Game Primer: OU vs. LSU

NORMAN, OK - November 23, 2024 - Oklahoma Linebacker Dasan McCullough (#1) during the game between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Oklahoma Sooners at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, OK. Photo By Morgan Givens/University of Oklahoma

Photo by: Morgan Givens/University of Oklahoma

November 29, 2024 | Football

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Oklahoma

LSU

Saturday, Nov. 30 / 6 p.m. CT / Baton Rouge, La.

ESPN / Radio / Live Stats / Game Notes

OPENING KICK

• Oklahoma (6-5, 2-5 SEC) wraps up its 2024 regular season when it takes on LSU (7-4, 4-3) on Saturday at 6 p.m. CT at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, La. The game will be televised by ESPN with Tom Hart, Jordan Rodgers and Cole Cubelic announcing.

• Saturday's contest will mark the first between Oklahoma and LSU in the regular season. The previous three meetings were in bowl games.

• Oklahoma has won 17 of its last 21 regular season finales. Thirteen of those 21 games were on the road, with OU posting a 10-3 record.

• An Oklahoma victory over LSU would clinch the Sooners' 25th winning season in the last 26 years. OU's only non-winning season since 1999 came in 2022 (6-7). Boise State is the only program with winning seasons every year from 1999-2024.

• OU is the only program nationally that has played seven games against teams ranked in this week's AP Top 25. The Sooners' FBS opponents this season own a combined 72-38 record.

• Since the end of World War II (1946 season to present), OU leads all programs with 706 wins while LSU ranks 11th with 596.

• The 2024 season marks the 130th in OU football history. The Sooners lead the nation with their 50 all-time conference championships, 27 11-plus-win seasons (tied), 33 AP top-five finishes and five No. 1 overall NFL Draft picks (tied). They rank second with their seven Heisman Trophy winners (tied), third with seven AP national championships, their 101 weeks as the AP's No. 1 team and 431 total weeks in the AP Top 5, and fourth with their 57 bowl appearances, 31 bowl wins (tied) and 417 NFL Draft picks.

KEY STORYLINES

• Oklahoma and LSU rank fifth and 13th, respectively, in all-time winning percentage. Oklahoma owns a 950-346-53 (.724) all-time record while LSU is 850-438-47 (.654). The Sooners have played 1,349 games and the Tigers have played 1,335.

• Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables has faced LSU three times, all as a defensive coordinator in bowl games, and is 1-2 in those meetings. As co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach in the 2003 season, Venables' Sooners lost 21-14 in the Sugar Bowl, which served as the BCS National Championship. In his first year as Clemson's defensive coordinator in 2012, his squad posted a 25-24 win in the Peach Bowl in Atlanta. And in the 2020 CFP National Championship (2019 season), LSU won 42-25 in New Orleans.

• After averaging just 112.1 rushing yards per game over the season's first seven contests, the Sooners are averaging 226.8 rushing yards over the last four outings. That includes a 257-yard performance (5.1 yards per carry) against No. 7 Alabama on Saturday - the most rushing yards allowed by the Crimson Tide in 26 games. Similarly, opponents registered 38 sacks in the first eight games (average of 4.8). Since surrendering 18 combined sacks against South Carolina and Ole Miss (school-record nine each), OU has given up just four sacks over the last three games (1.3 average).

• Since being reinserted into the lineup early in the contest against South Carolina five games ago, sophomore quarterback Jackson Arnold has completed 79 of 123 passes (64%) for 773 yards and five touchdowns with no interceptions, and has rushed for 231 yards.

• True freshman running back Xavier Robinson didn't play until the sixth game of the season and has only played in five contests, but has emerged as one of OU's top offensive weapons the last three outings. The 6-0, 226-pounder got his first six career carries against Maine on Nov. 2 and ran for 29 yards and a touchdown, and caught a pass for 41 yards. At Missouri the next game he ran nine times for 56 yards (eight carries came in the fourth quarter of a tight contest). And against Alabama on Saturday, Robinson carried 18 times for 107 yards and two TDs (all career highs), and caught a career-high four passes for 20 yards. He is averaging 5.9 yards per carry on the year, a team high among players with at least 30 rushes.

• Butkus Award finalist Danny Stutsman, who ranks fourth in the SEC with his 100 tackles and 9.1 tackles per game, has 367 career stops to rank ninth in Oklahoma history (eighth among linebackers). The senior needs 13 to tie linebacker Tyrell Peters (1993-96) for the No. 8 spot. Stutsman's 35.5 career tackles for loss rank him seventh among OU inside linebackers (needs 0.5 to move into the top five and 1.5 to move into the top four).

