowns. He completed 66% of his passes and ran for 22 yards. Nic Anderson led the Sooners in receiving with five catches for 105 yards and two touchdowns. Drake Stoops caught seven passes for 60 yards and the go-ahead score.

On the ground, Marcus Major, who was apparently dealing with a shoulder injury coming into the game, carried the ball 18 times for 80 yards. Gavin Sawchuk, who got the start, rushed 10 times for 60 yards and a touchdown.

Defensively, Danny Stutsman led the way with 12 total tackles and a forced fumble. Key Lawrence had nine total tackles, including seven solo tackles in the win. Ethan Downs continued his strong 2023 season with six total tackles and a sack. In total, Oklahoma had three sacks and 13 tackles for loss.

Against one of the best run games in the country, the Sooners held the Knights to just 3.6 yards per carry and 149 yards rushing on the day.

It wasn’t a clean win, but the Oklahoma Sooners stayed undefeated. Now they get ready for a pair of road games in Lawrence to face the Kansas Jayhawks and then in Stillwater to face the Oklahoma State Cowboys.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on Twitter @JaronSpor.

Final thoughts on the Oklahoma Sooners matchup with the UCF Knights

As the Oklahoma Sooners get set to take on the UCF Knights, here are a few final thoughts ahead of week 8.

The Oklahoma Sooners are hoping to extend their undefeated start to the 2023 season when they take on the UCF Knights on Saturday. Oklahoma is a heavy favorite heading into the first-ever matchup between the two teams.

But the Knights have some talent that could pose problems for the Sooners when they take the field at 11 a.m. CT in Norman.

At Sooners Wire, we’re feeling good about the Sooners heading into this one. But based on the numbers, UCF can certainly make life difficult for Oklahoma.

Here are the players that will make the biggest impact for both Oklahoma and UCF, as well as keys to the game.

Ahead of the Big 12 contest, here are a few final thoughts on the Sooners vs. Knights.

Multiple Sooners featured on College Sports Wire’s Midseason All-Big 12 team

At the midway point of the season, a number of Oklahoma Sooners were featured on College Sports Wire’s Midseason All-Big 12 team.

Oklahoma’s 6-0 start to the 2023 season has garnered numerous accolades for individuals that have played a big role in the first half of the season. There’s a lot of football left in 2023 and the Sooners have big goals after knocking off Texas two weeks ago.

But at the midway point of the season, a number of Sooners have earned recognition for the team success.

Patrick Conn of College Sports Wire named his All-Big 12 team at the midway point, which featured several Sooners on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball.

Quarterback Dillon Gabriel earned the nod as Midseason Player of the Year and first-team quarterback on the Midseason All-Big 12 team.

What a difference has made for the Oklahoma Sooners, who were coming off the first losing season in Norman since 1999. The Southpaw has stayed healthy which has allowed the team to get off to a hot start in 2023. Provided that he keeps this up and stays healthy, the sky is the limit for the SEC-bound Oklahoma Sooners. – Conn, College Sports Wire

Gabriel’s thrown for 1,878 yards and 16 touchdowns, averaging 10.8 yards per attempt on the season. He’s also run for five touchdowns this season and has just two interceptions. He’s been a big-time player for Oklahoma and the work he did on the Sooners game-winning drive against Texas was the stuff of legend.

Joining Gabriel on the first-team offense are center Andrew Raym and wide receiver Jalil Farooq. Farooq isn’t Oklahoma’s leading receiver, but he’s not far off. He had a huge game against Texas with five catches for 130 yards.

Andrew Raym has been the anchor of an Oklahoma interior that has a lot of turnover through the first six games of the season. He’s allowed just four pressures on 230 pass block snaps per Pro Football Focus, and hasn’t allowed a sack.

On the College Sports Wire All-Big 12 second team is wide receiver Nic Anderson. In a rotational role, he leads the Sooners with six touchdown receptions. Anderson has an opportunity for a significantly increased snap count with the season-ending injury to Andrel Anthony. We’re about to find out just how good Anderson can be.

On the defensive side of the ball, Danny Stutsman has earned all of the Midseason All-American selections. In addition to his All-Big 12 first-team selection from College Sports Wire, Stutsman was named Midseason Defensive Player of the Year.

