Tag: Tawee Walker

Jovantae Barnes ready to seize his opportunity

The Sooners running back room has been led by Marcus Major and Tawee Walker but Jovantae Barnes is ready to seize his opportunity.

Through two games, we haven’t seen much of [autotag]Jovantae Barnes[/autotag] or [autotag]Gavin Sawchuck[/autotag] on the field for the Oklahoma Sooners. Those two were perceived to be the guys at the running back position before the season started.

Right now the running back room has been led by [autotag]Marcus Major[/autotag] and [autotag]Tawee Walker[/autotag]. Many have been left wondering why we haven’t seen the two young guns that much this season.

Barnes told reporters they have a deep group at running back.

“Marcus and Tawee have been doing a great job,” Barnes said. “They’ve been doing a great job since spring, and they’re showing you right now. Everything they’ve been doing since spring is showing, and you guys are just now seeing it. I already have seen it.”

Despite the limited work in the first two games of the season, Jovantae Barnes is ready to take advantage of whatever opportunity presents itsefl.

“I’m just waiting on my opportunity, my name to be called,” Barnes said. “And as soon as my name is called, I just do my job and make sure I take care of what I’ve got to do.”

Those opportunities should start to grow this weekend, as offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby said it’s time to get Barnes and Sawchuck going. Brent Venables echoed that statement on his coach’s show but also alluded to some off-season injuries for both guys as to why they might not be getting as much of a load so far.

While Major and Walker have been good stories and have been holding it down, the Sooners need Barnes and Sawchuck to help take this team to another level.

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Report Card: Defense flies high, offense stuck in a rut in 28-11 win over SMU

In our report card for Oklahoma’s performance against SMU, the defense leads the way with the highest marks.

The offense didn’t put its best foot forward in the Sooners 28-11 win over SMU. However, the defense kept Oklahoma in control until the Sooners were able to put together a couple of late scoring drives to seal the win.

Oklahoma knows it will have to play better as the season wears on. They’ll need to improve in all three phases to be in the mix for a Big 12 title berth in November. But for this game, it was enough.

Instead of a shootout, we got a game where neither team even scratched 40 points.

Here’s how each position group graded out in the 28-11 win over SMU.

5 takeaways from the Oklahoma Sooners win over SMU Mustangs

From Danny Stutsman to Tawee Walker, here are five takeaways from the Oklahoma Sooners 28-11 win over the SMU Mustangs.

“Just win, baby.” The words made famous by long-time Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis, remind us the most important thing a football team can accomplish on Saturdays is going home with a W.

And that’s what the Oklahoma Sooners did.

The offensive performance may not have met expectations, but the defense certainly stood strongly, allowing the Sooners’ offense to do enough.

In the end, the Sooners won a tough football game in which the defense was relied upon to make plays and stand strong long enough for the offense to find its rhythm in the fourth quarter and put the game away.

The Sooners played a complete game in Week 2. Here are five takeaways from the win over SMU:

Oklahoma Sooners win a defensive slugfest, beating SMU 28-11

Oklahoma’s defense took center stage as they hold a talented SMU team to just 11 points en route to a 28-11 victor on Saturday evening.

Saturday evening in Norman brought a fascinating twist. Instead of the high-octane, offensive shootout we all expected, we were treated to a defensive struggle most of the game as the Oklahoma Sooners beat the SMU Mustangs 28-11.

Oklahoma seemingly refused to put their foot on the gas as an offense, opting for a run-heavy attack.

Oklahoma came out with a game plan to dominate the line of scrimmage and control the ball. The plan seemed competent at times, but the scoreboard didn’t reflect an offense firing on all cylinders.

Oklahoma took advantage of a blocked punt by five-star freshman safety [autotag]Peyton Bowen[/autotag]. The Sooners opened the scoring on a busted coverage by SMU, opening the door for a 29-yard pass from [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag] to [autotag]Andrel Anthony[/autotag] for his first touchdown as a Sooner.

The Sooners defense stood firm in the first half, only allowing 3 points.

