Oklahoma
Oklahoma vs. Navy live updates: How to watch, odds, predictions for Armed Forces Bowl
How CFP fans (probably) reacted to the first round games
After the CFP first round, Before The Snap shares a sketch take on who made it to the quarterfinals.
College football bowl season continues Friday as the Oklahoma Sooners square off against the Navy Midshipmen in the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl.
The Sooners are seeking a much-needed confidence boost after a challenging first season in the SEC, while Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables tries to avoid a second consecutive seven-loss season. Moving forward, the Sooners will turn to true freshman Michael Hawkins Jr. to lead the offense at quarterback after starter Jackson Arnold entered the transfer portal and subsequently committed to Auburn. This season, Hawkins Jr. made five appearances for the Sooners, achieving a 62.3% completion rate, while throwing for 536 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. On the ground, he recorded 143 rushing yards and one touchdown.
On the other hand, the Midshipmen head into the Fort Worth, Texas, on a high note after defeating arch rival Army 31-13, finishing the regular season with a record of 9-3 and placing third in the American Athletic Conference. Navy is led by quarterback Blake Horvath, who has returned from a thumb injury. Horvath completed 57.5% of his passes for 1,261 yards, along with 13 touchdowns and four interceptions. On the ground, Horvath recorded an impressive 1,099 rushing yards and scored 15 touchdowns.
Follow along for scores and highlights from the Armed Forces Bowl as Oklahoma takes on Navy:
When is the Armed Forces Bowl between Oklahoma and Navy?
The Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl game between the Oklahoma Sooners and the Navy Midshipmen kicks off at noon ET (11 a.m. CT) at Amon G. Carter Stadium in Fort Worth, Texas.
How to watch Oklahoma and Navy in the Armed Forces Bowl
The Armed Forces Bowl game between the Oklahoma Sooners and the Navy Midshipmen will be televised nationally on ESPN.
Live streaming is available on Fubo, which has a free trial.
Watch Oklahoma take on Navy with a Fubo subscription
Oklahoma vs. Navy: Armed Forces Bowl odds
The Oklahoma Sooners are favorites to defeat the Navy Midshipmen, according to BetMGM.
Odds as of Friday, Dec. 27
- Spread: Oklahoma (-1.5)
- Moneyline: Oklahoma (-120); Navy (+120)
- Over/under: 43.5
USA TODAY: Writers split on winner
- Scooby Axson: Navy
- Jordan Mendoza: Navy
- Paul Myerberg: Oklahoma
- Erick Smith: Oklahoma
- Eddie Timanus: Navy
- Dan Wolken: Oklahoma
ESPN: Navy 24, Oklahoma 20
Adam Rittenberg writes: “The Sooners return to a Big 12 stadium seeking a better result than their last appearance in Fort Worth, a 55-24 loss to TCU in 2022. They take on a Navy team capable of piling up points with a new offense coordinated by Drew Cronic and featuring dual-threat quarterback Blake Horvath. But Navy’s offensive mojo slowed in the second half of the season, and Oklahoma will need to lean on its own stout defense after quarterback Jackson Arnold and others are headed to the portal. Sooners coach Brent Venables is trying to avoid his second 6-7 season in three years, ahead of a pivotal 2025 campaign. Oklahoma’s defensive opt-outs are worth watching, and there are more guarantees on the Navy side.”
Docs Sports: Take Navy
Staff writes: “The Midshipmen have earned 4,131 total yards for the year. When it comes to getting in the endzone, Navy has amassed 13 touchdowns through the air and 33 touchdowns via the ground. Navy has accumulated 195 first downs as an offense, and they have been called for 57 penalties for 475 yds. As a team they have an average of 247.4 yards via the ground game ranking them 8th in the nation. Concerning scoring points, the Navy Midshipmen are averaging 32.3 points per outing.”
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NORMAN — There were plenty of lowlights from John Mateer’s outing against Missouri on Saturday.
Of the 30 passes the Oklahoma quarterback threw, 16 of them went incomplete. He also nearly threw an interception early in the second half, when the Sooners led by just one score.
His final passing line — 14-of-30 for 173 yards and two touchdowns — wasn’t flashy. But it was good enough for No. 8 OU to beat the No. 22 Tigers 17-6.
“(He was) really good,” OU coach Brent Venables said. “Had to earn everything he was given. Made some really good plays. Every single one of his yards were earned, hard-earned yards.”
While Mateer was inconsistent, he made key plays when the Sooners needed them most.
Oklahoma punted on its first three drives and had minus-7 total yards of offense after the first quarter.
The Sooners were in danger of going three-and-out again on their fourth drive. But on third-and-7 from OU’s 13-yard line, Mateer hit wide receiver Isaiah Sategna in stride on a slant route, and Sategna took it 87 yards to the end zone for a touchdown.
“Really good job by John standing in there delivering the throw, and then Isaiah just turned on the burners going up the sideline,” OU offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle said. “Really good execution on that play.”
Mateer said, “Really good design that Arbuckle came up with and we got man (coverage) like we wanted. And I knew there was a ‘backer underneath I had to navigate, and I did. Luckily, put it on his nose and he was able to run.”
Just a few minutes later, Mateer took advantage of favorable field position.
After a short Mizzou punt, the Sooners started their drive at the Tigers’ 35-yard line. Mateer led a seven-play scoring drive that ended with a touchdown pass to Javonnie Gibson.
Mateer’s two touchdown passes were enough on a day where the Sooners’ defense allowed Missouri to score just twice on two field goals.
