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Oklahoma DL Gracen Halton Lands SEC Honor

Halton's tackle for loss and safety in the final minutes against Houston helped the Sooners close out the game and gives OU another SEC honoree.

John E. Hoover

Oklahoma defensive lineman Gracen Halton (56) sacks Houston quarterback Donovan Smith.
Oklahoma defensive lineman Gracen Halton (56) sacks Houston quarterback Donovan Smith. / Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images
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For the second week in a row, the SEC has feted an Oklahoma player for his weekly performance on the field.

Gracen Halton, a defensive tackle from San Diego, landed the league’s Defensive Lineman of the Week award along with Alabama’s Tim Keenan.

Last week, OU kicker Tyler Keltner was named SEC Special Teams Player of the Week when he opened the season with three field goals, including a 50-yarder on his first attempt as a Sooner. Keltner also made 6-of-6 PAT kicks to land the Sooners' first SEC weekly individual player honor as a member of its new conference.

Halton provided the game-clinching play in Saturday’s 16-12 victory over Houston when he broke through the offensive line and tackled Stacy Sneed for a safety with 1:42 to play in the game.

The Cougars needed just a field goal to take the lead and took possession at their 5-yard line after a 51-yard Luke Elzinga punt. 

Halton immediately defeated his blocker and shot into the backfield to tackle Sneed in the end zone before he could cross the goal line.

Halton, a 6-foot-3, 285-pound junior, also had a quarterback sack and currently leads the Sooners with 2.5 sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss.

“I’m just glad I was there,” he said Saturday night. “I seen the ball in his hands and I seen the (end zone) behind him. Safety. Tried to get him in the end zone, and that’s what it was, safety. The ref tried to overturn it but I was like, ‘Come on, ref. You know that’s a safety.’ "

Halton helped OU hold Houston to 58 rushing yards and 1.7 yards per carry on Saturday. He entered the season with 3.5 career TFLs and no sacks, but now ranks second among SEC defensive linemen this season with his 3.5 TFLs. He has 2.5 sacks for a loss of 20 yards.

And his first carer safety.

“It’s a moment I’ll never forget," Halton said. "It’s a moment I’ll tell my kids about. I’m just glad I got to celebrate it with my guys, because it’s us that made that play — all the hard work.”

Elzinga was a contender for this week's special teams award as he punted the ball eight times and averaged 44 yards per kick, with two 50-yard boots and five pinned inside the 20.

Linebacker Danny Stutsman was a contender for SEC Defensive Player of the Week as he contributed 15 tackles against the Cougars.

OU hosts Tulane on Saturday at 2:30 p.m.

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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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