The Sooners allowed the Mustangs to get to the 50-yard line numerous times but on a number of occasions, the Sooners forced punts shortly after. Oklahoma entered the half up 14-3.

After the half, SMU and OU traded punts before the Mustangs got the ball back.

Jaylan Knight gashed the Sooners’ defense for what looked like a momentum-stealing play before [autotag]Key Lawrence[/autotag] stripped the ball to force a turnover. [autotag]Woodi Washington[/autotag] kept the ball from skirting out of bounds and [autotag]Danny Stutsman[/autotag] got the recovery.

The Sooners drove 43 yards in eleven plays only to be stood up on 4th down when SMU stopped freshman quarterback [autotag]Jackson Arnold[/autotag] short of the line to gain on fourth down.

SMU rode that momentum down the field and scored their only touchdown of the evening on a [autotag]Preston Stone[/autotag] pass to Jake Bailey. The Mustangs also scored on the two-point conversion to make it 14-11.

Oklahoma had to answer and did.

Dillon Gabriel orchestrated an 11-play, 75-yard drive down the field, culminating in a 21-yard touchdown pass to junior receiver Jalil Farooq. That gave the Sooners a 21-11 lead with 9:11 remaining in the game.

On the ensuing drive, SMU was aggressive, going for it on fourth down deep in their own territory. A pass breakup from true freshman safety Peyton Bowen gave the Sooners the ball on downs.

Three plays later, [autotag]Marcus Major[/autotag] caught a pass from Gabriel and matriculated down the sideline on the way to paydirt, giving Oklahoma a 28-11 with 6:40 remaining on the clock.

Oklahoma’s defense capped off a solid effort with a Justin Harrington interception late in the fourth to seal the game with one last stop.

It was far from an aesthetically pleasing win like the Sooners had against Arkansas State. But the defense stepped up to the plate and played well for four quarters against a talented SMU offense. And in the second half, the offense made enough plays to pull away.

Oklahoma’s defense held the SMU Mustangs to 355 yards and gave up just 11 points. Offensively, the Sooners tallied 365 yards and had no turnovers.

Dillon Gabriel wasn’t asked to do a whole lot on the evening but completed 70% of his passes for 176 yards and four touchdowns.

[autotag]Tawee Walker[/autotag] led the way on the ground for OU with 21 carries for 117 yards. Walker also had three receptions for 25 yards, proving to be Oklahoma’s lead back through two weeks. Andrel Anthony was the leading receiver with seven catches for 76 yards and a touchdown catch.

Danny Stutsman had a huge game for the defense, totaling 17 tackles, (five solo), a sack, 2.5 tackles for loss, and a quarterback hit. [autotag]Kip Lewis[/autotag] was second on the team in tackles with nine total tackles.

Oklahoma (2-0, 0-0 Big 12) will now turn its sights to in-state foe Tulsa. They’ll travel to Tulsa to play the Golden Hurricane as the road team in a sold-out venue next Saturday. SMU (1-1, 0-0 AAC) will host Prairie View A&M in Dallas next week.

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Report Card: Sooners breeze through Arkansas State with big-time performances

The Oklahoma Sooners were fantastic in their win over Arkansas State, but how did they grade in this week’s Report Card?

Saturday allowed us to see team 129 in Oklahoma’s illustrious football history for the first time this season. This team entered the day with cautious optimism, but a cloud of last season’s disappointment still hungover over the program. Year two of Brent Venables’s tenure needed to start off with a bang, and his team did just that as they dismantled the Arkansas State Red Wolves 73-0.

The Sooners are on another level regarding raw talent than the Arkansas State Red Wolves. That is abundantly clear, but Oklahoma had to show it could dominate an inferior opponent. They also needed to showcase the improvements in recruiting and among their returning players.

Saturday was a fun, stress-free showcase of domination. Now that the first game is behind us, it’s time to dive deeper and hand out our first grades of the year in this week’s report card.

Oklahoma Sooners shutout the Arkansas State Red Wolves in 73-0 win

Oklahoma Sooners open the season in dominant fashion with a 73-0 win over Arkansas State.

