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University of Oklahoma Athletics
Photo by: Ty Russell
Game Primer: OU at Texas Tech
October 30, 2020 | Football
24Â Oklahoma
Texas Tech
Saturday, Oct. 31 / 7 p.m. CT / Lubbock, Texas
Opening Kick
• No. 24/24 Oklahoma (3-2, 2-2) starts the second half of the regular season when it travels to face Texas Tech (2-3, 1-3) on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT inside Jones AT&T Stadium. The game will be televised by FOX with Tim Brando and Spencer Tillman announcing.
• The Sooners have won 25 of their last 27 true road games and are 14-2 in such contests under fourth-year head coach Lincoln Riley.
• Dating back to the start of the 2012 season, Oklahoma is 42-8 (.840) in regular season games away from home. OU has scored at least 30 points in 43 of those 50 contests.
• Oklahoma owns a 21-6 record against Texas Tech (8-4 in Lubbock) and has won each of the last eight games in the series. OU is averaging 50.6 points, 604.8 yards and 294.4 rushing yards per contest during the streak.
• The Sooners have scored at least 38 points in each of their last 10 games against the Red Raiders. It is the second-longest streak against an opponent in school history (OU scored at least 38 points in 11 straight games against Kingfisher College from 1908 through 1919).
• OU has scored at least 28 points in a school-record 57 consecutive games. The next longest streak nationally since at least 1980 is 31 by UCF (2017-19). The next longest active streak is 18 games by Alabama.
• Oklahoma is 43-6 (.878) in regular season Big 12 play since the start of the 2015 season, which coincides with Riley's arrival at OU as offensive coordinator. Oklahoma State ranks second during that period (31-17; .646) while West Virginia ranks third (27-22; .551) and TCU and Texas fourth (26-23; .531).
• The Sooners have ranked in the top seven nationally in total offense each of Riley's five years calling plays and in the top three each of the last four seasons (7th in 2015 [530.2 ypg]; 2nd in 2016 [554.8]; 1st in 2017 [579.6]; 1st in 2018 [570.3]; and 3rd in 2019 [537.6]). Through five games this season, OU leads the Big 12 and ranks 10th nationally (among teams that have played more than once) in total offense (501.2).
• OU is back in the AP Top 25 after being unranked in each of the three previous polls. Prior to their Oct. 3 loss at Iowa State, the Sooners had been ranked in every poll since Sept. 25, 2016, good for a streak of 64 AP polls. It was the third longest streak nationally (Alabama has a streak of 204 consecutive appearances and Clemson has a streak of 93) and the sixth longest in program history.
• This year's Oklahoma squad is looking to become the fifth in program history to win a conference title with two league losses. The four occasions it happened were in 1976 (5-2 in Big Eight; shared with Colorado and Oklahoma State) and 2002, 2007 and 2010 (6-2 in Big 12; won Big 12 Championship games). No OU team has ever won a conference title after a 0-2 league start and no Sooners squad has ever won a conference championship with three league losses.
KEY STORYLINES
• Oklahoma owns a 21-6 (.778) all-time record against Texas Tech but has had more modest success against the Red Raiders in Lubbock, where it is 8-4 (.667). In the Big 12 era, the Sooners hold an 18-6 advantage (7-4 in Lubbock). OU has won its last four games at Jones AT&T Stadium (41-20 in 2012, 42-30 in 2014, 66-59 in 2016 and 51-46 in 2018). The Sooners are 8-0 in Lubbock when scoring at least 30 points and are 0-4 there when scoring less than 30 points.
• Among quarterbacks who have played in more than one game, Spencer Rattler ranks fifth nationally (first among freshmen) in passing efficiency rating (180.2), fifth nationally in yards per pass attempt (10.1), sixth nationally (first among freshmen) in passing touchdowns (15), eighth nationally in completion percentage (69.5), 11th nationally (first among freshmen) in passing offense (303.6 ypg) and 12th nationally (first among freshmen) in total offense (318.4 ypg). He has thrown at least two touchdown passes in all five contests, at least three in three games and four in the Missouri State and Kansas State outings.
