The Road Warrior Report - OSU Review - November 28, 2021

STILLWATER, OK – It was bound to happen eventually. The law of averages always said that the Sooners couldn’t win the Big 12 every year forever. The same law said that no matter the dominance overall in the series, Oklahoma State does manage to win one now and again. And so it came to pass that the Sooners’ regular season ended Saturday night in Stillwater with a 37-33 loss to OSU, who will play Baylor next Saturday for the conference championship.

The Sooners’ offensive woes looked like a thing of the past initially, as the teams held an old-fashioned shootout in the first half, ending up tied at 24. Unfortunately, OSU’s halftime adjustments worked, as the Sooners would not score any points on offense in the second half – everything came on defense or special teams.

Although it was not why we lost, the officiating again was atrocious. A flag for unnecessary roughness against OSU for slamming Kennedy Brooks to the ground after the whistle that would have bailed the Sooners out of a fourth and forever hole deep in their own territory was inexplicably picked up. More egregiously, a blatant pass interference foul by OSU against a Sooner receiver in the end zone went uncalled in the final seconds of the game.



Caleb Williams was brilliant in the first half – less so in the second half. He ended up 20-39 for 252 yards and three TDs, but the vast majority of that came in the first half. Jeremiah Hall led the Sooner receivers with four catches for 76 yards. Austin Stogner had three for 61 and a TD, while Brayden Willis had three for 29 and a score. Jaden Haselwood had three for 18, Mike Woods had two for 18, and Mario Williams had two for 10. Brooks had one for 25, Brian Darby had one for 11 and Marvin Mims had one for four.

Brooks led all rushers with 139 yards on 22 carries. Caleb Williams added 36 net yards on 19 carries. Trevon West had one carry for one yard, while Woods had one for two yards.

The teams exchanged punts to open the game, then OSU mounted a five-play, 80-yard TD drive. The Sooners answered on the ensuing possession with a 75-yard TD drive of their own. The big play was a 50-yard pass to Hall that moved the Sooners from their own 25 to the OSU 25. Four plays later, Caleb Williams hit Darby for the score from 11 yards out and it was 7-7 with 9:08 to play in the first quarter.

The teams exchanged touchdowns, then OSU returned a kickoff for a score to make it 21-14. The teams traded field goals before Woodi Washington picked off the OSU QB and returned the ball to the OSU 14. Four plays later, Caleb Williams found Willis on a fade from 10 yards out and it was 24-24 at halftime.

As good as the offense looked in the first half, it looked . . . not so good in the second half. The Sooners still took a two-score lead in the third quarter, however.

On OSU’s first offensive play of the second half, Perrion Winfrey forced a fumble that OSU recovered in their own end zone for a safety. After the Sooners went three and out on the ensuing possession, Michael Turk’s punt was muffed and went into the end zone, where Justin Broiles picked it up for a TD and a 33-24 Sooner lead.



The Sooner offense could not come through to pad the lead, though, and OSU closed to within two points on a Spencer Sanders option keeper with 13:52 to play in the game. Two possessions later, the Sooner defense got a huge stop at midfield on a third and three play, but Eric Gary muffed the ensuing punt and OSU recovered at the OU five-yard line. Three plays later, OSU was in the end zone, and led 37-33 with 8:54 to play in the game.

After the teams exchanged punts, the Sooners mounted a drive into OSU territory with a first down at the OSU 39. After Brooks ran for five yards, an incomplete pass and a sack left the Sooners facing fourth and 10. Caleb Williams scrambled on the ensuing play and had a lane to run for the first down, but was tripped up five yards short, turning the ball over on downs.

OU had all of their times out and used them in stopping OSU three-and-out for one last chance to win the game. The Sooners took over on their own 20 after the OSU punt, with 54 seconds left in the game. After an incomplete pass, Caleb Williams took off on a scramble and ended up roaming down the right sideline for 56 yards to the OSU 24. From there, three passes into the end zone fell incomplete, including the one that was a clear interference penalty that was not called. On fourth and 10, Caleb Williams was sacked, and the Sooners’ six-year reign as Big 12 Champions was over.

Most schools would be thrilled with a 10-2 season, but not this school. By any estimation, this season will go down as a disappointment. No Big 12 title and no playoff appearance means none of the goals for the season were met. But that happens sometimes, and that’s OK. At the end of the day, someone else has to win once in a while, just like OSU has to win once in a while.



Caleb Williams, while brilliant at times, is still a freshman, and was made to look like a freshman late in the season. That doesn’t change the fact that his upside is off the charts, and he is the future of this program.

As for the rest of this season, there will be a bowl game. If the Sooners can stay in the top 12 of the final CFP standings, which is not out of the realm of possibility, they should be in good position for an at-large NY 6 game, possibly the Fiesta Bowl. If not, it’s probably the Alamo Bowl for the first time. My advice is to root for Utah to house Oregon again in the PAC 12 Championship Game in hopes that we might get the Ducks in San Antonio, for obvious reasons. A chance to repay a blood debt like that will make an otherwise forgettable weekday bowl game slightly more interesting.

We find out the bowl destination in a week. Until then, let’s root for OSU to beat Baylor and make the CFP at #4. If that happens, they will have to play Georgia in Miami, and they will get destroyed. And then they will see just how fun that kind of thing is.

PS: Was just getting ready to post this when the Riley to USC news broke. Cannot process it right now other than that I have hated USC for a very long time, and this will not help at all. I know the coaching thing is a business and all that, but to have handed the reins of this program to that guy under the circumstances that we did and to have him do this is unfathomable. You do not leave Oklahoma for another college job. You just don’t.

All of that said, there’s nobody I trust more than Joe C to get us a new coach who can keep things going in the right direction.