The Oklahoma Sooners kicked off the season versus the Arkansas State Red Wolves in Norman on Saturday.

The Sooners started the first quarter strong as they took the ball first, and after a deep ball from [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag] to [autotag]Andrel Anthony[/autotag], Drake Stoops took a short pass for the score.

The defense answered with a three and out.

After the three-and-out, it was special teams that joined the party. Gavin Freeman took the punt return 82 yards to the house to put the Oklahoma Sooners up 14-0 just a few minutes into the game.

The Sooners were dominant in every phase of the game in the first quarter.

The Red Wolves connected on a 28-yard pass on a slant to Corey Rucker that came after a face mask on [autotag]Billy Bowman[/autotag]. That drive ended in a missed field goal after the Sooners stymied the Red Wolves offense.

[autotag]Marcus Major[/autotag] added to the Sooners’ lead with a two-yard run after a 10-play 80-yard drive. Oklahoma went up 21-0 midway through the first quarter. Closing off the scoring in the first quarter was [autotag]Gavin Freeman[/autotag], who scored his second touchdown of the day on a pass from [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag] to make it 28-0.

The only negatives of the quarter were the injuries suffered by key Sooners.

[autotag]Drake Stoops[/autotag] went off holding his shoulder and came back out with a sling and ice on it. [autotag]Dasan McCullough[/autotag] limped off and eventually went to the locker room with a bad limp as well.

The second quarter went much like the first. On defense, the Sooners gave up a chunk of play when quarterback J.T. Shrout threw a nice touch pass over Jaren Kanak to Courtney Jackson for a long gain. The Sooners’ defense bowed up and held Arkansas State to another missed field goal.

Arkansas State had opportunities to make plays in the passing game, but several drops stalled drives and bailed the Sooners out.

The offense was great again in the second quarter, completing the half with a score on every drive.

Gabriel threw for 308 yards and two touchdowns and carried the ball twice for 15 yards and another score. Gabriel completed 81% of his passes. He was decisive and accurate, getting the ball out quickly to his wide receivers and connecting with Sooners at every level of the passing attack. [autotag]Tawee Walker[/autotag], [autotag]Marcus Major[/autotag], and Jovantae Barnes played well, running physical and picking up big runs throughout the half.

After 30 minutes of play, Oklahoma was up 45-0 with zero signs of slowing down.

The second half continued to favor the Oklahoma Sooners. The first-team defense came out and forced a three-and-out, paving the way for the debut of [autotag]Jackson Arnold[/autotag].

On Arnold’s debut drive, he helped lead the Sooners on an eight-play 65-yard scoring effort that was capped off by a Tawee Walker one-yard run.

Arnold’s next drive saw the Sooners open up the passing game a bit. The former five-star quarterback was 4-for-4, leading Oklahoma on a four-play scoring drive that was capped off by Arnold’s first touchdown pass of his OU career on a beautiful play from Jayden Gibson. That score made it 59-0. Arnold helped the Sooners cash in just a few players later, taking advantage of an Arkansas State fumble.

Arnold showed off his legs, carrying the ball for a seven-yard touchdown to put the Sooners up 66-0.

The Sooners capped off their scoring on Arnold’s final drive of the game. Oklahoma went 11 plays and 67 yards spanning 7:22 of game time. The drive culminated in a seven-yard touchdown run by Kalib Hicks.

Offensively, Oklahoma spread the ball around. 10 Sooners had a reception. The Sooners slot trio of [autotag]Drake Stoop[/autotag]s, [autotag]Gavin Freeman[/autotag], and [autotag]Jaquaize Pettaway[/autotag] combined for 17 receptions for 131 yards and two touchdowns. [autotag]Andrel Anthony[/autotag] showed off his downfield ability in his debut for the Sooners. Anthony caught three passes for 66 yards and drew a pass interference call.

[autotag]Jayden Gibson[/autotag] and [autotag]Nic Anderson[/autotag], Oklahoma’s 2022 signees, also came up big in the win. Gibson had two receptions for 56 yards and a touchdowns and Anderson secured two catches for 66 yards.