• Freshman wide receiver Marvin Mims is tied for the Big 12 lead and tied for second among Power Five players with six receiving touchdowns (no other freshman nationally has more than three). He needs one more receiving score to tie the OU freshman record for a season (Mark Andrews in 2015 and CeeDee Lamb in 2017), and his six receiving TDs are more than any Sooner frosh through his first five games, breaking the previous record of four by Ryan Broyles (redshirt freshman in 2008) and Lamb (true freshman in 2017). Mims has 19 catches for a team-high 328 yards this season and ranks second nationally (among players who have played more than one game) with his 17.9 yards per punt return (143 yards on eight returns). Mims is the Texas high school record holder for receiving yards in a career (5,485) and in a season (2,629 on 117 receptions and 32 touchdowns last year at Frisco's Lone Star High School).
• Oklahoma has won the time-of-possession battle in all five games this season and leads the country (among teams that have played more than once) with its 34:27 average. In Riley's first three seasons as head coach, OU had never ranked better than 23rd in the country in the statistic (31:50 in 2017). Since the Sooners began tracking time of possession in 1992, only one OU squad has recorded a figure above 33:00 minutes per game (33:11 in 2004).
• The Sooners have held three of their five opponents to 75 rushing yards or less, and limited Texas to 89 yards through regulation in a four-overtime contest. Oklahoma leads the Big 12 and ranks sixth nationally among teams that have played more than two games by allowing 92.2 rushing yards per outing. OU held Missouri State to 54 rushing yards (2.2 average), Kansas State to 56 (2.2 average) and TCU to 75 (3.0 average). Iowa State finished with 135 rushing yards (4.4 average) and Texas 141 (4.1 average). Texas Tech ranks fifth in the Big 12 with its 149.0 rushing yards per game.
BACK TO THE OLD STOMPING GROUND
• Oklahoma head coach Lincoln Riley is a 2006 Texas Tech graduate. A walk-on quarterback for the Red Raiders during the spring and summer of 2003, Riley spent seven years (2003-09) on former head coach Mike Leach's TTU staff in the roles of student assistant/offense (2003-05), offensive assistant (2006), wide receivers coach (2007) and inside receivers coach (2008-09). He also served as Tech's interim offensive coordinator and play-caller for the 2010 Alamo Bowl, a 41-31 victory over Michigan State.
• OU co-offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh (2000-06), associate head coach and outside receivers coach Dennis Simmons (2000-09) and director of sports performance for football Bennie Wylie (2003-09) also worked at Texas Tech while Riley was on staff.
CRUEL TO HIS SCHOOL
• 2006 Texas Tech graduate Lincoln Riley is 5-0 against his alma mater since arriving at Oklahoma as offensive coordinator in 2015 (3-0 as head coach). Incredibly, OU registered over 600 yards of offense in each of those five meetings (617 in 2015, 854 in 2016, 617 in 2017, 683 in 2018 and 644 last year), making it the only program since at least 1996 to rack up at least 600 yards vs. a single opponent in five straight matchups. The Sooners' 3,415 yards (which equates to 1.94 miles) during the stretch (683.0 average) are also the nation's most against one opponent over a five-game span since at least 1996.
ROAD WARRIORS
• Oklahoma has won 25 of its last 27 true road games, with the only losses during that stretch coming last year at Kansas State (48-41) and three games ago at Iowa State (37-30).
• Last year's defeat at K-State snapped OU's 22-game true road winning streak (the Sooners hadn't lost since Oct 4, 2014, at TCU), which was the second longest such streak nationally since at least the end of World War II.
• During the 22-game streak, OU outscored opponents 1,076-626 (49-28 average) and outgained them 12,829 yards to 9,208 (583-419 average).
• Oklahoma has outgained its opponent in 24 of its last 27 true road games.
• OU has scored at least 30 points in each of its last 32 true road games and at least 41 points in 21 of those 32.
LAST YEAR VS. THE RED RAIDERS
• In three quarters of work, Jalen Hurts completed 17 of 24 passes for a career-high 415 yards and three touchdowns and rushed nine times for 70 yards and a score as No. 6/4 Oklahoma handled Texas Tech 55-16 in Norman on Sept. 28 last season. It was OU's eighth straight win in the series and 900th victory in program history.
• The Sooners, who scored at least 38 points against the Red Raiders for the 10th consecutive meeting, posted a 644-313 advantage in total yards and held Tech to a 1-for-14 mark on third-down conversion attempts.