The Big 12’s leading tackler has really shown why the Oklahoma defense has been much improved. He leads the Big 12 in tackles and tackles per game. However, that isn’t all that the Oklahoma linebacker can do as he is second in the conference in tackles for loss. He should be among the contenders for the Dick Butkus Award by season’s end. – Conn, College Sports Wire

Stutsman is the face of an Oklahoma defense that has become one of the best in the country, allowing just 14 points per game. His play and his leadership have been instrumental in the Sooners’ defensive resurgence under Brent Venables. The numbers speak for themselves, but how important Stutsman is to this team goes beyond the stat book.

Joining Stutsman on the first team are defensive backs Kendel Dolby and Billy Bowman. They’ve both been incredibly impactful for the Sooners in coverage and combined for a big-time interception at the goal line against Texas. Bowman also came through on another goal-line stop of Xavier Worthy on 4th and 2. Dolby and Bowman are tied for second on the team with a pair of interceptions each.

Ethan Downs earned recognition on the second team. He leads the Sooners in pressures and sacks this season. He came through with a pair of sacks against Texas in the Sooners’ biggest win of the year.

There are several players that you could make a case for on both sides of the ball like Tyler Guyton or Walter Rouse along the offensive line. Key Lawrence and Gentry Williams have been great in the first half of the season for the Sooners secondary.

Oklahoma has big goals in 2023 and for them to reach the Big 12 title game and contend for a College Football Playoff berth, they’ll need a complete team effort, but their stars will need lead the Sooners over the second half of the season.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow John on Twitter @john9williams.

Keys to Victory: Oklahoma has to stop the run vs. UCF’s elite rushing attack

Oklahoma will take on UCF Saturday for the first time ever. How will the Sooners fare against the Big 12 newcomers? Here are 5 keys to a win

Saturday’s first-ever matchup between UCF and Oklahoma will be exciting. Storylines will focus on former Knights turned Sooners Dillon Gabriel and Jeff Lebby. Oklahoma is playing its first game since their season-altering win against Texas. The Sooners are first in the Big 12 standings. They are in a prime position to win out and punch their ticket to Arlington to play for one final Big 12 title.

Their ascension up the Big 12 mountain continues, with UCF making the trip to Norman.

UCF isn’t a team Oklahoma can go through the motions with and expect to win. The Sooners are ranked in the top 10 and are the target for teams wanting to spoil Oklahoma’s Big 12 and College Football Playoff push.

How does Oklahoma avoid a colossal letdown in front of what should be a packed house on Saturday? We’ve covered it in our keys to the game for an Oklahoma victory.

Caleb Shaffer could earn more opportunities after Red River Rivalry performance

Up to this point, Caleb Shaffer hasn’t had a big role for the Sooners but that could change going forward.

There was 1:17 left in the 4th quarter, in the Cotton Bowl, in the biggest game of the season for the Oklahoma Sooners. The Sooners offense trotted on the field missing their leading receiver, [autotag]Andrel Anthony[/autotag], and a starting offensive lineman who had played a ton of snaps in his career, [autotag]McKade Mettauer[/autotag].

Instead, two fresh faces were in to replace them and both ended up making a huge impact on that drive. [autotag]Nic Anderson[/autotag], who had played this season after missing most of last season, caught the game-winning touchdown pass. [autotag]Caleb Shaffer[/autotag], who is spending his first season in Norman after transferring from the [autotag]Miami (OH) Redhawks[/autotag], threw several key blocks to keep the Texas Longhorns pressure from getting to [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag].

Shaffer talked about what it was like to come into that game at that crucial moment.

“Once in a lifetime moment, for sure, looking back,” Shaffer said. “In the moment, I had to be focused. We had a game to win. We had to prepare. But when Coach B (Bill Bedenbaugh) called my name, I just got my mind ready. That’s what we’re here for. I got an opportunity. We prepare all week super hard. Practice execution equals game reality. When he threw me out there, I’m just going to fall back on what I’m coached, what I’m trained to do.”

Now, it’s unsure if Shaffer will be the starter going forward with Mettauer expected to miss a few weeks. He was named a captain for this week’s matchup, which could be a sign of things to come this Saturday. He’s earned himself an opportunity to get more reps going forward. That could start this Saturday against a defensive line that has struggled, especially against the run, since conference play started.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on Twitter @JaronSpor.