Though there’s room for improvement, the running game was really good on Saturday. They ran for 220 yards and averaged 4.5 yards per carry. They were picking up chunk yards, but there were times that they were dropped for losses, putting them behind the chains. Walker was the most efficient on the day, averaging 5.5 yards per carry in the game and finishing with 44 yards and two touchdowns on eight carries. [autotag]Jovantae Barnes[/autotag] carried it 13 times for 49 yards.

It was a fantastic performance by the defense despite a lack of pass rush. Arkansas State couldn’t sustain any offense, and the Sooners held them to 208 total yards and just 4.2 yards per play.

After struggling on third and fourth down in 2022, Oklahoma was able to get off the field consistently, holding the Red Wolves to just 2-of-12 on third down and 0-1 on fourth down.

The Sooners were dominant from start to finish in this game, setting a tone early and keeping that edge for a full 60 minutes.

The shutout win provides some confidence for the Oklahoma Sooners as they get ready to face better offenses in the coming weeks starting with SMU in week two.

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.

Media weighs in on Oklahoma’s breakout player, toughest game in 2023

OU and College Football Media Personalities weigh in on which Sooners will have a breakout season for Oklahoma in 2023. Which game will be the toughest this season?

The 2023 college football season is nigh upon us. The Oklahoma Sooners open the season with the Arkansas State Red Wolves coming to town.

A new year creates new opportunities for players on both sides of the ball to experience breakout seasons.

While depth was an issue a year ago, the work of this coaching staff on the recruiting trail and through the transfer portal have helped create competition at a number of spots. The Sooners feel good about the “competitive depth” they’re carrying into the season across the board.

Oklahoma released its depth chart ahead of week one, which provided some answers to the position battles they’ve been working through this year. But how will that depth reveal itself on gameday and which players will experience breakout seasons in 2023?

We’ve gathered the opinions of a number of media personalities from across Oklahoma Sooners coverage. Here’s who they think will have a breakout year and which game will be the toughest in 2023.

From my days covering the Dallas Cowboys for Inside The Star, this has been one of my favorite pieces to create.

Hope you enjoy.

Four Horsemen: Jeff Lebby, Oklahoma excited about running back depth

A deep stable of running backs will be on display for the Oklahoma Sooners in 2023.

Like any team, the Oklahoma Sooners want to create balance on offense. When an offense has balance, it’s difficult to predict. At the same time, the Sooners want to run the football and run it a lot.

In 2022, they had a nearly even run-to-pass split. According to Pro Football Focus, run plays accounted for 52.4% of the Sooners designs. PFF doesn’t count a sack as a run play like the NCAA does.

But that nearly even run-to-pass ratio was largely due to the negative game scripts the Sooners found themselves in so frequently in 2022. The Sooners played a lot of close games a year ago. In several of those close contests, Oklahoma was forced to go to the air more frequently late in games as it played from behind.

Despite that, Oklahoma was a top-10 rushing team in 2022, and there’s a chance it could lead the Power Five in rushing this season.

With an improved defense heading into 2023, the Sooners should find more favorable offensive game scripts to lean on their running game. An improved depth chart provides the opportunity for it to be even more dynamic, as Oklahoma could roll four-deep at running back.

Speaking with the media on Monday, [autotag]Jeff Lebby[/autotag] mentioned a foursome that will contribute this year: [autotag]Jovantae Barnes[/autotag], [autotag]Gavin Sawchuk[/autotag], [autotag]Marcus Major[/autotag] and [autotag]Tawee Walker[/autotag].

It has been expected that Barnes and Sawchuk would be the RB1A and RB1B of this team. However, the continued mention of Major and Walker can only mean they’ll be a factor.

“Those guys, the way they played in the bowl game obviously was huge with Gavin and Jovantae,” Lebby said. “Jovantae, obviously, was sprinkled in a little more throughout the season than Gavin was, but both those guys look to do big things this fall.”

