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Oklahoma-Arizona Alamo Bowl: X-Factors

The deep ball ... Protecting Arnold ... OU's motivation ... Stage fright

John E. Hoover

In this story:

The Deep Ball

Oklahoma's run game really hasn't had teeth all season. Only five 200-yard games, and just one that was north of 225, proves that the strength of this offense lies in the passing game. And while the Sooners rode the arm of Dillon Gabriel to 10 wins this season, with seven 300-yard games and three 400-yard games, he really didn't have a beautiful deep ball. Jackson Arnold does. Oklahoma's best chance at winning this game is for Arnold to throw it deep, early and often, against an Arizona pass defense that ranked 73rd in the nation against the pass (229.6 yards per game) and 67th in yards per completion (11.88). Drake Stoops may be Mr. Rock Steady, but heaving it downfield to the likes of Brenen Thompson (31.6 yards per catch), Jayden Gibson (28.6), Nic Anderson (23.4) and Jalil Farooq (15.5) can shock a defense into submission.

— John Hoover 

Protecting Arnold

Oklahoma fans are ready to get a taste of the Jackson Arnold experience for a full four quarters, but the Sooners will have to keep the young quarterback upright to make a difference against Arizona. OU is playing without left guard Cayden Green and center Andrew Raym, leaving just left tackle Walter Rouse, right guard McKade Mettauer and right tackle Jacob Sexton as returning starters from its last outing against TCU. Arizona’s defense has played fundamental football all year and remains largely intact and devoid of opt-outs. Arnold is mobile, as he displayed in a small flash against BYU, but keeping the pocket clean for the former 5-star recruit in his first start will be key in keeping the pressure off the new signal caller.

— Ryan Chapman 

OU's Motivation

Throughout the week, Arizona players and coaches have emphasized how much the Alamo Bowl means to their team. With the majority of the Wildcats having never played in a bowl game, Jedd Fisch’s team is motivated and ready to take on a program that they see as a blue blood. If the Sooners come out of the tunnel with less will and excitement than Arizona, the Wildcats are a talented enough team to take down OU. At Alamo Bowl Media Day, however, Oklahoma defensive lineman Ethan Downs said that Brent Venables’ team is treating their final game of the season as a championship, and are preparing as such.

— Randall Sweet

Stage Fright

Oklahoma got a few key pieces back for next year in Danny Stutsman and Billy Bowman, but the Alamo Bowl will be all about depth. The Sooners are going to throw out plenty of new looks, specifically on the offensive line. The biggest young gun starting, though, is clearly true freshman quarterback Jackson Arnold. There’s no better time for Arnold to get his feet wet than a low-stakes bowl game with plenty of talented skill position players. It’ll also be his last chance to play with experienced seniors on the offensive line before a new group takes over next year. He should be set up to succeed. Just because the offensive line has a few players with experience, expect the staff to give reps to the younger guys, too, though, for the same reason that Arnold is playing. It’s good to have a warm-up game before heading into the heat of the 2024 schedule. Some players simply rise to the occasion, and Thursday will be a big stage. Oklahoma's young guns can't have stage fright if they want to pull this one off. 

— Ross Lovelace

Published
John E. Hoover
JOHN E. HOOVER

John is an award-winning journalist whose work spans five decades in Oklahoma, with multiple state, regional and national awards as a sportswriter at various newspapers. During his newspaper career, John covered the Dallas Cowboys, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, the Arkansas Razorbacks and much more. In 2016, John changed careers, migrating into radio and launching a YouTube channel, and has built a successful independent media company, DanCam Media. From there, John has written under the banners of Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, Fan Nation and a handful of local and national magazines while hosting daily sports talk radio shows in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and statewide. John has also spoken on Capitol Hill in Oklahoma City in a successful effort to put more certified athletic trainers in Oklahoma public high schools. Among the dozens of awards he has won, John most cherishes his national "Beat Writer of the Year" from the Associated Press Sports Editors, Oklahoma's "Best Sports Column" from the Society of Professional Journalists, and Two "Excellence in Sports Medicine Reporting" Awards from the National Athletic Trainers Association. John holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications from East Central University in Ada, OK. Born and raised in North Pole, Alaska, John played football and wrote for the school paper at Ada High School in Ada, OK. He enjoys books, movies and travel, and lives in Broken Arrow, OK, with his wife and two kids.

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