Game Primer: OU vs. Auburn

Saturday, September 20

Norman

2:45 p.m.

University of Oklahoma

Auburn

NORMAN, OK - August 30, 2025 - Oklahoma Defensive Back Reggie Powers III (#13) during the game between the Illinois State Redbirds and the Oklahoma Sooners at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, OK. Photo By Peyton Martin/University of Oklahoma

Photo by: Peyton Martin/University of Oklahoma

September 18, 2025 | Football

Watch Listen Game Center Souvenir Program

#11 Oklahoma

#22 Auburn

Saturday, Sept. 19 / 2:45 p.m. CT / Owen Field

ABC / Radio / Live Stats / Game Notes

OPENING KICK

• No. 11/12 Oklahoma (3-0) and No. 22/25 Auburn (3-0) begin their SEC slates when they meet Saturday at 2:45 p.m. CT at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. The game, the first between the Sooners and Tigers in Norman, will be televised by ABC with Sean McDonough, Greg McElroy and Molly McGrath announcing.

• The 2025 season marks the 131st in OU football history. The Sooners lead the nation with their 50 all-time conference titles, 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, fourth with their 419 NFL Draft picks and fifth with their 58 bowl appearances.

• Auburn is one of five Oklahoma opponents playing in Norman for the first time this season. OU already beat Illinois State and Michigan in their Norman debuts in weeks 1 and 2, respectively. The Tigers will mark the Sooners' 99th all-time opponent at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Ole Miss and LSU will take that number to 101 this season.

• Saturday's contest will mark the 1,355th in OU history. The Sooners rank fifth nationally with their .723 all-time winning percentage (953-348-53 record), trailing Ohio State (.736), Alabama (.733), Michigan (.732) and Notre Dame (.731). Since the end of World War II (1946 season to present), OU leads all programs with 709 wins (29 more than Alabama, the program with the next most) and owns a .766 winning percentage.

• A nation-high-tying nine of OU's 2025 opponents, including all eight SEC foes, are ranked in this week's AP or coaches top-25 polls: No. 3/4 LSU, No. 8/7 Texas, No. 13/11 Ole Miss, No. 14/14 Alabama, No. 15/15 Tennessee, No. 21/20 Michigan, No. 22/25 Auburn, No. 23/22 Missouri and RV/24 South Carolina. The most AP-ranked teams the Sooners have faced in a regular season is six in 2016.

NORMAN, OK - September 06, 2025 - Gaylord Family Memorial Stadium during the game between the Michigan Wolverines and the Oklahoma Sooners at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, OK. Photo By Asia Purnell/University of Oklahoma

FOR THE FANS

• Fans are encouraged to "Wear Crimson" to Saturday's Auburn game.

• SEC Network's traveling pregame show "SEC Nation" will make its Norman debut on Saturday, broadcasting from the South Oval on OU's campus. Laura Rutledge will host and be joined by Paul Finebaum, Roman Harper, Jordan Rodgers and Tim Tebow from 9-11 a.m. The "Marty & McGee" show, with Marty Smith and Ryan McGee, will kick off programming live from 8-9 a.m. Several OU guests are slated for both shows.

• Approximately two hours and 15 minutes before each home game (12:30 p.m. this Saturday), OU players and coaches will arrive at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium via team buses and walk to their stadium entrance while being cheered by fans. This year's "Walk of Champions" path again originates from the Jenkins Ave./Brooks St. intersection just northeast of the stadium (view map here). The team will be led by the Sooner Schooner and OU Spirit.

• New this fall, free, public tailgating is open on the historic North Oval. For the first time in university history, fans have the opportunity to set up their tailgates on one of the most recognizable places on campus, creating an electric atmosphere just steps away from Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Fans can claim spaces on the North Oval beginning at 6 p.m. on the Friday before a home game. More tailgating information, policies and a map, click here.

• Once again, "Party at the Palace, Presented by Allstate" will be held on the lawn immediately north of Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium for fans of all ages, this week running from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Highlights include food trucks, giveaways, music, interactive games, inflatables and more. Additionally, 107.7 The Franchise, the flagship station of the Sooner Sports Radio Network, originates the start of its pregame show live from Party at the Palace beginning three hours prior to kickoff.