In the Cheez-It Bowl, both Barnes and Sawchuk ran for 100 yards against a tough Florida State defense. They were the key to Oklahoma’s offensive performance that day, providing optimism they were ready to carry the rushing load.

But Lebby was quick to add Major and Walker’s name to the discussion.

“Obviously, with Marcus, again, he’s had a really good camp,” Lebby shared with the media. “I’ve talked a lot about him, excited about where he’s at.”

Major has shown flashes in his Sooners career, but injuries have kept him from making a more consistent impact. But the big-play ability is there. It was on display in the Sooners’ Cotton Bowl victory over the Florida Gators at the end of the 2020 season. Healthy and ready to roll, Major could be a breakout player for the Sooners in 2023.

That brings us to Tawee Walker. Walker was a junior college transfer ahead of the 2022 season. He saw limited work last year, but after a strong offseason, looks to be in the mix for touches.

“And then you’ll see Tawee as well,” Lebby said. “Tawee’s had an incredible camp had a great spring. And this dude plays the game the way you want it to be played, you know, with a ton of toughness, and excited for him.”

Walker looked really good in the spring game. The Sooners’ offensive staff rode him in that contest, and he was up to the task, running tough and bouncing off would-be tacklers.

But how will Jeff Lebby manage his four horsemen of the running back room?

“You talk about target touches for sure,” Lebby shared. “But as you get into the flow of the game, understanding who’s got the hot hand, and when we need to sub when guys are tired, and inside the flow of drives. It’s different week to week, series to series, and that’s a that’ll play out a little differently every single week.”

While there might be a hierarchy on the running back depth chart, the Sooners are going to give opportunities to all four. Game flow and performance will dictate how it works out. But as Jeff Lebby attempts to play offense at a breakneck pace, the Sooners need depth they can rely on to keep their running backs fresh and more effective late in games.

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Oklahoma Sooners have the weapons to be great on offense

Though the Sooners lost a lot of talent to the NFL draft, there’s still the talent for the offense to be dynamic in 2023.

The Oklahoma Sooners are in the midst of a minor retooling on the offensive side of the football. They’re working to replace three starters along the offensive line, their top two pass catchers ([autotag]Marvin Mims[/autotag] and [autotag]Brayden Willis[/autotag]), and their leading rusher ([autotag]Eric Gray[/autotag]).

[autotag]Marvin Mims[/autotag] led the Oklahoma Sooners in receiving yards each of his three seasons in Norman.

Despite all of the turnover, the Oklahoma Sooners are still an incredibly talented offense.

Replacing [autotag]Anton Harrison[/autotag] at left tackle is [autotag]Walter Rouse[/autotag]. Rouse started 38 games at Stanford, a program known for producing good to great rushing attacks. That should play well in a [autotag]Jeff Lebby [/autotag]offense that wants to run the rock and run it a lot.

At right tackle [autotag]Tyler Guyton[/autotag] is replacing one-year starter Wanya Morris. There may not be a player in Oklahoma’s starting lineup that has as high a ceiling as Guyton. Jared Verse, a future top 10 pick in the 2024 NFL draft, called Guyton the best tackle he’d faced. Though he doesn’t have a ton of experience, the expectations are high for the incredibly athletic offensive tackle.

[autotag]McKade Mettauer[/autotag] slides over to right guard to replace Chris Murray, and at the moment, it looks like [autotag]Savion Byrd[/autotag] is the frontrunner at left guard. Byrd has just one collegiate start under his belt but was good in the Sooners matchup with Florida State. Byrd helped the Sooners have a fantastic day on the ground against the Seminoles.

Oklahoma is hoping for a similar breakout from [autotag]Austin Stogner[/autotag] that Willis experienced a year ago. In a thin tight end room, Stogner has to have a big season. He has the athletic prowess to be a game-changer in the passing game. His only question is his health. If Stogner can stay healthy for an entire season, there’s a chance he surpasses Willis’ receiving totals from a year ago.

