Oklahoma

Quarterback Dillon Gabriel Puts Oklahoma In College Football Playoff Contention

Published

12 months ago

October 10, 2023

Quarterback Dillon Gabriel Puts Oklahoma In College Football Playoff Contention

Oklahoma quarterback Dillon Gabriel (8) celebrates the game winning touchdown with teammate Caleb … [+] Shaffer (53) late in the second half of an NCAA college football game against Texas at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2023. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

After the 2021 season, quarterback Dillon Gabriel announced he was transferring from the University of Central Florida, where he had started for three years. There was no shortage of suitors even though Gabriel had sustained a fractured clavicle that September and missed the remainder of the season.

That December, Gabriel said he would play for UCLA. But just over two weeks later, he changed his mind and committed to Oklahoma, reuniting with Sooners offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby, who had the same role at UCF when Gabriel was there.

Gabriel’s first season at Oklahoma didn’t go as planned, as the Sooners went 6-7, their first time under .500 since 1998. But this year, Oklahoma is back among college football’s elite programs.

OU (6-0) is ranked fifth in the Associated Press poll following Saturday’s 34-30 victory over Texas in the annual Red River rivalry game. Texas (5-1) was third in the AP poll but fell to ninth after the loss.

The Sooners trailed by three points and had no timeouts when they regained possession with 1:17 remaining. They had blown a 10-point lead and hadn’t scored on their past four drives. But then Gabriel led the Sooners down the field, culminating in a three-yard touchdown pass with 15 seconds left. Texas got the ball back and completed two passes, but it couldn’t connect on a Hail Mary as time expired.

Gabriel completed 23-of-38 passes for 285 yards and ran for 113 yards and three touchdowns on 14 carries. It was a much different scene from last year when Oklahoma lost, 49-0, to Texas in a game that Gabriel sat out.

Brent Venables, Oklahoma’s second-year coach, told reporters after Saturday’s game that “last year was an embarrassment” and “my hands are all over that,” but he praised his team for their performance in this year’s game, especially Gabriel.

“He’s the calmest guy I’ve ever been around at the quarterback position,” Venables said. “He’s got great belief in the players around him, he’s incredibly humble, you don’t see him ever tooting his own horn. He’s always trying to compliment and call someone else up. But he’s prepared. He’s worked really, really hard.”

Gabriel, a native of Hawaii, was the 20th-best pro-style quarterback in the high school Class of 2019, according to 247Sports. As a true freshman at UCF, he won the starting job, completing 59.3% of his passes for 3,653 yards, 29 touchdowns and seven interceptions. The Knights went 10-3 and ended the year 24th in the AP poll, their third consecutive top 25 finish.

The next year, in a COVID-shortened season, UCF went 6-4 but Gabriel’s numbers were better as he completed 60% of his passes for 3,570 yards, 32 touchdowns and just four interceptions.

After that season, UCF hired former Auburn coach Gus Malzahn as coach, replacing Josh Heupel, who left for Tennessee. Despite the coaching change, Gabriel remained with the Knights and led them to two consecutive victories to start the season before sustaining an injury in the third game. He never played again for UCF as he transferred to Oklahoma, a program that has become known in recent years for its star quarterbacks.

Baker Mayfield won the Heisman Trophy in 2017, while Kyler Murray won the award a year later and Jalen Hurts finished second in 2019. Mayfield and Murray were No. 1 overall selections in the NFL draft, while Hurts was a second round pick and finished second in the NFL Most Valuable Player award voting last year.

No one was mentioning Gabriel as a worthy successor to those players last year when OU finished 6-7 and lost four of its final five games. Not that Gabriel had a bad season. He completed 62.7% of his passes for 3,168 yards, 25 touchdowns and six interceptions and ran for 315 yards and six touchdowns. It’s just that the bar was set so high.

This year, Gabriel is in the Heisman conversation. He has completed 72.3% of his passes for 1,878 yards, 16 touchdowns and just two interceptions and run for 208 yards and five touchdowns. And fickle Oklahoma fans are no longer clamoring for Gabriel to be replaced by Jackson Arnold, a true freshman and the No. 8 overall recruit in the high school Class of 2023, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings.

