LUBBOCK — Following Oklahoma’s overtime loss to Texas Tech Saturday night, Dillon Gabriel embraced his mother, Dori, in the southeast tunnel of Jones AT&T Stadium.
The Gabriels shared a few sentimental moments together, ending Dillon’s first regular season as a Sooner, before the quarterback retreated to OU’s locker room and changed into his traveling suit.
Gabriel has experienced his fair share of ups and downs with Oklahoma in 2022, chronicled by his strong play Saturday night, but also his somber postgame demeanor. He had his best game as a Sooner against the Red Raiders, completing 28-of-40 passes with a season-high 449 passing yards and career-high six passing touchdowns.
His stellar play was stalled, however, during overtime when he took a shot near the sideline after catching a pass from wide receiver Drake Stoops on a trick play. While he later returned to action, OU’s (6-6, 3-6 Big 12) offense couldn’t recover during the extra period as it ultimately fell to Texas Tech (7-5, 5-4) 51-48 for the first time since 2011.
“No, not necessarily,” Gabriel said about whether the hit affected him during the ensuing plays. “I just got the wind knocked out of me, couldn't breathe for a little bit and then just had to sit out a few plays… (The result) sucks, obviously.
“I'm not individually driven, I play a team game that I love with teammates I love winning with and it's not the best feeling at all when you don't come out on the right side of it.”
Redshirt junior quarterback Dillon Gabriel during the game against Texas Tech in Lubbock on Nov. 26.
Now that the regular season is over, Gabriel has a lot to think about regarding his football future. With two years of eligibility remaining, multiple options will be on the table for the redshirt junior, who didn’t commit to returning to Norman next season, although offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby said he expects and hopes Gabriel will be back.
It’s been a whirlwind 10 months for the Mililani, Hawaii, native, who announced his transfer to Oklahoma the day he was due to start classes at UCLA last January after departing UCF.
Whatever lies ahead for Gabriel, his passion for the game and the program he plays for, and the appreciation he has for his journey will be on full display. Just like all of the emotions of this season were when he hugged his mother Saturday night in the cold West Texas air.
“It’s just too fresh,” Gabriel said about his future following the disappointing loss. “I’ll figure that out real soon though.”
Sooners coach Brent Venables said postgame he thought Gabriel “played out of his mind,” but the offense failed to capitalize on opportunities late in the game.
On OU’s last offensive play of overtime, Lebby called a quarterback draw on third-and-13, which resulted in a sack and forced Oklahoma to attempt a 34-yard field goal, which it missed.
“(Gabriel being out) maybe threw us off a little bit,” Lebby said. “The first down call with (tight end Brayden Willis) I like, it gets us into a good second down. And then we have a bust at right guard and we cut the guy loose there. Then, I’m trying to be smart on third down so it’s frustrating that we didn’t capitalize… We had an option for a quarterback draw (on third down) with throws built into it.”
The Sooners’ offense, led by Gabriel, started hot but seemed to fizzle out at times for the second straight week. During last Saturday’s win over Oklahoma State, Lebby’s offense jumped out to a 28-0 lead in the first quarter before being held scoreless for the last three quarters.
Against the Red Raiders Saturday, OU scored 24 points in the first half before turning the ball over on downs twice, punting once and scoring seven points in the third quarter. Texas Tech scored 24 unanswered points across the second and third quarters, and Gabriel threw his lone interception of the night in the second.
“Naturally, things aren't always gonna go your way and we do hit spurts of that, which obviously isn't something we love,” Gabriel said. “But (you’ve got to) just respond in the right way and continue to chew away even though things aren't going your way. Just believing in that, controlling what you can control for the most part… we can make adjustments and learn from it.”
Redshirt junior quarterback Dillon Gabriel during the game against Texas Tech in Lubbock on Nov. 26.
Gabriel spread the ball around and connected with his go-to wide receiver Marvin Mims twice for touchdowns in the first half, including a 77-yard pass that gave OU a 24-6 lead with 6:25 remaining in the second quarter.
Mims finished with five receptions on eight targets from Gabriel and 162 receiving yards, but didn’t record a catch in the second half. Senior running back Eric Gray continued his dominance with 161 rushing yards on 28 carries and also caught two passes.
“(Gabriel) did a great job tonight managing the game,” Gray said. “We knew we were going to have a lot of passing in the game plan this week to really beat them over the top so they couldn't stack the box. But I think he did a great job, especially getting hit like that and coming back in the next play is a testament to his toughness for sure.
“It’s definitely kind of like ‘Oh,’ when it first happened, but Dillon is a soldier. I knew he was going to come right back. We were telling him, ‘Get up. Come back in, we’ve just got to score.’”
While Gabriel’s future in Norman isn’t crystal clear, Oklahoma now shifts its focus to its 24th straight bowl game. Lebby is focused on continuing to see his players make strides on offense, build chemistry and create momentum heading into the offseason with the extra bowl prep practices.
“That’s important,” Lebby said. “We’ve got to take advantage of every minute we get with these guys as we move forward to make the strides we need to make.”
