After another win vs. Alabama, Oklahoma proves its viability as an SEC school

Buck Ringgold

•
After another win vs. Alabama, Oklahoma proves its viability as an SEC school image

David Leong/Imagn Images

Three weeks ago, Oklahoma’s season appeared to be teetering on the brink in its second expedition through the Southeastern Conference.

The Sooners fell short in a home loss at Ole Miss and stood at 6-2, facing a gauntlet of four teams that - at the time - were ranked. And the first two of those games were on the road in traditionally hostile venues.

But look at the Sooners now. They are 2-for-2 in those “hostile” venues, winning two weeks ago at Tennessee’s Neyland Stadium and on Saturday, winning at Alabama’s Bryant-Denny Stadium, 23-21.

That put the Sooners at 2-for-2 in another category: Wins against Alabama since joining the SEC. Again, that’s against Alabama, arguably the league’s flagship program.

Oklahoma defeats Alabama live score, highlights from the Week 12 SEC matchup 

Though OU suffered a rough debut season in the SEC last fall, the Sooners were still able to defeat Alabama, a shocking 24-3 win in Norman.

But, they said, things would be different in Saturday’s rematch in Tuscaloosa.

Alabama would be out for revenge, they said. The Tide was on a roll since that opening-week loss to Florida State, they said. And, second-year coach Kalen DeBoer seemed to be settling in as coach, having not lost a home game nor having lost while wearing a “lucky” black hoodie.

To that, the Sooners said, “Pshaw.”

Though they were dominated on the stat sheet, the Sooners found a way to silence the boisterous fans at Bryant-Denny. They forced three turnovers, turning those into 17 points, including a huge 87-yard pick-six by Eli Bowen in the first quarter that put OU up, 10-0.

While quarterback John Mateer still hasn’t been the same player since his finger injury against Auburn, he made some key plays to keep drives going. He also had a huge 20-yard dash into the end zone after OU recovered a fumble on a Bama punt return, giving the Sooners another 10-point lead in the second half.

Then, the Sooner defense came up huge down the stretch. They kept Alabama off the board in its final four drives, the first three holding the Tide to 15 total yards, and the last on downs with more than a minute left.

MORE: Oklahoma defense stifles Alabama: How Brent Venables' dominant unit has Sooners eyeing CFP 

Keep in mind this is a Sooner defense that was without two of its top players in lineman R Mason Thomas and cornerback Gentry Williams, both out with injuries.

And instead of Bama getting revenge, the Sooners found a way to pull off another win against another crimson-coated blue blood program.

Now, instead of having a season on the brink, the Sooners control their own destiny. With two more wins, both at home, they can now punch their ticket into the College Football Playoff, with a first-round home playoff game a stronger possibility.

Some of the best SEC teams never won back-to-back road games in Tennessee and Alabama. In that case, you can say Oklahoma definitely isn’t in over its head in its new league.

With back-to-back wins against perhaps the SEC’s all-time heavyweight program, the latter helping them zero in on a playoff spot, the Sooners are proving they more than belong in their new league. Not to mention enhancing the already-tough SEC even more.

MORE SPORTS NEWS

No automatic bids for the CFP? It's a perfectly absurd SEC idea from the imperfect SEC

Is Alabama out of the playoff? Explaining Crimson Tide's CFP chances after SEC loss to Oklahoma 

College football's 30 highest-paid coaches in 2025, from Kirby Smart to Bill Belichick 

News Correspondent