• Hurts joined Patrick Mahomes (Texas Tech) and Trevone Boykin (TCU) as the only quarterbacks in Big 12 history to throw for 415-plus yards, register three passing touchdowns, rush for at least 70 yards and score a rushing touchdown in a conference game.Â
• Receiver CeeDee Lamb caught six passes for a career-high 185 yards and a career-high three touchdowns (71, 14 and 65 yards) and Charleston Rambo finished with two receptions for a career-high 122 yards. Rambo's 74-yard catch represented OU's longest pass play of the year. The game marked just the second nationally last season a team had two players make receptions of at least 70 yards in a half. It also marked the second time in school history two players registered at least 100 receiving yards in a half.
• Linebacker Kenneth Murray registered a game-high nine tackles and had a sack (10 yards) while defensive lineman Neville Gallimore added three tackles and a forced fumble that linebacker DaShaun White recovered.
YEAR TWO OF "SPEED D"
• Hired in January 2019, Oklahoma defensive coordinator and safeties coach Alex Grinch, who was a 2019 Broyles Award semifinalist, has presided over a significant turnaround on the defensive side of the ball.
• So far this season, Oklahoma ranks in the top 20 nationally (among teams that have played more than two games) in a bevy of categories. It is seventh in rushing defense (92.2 ypg) and opponent third down conversion percentage (30.2), 11th in opponent first downs per game (17.0), 15th in sacks per game (3.0), 16th in total defense (344.2 ypg) and 19th in tackles for loss per game (7.4).
• The Sooners made huge strides in Grinch's first season last year, ranking 17th nationally in opponent third-down conversion percentage (32.2; in 2018 [before Grinch's arrival] they ranked 119th at 46.4), 17th in tackles for loss per game (7.4; in 2018 ranked 79th at 5.6), 32nd in rushing defense (134.1 ypg; in 2018 ranked 59th at 159.8), 34th in sacks per game (2.6; in 2018 ranked 49th at 2.1), 38th in total defense (356.4 ypg; in 2018 ranked 114th at 453.8), 58th in passing defense (222.4 ypg; in 2018 ranked 130th at 294.0) and 64th in scoring defense (27.3 ppg; in 2018 ranked 101st at 33.3).
• In 19 games under Grinch, the Sooners have allowed opponents to score on their opening drive of a game just three times (Oklahoma State and LSU touchdowns last season; Iowa State field goal this year). Fifteen of the opponent opening drives have lasted five plays or less.
• In 2019 Big 12 play, OU led the league in total defense (330.6 ypg) and passing defense (190.4 ypg), and ranked second in rushing defense (140.1 ypg), pass defense efficiency (125.7 rating) and third- and fourth-down conversion percentage (33.3 each).
SNAKE IN THE GRASS
• Redshirt freshman Spencer Rattler, the consensus No. 1 quarterback in the 2019 recruiting class, threw for a state-record 11,083 yards (116 passing touchdowns) and ran for over 1,000 yards (14 TDs) in his career at Pinnacle High School in Phoenix, Ariz. The 2018 Elite 11 MVP was the No. 9 overall national recruit by 247Sports, No. 13 by Rivals and No. 29 by ESPN.
• Rattler is OU's fourth starting QB in four seasons. Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray won the Heisman Trophy in 2017 and 2018, respectively, while Jalen Hurts was the 2019 Heisman runner-up.
• Rattler appeared in three Oklahoma games last season, completing 7 of 11 passes for 81 yards and a touchdown without an interception. He also ran three times for 23 yards.
• Among quarterbacks who have played more than two games this season, Rattler ranks fifth nationally in passing efficiency rating (180.2) and yards per pass attempt (10.1), sixth in passing touchdowns (15), eighth in completion percentage (69.5), 11th in passing offense (303.6 ypg) and 12th in total offense (318.4 ypg).
• Rattler's 15 touchdown passes are one more than Heisman Trophy runner-up Hurts had through five games last season, match the number Mayfield had through five games in his Heisman-winning year of 2017 and are just two fewer than Murray had through five contests in his Heisman-winning year of 2018.
• Rattler has thrown for at least two touchdown passes in all five games this season, has thrown for at least three in three contests and for four in each of the Missouri State and Kansas State outings.
• In the first half of play, Rattler has completed 72.8% of his passes (59 of 81) for 935 yards and 10 TDs.
