Alamo Bowl Game Primer: OU vs. Arizona

Thursday, December 28

San Antonio, Texas

8:20 p.m.

University of Oklahoma

Arizona

Photo by: Morgan Givens/University of Oklahoma

Alamo Bowl Game Primer: OU vs. Arizona

December 28, 2023 | Football

Watch Listen Live Stats Game Notes

#12/12/12 Oklahoma

#14/14/14 Arizona

Thursday, Dec. 28 / 8:20 p.m. CT / Alamodome / San Antonio, Texas

ESPN / Radio / Live Stats / Game Notes

OPENING KICK

• No. 12/12/12 Oklahoma (10-2, 7-2 Big 12) takes on No. 14/14/14 Arizona (9-3, 7-2 Pac-12) in the Valero Alamo Bowl on Thursday, Dec. 28, at 8:20 p.m. CT at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. OU will be the designated home team. The game will be televised by ESPN with Tom Hart, Jordan Rodgers and Cole Cubelic announcing.

• This marks Oklahoma's 57th bowl appearance, fourth most nationally. Thirty-nine of those 57 have come in bowls that comprise the current New Year's Six (Orange [20], Sugar [8], Fiesta [5], Cotton [3], Rose [2] and Peach [1]). The 39 does not include OU's BCS Championship Game appearance against Florida on Jan. 9, 2009.

• OU is making its 25th consecutive bowl appearance, by far the longest streak in school history (the previous record was eight from the 1975-82 seasons under Barry Switzer). Beginning in Bob Stoops' 1999 debut season as head coach, it is the second-longest active streak in the nation (Georgia; 27) and the longest ever by a current Big 12 program.

• The Sooners own a 31-24-1 (.573) bowl record. Their 31 bowl wins are tied for the fourth most nationally.

• An Alamo Bowl win would result in Oklahoma's 11th victory of the season. The Sooners entered the year ranked first nationally with 27 all-time campaigns of at least 11 wins (one ahead of Alabama, which is 12-1 this season). OU's 42 seasons of at least 10 wins are one behind Alabama for the all-time lead. The Sooners' 19 campaigns of 10 or more victories since the start of the 2000 season are tied with Ohio State for the most in the country.

• Entering bowl season, Oklahoma is the only team in the country to score 59-plus points in at least four games this season (73 vs. Arkansas State, 66 at Tulsa, 59 vs. West Virginia and 69 vs. TCU). It is also the only team to score at least 50 points in five games (the Sooners also scored 50 vs. Iowa State).

• The Alamo Bowl will mark OU's last football contest as a member of the Big 12 Conference, as the Sooners will move to the Southeastern Conference on July 1, 2024.

• Oklahoma owns a 68-32-3 (.676) record against programs that are current members of the Pac-12 Conference. That includes a 4-3 bowl game record.

• The 2023 season marks the 129th in OU football history. The Sooners lead the country with their 50 all-time conference championships, 33 AP top-five finishes, 27 11-plus-win seasons (tied), seven Heisman Trophy winners (tied) and five No. 1 overall NFL Draft picks (tied). They rank third with their seven AP national championships, their 101 weeks as the AP's No. 1 team and 431 weeks in the AP's top five, and fourth with their 57 bowl appearances and 414 NFL Draft picks.

KEY STORYLINES

• Oklahoma and Arizona have split their two-game all-time series. Under head coach Barry Switzer, No. 4 OU posted a 28-10 win on Sept. 17, 1988, in Norman. The following year, under head coach Gary Gibbs, the No. 6 Sooners lost a 6-3 contest on Sept. 16 in Tucson. Coached by Dick Tomey, the Wildcats were unranked in both games.

• Oklahoma has scored at least 28 points in each of its last seven bowl games and at least 32 points in six of those seven. Over their last three bowls (two wins), the Sooners are averaging 44.7 points and 581.3 yards per outing. They are also averaging 8.0 yards per play, 340.0 rushing yards per game and 7.1 yards per carry in the three.