After a bye this weekend, Oklahoma returns to action on Oct. 21 against UCF, Gabriel’s former team. The Sooners will be favorites in their remaining six games and face only one ranked opponent (No. 23 Kansas) the rest of the way.

If OU can win all of those games, it will finish the regular season undefeated for the first time since 2004 and advance to the Big 12 Championship game in its final season in the league. The Sooners could again face Texas in the conference title game in a matchup of two teams that are heading to the Southeastern Conference next year.

It is quite a turnaround for Gabriel and Venables, a longtime defensive coordinator at Oklahoma and Clemson who struggled last year in his first year as a head coach. The Sooners are in position to make the College Football Playoff for the fifth time in the 10-year history of the postseason format but first time since the 2019 season.

“There’s no limits on what this team can do, and no excuses, either,” Venables told reporters after Saturday’s game. “We’ve got everything that we need. We’re certainly not there. There’s plenty we’ll have to improve and get better at, but, boy, I’m just really thankful for our players and their effort. They were nothing short of amazing today.”

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Oklahoma

What time, TV channel is the Oklahoma Sooners vs Auburn football on today? Free live stream, spread, game odds

Published

4 hours ago

September 28, 2024

Press Room

What time, TV channel is the Oklahoma Sooners vs Auburn football on today? Free live stream, spread, game odds

The No. 21 ranked Oklahoma Sooners face the Auburn Tigers with a true freshman quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. being named the starter after an impressive second half in a loss to Tennessee last week. This game kicks off at 12:30 p.m. PT/3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, September 28 with a live broadcast on ABC, and streaming live on ESPN Plus.

• WATCH: Auburn vs. Oklahoma football live for FREE with Fubo (free trial), or stream this game and more on the cheap with one month of ESPN+ (costs $10.99/month, cancel anytime).

The betting odds for this game have moved all over the place, originally opening with the Sooners as the favorites. However, most sportsbooks now have Auburn as slight favorites over Oklahoma in this matchup.

What TV channel is the Oklahoma vs. Auburn game on?

When: Kickoff takes place at 12:30 p.m. PT/3:30 p.m. ET (2:30 p.m. CT) on Saturday, September 28.

Where: Jordan-Hare Stadium | Auburn, AL

TV Channel: ABC, and streaming on ESPN Plus

How to watch live stream online: If you don’t have cable, you can still watch this game live for FREE with Fubo (free trial). If you are out of free trials, the cheapest and best way to watch this game and more football this month is by signing up for one month of ESPN+ (costs $10.99/month, cancel anytime).

If you already have a cable or satellite subscription already, you can watch the game on Watch ESPN or the ESPN app by signing in with your provider information.

You can find out more about which channel ABC is on in your area by using the channel finders here: Comcast Xfinity, DIRECTV, Dish, Verizon Fios, Spectrum/Charter, Optimum/Altice.

Oklahoma vs. Auburn spread, betting odds

Point Spread: OU: +1 | AUB: -1

Moneyline: OU: -105 | AUB: -115

Over/Under: 44.5

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Oklahoma

LB Dasan McCullough Joins List of 11 Oklahoma Players Unavailable against Auburn

Published

12 hours ago

September 28, 2024

Press Room

LB Dasan McCullough Joins List of 11 Oklahoma Players Unavailable against Auburn

The list of unavailable players for the Sooners just keeps growing.

Oklahoma linebacker Dasan McCullough will not be available for OU’s game against Auburn at 2:30 pm. Saturday, according to the most recent SEC availability report that was released Friday night. McCullough also missed last week’s game against Tennessee after being listed as doubtful most of last week. He was listed as questionable this week until Friday.

McCullough joined a list of 10 other Sooners that will be unavailable for Week 5. The only other OU player included on the availability report was offensive lineman Jake Taylor, who was listed as probable. Unless he’s considered a game-time decision, Taylor’s status will be known when the final availability report is released 90 minutes before OU and Auburn kicks off.

