There’s been one constant since [autotag]Matt Campbell[/autotag] took over as head coach of the[autotag] Iowa State Cyclones[/autotag] when they play the Sooners. It’s going to be a tough, hard-fought game.
In fact, the Sooners had never beaten the Cyclones by more than 10 points in the [autotag]Lincoln Riley[/autotag] era. They also only scored 40+ one time. All of those historic offenses, with arguably the best play-caller of all time and Campbell’s defenses made them work.
Then came [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] and [autotag]Jeff Lebby[/autotag] to Norman. The Sooners have faced the Cyclones twice and in both games, the Sooners won by 14 or more points, including Saturday’s 30-point win. The Sooners also dropped their first 50-point game in that time span as well.
Dillon Gabriel talked to reporters after the game about the night.
“You couldn’t write it up better,” Gabriel said. “Putting points on the board and a night game in the palace.”
Gabriel completed 26 of 39 passes for 366 yards, three touchdowns, and only one interception. The Sooners quarterback completed passes to 10 different receivers. He also carried the ball eight times for 37 yards and two touchdowns. It was an incredible day for Oklahoma offensively, led by it’s veteran signal-caller.
“I think it’s something we go back to. It’s rhythm, creating completions, making competitive plays, and moving the chains,” Gabriel said. “I feel like as we get into that rhythm we’re able to obviously play a bunch of different guys and spread the ball around.”
For Gabriel, it was his fourth 300-yard passing day of the season. He’s completing 75.2% of his passes and has thrown for 1,593 yards and 15 touchdowns. He’s also rushed for four touchdowns on the season. He’s seventh in the nation in yards and fourth in passing touchdowns.
He’s had a fantastic start to his second season in Norman. With the running game struggling to find consistency, Gabriel’s efforts have him in the Heisman conversation.
He’s done a fantastic job spreading the ball around to Oklahoma’s incredible depth of playmakers. The Sooners will have to continue to spread the ball around with their toughest challenge of the season right around the corner in the Red River Rivalry.
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