• OU will be playing without unanimous first-team All-Big 12 quarterback Dillon Gabriel. Entering bowl season, the redshirt senior ranked in the top 10 nationally in a bevy of categories, including third in points responsible for per game (21.0), fourth in total offense (336.1 ypg), fifth in passing offense (305.0 ypg), sixth in pass efficiency rating (172.0) and yards per pass attempt (9.5), seventh in passing TDs (30) and 10th in completion percentage (.693). He leads the Big 12 in all of those categories except yards per pass attempt and completion percentage (ranks second in both). Gabriel also ranks fourth in FBS history in career touchdowns accounted for (152), seventh in career passing yards (14,865) and eighth in career passing TDs (125).

• Freshman signal-caller Jackson Arnold is slated to make his first career start in the Alamo Bowl. The 2022 Gatorade National Football Player of the Year at Guyer High School in Denton, Texas, Arnold enrolled at OU last January and won the backup job. In his six games, he has completed 18 of 24 passes (75.0%) for 202 yards and two touchdowns, and run 20 times for 78 yards and one TD. He was 11 for 11 for 114 yards and a touchdown in his debut against Arkansas State in the season opener and threw a 50-yard bomb to Nic Anderson for a TD at Tulsa in week three before playing the entire second half two games ago at BYU and helping OU to a 31-24 win (the game was tied at 17 at halftime).

• Sixth-year receiver Drake Stoops is tied for the Big 12 lead with 10 touchdown receptions while redshirt freshman Anderson has nine (matches the OU freshman record set by Marvin Mims Jr. in 2020).

• The Alamo Bowl will mark the last game in the college career of Stoops, who earned first-team All-Big 12 honors this season. His 78 receptions on the year are twice as many as his previous career high of 39 last season, and his 880 receiving yards in 2023 are more than double his previous career high of 393 in 2022. He has played the best football of his career down the stretch, with 38 catches for 486 yards and five touchdowns over the last four games. He caught a TD pass in OU's 2021 Alamo Bowl win over Oregon when his dad, Bob Stoops, served as the Sooners' interim head coach.

• Anderson, a freshman All-American by The Athletic, leads the nation with his 23.4 yards per reception. His nine touchdowns have come on 31 catches, giving him a 29% TD reception rate, good for No. 2 nationally and No. 1 among Power Five players this season (min. 8 TD catches). He has registered five games of at least 90 receiving yards, including three of the last four contests.

• The Sooners' four highest yards-per-rush averages this season have come in the last five games (4.9 yards at Kansas, 5.5 at Oklahoma State, 5.3 vs. West Virginia and 5.0 vs. TCU). OU has rushed for 16 touchdowns over those five contests. Redshirt freshman running back Gavin Sawchuk, who has started the last six outings, has rushed for over 100 yards each of the last four outings (111 at Oklahoma State, career-high 135 vs. West Virginia, 107 at BYU and 130 vs. TCU; average of 120.8) and averaged 6.8 yards per carry in November to rank third in the Big 12. Arizona ranks fifth in the Pac-12 by permitting just 111.3 rushing yards per game and only 3.4 yards per rush.

• Oklahoma ranks second nationally (first in Power Five) with its 19 interceptions (Liberty has 21), its most through the first 12 games of a season since 2003 (20). Ten Sooners have registered at least one interception this season, tied for the Power Five lead. The last time more than 10 OU players notched at least one pick in a season was 1986 (11 players). Four Sooners have two or more interceptions this year (Billy Bowman six [one shy of national lead], Gentry Williams three and Kendel Dolby and Key Lawrence two each). Arizona's 10 interceptions thrown are tied for seventh most in the Pac-12. UA redshirt freshman quarterback Noah Fifita has only thrown five interceptions in his 11 games.

