Oklahoma
PFF notebook: What the numbers say about Alabama's loss to Oklahoma
PFF notebook: What the numbers say about Alabama’s loss to Oklahoma
After defeating LSU on the road in Week 11, Alabama looked like a shoo-in for the College Football Playoff and had the inside track for the SEC Championship. However, two weeks later, the Crimson Tide’s momentum came to a halt as the 5-5 Oklahoma Sooners delivered a shocking 24-3 defeat in Norman, turning a trip to the Palace on the Prairie into a nightmare for Alabama.
Alabama couldn’t find its footing in any way, shape or form. The Crimson Tide’s typically potent rushing attack was suffocated by a strong Oklahoma defense, while Sooners quarterback Jackson Arnold carved up Alabama’s defense with his legs, delivering a standout performance that kept the Tide trailing the whole game. Even Alabama’s special teams had their blunders, with typically reliable punter James Burnip having several self-inflicted errors throughout the game.
“Extremely disappointed. Frustrated,” said Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer. “We worked extremely hard, I thought, all week putting a plan together all week. Guys had good energy and were excited to come here on the road. We’ve just got to play better. We’ve got to be better.”
Before we turn the page to the now No. 13 Alabama’s matchup with Auburn in the Iron Bowl here’s a look at the Tide’s Week 13 performance through the lens of Pro Football Focus.
TOP PERFORMERS
Offense
(Player, position — offensive grade)
Parker Brailsford, C — 70.5
The Washington transfer finished as the highest-graded offensive player in Alabama’s 21-point loss to Oklahoma. Among each offensive lineman who took at least one pass-blocking snap against the Sooners, Brailsford was the only one not to allow a pressure, although he did chart one penalty for the Crimson Tide.
Josh Cuevas, TE — 69.2
Cuevas finished with 40 receiving yards on two receptions, his second straight game hauling in two catches for at least 40 yards, helping him finish with a 71.6 receiving grade against Oklahoma. Unfortunately for the hybrid offensive piece, Cuevas allowed his first pressure of the season as a QB hit.
Jalen Milroe, QB — 67.7
Although Milroe cracks into the top three, his placement here shows how abysmal Alabama’s offense was against the Sooners. Milroe’s grade was the second lowest of the season for the junior quarterback while simultaneously finishing with his lowest-graded rushing performance this year. In the passing attack, Milroe only charted one turnover-worthy play despite the career-high three interceptions.
Defense
(Player, position — defensive grade)
Tim Smith, DT — 82.5
The fifth-year defensive lineman was Alabama’s most consistent defender in the 24-3 loss to the Sooners, finishing with Alabama’s second-highest run defense grade, 78.0, and charting a lone pressure. Smith finished the day with four tackles on 38 snaps.
DeVonta Smith — 74.1
Smith had a good game against the Sooners, totaling eight tackles and finishing with Alabama’s third-highest tackle rating (83.1). The defensive back allowed one reception for five yards in coverage,
Malachi Moore — 73.9
Alabama’s defensive leader, Moore, is set to play in his final regular season game for the Crimson Tide in the upcoming Iron Bowl, but had a solid performance in his final SEC road game. Moore finished the day with 10 tackles and a team-leading 74.7 grade in coverage.
Qua Russaw, OLB – 73.5
Russaw lands in the top four with a consistent performance across the board. The redshirt freshman finished with four tackles and above a 70.0 grade in each overall defense, run defense tackling and coverage.
TOP BLOCKERS
Pass blocking
Jam Miller — 85.5 (10-pass-blocking-snaps)
Tyler Booker — 83.0 (34-pass-blocking-snaps)
Jaeden Roberts — 78.5 (24-pass-blocking-snaps)
Parker Brailsford — 74.1 (24-pass-blocking-snaps)
Geno VnDeMark — 70.3 (10-pass-blocking-snaps)
Outlook: Alabama’s pass blocking finished with its second-lowest overall grade of the season, 59.0, only behind Alabama’s Week 8 loss to Tennesee. The Crimson Tide blockers allowed 12 pressures in total, with Elijah Pritchett allowing five; this was his fifth time of the season allowing at least three pressures in a game. The unit also totaled four penalties against the Sooners.