• Riverwind brings its Beats & Bites series to Party at the Palace with a free concert by country music star Tyler Braden at 11 a.m. on the lawn immediately north of Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.

• OU Athletics and Sooner Sports Properties are producing limited-edition collectible game programs in high-quality print for home football contests against Auburn, Ole Miss, Missouri and LSU – OU's four 2025 SEC home opponents – plus Big Ten foe Michigan. Souvenir 96-page game programs are available for preorder for $20 each, and the 220-page 2025 OU Football Media Guide can be purchased for $40 (limited stock). Click here for details.

• The University of Oklahoma and the Southeastern Conference have zero-tolerance policies regarding fan field intrusions and throwing debris on the field. Starting in 2025, the SEC will issue member schools a $500,000 fine for violating the field-intrusion policy (paid to the opposing school for conference games) and a $250,000 fine for throwing debris on the field. Violations of these policies could also result in prosecution.

• A reminder that umbrellas are not permitted inside Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. For a full list of OU game day policies, procedures and additional fan information, click here.

KEY STORYLINES

• OU head coach Brent Venables is 4-0 against Auburn in his coaching career, leading the Sooners to a 27-21 road win last year and posting a 3-0 mark as Clemson's defensive coordinator (26-19 in 2012 in Atlanta [his first game with CU], 19-13 in 2016 in Auburn and 14-6 in 2017 in Clemson). His OU and Clemson defensive units have held Auburn to an average of 14.8 points and 308.8 yards and have racked up 21 sacks and 45 tackles for loss in the four contests.

• Saturday's game marks the return of former OU quarterback Jackson Arnold to Norman. Arnold, who has started each of Auburn's first three games this season, played in 17 contests over the previous two campaigns and made 10 starts (nine last season). He completed 63% of his passes for 1,984 yards and 16 TDs (six INTs) as a Sooner, and rushed for 560 yards and four TDs. He did not play in OU's win at Auburn last season.

• While Oklahoma's offense has been strong through three games (ranks 28th out of 134 teams in yards per game at 472.7), the Sooners' defense has been other-worldly. OU ranks second nationally in passing defense efficiency (84.7 rating), third in first downs allowed per game (9.0), and fourth in total defense (181.0 ypg), scoring defense (6.3 ppg) and third-down conversion defense (17.1%). It leads the SEC in each of those categories. OU also ranks 19th in tackles for loss per game (8.0) and 34th in rushing defense (96.3 ypg).

• Redshirt junior quarterback John Mateer, the nation's top transfer from last season according to ESPN, is off to a stellar start at OU. He ranks second nationally with his 368.3 yards of total offense per game.

• Mateer has registered at least one rushing TD and at least one passing TD in each of his last nine games, good for the longest active streak nationally and tied for the fourth-longest streak since the start of the 2000 season.

• Arnold (64.0) and Mateer (53.7) rank second and third among SEC quarterbacks in rushing yards per game. Mateer ranks first in passing yards (314.7 ypg) while Arnold ranks 14th (167.0 ypg).

• The Sooners have allowed just one rushing touchdown this season (Michigan) and Auburn none.

• OU has yet to allow any points in the first or fourth quarters this season. It has allowed just three points in the second quarter and 16 in the third.

OU-AUBURN SERIES HISTORY

• Oklahoma and Auburn have met three times, including twice in the Sugar Bowl, and OU has won each game.

• In the final game of the 1971 season, Chuck Fairbanks' No. 3 Sooners downed Ralph Jordan's No. 5 Tigers 40-22 in the Sugar Bowl in front of 84,031 fans at Tulane Stadium.

• In the last game of the 2016 season, Bob Stoops' No. 7 OU squad prevailed 35-19 over Gus Malzahn's 17th-ranked Auburn team. Sugar Bowl attendance at the Superdome was 54,077.

• Last season in Auburn, Ala., the Sooners posted a 21-18 win.