YOUNG RUNNING BACKS ROOM
• Oklahoma, which has produced a Big 12-high six individual 1,000-yard-rushing seasons by running backs over the past five years (the next most in the league during that span is three) and has led the Big 12 in rushing offense in all three of Lincoln Riley's campaigns as head coach, is dividing its carries in 2020 among a largely inexperienced group.
• OU returned just 20.4% of its rushing yards and only 18.4% of its rushing touchdowns from last season.
• Junior T.J. Pledger, who carried 10 times for 65 yards and a score last season, missed this year's opener against Missouri State but has started all four games since and leads OU with 341 rushing yards (85.2 per contest) and three rushing TDs. He is coming off back-to-back 100-yard performances (career-high 131 vs. Texas and 122 at TCU).
• Redshirt freshman Marcus Major ran 10 times for 28 yards in his three contests in 2019. He rushed 11 times for 31 yards against Missouri State this season and had 12 carries for 43 yards and a TD vs. Texas two games ago. They're the only two games this season he's registered a carry.
• Freshman Seth McGowan was a consensus four-star recruit who was rated as the nation's No. 13 running back by Rivals and No. 16 by 247Sports and ESPN after rushing for more than 3,700 yards and 45 touchdowns at Mesquite Poteet High School in Texas. He led OU in rushing in its first three games this season (61 and a TD vs. Missouri State, 73 and a TD vs. Kansas State and 47 at Iowa State [tied with Pledger]) before missing the Texas outing. He returned to run 11 times for 41 yards at TCU (also had a 43-yard reception).
• Senior Rhamondre Stevenson was OU's leading returning rusher entering the season but has yet to play in 2020. He ran 64 times for 515 yards and six TDs in his debut season last year after transferring from junior college, and his 8.0 yards per rush led the nation among players with at least 50 carries.
IMPRESSIVE FOOT NOTE
• During Lincoln Riley's three-plus-year head coaching career, Oklahoma ranks fourth nationally with its 85.1% success rate on field goal attempts (63 for 74). The Sooners trail only Florida (91.9%), Wake Forest (87.1) and Indiana (86.7) since the start of the 2017 season. Kansas State is the next best Big 12 school in the category during the span, ranking 19th at 80.5% (62 of 77).
• During the same period, the Sooners rank third nationally in PAT conversion percentage among teams with at least 150 attempts, converting 267 of 268 tries (99.6%). Only Georgia (189 for 189) and Virginia Tech (156 of 156) have a higher success rate.
"AIR RAID" A MISNOMER
• Fans and media have often referred to Oklahoma's offense under Lincoln Riley as the "Air Raid." The label is not exactly accurate, however, as the Sooners have rushed more than they've thrown in each of the five years since Riley arrived in Norman, and that's counting plays in which the quarterback was sacked as pass plays (officially they are recorded as rushes). OU's rushing play percentage was 52.6 in 2015, 57.7 in 2016, 53.1 in 2017, 54.7 in 2018 and 57.3 last season. This season the Sooners have displayed great balance, running 49.7 percent of the time.
OFFENSE CONTINUES TO ROLL UNDER RILEY
• Oklahoma owns the nation's most productive offense since the start of the 2015 season, which was Lincoln Riley's first year as OU's offensive coordinator. Riley still calls plays in his fourth year head coach.
• Since the start of the 2015 campaign, OU ranks first nationally in scoring (44.3 ppg; next most is 41.4), total offense (551.2; next most is 510.0), yards per play (7.7; next most is 7.0), pass efficiency rating (187.8; next best is 170.6) and yards per pass attempt (10.6), second in touchdowns from scrimmage (406) and completion percentage (69.3), third in passing offense (324.0) and 10th in rushing offense (227.2).
• In 73 games since the start of the 2015 season, OU has registered at least 500 yards of total offense 51 times (next most is 43), including in 41 of the last 56 outings, topped the 600-yard mark on 25 occasions and gone over 700 yards seven times. Similarly, OU has scored at least 30 points in 65 of 73 games since Riley's arrival, at least 40 points 46 times, at least 50 points 26 times and at least 60 points eight times.
HEISMAN U
• Quarterbacks Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray became Oklahoma's sixth and seventh Heisman Trophy winners in 2017 and '18, respectively, moving the Sooners into a tie with Notre Dame and Ohio State for the most Heisman winners. Other OU winners were QB Sam Bradford in 2008, QB Jason White in 2003, RB Billy Sims in 1978, RB Steve Owens in 1969 and RB Billy Vessels in 1952.