• After ranking 49th nationally last year in third-down conversion percentage (.405) and 87th in third-down conversion percentage defense (.409), OU ranks in the top 15 in both categories in 2023. The Sooners have converted 49.4% (780-162) of their third downs to rank 10th out of 130 teams. And OU ranks 14th by allowing foes to convert just 30.4% (55-180) of their third-down tries. Arizona ranks seventh nationally in third-down conversion percentage (.497) and 87th in third-down conversion percentage defense (.410).

SEVERAL SOONERS TO MISS ALAMO BOWL

• As of Dec. 11, the following Sooners who saw extensive action this season are not expected to play in the Alamo Bowl:

• Offensive lineman Savion Byrd - Played in nine games this season and made four starts at left guard.

• Quarterback Dillon Gabriel - A unanimous first-team All-Big 12 pick who leads the conference in points responsible for per game (21.0), total offense (336.1 ypg), passing offense (305.0 ypg), pass efficiency rating (172.0), passing TDs (30) and completion percentage (.693).

• Offensive lineman Tyler Guyton - Started nine of his 10 games this season at right tackle.

• Defensive back Key Lawrence - Started six of 12 games at free safety and registered 44 tackles (fifth most on team), 4.0 tackles for loss, two interceptions, three pass breakups and a forced fumble.

• Offensive lineman Andrew Raym - Started all 12 games at center this season and 29 games during his career. He was a 2023 second-team All-Big 12 selection.

BILLY'S SPECIAL

• Junior safety Billy Bowman was named a first-team All-American by CBS Sports/247Sports following a stellar regular season in which he ranked first in the Big 12 and second nationally with his six interceptions. He set a school record by returning a nation-leading three of those for touchdowns.

• Bowman's 238 interception return yards also stand as the most in OU single-season history (broke College Football Hall of Famer Rickey Dixon's record of 232 yards on nine picks in 1987) and lead the country this season (next most is 167). His school-record three pick-sixes came against Iowa State (44 yards on Sept. 30), at BYU (100 yards on Nov. 18) and vs. TCU (45 yards on Nov. 24).

• Entering bowl play, only two players nationally have more interception return yards this season than Bowman has over his last two games.

• Bowman ranks second on the team with 61 tackles (35 solo) and has registered 3.0 tackles for loss and four pass breakups.

STOOPS CREATING OWN LEGACY

• Sixth-year receiver Drake Stoops, who was one of three finalists for the Burlsworth Trophy (awarded to the nation's most outstanding player who began his career as a walk-on), ranks second in the Big 12 with his career-high 78 receptions. His 880 receiving yards are third most in the league. The 78 catches and 880 yards top his previous career highs of 39 and 393 from last season.

• Stoops' 38 receptions and five receiving touchdowns over the last four games were second and fourth most, respectively, in the country in the month of November, while his 486 receiving yards during the stretch were eighth most.

• He registered back-to-back career highs in receiving yards in November, totaling 12 catches for 134 yards and a TD at Oklahoma State and 10 grabs for 164 yards and a career-high three TDs vs. West Virginia. He then tied his career high with 12 more grabs (for 125 yards and a TD) in the regular season finale vs. TCU. The 164 yards vs. WVU were the most by a Sooner in four seasons (CeeDee Lamb).

• Stoops ranks eighth in OU single-season history with his 78 receptions and needs five to move into a tie for fourth place, six to move into a tie for third place and nine to move into a tie for second. Ryan Broyles holds the record with 131 in 2010.

• Stoops ranks 10th in school annals with 158 career receptions, tied for 12th with 17 career touchdown catches and 13th with 1,794 receiving yards.

• Stoops has caught at least one pass in 21 straight games and at least two passes in 20 consecutive outings. He has at least four receptions in 15 of the last 19 games.

SOME KEY OU TAKEAWAYS

• Oklahoma enters bowl season ranked second in the country with its 2.1 takeaways per game (25 total; Bowling Green has 27) and fifth with its +0.9 turnover margin per contest.

