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Oklahoma QB Jackson Arnold, Sooners Impress But Come Up Short in Under Armour Game

Arnold led a touchdown drive at the end of the first half, and he almost did it again late in the game with his team needing a touchdown to tie.

John E. Hoover

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ORLANDO — Jackson Arnold did what he could. But it just wasn't enough.

Oklahoma’s newest 5-star quarterback led his team in rushing and passing, directed a scoring drive to close the first half and nearly did so again to finish the second half.

In the end, however, the Under Armour Next All-America Game went to Team Phantom, who held on to an entertaining 14-7 victory over Arnold’s Team Speed on Tuesday night at Camping World Stadium.

Arnold was throwing into the end zone to tie it in the final 90 seconds, but his final fourth-down throw fell incomplete.

Arnold finished 12-of-23 passing for 100 yards with a touchdown throw (to Michael Matthews) and an interception (batted at the line and picked off by Derek Williams. He also led his squad with 50 rushing yards on five scrambles. 

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Arnold's 12 completions and 23 attempts each rank third in the game's history.

Arnold was one of seven high school players in Tuesday’s game who signed with Oklahoma on Dec. 21 and will play college football for the Sooners.

The others — 5-star defensive end P.J. Adebawore, 5-star safety Peyton Bowen, 4-star linebacker Lewis Carter, 4-star offensive tackle Cayden Green and 4-star wide receiver Jaquaize Pettaway and 4-star defensive back Jacobe Johnson — all had significant contributions in the all-star game.

Adebawore had an impressive chase-down quarterback sack and added two pressures as he consistently beat his blocker.

Keyed by Adebawore’s pressure, Carter was able to chase down a receiver in the second quarter. Carter was second on the team with five tackles.

With Team Phantom up 7-0 and threatening in the second quarter, Carter put pressure on Phantom quarterback Avery Johnson, who threw into the end zone but was intercepted.

Speed punted again, and this time Team Phantom’s Zach Branch took it back 93 yards for a touchdown. But Arnold responded immediately by leading his team on an eight-play, 65-yard drive that made it 14-7 just before halftime. Right before his touchdown, he took off on a 22-yard run to pick up a first down.

Green, who mostly owned his side of the line throughout the night, threw the key block on Arnold’s touchdown pass to Matthews.

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Coaches bungled the defensive rotation in the first half, and Johnson was among a handful of players who were left off the field in the first 24 minutes.

But Johnson played four series in the second half, and broke up a third-down pass thrown his direction to force a punt and also chased a ballcarrier out of bounds for a key tackle.

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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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