Dallas – An all too familiar story arose in the today’s Red River Rivalry when Heisman-winner Sam Bradford went down and re-injured his right throwing shoulder on the second drive of the game. But, it was not the lack of a passing game that killed OU in Saturday’s version of the story that was seen against BYU; rather the lack of a running game and five turnovers resulted in the Sooners’ 16-13 loss.
With Bradford back on the sideline, freshman quarterback Landry Jones was called back into action. Jones started three games, and posted a 2-1 record during that time.
Despite the loss of their leader, the Sooners’ defense stepped up and held the Longhorns to three points in the first half. The only problem with that, OU’s offense could only muster up six points in the first 30 minutes of play.
The defensive line controlled the line of scrimmage, and brought down Texas senior quarterback Colt McCoy four times. McCoy had one of the worst first halves of his career, completing a mere 47.6 percent of his passes for 59 yards.
After the slow, ugly first half, both teams woke up and took on the heavyweight fight status that the game was built up as. The Sooners and Longhorns exchanged blow after blow, driving the ball the length of the field with great success.
The Longhorns stormed back in the second half to score 10 unanswered points, including the game’s first touchdown. McCoy hooked up with freshman wide receiver Marquise Goodwin for the 14-yard touchdown pass.
Sophomore wide receiver Ryan Broyles, who missed last week’s game against Baylor due to a hairline fracture in his left shoulder, was shut out in the first half, but made a loud entrance near the end of the third quarter. Jones found Broyles on a dump off pass, and Broyles sidestepped a defender and dashed 35 yards for the equalizing touchdown.
Texas reclaimed the lead with 12:08 left in the game on a 32-yard field goal by senior Hunter Lawrence, and its defense came up with a big fourth-down stand just two minutes later.
McCoy wound up with 127 yards on the day while completing 21 of 39 passes with a touchdown and an interception.
Jones made two big mistakes late in the game by forcing two passes into double coverage resulting in two interceptions. Jones finished the game completing 24 of 43 passes for 250 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.
The Longhorns were able to run the remaining 3:31 seconds off the clock to secure their second straight victory in the Red River Rivalry.
The loss drops OU to 3-3 overall and 1-1 in the Big 12. The Sooners return to action on Oct. 24 against the No. 17 Kansas Jayhawks in Lawrence, Kansas.
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youknowshit 2 years, 7 months ago
Game over
hookemhorns 2 years, 7 months ago
As (almost) always, this was a tremendous game... maybe not pretty, but a hard fought and hard hitting contest. OU fans, it must really stink to fall to 3-3! Your defense played lights out, and Stoops had your team VERY well prepared as always. That said, our offense was lousy, and if we had been able to get into a rhythm for more than two possessions, we'd have been in better shape. I'm glad for the victory, .....and to beat the Sooners? Well, let's just say it pretty much makes the season for me, and a lot of other Longhorns! Too bad about Bradford. It didn't look like that hard of a fall; I suspect he rushed his rehab (probably pressured by the expectations of the Red River Shootout). Hopefully he makes a full recovery. It sucks to lose this game....walking back into the State Fair with the opposing fans singing and taunting. I've been there plenty of times, but not today! HOOK 'EM HORNS!