• Oklahoma ranks sixth nationally by permitting just 2.9 yards per rush on the season. The Sooners have been even more stout over the last five games, allowing only 2.6 yards per carry. Four of those five opponents are ranked in this week's AP poll. Ole Miss' long run vs. OU was nine yards, Missouri's was 10 yards and Alabama's was 11. LSU ranks 107th nationally by rushing for 117.5 yards per game and 88th by averaging 4.1 yards per carry.

• In the Sooners' six wins this season they have outscored opponents 77-9 off turnovers. In their five losses they have been outscored 58-7 off turnovers. LSU has been outscored 38-31 off turnovers this season.

• Since the start of the 2023 campaign, OU is 13-0 when it wins the turnover battle (5-0 this year) and 2-7 when it loses it (0-5 this year). LSU has committed 14 turnovers this season and is -2 in turnover margin. It is 4-0 when it wins the turnover battle and 1-3 when it loses it.

• LSU has won 16 of its last 17 night games at Tiger Stadium, and since the start of the 2000 season is is 111-16 (.874) in home night contests (18-4 since the start of the 2020 season). LSU is 14-1 in home night games under head coach Brian Kelly, with the only defeat coming Nov. 9 against Alabama, 42-13.

• OU has featured a different starting offensive line in eight of its 11 games this season, and 11 Sooners have started at least one contest. Febechi Nwaiwu (right guard) has started all 11 games. Other starters have been Jacob Sexton (four starts at left tackle and four at left guard), Michael Tarquin (three games at left tackle and four at right tackle), Heath Ozaeta (six games at left guard), Troy Everett (started the last five games at center), Logan Howland (five games at left tackle), Branson Hickman (four games at center), Jake Taylor (four games at right tackle), Spencer Brown (three games at right tackle), Joshua Bates (two games at center) and Geirean Hatchett (one game at left guard; out for the year). OU's starters the last three games have been Howland at left tackle, Ozaeta at left guard, Everett at center, Nwaiwu at right guard and Brown at right tackle.

OU-LSU SERIES HISTORY

• Oklahoma trails the head-to-head series with LSU 2-1, with all three contests coming in bowl games. The first matchup came in front of 82,000 fans at the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 2, 1950, at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans. In a contest that featured only 18 combined first downs (10 by OU), Bud Wilkinson's No. 2 Sooners outgained the ninth-ranked Tigers 360-159 in total yardage in a 35-0 win to finish with an 11-0 record and register its fifth shutout of the season. It still stands as the largest margin of victory in a bowl game in school history. Fullback Leon "Mule Train" Heath rushed 15 times for 170 yards, including a bowl-program-record 86-yard touchdown. Heath also scored on a 34-yard run. Running back George Thomas scored OU's first two touchdowns, catching a 34-yard pass from halfback Lindell Pearson and rushing for a 5-yard score, both in the second quarter. The game was marred by an early week incident in which a former LSU player was caught spying on OU practice. It was the only time in Wilkinson's OU career he publicly blasted an opponent. The outcome marked the Sooners' 21st straight victory. They won their first national title the following season.

• The programs' second meeting again came in the Sugar Bowl, this time at the Louisiana Superdome and serving as the BCS National Championship Game to cap the 2003 season. Bob Stoops' Oklahoma squad, which was No. 1 in the BCS rankings, entered the game as the nation's top-scoring offense. It managed just two touchdowns, though, in a 21-14 loss to Nick Saban's No. 2 Tigers. OU's defense was also strong, surrendering just 312 yards on the night (64 came on a non-scoring play on LSU's first snap). Tiger defensive end Marcus Spears returned an interception 20 yards for a TD on the first series of the second half for a 21-7 lead before the Sooners made a charge. Kejuan Jones scored on his second 1-yard rush of the night to make it 21-14, and OU later drove to the LSU 12 before missing on four straight pass attempts, the last one with 2:46 left. The crowd was the largest in Superdome history at the time.

• No. 1 LSU controlled the 2019 College Football Playoff Semifinal matchup at the Peach Bowl in Atlanta, downing fourth-ranked OU 63-28. Behind Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Joe Burrows, the Tigers jumped out to 35-7 lead and outgained the Sooners 692 yards to 322. Burrows completed 29 of 39 passes for 493 yards and seven touchdowns. OU QB Jalen Hurts passed for 217 yards and rushed for 43, including two TDs. LSU went on to win the national title by beating second-ranked Clemson in the title game, 42-25. Current OU head coach Brent Venables was Clemson's defensive coordinator.

OU ROAD SHOW

• Oklahoma has won 34 of its last 45 true road games (.756) going back to 2014, with eight of the 11 losses one-score outcomes.

