After one gigantic shutout in the last week, #3 Oklahoma (3-0) struggled against Nebraska (2-2), but scored another victory in the 2021 college football season. The Sooners beat the Cornhuskers this Saturday (18), at Memorial Stadium, in Norman, by a score of 23 to 16 to continue well ranked in the long search for the CFP.
Neither team made a big splash in the game, but Oklahoma Sooners starting quarterback Spencer Rattler finished the game with 24 of 34 complete passes for 214 yards and a touchdown, plus running six times for 35 yards and another TD.
House running backs Eric Gray and Kennedy Brooks had 15 runs for 84 yards and 14 runs for 75 yards and a TD, respectively. On defense, linebacker DeShaun White scored ten total tackles, including five solos and a half sack. The play of the clash was in the intercept of cornerback DJ Graham, who made a beautiful one-handed intercept.
On the Nebraska side, under center Adrian Martinez scored a touchdown and picked up with 19 of 25 complete throws for 289 air yards, as well as running 17 times for 34 yards and a TD over the ground. On the defensive side, JoJo Domann had 12 total tackles, including seven solos and one for loss of yards, plus a deflected pass.
Now Oklahoma will face the West Virginia Mountaineers show (2-1) in their fourth straight home match, on September 25, in a Big 12 duel. On the same day, the Cornhuskers head to Spartan Stadium for the Big Ten conference against Michigan State (3-0) to try to take the rival’s unbeaten record.
The game
The Sooners started the match scoring right on the first drive. After a 14-play campaign, Rattler took advantage of his field position to enter the end zone in a short one-yard run. Nebrakas even managed to slow before the end of the first quarter on Connor Culp’s 51-yard field goal to make the score 7-3.
In the second period, both teams lost their shots in a row. First Oklahoma with Gabe Brkic for a 54-yard attempt and then another long shot from Culp, this time for 50 yards. Other than that, the teams were unable to move the chains and exchanged punts for the lowest score by the homeowners since 2017.
On the way back from halftime, Culp missed another FG, this time from 35 yards. But the mistakes stopped there as the Sooners followed Spencer Rattler’s one-yard pass to wide receiver Jeremiah Hall. But the defense failed to stop Nebraska’s downhill attack and QB Adrian Martinez ran into the end zone. But in the extra point attempt, the shot was blocked and Pat Fields returned to his rival’s promised land to score two points for Oklahoma in 16-9.
BLOCKED AND BROUGHT BACK FOR TWO ????
What a play from @OU_Football ???? pic.twitter.com/yYMgD4Lgk7
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 18, 2021
The last quarter started with Oklahoma scoring the most. Brooks now ran from the 2-yd-line to further increase the score. And right after that happened the most spectacular play of the match, where defensive back DJ Graham intercepted Martinez in the red zone on a fourth down to Odell Beckham Jr., with just one hand.
???????????? ????????????????.@djgraham #OUNDNA pic.twitter.com/lHac2axrfB
– Oklahoma Football (@OU_Football) September 18, 2021
When possession returned to the visitors’ attack, Adrian Martinez led a three-player drive to score another touchdown for the Cornhuskiers, this time on 21-yard passes for Omar Manning to leave the score 23-16. And Nebraska still had the chance to tie the game, but with less than a minute left on the clock, QB could not move the chains of their defense field and the victory was sealed.
(Photo: Twitter/Oklahoma Football Reproduction)
