Oklahoma’s sole road game in the Southeastern Conference has stood as a pillar of perseverance and a positive OU can look to amid recent struggles.
There, freshman quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. willed OU to an 11-point comeback over Auburn in the fourth quarter during his first-ever collegiate start. The moment was a bright spot as the Sooners have faced criticism following their 34-3 loss to No. 5 Texas and 35-9 loss to an unranked South Carolina team.
“Certainly to go on the road and win in the SEC is incredibly difficult,” OU head coach Brent Venables said during the SEC weekly teleconference on Wednesday. “Every environment we go into is going to be passionate, and it's going to be packed, but we responded well when we were in that environment.”
Now, just four days before heading to Oxford to face No. 18 Mississippi — where OU is sitting as a 21-point underdog — the Sooners and Venables hope to bring the road magic with them.
“The last time we were in that environment, we found a way to get a win,” Venables said. “We will have to lean on that to some degree as well. We will need to be able to play even better than the last time we were on the road.”
After co-offensive coordinator Seth Littrell was fired on Sunday, OU and its offense will have to quickly adjust to the coaching changes and play its best game of the season to compete against Mississippi.
Mississippi is currently ranked in the top 25 nationally in both scoring offense and defense. Its offense sits at eighth best, scoring an average of 41.4 points a game — in comparison OU tallies 22.1 points, sitting at 107 — and its defense gives up just 10.6 points per game, ranking second in college football.
“We are going to face a really talented (Mississippi) team that has played really, really well on both sides of the ball,” Venables said. “They are one of the most dominant defenses in all of college football this year. I think they have only given up six total touchdowns on the season. They’ve really done a great job of creating turnovers, and I think in their 11 home games since last season they have outscored their opponents 73-0 off turnovers.”
Oklahoma’s offense led by sophomore quarterback Jackson Arnold, who was named the starter by Venables on Monday, is awaiting an obvious challenge. However, the defense, which has been a source of consistency for OU this season, will also have to be prepared.
Senior quarterback Jaxson Dart was recruited by Oklahoma once he decided to enter the transfer portal after a season at USC, but he inevitably decided to go to Mississippi, and it has paid off. Ranking third nationally in passing yards, Dart has thrown for 2,384 yards this season. He also has a 70.2 completion percentage and has tallied 14 touchdowns and three interceptions.
On the ground, the quarterback has rushed for 184 yards and three touchdowns through seven games.
In comparison, Arnold, who did not play in the second half of the Tennessee game or against Auburn and Texas, has tossed for 763 yards, completing 57.2% of his throws, with eight touchdowns and three interceptions. He has rushed for 109 yards and two touchdowns.
“He’s got a great compliment of players around him,” Venables said of Dart. “He is in a really good system. He’s been well-coached. He’s a decisive decision-maker. He’s got a big arm, he’s incredibly accurate, and he’s a threat.
“They do a lot in their run game where they try to put you in conflict and have some option-type principals. He is just a good runner, big, strong, and can run through trash, and he’s just a really competitive guy that’s a winner.”
Heading into Saturday, Venables knows that OU will have to step up in all areas to have a chance to upset Mississippi.
“We are going to have to go play well and take care of the football,” Venables said. “We are going to have to play to our potential on defense, create turnovers and find a way to create extra possessions.
This story was edited by Peggy Dodd.
