Buckeyes Blast The Sooners 45-24 In Norman

Despite playing in front of a fired up crowd inside of the newly renovated Gaylord Family—Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, the No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes came to Norman and took care of business against No. 14 Oklahoma, beating the Sooners 45-24.

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OU is now 1-2 against the Buckeyes all-time, and more importantly, Bob Stoops’ Sooners fall to 1-2 on the season for the first time since 2005. Both of Oklahoma’s losses have come against Top-15 teams.   

The final score may be a bit lopsided, but this game came down to missed opportunities by the Sooners, especially in the first half.

Oklahoma appeared to roar out of the gates on their first drive of the game and quickly moved into Ohio State territory, but left guard Cody Ford went down with an injury, which seemed to halt momentum as OU’s offense sputtered on its next four plays before kicker Austin Seibert missed a 27-yard field goal off the right goal post.

The miss was deflating for Oklahoma, which allowed the Buckeyes light up the scoreboard first. Instead of punting at midfield on a fourth down and short, Urban Meyer had other plans. Curtis Samuel took a handoff around the left edge for Ohio State, and no Oklahoma defender was able to catch the speedster as he sprinted down the sideline to quickly give OSU a 7-0 lead.

OU looked to be loaded with a response and quickly moved into Ohio State territory, but Baker Mayfield under threw a wide open Mark Andrews on third and short that would’ve easily scored the tight end. It was a costly errant throw for OU, seeing Mayfield was intercepted on the next play after his pass was tipped at the line of scrimmage and returned for a touchdown.

In the blink of an eye the Sooners were down 14-0.

Fortunately for OU, Joe Mixon was able to rip off an incredible 97-yard return the ensuing kickoff for a quick score, but the Buckeyes didn’t seem to be phased.

Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett led his offense down the field, and finished off the drive with a touchdown pass to Noah Brown, who was covered by OU’s true freshman corner Parrish Cobb.

Oklahoma was down 21-7 at the time, but more missed opportunities were on the horizon.

OU’s offense quickly fought back to Ohio State territory, but A.D. Miller was tripped up at the three-yard line on what looked to be an easy score. The Sooners looked to be in a good spot, but Mayfield was sacked for a 13-yard loss on the next play and the Sooners were ultimately held to a field goal on the drive after mark Andrews dropped a touchdown on third down.

While Oklahoma appeared to be hanging on for dear life, the Buckeyes were taking shots at OU’s weakest link: the cornerback position.

Barrett continued to pick on Cobb, and after Brown caught a 36-yard on the true freshman, he was replaced by Michiah Quick. It was a move that defensive coordinator Mike Stoops had to make, but in the end it didn’t matter who was guarding Brown.

Barrett was able to connect with Brown again with six seconds left in the first half to put the Buckeyes up 35-17. Quick actually had tremendous coverage on the play, but Brown was able to make a circus catch by pinning the ball on Quick’s back while falling out of bounds.

If three scores weren’t enough for Brown, the receiver did it again on the opening drive of the second half, except his fourth touchdown came against OU’s top corner Jordan Thomas. And just like that the Buckeyes were up 42-17.

Staring at a monumental deficit, the Sooners fought hard to get within 18 in the third quarter, but any chance of a heroic comeback was nipped in the bud when the Sooners turned it over on downs early in the fourth quarter.

Baker Mayfield finished with 226 yards and two touchdowns in the loss, but his two interceptions were costly for OU. Mayfield fought to keep plays alive, but the quarterback made a few bad decisions that helped put the Sooners in a hole early in the game.

Andrews totaled four receptions for 57 yards and a touchdown, while Miller added three catches for 72 yards and a score of his own. Dede Westbrook also had a solid game with five catches for 51 yards.

Running back Samaje Perine was limited to 60 yards on a season-high 17 carries, but Mixon had a productive day on the ground with 78 yards on nine attempts.

Barrett finished with 152 yards passing and four touchdowns in the Ohio State win, while Brown was on the receiving end of all four scores. Running back Mike Weber rushed for 123 yards while H-back Curtis Samuel added 98 of his own.

Ohio State was able to win the turnover battle 2-0, as the Sooners’ have only forced two turnovers through three games this season.

Oklahoma will be off next week before beginning conference play the following Saturday against TCU.