It’s just been that kind of season. The Sooners led by 18, after falling behind, still had a three-point lead in the final minutes, and yet they eventually fell 51-48 in overtime to the Texas Tech Red Raiders Saturday night in Lubbock.
Jeff Lebby dialed up a trick play that resulted in a successful Drake Stoops pass to quarterback Dillon Gabriel on the first play of overtime. However, Gabriel got drilled on the first down conversion, had to sit a play, and the sequence ended in a missed Zach Schmit field goal.
Texas Tech would play it conservative and not miss an identical 34-yard field goal. Kicker Trey Wolff booted the game-winner through, sending the Red Raiders faithful onto the field after snapping a 10-game Crimson and Cream winning streak in the series.
However, following a wild start that featured a long kickoff return and an Ethan Downs fumble recovery on the Red Raiders’ first play from scrimmage, the Sooners struck first. Quarterback Dillon Gabriel connected with wide receiver Marvin Mims on a fourth-and-2 throw for a 45-yard touchdown.
Just like last week, it took little time for the Sooners to grab a 14-0 lead. After forcing a punt, they ripped off an 11-play, 93-yard drive in less than three minutes. Gabriel tossed to tight end Brayden Willis for the 7-yard touchdown.
Then, Brent Venables decided to take a chance at shocking Texas Tech. With the hosts breathing a sigh of relief after stopping Oklahoma inside the 15, Venables dialed up a fake field goal on fourth-and-2. It didn’t pay off, however, as Willis couldn’t corral Michael Turk’s flip to him.
This time, Oklahoma distanced 64 yards in total—the sequence entered a goal-to-go situation—on 13 plays to tack on three more points. Kicker Zach Schmit booted through a 41-yard field goal.
The Red Raiders finally got on the board on their next drive. Jaylon Hutchings, known for his work on the defensive side of the ball, powered in for a 1-yard touchdown to complete an 11-play, 75-yard drive, and it was 17-6.
The Sooners went back up by three scores just more than three minutes later. That’s when Gabriel fired to Mims, who had no one within a mile of him on the way to pay dirt.
But the rest of the first half was disastrous for the visitors. Running back SaRodorick Thompson rushed for a 6-yard touchdown with 3:09 remaining, trimming the Sooner lead to 24-13. It was 24-20 less than two minutes later when Gabriel was picked off and quarterback Donovan Smith paid it off with a 6-yard touchdown. And after a huge pass play, kicker Trey Wolff knocked through a chip shot 29-yard field goal at the final first half whistle.
The Sooners marched on their opening drive of the second half, but could not cash in. They elected to go for it on fourth-and-4, and Red Raiders defensive lineman Tony Bradford Jr. sacked Gabriel.
Then, with 8:43 remaining, Shough struck to wide receiver Jerand Bradley for a 44-yard touchdown and 45-38 advantage. The Sooners seemingly couldn’t come up with any stop.
Just 1:19 later, Oklahoma again notched things up. A super quick 1:19-minute drive ended with Gabriel flicking to wide receiver Jalil Farooq for a 1-yard touchdown.
Now, the Sooners’ winning streak of 23 seasons in a row is squarely on the line. They’ll look to keep that in store when they find out their bowl destination a week from Sunday.
source: 247Sports