Run blocking
Kadyn Proctor — 67.7 (29-run-blocking-snaps)
Parker Brailsford — 66.8 (29-run-blocking-snaps)
Jam Miller — 64.3 (12-run-blocking-snaps)
Outlook: Alabama’s run blocking also turned in its second-lowest grade of the season, 53.9. The Crimson Tide’s run game was abysmal against Oklahoma, only rushing for 70 yards on 30 attempts (2.3 yards per carry)
PASSING DEPTH
Jalen Milroe
Deep (20+ yards past LOS): 2 of 5 for 62 yards, 1 interception
Medium (10-19 yards past LOS): 1 of 3 for 15 yards
Short (0-9 yards past LOS): 6 of 12 for 73 yards, 1 interception
Behind LOS: 2 of 4 for 14 yards, 1 interception
Ty Simpson
Behind LOS: 0 of 1
Outlook: Jalen Milroe delivered his least efficient passing performance of the season against Oklahoma, finishing with an adjusted completion rate of 62.5% and recording his first turnover-worthy play in four games. Despite the interception, Milroe showed flashes in his deep passing game, logging two big-time throws and nearly a third, which was taken away by an illegal touching penalty on Alabama after Ryan Williams caught a fourth-quarter touchdown. Milroe’s passing in the short game was abysmal, finishing with a 50.2 grade on those passes, but three drops from his receivers also impacted his play in the range of the field.
TRUE FRESHMAN SNAP COUNTS
Players with Snaps:
Zabien Brown — 66 snaps (58 wide, 5 FG/XP block, 3 box) — Starter
Ryan Williams — 66 snaps (46 wide, 17 slot, 3 punt return) — Starter
Caleb Odom — 27 snaps (10 wide, 9 slot, 5 kick return, 3 punt return)
Justin Okoronkwo — 14 snaps (5 kick return, 4 punt coverage, 3 punt return, 2 kick coverage)
Zavier Mincey — 13 snaps (5 kick return, 4 kick coverage, 2 punt coverage, 2 kick coverage)
Dre Kirkpatrick Jr. — 10 snaps (5 kick return, 3 punt return, 2 kick coverage)
Red Morgan — 7 snaps (5 kick return, 2 kick coverage)
Jaylen Mbakwe — 7 snaps (4 punt coverage, 3 punt return)
Isaia Faga — 4 snaps (3 d-line, 1 FG/XP block)
Cayden Jones — 3 snaps (3 punt return)
Daniel Hill — 3 snaps (3 punt return)
Players with No Snaps (Alphabetical):
Amari Jefferson
Bubba Hampton
Casey Poe
Jay Lindsey
Jayshawn Ross
Jeremiah Beaman
Joseph Ionata
Kevin Riley
Noah Carter
QB Reese
Rico Scott
Sterling Dixon
Oklahoma
What Houston Does Better Than Oklahoma State and Why It Matters
Oklahoma State and Houston have an odd tradition dating back to their matchup in 1986. Neither team has won two games in a row.
Since that game in Stillwater in 1986 the Cougars and the Cowboys have alternated victories. Houston won that game in Stillwater, 28-12. The Cowboys followed that with a win in Houston in 1987.
Then the Cougars won in 2006 in Houston, followed by an Oklahoma State win in Stillwater in 2008. The two teams met again in 2009 in Stillwater and Houston won.
That was followed in 2023 by Oklahoma State’s first visit to Houston in Big 12 action with the Cowboys claiming the victory. And, of course, there was Oklahoma State’s loss to Houston last year in Stillwater.
If things hold the form, Oklahoma State will beat Houston this October. But the Cowboys are going to have to overcome something that Houston does better than them.
What Houston Does Better Than Oklahoma State
Given that both teams have talented offenses and have the potential to dominate in the passing game, it’s safe to say that’s a draw. Same for the running game with Caleb Hawkins at Oklahoma State and the incoming Makhi Hughes at Houston.