• In its 10 wins, Oklahoma is outscoring opponents 98-17 off turnovers. The Sooners have 21 takeaways in those contests and just eight giveaways. In its two losses (by a total of eight points), OU has been outscored 23-13 off turnovers (six giveaways and four takeaways). On the year, it is outscoring its foes 111-40 off turnovers. The 111 points are second most nationally (one behind Michigan, which has played in one more game) and the +71-point differential ranks as third best in the country.

PRAISING ARIZONA

• Arizona is under the direction of third-year head coach Jedd Fisch and is making its first bowl appearance since 2017. At 9-3, the Wildcats' only losses were at Mississippi State (31-24 in overtime), vs. undefeated and CFP No. 2 team Washington (31-24) and at then-No. 9 USC (43-41 in triple overtime). After starting 3-3, they have won their last six games (their longest winning streak since 1998) and are averaging 39 points in those victories.

• UA sports a balanced attack, ranking 18th nationally in total offense (453 ypg) and 25th in scoring offense (34 ppg), and 36th in total defense (341 ypg) and 26th in scoring defense (21 ppg). It also ranks seventh nationally in third-down conversion percentage (.497), 11th in red zone defense (.745), 12th in passing offense (304.5 ypg) and 13th in red zone offense (.926).

• Redshirt freshman quarterback Noah Fifita was named Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year after passing for 23 touchdowns against just five interceptions in his 11 games. He ranks fourth nationally in completion percentage (.736) and eighth in passing efficiency rating (167.5).

• Wide receivers Jacob Cowing (11) and Tetairoa McMillan (10) have combined for 21 receiving touchdowns. Cowing has 696 receiving yards while McMillan, a second-team All-Pac 12 pick, has 1,242.

• Running back Jonah Coleman has rushed for 851 yards and five touchdowns. The 5-9, 225-pounder averages 6.9 yards per carry to rank eighth in the country.

• The Wildcats are led on defense by linebacker Jacob Manu, a first-team All-Pac-12 selection who leads the league with his 108 tackles.

• Placekicker Tyler Loop is a second-team all-league honoree. He is 16 for 21 on field goals and has made all 50 extra-point attempts.

MORE OU-ARIZONA SERIES HISTORY

• The 1988 game was OU's home opener and Switzer's 180th career game as head coach and 150th victory (he improved to 150-26-4; .844). Senior quarterback Jamelle Holieway rushed for 75 yards and a touchdown and passed for 73 yards and a score (43-yarder to split end Eric Bross), and the Sooners outgained the Wildcats in total yards, 352-284. The OU defense held UA quarterback Bobby Watters to just 11 completions on 26 pass attempts and registered three interceptions and three sacks.

• The 1989 meeting stands as Oklahoma's only game since 1942 in which the Sooners nor their opponent scored a touchdown. OU starting quarterback Steve Collins did not play due to injury, so sophomore backup Chris Melson made his lone career start. Melson, who is the father of current OU redshirt junior receiver Major Melson, was 0-for-4 through the air, and all of the team's 222 yards came on the ground. Arizona managed only 214 yards on the night, but Doug Pfaff kicked a 40-yard field goal with two seconds remaining to lift the Wildcats to the win. Temperature at kickoff was 101 degrees.

REMEMBER THE '21 ALAMO?

• This year's Alamo Bowl will mark the second for Oklahoma, which beat Oregon 47-32 in the 2021 contest when Bob Stoops served in a one-game interim head coach role for the Sooners.

• OU, No. 16 in the CFP ranking and No. 14 in the AP poll, used a 24-0 second-quarter burst en route to a 30-3 halftime lead against the No. 14/15 Ducks and finished the night with 564 offensive yards, its third most in program bowl history.

• The Sooners averaged 8.1 yards per play and did not commit a turnover.

• OU rushed 43 times for 322 yards, an average of 7.5 yards per carry. In his final career game, running back Kennedy Brooks, who set an OU bowl game first-half record with his 127 rushing yards and tied the program's bowl record with three rushing touchdowns, averaged 10.1 yards per carry to win offensive MVP honors. Backfield mate Eric Gray averaged 10.2 yards per rush, finishing with 82 yards while also catching a 6-yard TD pass to put OU up 37-11 in the third.