• Quarterback Jalen Hurts was the 2019 Heisman Trophy runner-up and became Oklahoma's 11th Heisman finalist, most of any school (finalists were first named in 1982). Miami (Fla.) ranks second with nine finalists, Alabama ranks third with eight and Florida ranks fourth with seven.
• Oklahoma boasts 10 Heisman finalists in the last 20 years (since 2000), which is four more than the program with the next most during that span (Alabama has six). Â
• OU is the first program to ever produce five Heisman finalists in a four-year period (Hurts, Murray in 2018 [won], Mayfield in 2017 [won] and Mayfield [finished third] and receiver Dede Westbrook [finished fourth] in 2016). With Mayfield's and Murray's wins, Oklahoma is the only program to produce different quarterback winners in consecutive seasons.
• OU is tied for the most Heisman runners-up, as well (six). OU's second-place Heisman finishers were Kurt Burris (1954), Greg Pruitt (1972), Sims (1979), Josh Heupel (2000), Adrian Peterson (2004) and Hurts (2019).
• Oklahoma has produced four Heisman Trophy winners in the last 17 years. Only three other programs have produced four winners ever. Â
• An Oklahoma quarterback has finished in the top four of Heisman voting in each of Lincoln Riley's five years with the Sooners (Mayfield fourth in 2015, third in 2016 and first in 2017; Murray first in 2018; Hurts second in 2019).
OKLAHOMA'S BIG 12 FIVE-PEAT
• OU's 2019 Big 12 championship marked the program's fifth straight league crown. The last time it won at least five consecutive conference titles was 1972-80 under head coaches Chuck Fairbanks (1972) and Barry Switzer.
• OU is the only program to win at least three straight Big 12 titles, and it has done so twice (also from 2006-08). Baylor (2013-14) is the only other program to win two Big 12 championships in a row.
• OU's and Clemson's current streaks of five straight outright league championships are the longest among Power Five programs since Alabama won five in a row from 1971 to '75. The last current Power Five program to win six straight outright conference titles is Oklahoma (12 in a row from 1948 to '59).
COLLEGE FOOTBALL'S BEST
• During the modern era of college football (since the end of World War II), the Sooners are the nation's No. 1 team with more wins (667) than any other program (next most is 625 by Alabama).
• Oklahoma is the highest-scoring program in college football history with 36,582 points (in 1,293 games).
• OU leads all FBS programs with 49 all-time conference championships. The rest of the top five includes Nebraska (46), Michigan (42), Ohio State (38) and USC (37). The Sooners' 13 league titles since 2000 are the most among Power Five programs (Ohio State ranks second with 10).
• No program has more all-time 10-win seasons than Oklahoma, which has 40 (including a nation-leading 17 since 2000). In addition, OU's 26 seasons with at least 11 wins are the most in college football history.
• Since former head coach Bob Stoops arrived in Norman in 1999, OU leads all Power Five conference programs in wins (229) and points scored (10,979).
EXTRA POINTS
• Over its last two games in Lubbock, OU has scored 117 points and gained 1,537 yards (averages of 58.5 and 768.5).
• The Sooners surrendered 69 total yards (on 22 plays) in the third quarter over the last two games against Texas and TCU (the Longhorns [-9] and Horned Frogs [-2] combined for -11 rushing yards on eight carries).
• The last time OU started a season 1-2 was 2016. That team was victorious in its final nine games to finish 10-2, won Big 12 and Sugar Bowl titles and earned a final No. 5 AP ranking. It was Bob Stoops' final year as head coach.
• Oklahoma has absolutely dominated the first quarter this season, outscoring Missouri State (31-0), Kansas State (7-0), Iowa State (10-3), Texas (10-0) and TCU (10-0) by a combined 68-3 margin. The Sooners have limited the three opponents to 249 total yards on 68 plays (3.7 average) in the opening 15 minutes.
• Every Oklahoma freshman class from 1999-2018 has won at least two Big 12 championships. Baylor's 2011, 2012 and 2013 freshman classes are the only other ones that have won two Big 12 titles (BU won league crowns in 2013 and '14).
• In 73 games since Lincoln Riley arrived in Norman in 2015, OU has punted more than its opponent just nine times.
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