LAST YEAR VS. AUBURN

• Trailing 21-10 with less than nine minutes left in the fourth quarter, No. 21/18 Oklahoma scored the final 17 points in a 27-21 win at Auburn on Sept. 28, 2024, for its first-ever SEC victory.

• The Sooners scored the go-ahead points when redshirt sophomore linebacker Kip Lewis returned an interception 63 yards for a touchdown with 4:06 remaining. Freshman quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. converted the ensuing two-point conversion on an acrobatic dive to put OU ahead 24-21 and redshirt senior kicker Zach Schmit later booted a 39-yard field goal with 54 seconds to go for the game's final points.

• Lewis, who added five tackles, including one for a loss, was named SEC Defensive Player of the Week.

• Hawkins Jr. became just the seventh OU quarterback to start at least one game as a true freshman and became the first OU true freshman QB to win on the road in his first career start. Hawkins, who ran for a 48-yard score on the Sooners' first possession, completed 10 of 15 passes for 161 yards and rushed 14 times for 69 yards. He had no turnovers.

• Redshirt senior receiver J.J. Hester entered the contest without a reception since the 2022 season but caught three passes for game and career highs of 86 yards. His 60-yard nab in the fourth quarter set up a touchdown that cut Auburn's lead to 21-16 with 8:32 remaining.

• Junior running back Jovantae Barnes carried 18 times for 61 yards and scored on a 2-yard run.

• Senior safety Billy Bowman Jr. logged a game-high eight tackles, seven of them solo. Junior defensive lineman R Mason Thomas added four tackles, including sacks on back-to-back third- and fourth-down plays totaling 19 yards on Auburn's first possession after OU went up 24-21. The turnover on downs in Tigers territory led to the Sooners' final field goal.

• Junior safety Robert Spears-Jennings (9 yards) and redshirt sophomore linebacker Kobie McKinzie (6 yards) had one sack each.

• Schmit, who filled in for primary place kicker Tyler Keltner (appendicitis), made both of his field goal tries. He also connected on a 24-yarder late in the third quarter.

HOME IS WHERE THE 'W' IS

• The Sooners are 147-15 (.907) at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium since the start of the 1999 season (Bob Stoops' first year as head coach), giving them just one more home loss than conference titles during the period. It is the second-best home winning percentage in the country over the last 26-plus seasons (Boise State [.909] is first and Ohio State [.897] third). OU has outscored its foes by an average of 43-18 in those games.

• Not including this week's game, OU has sold out 161 straight originally scheduled home contests dating back to the start of the 1999 season (Bob Stoops' first as head coach). Only Nebraska has a longer current streak.

• Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium celebrated its 100th season in 2024. The 100th anniversary of the first game played in the stadium will be on Oct. 17. On that day in 1925, the first contest was played in front of the new 16,000-seat west stands, a 7-0 victory over Drake.

• The first game played at the current stadium site, called Owen Field and named after former head coach and athletics director Bennie Owen (a charter member of the College Football Hall of Fame), took place in 1923, before stadium construction got underway.

• OU owns a sparkling 425-88-15 (.819) all-time record at the "Palace on the Prairie" and has faced 98 opponents there (remaining home foes Auburn, Ole Miss and LSU this season will take that number to 101).

PHILADELPHIA, PA - September 13, 2025 - Oklahoma Quarterback John Mateer (#10) during the game between the Temple Owls and the Oklahoma Sooners at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, PA. Photo By Morgan Givens/University of Oklahoma

MATEER'S SUPER START

• Redshirt junior quarterback John Mateer, who transferred from Washington State in January, has completed 71 of 105 pass attempts (68%) for 944 yards and five touchdowns through three games. He is also OU's second-leading rusher with 161 yards and has a team-high four TDs on the ground.

• Mateer ranks in the top 20 nationally in total offense (second; 368.3 ypg), passing yards per game (seventh; 314.7), completions per game (11th; 23.7), rushing TDs (14th; four) and points responsible for per game (17th; 18.0).