• Drake Stoops (6-yarder) and Marvin Mims (55-yarder) caught OU's other TD passes from Caleb Williams, who completed 21 of 27 throws for 242 yards.

• Safety Pat Fields was named defensive MVP after posting a team-high nine tackles, while defensive back Justin Broiles accounted for the game's only takeaway with an interception on Oregon's first possession.

• The OU defense recorded three sacks, while Oregon had none.

• The Sooners held a 33:34-26:26 advantage in time of possession.

• The win for Stoops was the 191st of his career, most in OU history. Brent Venables, who was named head coach three-and-a-half weeks earlier, watched from the Sooners' sideline.

SOONERS 2-0 IN SAN ANTONIO

• Besides the 2021 Alamo Bowl, Oklahoma's only game in San Antonio was a 38-17 win over No. 1 Missouri in the 2007 Big 12 Championship game that gave the Sooners their fifth of 14 Big 12 titles.

• The game was tied 14-14 at halftime, but the Sooners outscored the Tigers 14-0 in the third quarter and 10-3 in the fourth in qualifying for the Fiesta Bowl.

• Playing under head coach Bob Stoops, ninth-ranked OU was led on offense in the Alamodome that night by redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Bradford, who completed 18 of 26 passes for 209 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. Running backs Allen Patrick (13 carries for 88 yards and a TD) and Chris Brown (23 carries for 71 yards and two TDs) led OU's ground attack, while receiver Malcolm Kelly caught four passes for a team-high 72 yards. One of Bradford's touchdown passes went to current OU co-offensive coordinator and tight ends coach Joe Jon Finley, a senior tight end who finished with a team-high five catches for 34 yards.

• Linebacker Curtis Lofton, currently a member of OU's support staff, led Brent Venables' defense with nine tackles, 3.0 tackles for loss, a sack and an interception that he returned 26 yards.

MORE ON THE OFFENSE

• Oklahoma ranks in the top 10 nationally in a multitude of categories through 12 games. It is second in first downs per game (25.4), third in scoring offense (43.2 ppg), fifth in total offense (502.4 ypg), yards per pass attempt (9.5) and pass efficiency rating (172.1), sixth in passing offense (321.8 ypg), eighth in completion percentage (.696) and 10th in passing touchdowns (32).

• Oklahoma has gained over 600 yards of offense three times this year, including two of the last three games (642 vs. Arkansas State in season opener, 644 vs. West Virginia on Nov. 11 and 607 vs. TCU on Nov. 24).

• OU has 10 passing plays of 50 or more yards this season, and six have come in the last three games.

• OU is one of just five teams in the country (only one in the Big 12) with two players with at least nine TD receptions each (Drake Stoops is tied for the league lead with 10 while Nic Anderson has nine).

• More than half of sophomore receiver Jayden Gibson's receiving yards (196 of 372; 53%) and receiving touchdowns (three of five) this season have come over the last three games. He is averaging 28.6 yards per catch on the year.

MORE ON THE DEFENSE

• After ranking 98th in scoring defense (30.0 ppg) and 121st in total defense (461.0 ypg) last year, OU has improved dramatically in both categories, ranking 41st (22.3 ppg) and 80th (389.9 ypg), respectively, this season. It ranks second nationally in interceptions (19) and turnovers gained (25), sixth in defensive touchdowns (4), eighth in tackles for loss per game (7.3), 12th in pass efficiency defense rating (114.2) and 14th in third-down conversion percentage defense (.304).

• OU's 267 points allowed (22.3 average) are its fewest over the first 12 games of a season in eight years (gave up 249 in 2015).

• The Sooners have allowed scores on just 31% of their opponent possessions (46 scores on 151 possessions). OU has also allowed an offensive TD in just 20 of 48 quarters.

