The golden hat returns to Norman. Watch our highlights from the #Sooners last minute victory over Texas:
Filmed and edited by Justin Jayne
DALLAS — Lincoln Riley couldn’t think of a moment he’d been more proud of his team.
After returning from the locker room at the Cotton Bowl, where he and the Sooners celebrated their 55-48 win over Texas, the OU head coach’s remarks showed the range of emotions he and his team felt in winning an instant-classic Red River Showdown matchup Saturday.
“That was a hell of a fight,” Riley said of OU’s victory, which came after trailing by 18 points at halftime. “It really was. … I think there was a strong belief with our squad that if we could right the ship a little bit, and if we’ll just cut out a couple of simple mistakes we felt like we were making, we can absolutely get back in this thing.
“What an epic comeback. This one’s really, really special.”
No. 6 Oklahoma (6-0, 3-0 Big 12) defeated the No. 21 Longhorns (4-2, 2-1) in OU’s fourth straight victory in the Red River Showdown and the highest-scoring game in series history — besting the Sooners’ 53-45 win in 2020. Riley’s sentiments toward his team’s triumph reflected how special and hectic the rivalry can be.
Namely, the Longhorns’ starting quarterback had deep Sooner roots. Casey Thompson, an Oklahoma City native and graduate of Newcastle High School, is the son of Charles Thompson and brother of Kendal Thompson, both former OU quarterbacks. He ended the day 20-of-34 passing for five touchdowns and a season-high 388 yards and helped usher the Longhorns to a 28-7 first quarter lead.
That marked the most points the Sooners have allowed in a first quarter, with the previous high being Nebraska’s 22 in a 42-25 win over OU in 1989.
Thompson threw a bubble screen to receiver Xavier Worthy — who finished with nine catches for 261 yards and two scores — for a 75-yard touchdown on the game’s first play, putting the team on pace for its big opening lead.
“The way the game started off, down 14-0 right out the gates, it’s hard to (rally back),” said sophomore wide receiver Marvin Mims, who had five catches for 136 yards and two touchdowns. “But, I thank God to be a part of these games. I think it shows a lot about our team, about us.”
Early in the second quarter, Oklahoma was able to cut into Texas’ advantage with a 66-yard rushing score from freshman quarterback Caleb Williams on a fourth-and-one. Subsequently, while trailing 28-14, the Sooners caused a Longhorn three-and-out and were able to set up redshirt junior Gabe Brkic for a 40-yard field goal. Oklahoma then forced another Texas punt, but disaster struck during its next possession.
Longhorns linebacker Ben Davis stripped redshirt sophomore quarterback Spencer Rattler, forcing OU’s first lost fumble this season. This led to another Longhorn touchdown, putting them up 35-17, and made Riley repeat the decision he made in last year's Red River rivalry — a quarterback change. This time the benching wasn’t brief, as Williams relieved Rattler and reignited the Sooners’ offense, which proceeded to score on seven of its next nine drives in its comeback win.
“When you’re the backup quarterback, naturally you’re not going to get many reps,” Riley said of Williams. “With him being young, I’ve tried to give (him) enough to where we feel comfortable with him. … He did good. He saw some things very well (and) made some plays. He did a really good job outside of the pocket. He also missed a couple of really, really easy things that (I have to) coach better, but he was ready and handled it well.”
Williams, who was not made available to reporters postgame — neither on the field with ESPN's Holly Rowe at the end of the ABC broadcast nor to those in the press conference — finished with 212 passing yards and two touchdowns while completing 16 of his 25 attempts. He also had 88 rushing yards, giving him 300 yards of total offense, the most by an OU true freshman against Texas.
Because of the Washington, D.C., native’s strong performance, Riley was asked postgame which quarterback will start against TCU. He declined to answer. The Sooners take on the Horned Frogs at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 16 in Norman.
Even so, OU’s biggest star Saturday didn’t throw a pass. Redshirt junior running back Kennedy Brooks had his best performance for the Sooners, rushing for a career-high 217 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries.
He outplayed Texas’ star ball carrier Bijan Robinson, who entered the game as the NCAA’s second leading rusher, and delivered the game-winning touchdown for Oklahoma, which came on a 33-yard rush with three seconds remaining.
“I thought the line was really, really good in the run game,” Riley said of a unit that’s been a work in progress for much of the season. “That was important regardless of who was playing quarterback. We said it all week, (we have to) run the ball typically well in this game to win this game. We were at our best when we needed it. Kennedy ran well, and again, a lot of credit goes to our offensive line, tight ends, (and players that) grinded it out in a tough, hard-fought, physical game.”
OU fans, which made up over half of the crowd of 92,100, rushed the field after Texas’ ensuing kickoff return ran out the clock. As Riley collected himself afterward, he mentioned how much he missed the crowd at last year’s OU-Texas matchup and how glad he was to see them return.
“That second-half run, the energy in that stadium, it’s one of the best things in our sport, man,” Riley said. “Our crowd was great. … They stayed into it, even (before) we started to make a run. We really kind of both fed off of each other.”
“It’s the best rivalry in college football. It’s the best setting. I mean, it was awesome, man. It was as good as I’ve ever seen it.”
