Oklahoma-Alabama Preview: Three Keys to the Game

The Sooners can beat the Crimson Tide if they eliminate their turnovers, mitigate Jalen Milroe, facilitate Xavier Robinson and celebrate their four outstanding seniors.

Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe / Gary Cosby Jr. / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

NORMAN — Oklahoma’s going to need a lot of help to beat Alabama on Saturday.

Fans have waited three years for this particular chapter of the new SEC, and having the Crimson Tide come to Norman for just the second time in history and the first time as a conference opponent will be special.

For one thing, ‘Bama fans are expected to turn out in droves. Most of them have never been to Norman for a game, and they want to see what it’s all about.

Of course, their team is a 14-point favorite, so they’re expecting a four-hour party on Owen Field.

Sooner Nation needs to show up and get loud.

There’s plenty for OU fan to cheer about. One is getting that sixth win and getting to a bowl game. Another is knocking Alabama out of the College Football Playoff. Another is that it's a massive recruiting weekend for the OU coaching staff, so staying loud would impress them. And yet another is sending off an unforgettable class of seniors the right way.

Danny Stutsman, Billy Bowman, Ethan Downs and Jalil Farooq are all that’s left from that promising 2021 freshman class, the one that featured 5-star QB Caleb Williams — until he went to USC. Of those 15 freshmen, only four remain.

Those four have endured a coaching change, switching conferences and the firing of both their offensive and defensive coordinators, plus the many interations of NIL and the ravages of the transfer portal. 

Closing their careers at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium with a victory over No. 7-ranked Alabama would be a memorable way to go out.

Here are three keys for Oklahoma’s game against Alabama:

Stop With the Turnovers, Already

The Crimson Tide lead the SEC and rank second nationally with 24 takeaways this season. In its last five games, Alabama’s defense leads the nation with 16 takeaways.

Oklahoma’s offense, on the other hand, majors in giving the football away.

The Sooners have to reconcile those two things as their highest priority on Saturday.

It starts with pass protection, where Jackson Arnold and Michael Hawkins have both been sloppy with the football. To be fair, it’s hard to hold onto the ball when you’re being pummeled by big, angry dudes coming from multiple directions. Oklahoma still leads the nation with 4.10 sacks allowed per game.

Arnold has also given the football away when he wasn’t under duress. So Oklahoma’s QB1 just needs to be more mature with the ball.

The Sooners have lost five interceptions and 13 fumbles this season — the most by an OU team since 2011.

Milroe’s Place

Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe isn’t a Heisman Trophy candidate, but he was considered one early in the season, and he’s had games that make you wonder why he’s not.

Milroe leads the Crimson Tide with 608 rushing yards and is averaging 284 yards total offense per game. Against Wisconsin, he threw for 196 yards and three touchdowns  and rushed for 75 yards and two scores. Against Georgia, he completed 82 percent of his throws for 374 yards and two touchdowns and also rushed for 117 yards and two TDs. Two weeks ago against LSU, he ran for 185 yards and four scores (15.4 yards per carry) and also threw for 109 yards. In Bama’s three-game win streak, he’s completed 63.3 percent and hasn’t been intercepted. And in his two years as the starter, his touchdown passes average 35 yards.

Milroe isn’t just another dual-threat quarterback. He’s an elite runner who can break tackles at the line of scrimmage and outrun just about any defensive back — and still throw for 300 yards. 

Oklahoma’s game plan is tenuous: Brent Venables wants to cage him in the pocket, but if the Sooners’ front seven can’t make him uncomfortable, he’ll stand back there and cook the Sooner secondary all day.

Fab freshman wideout Ryan Williams has been mostly quiet since his big night against Georgia — six catches, 177 yards and a TD; he did have eight grabs for 73 yards in the loss to Tennessee — but that’s been a product of Alabama wanting to run the football more. Milroe is the perfect trigger man for that kind of scheme, and the Oklahoma defense needs to be very afraid of him.

Feed the Beast

One way Oklahoma can both protect its quarterback and minimize Milroe’s dynamic impact on the game is by running the football.

A lot.

With Jovantae Barnes still questionable, it might be the perfect time to make freshman Xavier Robinson a household name in Sooner lore.

Robinson was the best player on the field two weeks ago as he took over for fellow freshman Taylor Tatum and rushed nine times for 56 yards in the fourth quarter at Missouri. In his last two games, Robinson has 16 carries for 85 yards and two catches for 53 yards.

The 6-foot-1, 220-pound Robinson isn’t just unafraid of contact, he seems to welcome it — seek it out, even. He’s got good vision, great balance and elite upper body strength, and he’s elusive enough to make the first tackler miss or gain leverage on the last defender.

Oklahoma’s embattled offensive line has been better these last three weeks (at least before collapsing late at Ole Miss), and they’ve gotten an attitude about running the ball effectively.

Alabama’s defense ranks 53rd in rushing yards allowed (132.2), giving up 167 to Missouri, 214 to Tennessee, 132 to South Carolina, 166 to Vanderbilt, 173 to Georgia, 149 to Wisconsin and 206 to South Florida.

If the OU offensive line gets nasty and OC Joe Jon Finley has done his job well this week, then Robinson — with maybe some help from Barnes and even Arnold — can put up 175-200 yards on the ground, shorten the game and mitigate Milroe’s impact.