The #Sooners expected to shutdown Tulane but ended up in a second-half shootout. Is this really what a No. 2 team looks like?
Filmed by Justin Jayne
Edited by Collin McDaniel & Justin Jayne
Written by Georgia Bomar, Chandler Engelbrecht and Justin Jayne
Voice-over by Chandler Engelbrecht
Now a few days removed from his team’s tight 40-35 win over Tulane, Lincoln Riley says he isn’t feeling much different than he did Saturday.
Delighted about one quarter, frustrated about the other three sums up the Oklahoma coach’s lasting impression of his team’s season-opening performance. During the second quarter against the Green Wave, OU looked every bit the No. 2 team in the nation that was favored by 31.5 points entering play. In the other three quarters, it looked far from dominant, resulting in its fall to No. 4 in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll on Tuesday.
“There's a lot that we need to get better at,” Riley said. “We’ve been very, very focused on that this week. We also haven't turned a blind eye to some of the things that went well and there was a lot that we need to build on. And there's still a ton of excitement I think among the staff, the players, because the flashes of good were excitingly good.
“But obviously there's got to be a lot more of it and it's got to be a lot more consistent from top to bottom — coaching, playing, the preparation. (We’ve) just got to have a healthy respect for what it takes to play well for all four quarters.”
Turns out, the improvement of three quarters also comes in threes — coaching, playing and preparation — as Riley highlighted.
Defensive coordinator Alex Grinch accepted blame for the coaching aspect on Saturday, admitting he needs to better motivate his defense to “play all 60” minutes. Speed D had a good 15 minutes in the second quarter, scooping three fumbles and pitching a shutout, but allowed 21 points in the final 30 minutes.
“In terms of the performance in the second half, watching the scoreboard to dictate your performance is a slippery slope on every side of it,” Grinch said. “I certainly think the film would suggest we're guilty of it, and our history suggests that we're guilty of that at times, which isn’t a real proud moment for a coach to say that.”
The history Grinch referenced includes losses to Kansas State and Iowa State last fall, in which OU led at halftime. Such slip ups are also bred by sluggish offense, like when the Sooners blew a 31-17 halftime lead over Georgia in the 2017 Rose Bowl with a scoreless third quarter.
Similarly, against Tulane, OU blew a sizable halftime lead. The Sooners only got field goals off their turnovers against the Green Wave and produced a measly three points in the second half.
Playing, also called execution, wasn’t strong for Oklahoma against the Green Wave, either. That started with redshirt sophomore quarterback Spencer Rattler, who threw an interception after forcing a ball into double coverage on the game’s second play.
His struggles continued in the second half when he sailed tight end Austin Stogner for another pick and nearly tossed a third that was wiped by pass interference. Rattler finished 30-of-39 for 304 yards with just one touchdown pass.
“I think there were some times in the game — the second play of the game and then a couple others — specifically in the second half that I think there was some frustration, and he tried to make too much happen,” Riley said. “He just wasn’t mentally quite as sharp. The whole group was pretty symptomatic of the same thing…”
Inconsistent play trickled down to an offensive line that false started thrice on the same drive in the first quarter. Despite Riley’s praise of its pass protection, the group also struggled with run blocking as redshirt junior running back Kennedy Brooks gritted his way to 87 yards and a touchdown.
Execution errors also plagued an OU defense and that allowed Tulane to score in under four minutes each time it touched the ball in the second half. Speed D allowed quarterback Michael Pratt and crew to convert four of six fourth-down attempts before snuffing the final try to end the game.
“We didn’t play up to our standard,” said junior David Ugwoegbu, who started at mike linebacker in the game, making five tackles and one for loss. “We have a high standard that we set for ourselves. … I just think we didn’t play up to our standard, but it’s definitely fixable and we’ve already started that trend.”
Preparation, in part, presented warning signs to Riley in the days before the Tulane game.
“You can go back and look at our week of preparation and there’s some things that suggest there were some things in the game that were really bright moments and there were some things that suggest our consistency level was not where it needed to be,” Riley said. “Our practice week was very telling of what it could become.”
As OU reassembles for a Sept. 11 home matchup with FCS opponent Western Carolina (0-1), which went 1-8 last season, focus in practice is crucial to avoiding another potential scare like Tulane. Regardless of the opponent’s quality, Oklahoma must be physically and mentally ready to play.
“Throughout the week of practice, we do a great job of (saying) ‘We play the game throughout the week of practice,’” Ugwoegbu said. “So when you get to Saturday, it shouldn’t be eye opening when you get in the game and have to execute what you need to do, because we don’t change.”
With one quarter down, through better coaching, play and preparation, it’s time for the Sooners to win the other three.
“If we’ve got any chance of being a good football team, we’ve got to figure out how to play four quarters and our mentality not being affected by the scoreboard, our opponent, anything else,” Riley said. “That is the sole focus of our program right now."