Wide receiver still has some questions. Namely, who will start on the outside opposite [autotag]Jalil Farooq[/autotag]? [autotag]Drake Stoops[/autotag] will likely start in the slot in three or more wide receiver sets. Then it comes down to a host of wide receiver talents that are vying for that No. 2 spot. There are a lot of really good options, like [autotag]Brenen Thompso[/autotag]n, [autotag]Andrel Anthon[/autotag]y, [autotag]LV Bunkley-Shelton[/autotag], [autotag]Gavin Freeman[/autotag], [autotag]Jaquaize Pettaway[/autotag], [autotag]Jayden Gibson[/autotag], and [autotag]Nic Anderson[/autotag]. There’s a good chance the Sooners roll two deep at each wide receiver spot in games to keep everyone fresh in the Sooners’ uptempo offense.

But they have a good amount of depth to work with.

Speaking of depth, there’s no position on the offensive side of the ball as deep as the Sooners running back room. Led by [autotag]Jovantae Barnes[/autotag] and [autotag]Gavin Sawchuk[/autotag], the Sooners are loaded with talented runners. In addition to the sophomore running backs, the coaching staff is high on [autotag]Marcus Major[/autotag] and [autotag]Tawee Walker[/autotag] and the roles they’ll be able to play this year. Throw in true freshmen [autotag]Kalib Hicks[/autotag] and [autotag]Daylan Smothers[/autotag], and the Sooners have six guys they feel can help them run the football.

Featuring guys like Farooq and Barnes provide a physical dynamic that should allow Oklahoma to pick up dirty yards after contact and after the catch.

In addition to becoming a more physical team, the Sooners emphasized adding speed this offseason. Freeman and Sawchuk return and Oklahoma also added Smothers, Thompson, and Pettaway to their ranks. That’s a group of guys that are threats to score from any spot on the field any time they touch the ball because of speed.

At quarterback, the Sooners have an experienced veteran who threw for more than 3,100 yards and 25 touchdowns in Dillon Gabriel last season. 2022 was his first at the Power Five level and he was good. Now, he needs to take a step to improve the Sooners fortunes on third and fourth down and in the red zone.

The Sooners lost a lot of talent to the draft this offseason, but that doesn’t mean their devoid of talent. It’s a deep offensive roster that can help the Sooners be even better than they were in 2022.

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‘We’ve got a lot more talent’: DeMarco Murray on this year’s running back room

Eric Gray had a great year last season but running back’s coach Demarco Murray thinks this room is even better than it was a year ago.

One of the strongest position groups at the [autotag]University of Oklahoma[/autotag] is the running back room. It’s a young group but one filled with talent.

[autotag]Jovantae Barnes[/autotag] and [autotag]Marcus Major[/autotag] played quite a bit last season. [autotag]Gavin Sawchuck[/autotag] played really well in the Cheez-It Bowl, which has a great many people excited about what he could do in an expanded role.

Freshman [autotag]Kalib Hicks[/autotag] had one of the best offseason of any freshman [autotag]DeMarco Murray [/autotag]has seen. [autotag]Tawee Walker[/autotag] is consistently being mentioned as the hardest person to tackle for the defense. [autotag]Daylan Smothers[/autotag] was brought up as the best pass-catching back when Murray’s discussed his running back group.

This room has many different players that complement each other well. That should also help take a lot of the pressure off an unproven receiving room. Jeff Lebby wants to run the football. Having a deep stable of backs will give the offensive coordinator even more incentive to pound the rock.

While it will be a running back by committee, Murray said the Sooners hope to have one guy take over and be that “bell cow” back.

“You want to have a guy you can count on day in and day out just like I did with Eric,” Murray said at OU football media day. “Then obviously have some guys to spell him. I think at this point in our room, we’ve got a lot more talent than we did a year ago just overall.”

If you’ve followed Jeff Lebby’s career, you know how much he wants to run the football. For a team that finished 10th nationally in rushing a year ago, to know this room is deeper and more talented should be a scary sight for other teams.

It also should help them finish games better than they did in 2022. Something that should bring a smile to Sooner fans’ faces.

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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.