Oklahoma
How to Watch No. 21 Oklahoma vs. Auburn
Oklahoma’s first SEC road trip is going to look a bit different than many thought it would at the start of the year.
Saturday’s trip to Auburn (2-2, 0-1 SEC) was supposed to be Jackson Arnold’s first road test.
When attention turns at ABC at 2:30 p.m. this weekend, it’s unclear Arnold will even lead the No. 21-ranked Sooners (3-1, 1-1) onto the field on their first offensive possession.
OU’s 25-15 loss to Tennessee wasn’t nearly that close due to the offense’s inability to move the football.
The Volunteers completely shut down Oklahoma’s running game, putting all the pressure on Arnold.
His response?
An interception and a pair of fumbles, both of which came directly after his defense handed the him the football, which resulted in Arnold getting benched.
Brent Venables and Oklahoma offensive coordinator Seth Littrell pulled the plug on the former 5-star recruit in favor of true freshman Michael Hawkins Jr., and while the offensive line didn’t magically improve, Hawkins was able to move the ball a bit in the second half.
Hawkins completed 11-of-18 passes for 132 yards and a score, a much better showing than Arnold’s 7-for-16 for 54 yards and an interception.
The result?
Venables has a quarterback battle on his hands, and one that likely will alienate his first marquee offensive signee.
Getting a young quarterback ready for a first road start, regardless of who starts, will be difficult enough.
Littrell will have to throw a quarterback out there with no running game to support him and continued offensive line issues, which can quickly blow up just as it did against the Volunteers.
Oklahoma’s defense proved it could contain one of college football’s most explosive offenses.
The Sooners bottled up Tennessee’s running game and forced a pair of turnovers of their own.
It wasn’t enough, but that unit can keep OU in games.
Now it’ll be over to Venables and Littrell to find a way for the offense to score enough points to prevent a disastrous season with a bye week and a matchup against No. 1 Texas looming to start October.
Auburn isn’t without its own flaws.
The Tigers have swung from veteran quarterback Payton Thorne and Hank Brown.
Hugh Freeze’s team needs a win to close out Auburn’s lengthy homestand that started the year, as the Tigers won’t play at home again until November.
Auburn just lost to Arkansas 24-14 two weeks after falling 21-14 to California, and Freeze’s second season is already on the brink.
Whoever leaves Jordan-Hare Stadium without a victory will have plenty to sort out in the weeks to follow, making the game all that more important for Venables and the Sooners.
The decision between Hawkins and Arnold will dominate the week, but the real question will be if the Sooners can find a way to function on offense, because if not, OU’s first trip through the SEC will be catastrophic.
OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLA (KOKH) — The Oklahoma City Fire Department responded to a home fire late Tuesday evening, around 10:42 p.m.
According to OKCFD, fire could be seen from a window of the home located in the 4200 block of N. Phillips Avenue.
Firefighters were able to rescue an adult female from inside the home. No injuries were reported in connection with the fire.
Investigators believe that the fire may have originated from an outlet near the refrigerator that had a power strip plugged in that was supplying multiple appliances.
There was also no smoke detector present within the home.
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NORMAN — The Sooners were behind the eight ball for much of Tuesday’s game against Oral Roberts.
But one swing of the bat got them in a more favorable position.
Shortstop Jaxon Willits blasted a grand slam in the sixth inning to give No. 14 Oklahoma its first lead before eventually winning 7-6.
The Sooners trailed by as many as five runs before they rallied late.
In the first inning, Oral Roberts’ Cooper Combs hit a two-out grand slam to give the Golden Eagles a comfortable cushion. OU infielder Deiten Lachance got the Sooners on the board in the second inning with a solo home run, but ORU responded with a solo shot of its own in the next frame.
The Golden Eagles made it a 6-1 run game in the top of the fourth, and they appeared to be on cruise control. But in the bottom of that frame, OU’s rally began.
Dasan Harris made it a four-run game again with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the fourth before Camden Johnson hit a sacrifice fly of his own in the fifth.
Then, in the sixth, the Sooners took their first lead of the game.
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Harris singled before Kyle Branch and Connor Larkin walked to load the bases. Willits then swung at the first pitch he saw, sending it well over the right-center field fence.
Neither team scored after Willits’ home run, as OU relief pitcher Xander Mercurius retired nine ORU batters in a row to seal the Sooners’ one-run win.
Michael Catalano started on the mound for Oklahoma, but his outing was short-lived — he gave up four earned runs on two hits and five walks in 1 ⅓ innings.
After coach Skip Johnson relieved Catalano in the second inning, six different OU arms entered the game. Reid Hensley collected the win, while Mercurius got the save.
OU improved to 28-12 overall with the win, while Oral Roberts dropped to 23-15. The Sooners are 7-3 in midweek games this season, and they clinched the season sweep of the Golden Eagles on Tuesday.
Next, the Sooners will hit the road for a three-game series against Auburn. The Tigers, ranked No. 11 by D1Baseball, are 10-8 in SEC play and took two of three games against Florida over the weekend.
The series will open on Friday, and first pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.
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NORMAN — After an up-and down week that saw Oklahoma drop the lone Bedlam match of the season, and then split two tight games with Arkansas before blowing out the Razorbacks on Sunday, the Sooners remained No. 1 in the NFCA/Go Rout coaches’ poll released Tuesday.
But there’s far from a consensus.
Oklahoma received 12 first-place votes — the same total they had last week — but five other teams received first-place votes.
Texas Tech remained No. 2 with four four-place votes and Alabama No. 3 with seven. Nebraska moved up two spots to No. 4 with four first-place votes, followed by Florida with two and UCLA with two.
Texas is No. 7, followed by Tennessee, Arkansas and Florida State.
Texas A&M, the Sooners’ opponent for the final regular-season weekend in two weeks, comes in at No. 11.
Other SEC teams include Georgia at No. 15, Mississippi State at No. 17 and LSU at No. 20.
OU hosts the Georgia Bulldogs in a three-game series beginning Friday.
Other Sooners’ opponents this season in the polls include No. 14 Duke, No. 18 Oklahoma State, No. 19 Arizona, No. 24 Arizona State and No. 25 Washington.
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Oklahoma also remained in the top spot in the D1Softball poll, with Alabama No. 2 there followed by Texas Tech, Nebraska at Texas.
The Sooners dropped a spot in the Softball America poll, with Nebraska elevating to No. 1 behind the two-way stardom of former OU standout Jordy Frahm (formerly Jordy Bahl).
Frahm is 13-4 with a 1.36 ERA and 157 strikeouts in 118 2/3 innings in the circle and hitting .440 with 16 home runs and 42 RBIs. Another former Sooners player, Hannah Coor, is among the Cornhuskers’ regulars as well.
The Sooners have 158 home runs, just three away from tying their own season record in the category, but UCLA has closed the gap in a major way, sitting just four behind Oklahoma.
OU freshman sensation Kendall Wells leads the nation with 34 home runs, three ahead of UCLA’s Megan Grant. Wells tied Jocelyn Alo‘s program record for home runs in a season with her home run in Sunday’s win.
The Sooners host Arkansas-Pine Bluff at 6 p.m. Tuesday in their final non-conference game of the season before opening the series against Georgia at 6:30 p.m. Friday at Love’s FIeld.
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