• Mateer's 944 passing yards are the third most by an OU quarterback through the first three games of a career (Josh Heupel had 1,202 in the first three contests of 1999 and Baker Mayfield had 1,062 yards in the first three outings of 2015).

MORE ON THE OFFENSE

• True freshman running back Tory Blaylock leads the team with 166 rushing yards on the season after registering 100 rushing yards and two touchdowns at Temple. It was Blaylock's first career 100-yard rushing game, and he became the first OU running back to register two touchdowns this season. His 25-yard run in the third quarter was the longest rushing play by a Sooners running back on the year.

• Senior tight end Jaren Kanak played linebacker his first three years (started nine games in 2023 and one last season) but converted to tight end in the spring. The former high school receiver and quarterback has caught 14 passes for 245 yards over OU's first three games. The 245 yards lead the nation's tight ends (next most is 199) and represent 54% of the receiving yards amassed by OU's tight ends all of last season (455).

• Redshirt senior receiver Deion Burks, who spent three years at Purdue and is in his second at Oklahoma, caught seven passes and one TD in each of the first two games in 2025 and leads the Sooners with 17 receptions. His 88 yards vs. Illinois State and 101 vs. Michigan represent his two highest totals at OU.

• Fellow redshirt senior receiver Keontez Lewis has 15 receptions for 181 yards on the young season and caught two TDs against Illinois State. His nine catches vs. the Redbirds were a career high (he finished with 119 receiving yards).

• Oklahoma is the only SEC team and one of just three squads nationally (Baylor and Syracuse are the others) with four players who each average at least 50.0 receiving yards per game (Kanak 81.7, Burks 75.0, Lewis 60.3 and Isaiah Sategna III 52.3).

• OU has scored on all 13 of its red-zone trips this season (10 touchdowns and three field goals).

• The Sooners threw for at least 270 yards twice in 2024 (284 vs. Maine and 275 vs. Navy in the Armed Forces Bowl), but have done it three times in three games this season (392 vs. Illinois State, 270 vs. Michigan and 287 at Temple).

• In the win over No. 15 Michigan, Michael Fasusi became the first OU freshman to start at left tackle in his first career game. He played 66 snaps and allowed just one QB pressure. He missed the season opener vs. Illinois State and last week's Temple contest.

• Redshirt senior offensive lineman Febechi Nwaiwu is the only OU offensive lineman to start all three games this season. He has started all three contests at right guard (also started all 13 games there last year).

MORE ON THE DEFENSE

• Through three games, Oklahoma has allowed just one total touchdown and 27 total first downs. The last time OU held its first three opponents to one total touchdown (or none) was the 1989 season, and it has been since 1985 that the Sooners have allowed 27 or fewer first downs over their first three games (16 that season).

• The defense has also allowed OU opponents' fewest total points through the first three games (19) since the 2004 season (14), the fewest total offensive yards (543) since 2007 (539), the fewest passing yards (254) since 2018 (222), the fewest passing touchdowns (zero) since 2017 (also zero) and the lowest opponent third-down conversion rate (17.1%) since 2007 (17.0%). It has also forced the most opponent punts (27) since the 2015 season (28).

• The Sooners have forced as many punts (27) through three games as they have allowed total first downs (27; includes five by penalty).

• The strength of the Sooners' defense very well could be its line, with three players returning who started a combined 33 games last season (senior Damonic Williams 12, senior R Mason Thomas 11 and freshman Jayden Jackson 10) and another who started three and saw extensive field time (senior Gracen Halton). That quartet totaled 118 tackles, 26 tackles for loss, 17 sacks and 16 QB hurries last season. Phil Steele ranked OU's defensive line as the best in the country this summer, and ESPN/SEC Network analyst Cole Cubelic said in May the Sooners have the league's best defensive line, "... and it ain't even close."

• Junior linebacker Sammy Omosigho paces the team with 14 tackles despite not starting a game this season. Omosigho is tied for the team lead with 2.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks, and paces the squad with three pass breakups.