• OU's 2019 defeat at Kansas State snapped the Sooners' 22-game true road winning streak (it 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 foes 1,076-626 (49-28 average) and outgained them by 3,621 yards (583-419 average).

• The Sooners have outgained their opponent in 32 of their last 45 true road games.

• OU has scored at least 30 points in 41 of its last 50 true road games (school-record 35-game streak was stopped in 2021 at Baylor). The next highest team total over its last 50 true road contests is 35 (Ohio State).

NOTING THE DEFENSE

• Oklahoma is allowing just 311.3 yards per game this year. The last time it held opponents to fewer yards per contest over an entire season was 15 years ago (272.6 in 2009).

• The Sooners rank in the top 10 nationally in several defensive categories, including tackles for loss per game (fifth at 8.1), opponent rushing TDs (fifth at 8), yards allowed per rush (sixth at 2.9) and interceptions returned for a touchdown (10th at 2). They also rank 11th in sacks per game (3.0), 14th in first downs allowed (183), 15th in rushing defense (105.5 ypg), 16th in total defense (311.3 ypg), 23rd in scoring defense (20.2 ppg) and 27th in red zone defense percentage (.774).

• Per ESPN, OU ranks 12th nationally in defensive stop rate, forcing a punt, turnover or turnover on downs on 72.1% of opponent possessions. It also ranks ninth nationally by allowing just 1.41 points per drive, and that's with the Sooners facing five of the nation's top 17 teams in scoring offense (Tulane ranks 4th, Ole Miss 9th, Tennessee 12th, Texas 15th, Alabama 17th).

• AP and CBS Sports midseason first-team All-America linebacker and Butkus Award semifinalist Danny Stutsman ranks fourth in the SEC with his 9.1 tackles per game and has 7.5 TFLs and three QB hurries. The senior has reached 100 tackles each of the last three seasons (125 in 2022, 104 in 2023 and 100 this year) and has 367 career stops.

• Senior safety Billy Bowman Jr. has scored four defensive touchdowns since the start of the 2023 season, tied with Kansas cornerback Mello Dotson for the most nationally. Bowman Jr. returned a fumble for a TD in OU's last road game against Missouri.

• Reigning SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week R Mason Thomas is tied for 20th nationally and ranks fifth in the SEC with his 8.0 sacks, and all of them have come in the last nine games (3.0 vs. Tulane, 0.5 vs. Tennessee, 2.0 at Auburn, 0.5 vs. South Carolina, 1.0 at Missouri and 1.0 vs. Alabama). The junior has racked up 6.0 of his 8.0 sacks in the fourth quarter and with OU protecting leads.

• Redshirt sophomore linebacker Kip Lewis has returned interceptions for touchdowns in OU's two SEC wins (at Auburn and vs. Alabama). He is one of three linebackers in school history with two pick-sixes in a season.

• Junior safety Robert Spears-Jennings is tied for third nationally with four forced fumbles (one off the lead) and has a team-high-tying two recoveries. His four forces are tied for third most in OU single-season history.

• Oklahoma ranks sixth nationally by allowing just 30 rushes of 10 or more yards and is tied for eighth by allowing just six rushes of at least 20 yards (one by Auburn, three by Texas and one each by South Carolina and Maine).

• During the Brent Venables era (since the start of the 2022 season), OU's defense ranks second in the nation with 46 interceptions (UNLV has 48).

NOTING THE OFFENSE

• Sophomore quarterback Jackson Arnold, who started OU's first four games this season as well as the last four contests, has completed 140 of 225 pass attempts (62%) for 1,311 yards and 12 touchdowns versus three interceptions on the year. He has also rushed for 369 yards, is tied for second on the squad with three rushing TDs and has one receiving score.

• Despite missing the last two games due to injury, junior running back Jovantae Barnes leads the Sooners with his 577 rushing yards (averaging 4.7 yards per carry) and has a career-high-tying five rushing touchdowns. His last three games marked his three best performances of the year - a 70-yard rushing day vs. South Carolina, a 67-yard rushing afternoon at Ole Miss (also caught five passes for 57 yards, both career highs) and a career-high 203 rushing yards with a career-high three TDs vs. Maine.

• A pair of true freshman running backs have emerged this season. Taylor Tatum, the consensus No. 1 running back nationally in the 2024 class, is averaging 5.1 yards on his 53 rushes (272 yards) and has run for three TDs, caught one and thrown for another. Xavier Robinson has rushed 33 times for 192 yards (5.8 average) and three scores, all in the last three games (six rushes for 29 yards and a TD vs. Maine, nine for 56 yards at Missouri and 18 for 107 and two TDs in the win over No. 7 Alabama).