The bright side of this week’s report is that it looks like Geirean Hatchett, who is out for the season, will be the only offensive lineman the Sooners will not have available.

Those unavailable include five of OU’s top receivers in Jayden Gibson, Jalil Farooq, Nic Anderson, Andrel Anthony and Deion Burks. Gibson has already been ruled out for the season, while Farooq is expected to miss 6-8 weeks after breaking his foot in the Sooners’ season opener against Temple. Anderson made his first appearance of the season last week but was injured during the opening drive.

Burks was the newest receiver added to OU’s injured reserve on Thursday after also suffering an injury against Tennessee. Burks is the Sooners’ leading receiver with 26 receptions for 201 yards and three touchdowns. The next leading pass catcher is tight end Bauer Sharp with 14 catches and 116 yards.

So many injuries to OU receivers even influenced Brent Venables to switch cornerback Jacobe Johnson to wide receiver. And the Sooners are enduring all these injuries at receiver as freshman Michael Hawkins Jr. is set to make his first career start Saturday.

Freshman running back Taylor Tatum and defensive back Kendel Dolby were also injured last week. Tatum was ruled out on Thursday, while Dolby, who plays the cheetah position, will miss the rest of the season after undergoing surgery on Wednesday. Fellow defensive back Gentry Williams was also ruled unavailable for Saturday.

The biggest shock of this week was kicker Tyler Keltner, who will be unavailable after an emergency appendectomy. Zach Schmit will presumably take over all kicking duties after participating in only kickoffs so far this season.

As for Auburn, the Tigers’ list is much shorter. Auburn will be without defensive backs Tyler Scott and Champ Anthony, as well as tight end Brandon Frazier. Defensive lineman Isaiah Raikes, kicker Alex McPherson and offensive lineman Izavion Miller are listed as probable.

WR Jayden Gibson, Out
LB Dasan McCullough, Out
WR Jalil Farooq, Out
WR Nic Anderson, Out
WR Andrel Anthony, Out
WR Deion Burks, Out
RB Taylor Tatum, Out
DB Gentry Williams, Out
DB Kendel Dolby, Out
OL Geirean Hatchett, Out
K Tyler Keltner, Out
OL Jake Taylor, Probable

DB Tyler Scott, Out
DB Champ Anthony, Out
TE Brandon Frazier, Out
DL Isaiah Raikes, Probable
K Alex McPherson, Probable
OL Izavion Miller, Probable

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Oklahoma

Sources: Auburn’s Thorne to be QB1 vs. Sooners

Published

21 hours ago

September 27, 2024

Press Room

Sources: Auburn’s Thorne to be QB1 vs. Sooners

Eli Lederman, ESPN Staff WriterSep 27, 2024, 04:35 PM ET
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Veteran quarterback Payton Thorne will start for Auburn when No. 21 Oklahoma visits Jordan-Hare Stadium Saturday afternoon, sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel Friday.

Thorne, the former Michigan State transfer, started 13 games for the Tigers last fall. He returned as the program’s starter in 2024 before he was replaced by redshirt freshman Hank Brown in Week 3. In Thorne, Auburn will have an experienced starter under center in Week 5 against a Sooners defense that leads the nation in turnovers (12) and ranks 28th in total defense this fall.

Auburn initially turned to Brown after Thorne threw a career-high four interceptions in a 21-14 home defeat to Cal on Sept. 7. Brown led the Tigers past New Mexico in his first career start in Week 3, but struggled against Arkansas last Saturday, completing 7-of-13 passes for 72 yards with three interceptions. After Auburn went scoreless before halftime, Thorne took over at quarterback in the second half of the 24-14 home loss, finishing 13-for-23 for 213 yards with two touchdowns and interception.

Both quarterbacks turned in strong weeks of practice ahead of this weekend’s visit from Oklahoma, but Auburn will go with Thorne Saturday, banking on his experience and the momentum he built in his relief work against Arkansas as the Tigers chase their first SEC win of 2024.

Auburn hosts the Sooners at 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday on ABC in Oklahoma’s first SEC road game.

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