So, it could come down to who can defend the pass the best. In that area, Houston would have a clear advantage.
In terms of yards allowed in the air last year Houston was No. 10 in the Big 12 and Oklahoma State was No. 13. There wasn’t much separating the pair. But Houston had 12 interceptions to Oklahoma State’s six, and much of that production is coming back in the form of three returning starters. Plus, the Cougars managed to replace some of the lost production with an impressive transfer.
Will James was an All-Big 12 cornerback last year who returns with three interceptions and five pass breakups in what was a breakthrough season for the junior. Both safeties are back after last season as well. Kentrell Webb is more of a ball-hawkish type safety who can also tackle (71 tackles, one interception) while Jordan Allen had 48 tackles and broke up two passes.
New corner Jalen Mayo replaces much of the lost production on the back end. The Stephen F. Austin transfer helped the Lumberjacks win the Southland Conference and an FCS playoff game as he picked off four passes. He’ll combine with James to build a formidable group of cornerbacks that can also count on another transfer, Javion White, in a 4-2-5 formation.
Game planning will be a bit easier for Oklahoma State since it plays the same 4-2-5 scheme. But, on paper, Houston’s secondary looks much better than Oklahoma State’s, which only has one returning starter in LaDanian Fields, who is a sophomore. Fields has two interceptions as a redshirt freshman. But transfers will make up for what else was lost last season.
Given the continuity on Houston’s side, it’s easy to see why their secondary is the thing they do better than Oklahoma State. Of course, the Cowboys have enough runway to nullify that advantage before they meet in October.
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Oklahoma
What are the Oklahoma City Thunder getting in Kentucky star Otega Oweh?
Kentucky fans have been waiting all night to hear the name Otega Oweh called in the 2026 NBA Draft, and the wait is finally over. Oweh just went with the 41st pick to the Miami Heat, but his draft rights were traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder. This means Oweh will be joining Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Cason Wallace, who just two seasons ago won the NBA Championship.
The Thunder still have one of the best young cores in the NBA, and now they have added to it by bringing in the Kentucky star Oweh. This season for the Wildcats, Oweh led the team in scoring, averaging 18.6 points per game to go with 4.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.8 steals.
When watching Oweh play, some might wonder how he didn’t go higher in the draft, but the goal for him early into his pro career will be to see if he can continue to develop his jump shot. Last year at Kentucky, Oweh shot 33.3% from deep, but fans felt a lot more confident when Oweh would shoot the three-point shot.
Oweh is a great defender who is going to thrive playing for the Thunder, who are a team that works harder than any other team on the defensive end of the floor. Oweh can be a player for the Thunder who can come off the bench and play really hard on the defensive end of the floor, taking away steals and getting to the rim.
When it comes to getting to the rim, there was no player in college basketball better than Oweh last season. He will be able to do this in the league, and if there is nothing there, he can kick the ball out to an open shooter. Being able to drive and kick in the NBA is very important, and I believe Oweh will do this at a high level.
The goal now for Oweh will be to play really well in the NBA Summer League to prove to the Thunder that he has to be on the team next season. While Oweh’s shooting issue doesn’t make him a prototypical NBA guard, BBN knows this kid can play. He will prove in the NBA Summer League that no team can stop him from getting to the rim. It will be great to see him paired with SGA and Wallace. The fit between the Thunder and Oweh makes a ton of sense, and he could make this roster.
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Oklahoma
Fire Crews respond to commercial fire in SW Oklahoma City Wednesday afternoon
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (KOKH) — Oklahoma City fire crews responded to a commercial fire in SW Oklahoma City on Wednesday afternoon.
The Oklahoma City Fire Department said crews responded to a fire at a vacant restaurant near SW 29th and South Miller Avenue on Wednesday afternoon.
Crews extinguished the flames, which were shooting up through the roof, according to OKCFD.
No injuries were reported, and OKCFD is working to determine the cause of the fire.
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