• Arnold and Tatum each have at least one touchdown rushing, passing and receiving this season. This is only the third time in program history that OU has had two players with at least one of each type of TD (other occasions were in 1952 and 1958).

• OU's tight ends combined for 20 catches for 252 yards and two touchdowns in 13 games last season. This year, tight ends Bauer Sharp, Jake Roberts and Kaden Helms have already totaled 52 catches for 424 yards and four TDs. Sharp leads the squad with 41 catches and 320 receiving yards and has two scores. He caught a 43-yarder two games ago at Missouri from punter Luke Elzinga.

• Plagued by injury in 2021 and '22 at OU (he played in nine total games and had one catch), wide receiver J.J. Hester has 13 receptions this season for 265 yards. On Nov. 2 vs. Maine, he registered a career-high 112-yard effort, which included a 90-yard TD. It was OU's longest reception since 1995, the longest in Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium history and tied for the second longest in school history.

• True freshman walk-on receiver Jacob Jordan, who did not play in OU's first six games, has totaled 16 receptions for 165 yards over the last five contests (his first collegiate appearances). He had six catches for 86 yards against South Carolina, six more grabs for 38 yards and his first career touchdown at Ole Miss and three receptions for 36 yards against Maine.

SPECIAL TEAMS HAVE FLOURISHED

• Redshirt senior Zach Schmit served as OU's placekicker the last two seasons and has made 36 of his 49 (73%) career field goal attempts and all 139 of his PAT tries. His streak of 139 made extra-points is the third longest in program history. Schmit, who has handled kickoffs in all 11 games this season, also handled place kicking duties at Auburn and each of the last five contests. He is 8 for 9 on field goal attempts on the year and two games ago had a 3-for-3 effort at Missouri that included a career-long 56-yarder (previous long was 46).

• After winning the primary placekicking job in August camp, Florida State transfer Tyler Keltner went 3 for 3 on field goals and 6 for 6 on PAT attempts against Temple in the opener to earn SEC Special Teams Player of the Week honors. He is 7 for 9 and 12 for 13, respectively, on the year (missed the Auburn game after having his appendix removed, returned for the Texas game but has not played the last five contests). Keltner spent his first four seasons at East Tennessee State, where he was 56 for 74 on field goals (76%) and 131 of 131 on PATs, and was a three-time All-Southern Conference pick.

• Keltner and Schmit have combined to go 15 of 18 on field goal attempts, as OU ranks sixth in the SEC out of 16 teams with its 83% conversion rate.

• Super senior Luke Elzinga ranks 12th nationally and fourth in the SEC with a 45.5-yard average on his 52 punts (16 of 50+ yards; long of 63; 19 inside the 20; 17 fair catches; just two touchbacks). His performance has helped OU to a No. 10 national ranking with its 42.6-yard net punting average. Elzinga has been named to the Ray Guy Award's "Ray's 8" three times this season (following the Houston, Tennessee and Auburn contests).

• Sophomore Peyton Bowen ranks third in the SEC (22nd nationally) by averaging 8.3 yards on his 23 punt returns (ranks seventh nationally among players with at least 20 returns).

NORMAN, OK - November 23, 2024 - Oklahoma Football Head Coach Brent Venables during the game between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Oklahoma Sooners at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, OK. Photo By Morgan Givens/University of Oklahoma

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 (706) than any other program (next most is 677 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 (44), 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 (Alabama also has 27). And since the start of the 2000 season, OU and Ohio State have produced a nation-leading 18 seasons of at least 10 wins.

• Since former head coach Bob Stoops arrived in Norman in 1999, OU leads the country with its 13,053 points scored. Boise State (12,654) is second and Oregon (12,263) third.

• OU's 80 consensus All-Americans since 1950 lead the nation (Alabama ranks second with 77 and Ohio State third with 73). Since 2000, OU has produced 30 consensus All-Americans, second only to Alabama.

EXTRA POINTS

• Oklahoma has given up 13 total first-half points over the last three games (average of 4.3).

• The Sooners have won their last 90 games when holding opponents to 22 or fewer points. Their last loss under the circumstance came at Nebraska in 2009 (10-3).

• Of the 72 players on OU's depth chart, 24 (or 33%) are freshmen. That includes 18 true freshmen and six redshirts. Thirty-eight true (26) or redshirt (12) freshmen have played in at least one game this season.

• Twenty-eight players (18 offensive and 10 defensive) have made their first OU starts this season.

• Since the start of the 2012 season, OU is 91-7 when scoring at least 35 points and 80-4 when scoring at least 40.