• Oklahoma has allowed just 110 points and 2,146 total yards after halftime this season for averages of 9.2 points and 178.8 yards per second half. OU has limited two opponents (Tulsa [92] and Iowa State [82]) to fewer than 100 total yards in the second half, while West Virginia managed just 118.

• The Sooners have allowed just 59 points (average of 4.9) in the third quarter this season and just 53 (4.4) in the fourth quarter.

• One year after leading the Big 12 in tackles, junior linebacker Danny Stutsman ranks second this season with his 9.0 stops per game. A second-team All-American by the Walter Camp Foundation and a third-teamer by AP, he has led OU in tackles in eight of his 11 games and against SMU in week two was named Walter Camp National FBS Defensive Player of the Week after logging 17 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, a QB hurry and a fumble recovery. Stutsman also ranks second in the league and eighth nationally with his 1.5 TFLs per game (16.0 total) and returned an interception for a touchdown at Tulsa. He missed the second half of the Kansas game and all of the Oklahoma State game (both losses) due to injury.

• OU's lone preseason All-Big 12 selection, junior defensive end Ethan Downs has team highs of 4.5 sacks and six QB hurries, and ranks second on the squad with his 6.5 tackles for loss. He also has one interception. Downs earned second-team All-Big 12 honors last season when he started all 13 games and led the team (ranked fourth in Big 12) with his 13.5 TFLs. He tied for the team lead with 4.5 sacks and paced the Sooners with nine QB hurries.

• OU signed nine defensive scholarship transfers in the offseason, six of them defensive linemen in redshirt seniors Rondell Bothroyd (Wake Forest), Trace Ford (Oklahoma State), Jacob Lacey (Notre Dame), Phil Paea (Utah State), Davon Sears (Texas State) and Da'Jon Terry (Tennessee). The sextet combined for 185 games played, 58 starts, 62 tackles for loss and 33.5 sacks. Bothroyd has started all 12 games this season, while Lacey has started 11, Terry four and Ford one.

• Defensive back Peyton Bowen, a five-star player last year at Guyer High School in Denton, Texas, has made a positive impact with his 33 tackles, one sack, forced fumble, five pass breakups (second most on team) and blocked punts vs. SMU and Iowa State (the latter for a safety). The midseason true freshman All-American (by On3) and Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award semifinalist leads the Big 12 with his two blocked punts.

NOTING OU'S SPECIAL TEAMS

• Redshirt junior Zach Schmit, in his second year as OU's placekicker, has made all 64 of his PAT attempts and 14 of his 20 field goal tries this season. He is 121 for 121 on career PAT tries, which is the fourth-longest streak of made PATs in school history.

• Redshirt seniors Josh Plaster and Luke Elzinga split punting responsibilities the first six games, with Plaster taking the field in longer situations and Elzinga serving as the team's short-field specialist. Elzinga took over full punting responsibilities Oct. 21 vs. UCF and has averaged 45.7 yards on his 19 kicks since then (long of 58, seven inside the 20-yard line).

• Junior Jalil Farooq ranks 32nd nationally by averaging 22.2 yards on 19 kickoff returns and sophomore Gavin Freeman ranks 37th by averaging 7.3 yards on 17 punt returns. Farooq returned a kickoff 62 yards vs. Tulsa and Freeman returned a punt 82 yards for a TD vs. Arkansas State.

OU'S BIG 12 DOMINATION

• The Alamo Bowl will mark Oklahoma's last game as a member of the Big 12 Conference. After a 28-year run in the league, the Sooners will move to the Southeastern Conference on July 1, 2024.

• The Sooners went a league-best 176-60 (.746) in regular season Big 12 play since the conference began in 1996. The current Big 12 program with the next best league winning percentage is Texas, with 19 fewer victories (157-79; .665).

• OU's 14 Big 12 titles are 10 more than the program with the next most. Texas won four Big 12 championships and is followed by Baylor and Kansas State (three each), Nebraska (two) and Colorado, Oklahoma State, TCU and Texas A&M (one each). Colorado and Nebraska left the Big 12 after the 2010 season and Texas A&M departed after 2011.