“I’m incredibly proud of him,” Arbuckle said. “I’m proud of the way he leads, I’m proud of the way that he plays. Are there always things we can be better at? Absolutely. But John Mateer, he’s a great ball player.”
Neither offense played pretty football in the second half.
Oklahoma compiled only 138 total yards, and Missouri had even fewer at 122. Mateer completed only six of his 13 pass attempts, throwing for just 49 yards in the final 30 minutes.
Still, Mateer was crucial in helping OU salt away its win.
The Sooners scored just three second-half points, but they were able to register nine first downs, thanks largely to short passes and runs for decent gains. Mateer ended the game as OU’s leading rusher, finishing with 60 yards on 18 carries, and the quarterback’s legs allowed the clock to keep moving in the low-scoring contest.
“You just gotta put your head down and take a hit, you know?” Mateer said. “So I did it, and it was fun.”
Mateer still hasn’t been at his best since returning from injury against Texas on Oct. 11. The quarterback hasn’t thrown for more than 250 yards in a game since the Sooners’ win over Auburn on Sept. 20. He has thrown four touchdowns and four interceptions in the six games since the surgery on his right hand.
Still, there has been progress lately.
Mateer threw multiple touchdown passes on Saturday for the first time since OU’s season opener against Illinois State. He has also gone two games without turning the ball over. And, most importantly, Mateer has led the Sooners to three wins in a row, keeping them in the picture for the College Football Playoff.
Mateer has slowly but steadily improved in the back half of the season, and that gives Arbuckle confidence as OU prepares for LSU, its final opponent of the regular season.
“I mean, playing insanely tough, not turning the ball over, doing the little things that it takes to win and being a great teammate and a great leader,” Arbuckle said. “That’s how I’ve seen him progress and I expect nothing different from him as soon as we go back to work tomorrow. And I’m excited to watch him attack it.”
For the first time in its 60-year history, the Sooner Schooner, the University of Oklahoma’s iconic covered wagon mascot, is being driven by a Native American woman.
Brianna Howard, a junior at OU and a citizen of the Choctaw Nation, first drove the Schooner onto the field during the football team’s season opener against Illinois State.
“I only had a minute to get on the Schooner, get the reins and go,” Howard said Saturday before the Sooners’ game against Missouri in Norman. “I didn’t have enough time to get too nervous. When I went out there, it was amazing. I could not even hear the audience I was so zoned into driving.”
Members of the RUF/NEKS and the all-female spirit group Lil’ Sis take care of the Schooner and its ponies, and they take turns driving it during the game.
First introduced in 1964, the Sooner Schooner is pulled across the field before the game and after Oklahoma scores by matching white ponies named “Boomer” and “Sooner.”
Because the scaled-down Conestoga wagon is reminiscent of those pioneers used while settling Oklahoma Territory in the late 1800s, Howard acknowledged that some see the Schooner mascot as a symbol of oppression against Native people. But she said to her, driving the wagon represents taking ownership of that symbol.
“I know that for me, it’s a representation of taking back something that was used to oppress my people and my culture, and now that I’m in charge, it’s giving us the power,” she said. “Not everyone’s going to see it that way, and that’s OK.”
Jack Roehm, a senior at OU and president of the RUF/NEKS, drove the Schooner during Saturday’s game against Missouri and described the Sooner Schooner tradition as one of college football’s most unusual.
“It’s a historic tradition after every score having the ponies run across the field,” Roehm said. “There’s nothing like it in college football.”
It appears Oklahoma will get Missouri’s best shot.
The Tigers’ starting quarterback, Beau Pribula, was upgraded to available for Saturday’s showdown by not appearing on Friday’s SEC Availability Report.
Pribula suffered a lower leg injury in Missouri’s loss to Vanderbilt, and he hasn’t appeared since.
Pribula has completed 69.6 percent of his passes this year for 1,685 yards and 11 touchdowns, though he has thrown seven interceptions.
But the No. 22-ranked Tigers will likely have him back as they try to upend No. 8 Oklahoma’s season.
For the Sooners’ part, they’ll be working without a few pieces.
Defensive end R Mason Thomas and defensive back Gentry Williams were both downgraded from questionable to doubtful on the report.
Thomas injured his quad early in Oklahoma’s win over Tennessee in the process of returning Joey Aguilar’s fumble all the way back to the end zone for a touchdown.
Williams hasn’t featured since he exited on the first drive of OU’s win over South Carolina.
Running back Jovantae Barnes and offensive guard Heath Ozaeta were both ruled out for the contest, as was defensive back Kendel Dolby. This marked the first time all week that Dolby appeared on the availability report.
OU was already going to be without offensive linemen Troy Everett, Jacob Sexton and Jake Taylor, who have been ruled out of every SEC contest this year.
Running backs Xavier Robinson and Tory Blaylock did not appear on the availability report, though it’s unclear if either back will be 100 percent on Saturday.
Robinson had to go to the injury tent in the second half against Alabama, and while he did return to the game, he was not as effective late.
As a result, OU coach Brent Venables said the Sooners will have to lean on the depth of the offense to keep the rushing game going against Missouri.
“It’s going to be tested, no question,” Venables said. “So hopeful we can stay healthy and we’re probably going to spread it out a little more to kind of manage the next few weeks.”
The Sooners and the Tigers will meet at 11 a.m. on Saturday at Owen Field, and the contest will be broadcast on ABC.
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