• Against Illinois State, Courtland Guillory became only the second OU true freshman to start at cornerback in a season opener (the other was P.J. Mbanasor in 2015). Guillory has five tackles, a pass breakup and a QB hurry through three games.

• The Sooners have yet to force a turnover.

A LOOK AT SPECIAL TEAMS

• Oklahoma ranks fourth in the SEC and 20th nationally in net punting average (44.6). Redshirt sophomore Jacob Ulrich (first-team All-Conference USA last season at Kennesaw State) averaged 47.5 yards on two punts against Illinois State while redshirt junior Grayson Miller averaged 48.9 yards on his eight punts vs. Michigan and Temple. Both are first-year Sooners.

• Redshirt junior Tate Sandell has handled placekicking and kickoff duties the first three games. The first-year Sooner is 3 for 4 on field goal tries (including a 52-yarder at Temple) after making 19 of 23 last year at UTSA.

• Redshirt junior Ben Anderson is OU's long snapper for the third straight year. He earned third-team All-SEC honors last season and is a 2025 third-team preseason All-American by Phil Steele.

• Oklahoma's special teams units were drastically improved in 2024 under first-year coordinator Doug Deakin. After finishing No. 107 in the FEI (Fremeau Efficiency Index) special teams ratings in 2023 the year before Deakin's arrival, the Sooners jumped to No. 34 last season.

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 (709) than any other program (next most is 680 by Alabama).

• Oklahoma has finished in the top 5 of the AP poll a nation-leading 33 times (Ohio State is second with 31).

• 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 (Alabama also has 27).

• Since the start of the 2000 season, OU ranks second with 18 seasons of at least 10 wins and ranks second with 264 victories.

• Since former head coach Bob Stoops arrived in Norman in 1999, OU leads the country with its 13,191 points scored. Boise State (12,747) is second and Oregon (12,540) third.

• Oklahoma's 81 consensus All-Americans since 1950 lead the nation (Alabama and Ohio State rank second with 77 each). Since 2000, OU has produced 31 consensus All-Americans, tied with Ohio State behind only Alabama.

EXTRA POINTS

• The Sooners are 13-6 all-time as the No. 11-ranked team in the AP poll (5-1 at home). Oklahoma was last ranked 11th in 2014 when it defeated Texas 31-26 in Dallas and lost to No. 14 Kansas State 31-30 at home in back-to-back weeks. OU's last home win as the AP's 11th-ranked team was in 2013 vs. TCU (20-17).

• For the second straight season, Oklahoma's schedule is among the nation's most challenging. Heading into 2025, the Sooners' strength of schedule was ranked as the country's toughest in ESPN's FPI.

• Of Oklahoma's 111 players, 45 (or 41%) are newcomers. That group is comprised of 23 freshmen and 22 transfers (seven seniors, 10 juniors and five sophomores).

• Of the 73 players on this week's depth chart, 19 (or 26%) were freshmen. That includes 11 true freshmen (five offense, five defense, one special teams) and eight redshirt freshmen (two offense, five defense, one special teams).

• In their 19 wins since the start of the 2023 season, the Sooners have outscored opponents 175-35 off turnovers. In their 11 losses during the same span, they have been outscored 105-27 off turnovers.

• Since the start of the 2014 season, OU ranks fourth nationally (second in Power Four) with its 5.3 yards per rush and seventh (fourth in Power Four) with its 356 rushing TDs.

• Since offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh joined the OU staff in 2013, the Sooners rank first nationally in total offense (494.1 ypg), second in yards per pass attempt (9.1), third in pass efficiency rating (164.3) and scoring offense (39.4 ppg), fourth in yards per rush (5.3; tied) and sixth in completion percentage (65.9) and in yards per completion (13.8). It is the only program in the country to rank in the top 15 in passing offense (eighth at 279.9 ypg) and rushing offense (10th at 214.2 ypg) during that span.

• The Sooners have won their last 84 games when holding opponents to under 21 points. Their last loss under the circumstance came at Nebraska in 2009 (10-3).

• Since the start of the 2012 season, OU is 95-7 when scoring at least 35 points and 82-4 when scoring at least 40.