• Oklahoma's win over Iowa State in the 2020 Big 12 Championship resulted in the Sooners' sixth straight Big 12 title and 14th since 2000 (no other program has won more than three during the span). For perspective, the two Power Five programs with the next most conference titles this millennium are Ohio State (11 in Big Ten) and Oregon (eight in Pac-10/Pac-12).

• Since 2010, OU has won eight Big 12 titles and is followed by Baylor (three), Kansas State (two), Oklahoma State, TCU and Texas (one each).

• Since 2000, OU has won more Big 12 championships (14) than it has lost home games (13).

• Oklahoma is the only program to win at least three straight Big 12 titles, and it has done so twice (2006-08 and 2015-20). Baylor (2013-14) is the only other program to win two Big 12 championships in a row.

• Every OU freshman class from 1999-2020 won at least one Big 12 title and all but the 2011 and 2020-23 freshman classes have won at least two. The 2015, 2016 and 2017 freshman classes each won four Big 12 titles.

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 (700) than any other program (next most is 669 by Alabama).

• Oklahoma has finished in the top 5 of the AP poll a nation-leading 33 times (Ohio State is second with 30).

• OU leads all FBS programs with 50 all-time conference championships. The rest of the top five includes Nebraska (46), Michigan (45), Ohio State (39) and USC (37). The Sooners' 14 league titles since 2000 are the most among Power Five programs (Ohio State ranks second with 11).

• No program has more all-time 11-win seasons than Oklahoma's 27. And since the start of the 2000 season, OU and Ohio State have produced a nation-leading 19 campaigns of at least 10 wins.

• Since former head coach Bob Stoops arrived in Norman in 1999, OU leads the country with 12,754 points. That's 653 more than second-place Boise State (12,145) and 940 more than third-place Oregon (11,845).

• OU's 80 consensus All-Americans since 1950 are the most nationally (Alabama ranks second with 75 and Ohio State third with 72). Since 2000, OU has produced 30 consensus All-Americans, second only to Alabama.

• OU is the only program that has produced at least four NFL Draft picks each of the last 16 years.

EXTRA POINTS

• The Sooners are 15-6 all-time as the No. 12-ranked team in the AP poll (4-3 at neutral sites, 0-2 in bowl games). Oklahoma won as the AP's No. 12 team earlier this season over No. 3 Texas (34-30 in Dallas). OU's two bowl games as the No. 12 team in the AP poll came in the 1983 Fiesta Bowl (32-21 loss to No. 11 Arizona State) and the 2013 Cotton Bowl (41-13 loss to No. 10 Texas A&M).

• OU head coach Brent Venables owns a 17-13 record in bowl/BCS/CFP games as a full-time coach.

• Only 16 players (10 scholarship) on OU's Alamo Bowl roster were on the Sooners' 2021 Alamo Bowl roster.

• Thirty players on OU's bowl roster hail from Texas, most of any state (next most is 24 from Oklahoma).

• Oklahoma's +83 first-quarter point differential this season (outscoring foes 147-64) is fifth best nationally.

• OU's 25 takeaways this season are its most through the first 12 games of a season since 2015 (had 26).

• The Sooners' 68 total touchdowns lead the Big 12. That total is eight more than the team with the next most (Kansas State has 60) and 13 more than the team with the third most (Texas has 55 in one more game).

• OU has won the opening coin toss in 10 of 12 games this season (lost vs. UCF and at BYU).

• Over the last 10 seasons (since the start of the 2014 campaign), Oklahoma leads the nation with its 5.4 yards per rush and ranks fourth nationally (first in Power Five) with its 330 rushing TDs.

• OU has won its last 84 games when holding opponents to 22 or fewer points. Its last loss under the circumstance came at Nebraska in 2009 (10-3).

• Since the start of the 2012 season, OU is 89-7 when scoring at least 35 points and 78-4 when scoring at least 40. The Sooners are 187-0 all-time when scoring at least 50 points.