Oklahoma-Tennessee Video Review: Why the Offense Was So Bad, the Defense So Good

There's so much for Seth Littrell to correct on offense he might not know where to start, but Zac Alley is riding high after an impressive defensive performance.

Tennessee Volunteers head coach Josh Heupel (left) shakes hands with Oklahoma Sooners head coach Brent Venables. / Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

NORMAN — Oklahoma’s offense is officially, statistically, one of the worst offenses in all of major college football.

Didn’t see that coming three years ago.

All the hype and pomp and circumstance of finally opening SEC play, all the memories of Josh Heupel returning to Norman, all the questions about being SEC ready — the fans were, and so was the defense, but the offense was not — can now be swept aside for real topics.

Such as how the Oklahoma offense got so bad so fast.

The Sooners trailed Tennessee 19-3 before making a move to bench starting quarterback Jackson Arnold. Once anointed as the “face of Oklahoma football,” Arnold struggled mightily against the talented Vols on Saturday.

Simply put, his rebuilt offensive line isn’t good — and maybe more alarmingly, doesn’t show any signs of getting better — and the health of his injury-wracked wide receiver corps is getting worse, not better.

So no, the dreadful offensive performance isn’t entirely on Arnold. And anyone who thinks true freshman Michael Hawkins’ insertion into the starting lineup is going to fix everything is being delusional.

But Arnold’s turnovers — nine now in his five career start — are simply untenable. He needed to sit. Watching from the sideline and giving insight to Hawkins should serve him well as he continues to grow into one of college football’s most high-profile, high-expectation jobs. 

Hawkins may very well deliver a long-term spark. He’s a little more athletic, maybe a little more decisive. At this point, anything is better than the status quo for an offense that’s stuck in the mud.

It will be too bad if the OU offense doesn’t improve markedly and a really good Sooner defensive performance is wasted each Saturday.

Here’s the Sooners On SI video review of the Tennessee game.

FIRST QUARTER

The very first play, a botched handoff to Jovantae Barnes, is a 5-yard loss. The first play of the Temple game was a jet sweep to Deion Burks for 4 yards. The first play of the Houston game was a short toss to Burks for a loss of 6 yards. And the first play against Tulane was a short throw to Gavin Sawchuk for a gain of 7. So on four opening plays, OU has netted 2 yards. This one was caused by a high snap from Branson Hickman, who’s back from injury for the first time since that Temple game. Arnold’s best throw of the night — a 76-yard touchdown bomb to Brenen Thompson — doesn’t even count as Tennessee jumps offsides and Jermod McCoy is whistled for contacting Thompson. Arnold comes back with a nice third-down conversion throw to Burks on a quick slant for 12 yards, but that’s it on this drive. Arnold misses Zion Ragins on a quick out, and he scrambles away from heavy pressure for 7 on third-and-9. Then on fourth-and-2, Arnold throws a bit behind Nic Anderson on a short rub route to the right, but McCoy breaks up the pass and slams Anderson to the ground. 

Oklahoma comes out in a 3-man front and a 5-man box, but Tennessee throws a wide pass, and Billy Bowman delivers a punishing hit for no gain. Nico Iamaleava escapes a Kendel Dolby blitz to gain 8 yards, but Robert Spears-Jennings, Peyton Bowen and Kip Lewis converge on Dylan Sampson for another no gain. Great opening effort by the Oklahoma defense, fanatical effort and flawless execution.

Tennessee asserts itself up front on the next drive, a harbinger of bad tidings for the Oklahoma offense. Arnold’s keeper goes for a loss of 2, and then he’s sacked for a loss of 4 after a protection whiff by tight end Jake Roberts. Arnold and Roberts make a nice ad-lib on third-and-16, but their hookup is just 9 yards and it’s another OU punt.

Tennessee does no better. The Vols have punted just three times all year and have one three-and-out, but against this Oklahoma defense, it’s a second three-and-out and a second punt. Jayden Jackson shows the quick first step and great hands on first down, Robert Spears-Jennings cleans up a screen pass (pressured by Lewis Carter) with another big hit for a short gain, and Squirrel White’s reverse swing pass is annihilated by Carter.

Oklahoma gets good field position after a Tennessee punt, but after Burks gets 3 yards on a throw and 11 yards on a jet sweep, Arnold makes his first catastrophic mistake, an underthrown ball to J.J. Hester into double coverage. McCoy intercepts the ball and runs it back 17 yards. Arnold should have seen either the underneath corner drifting back or the deep safety coming back under the route, but it appears that he saw neither.

Another light box, and this time the Vols run it — but Sampson slips down for a gain of 2. Iamaleava then zips a quick slant to Bru McCoy for 38 yards. McCoy gets a clean release against Woodi Washington, then slices through a tackle attempt by Peyton Bowen. It’s the first chink in the OU defense’s armor — and it’s going to be a big one. Kip Lewis nearly drops Sampson in the backfield, but he gets away for a gain of 2. On second-and-8, OU fakes pressure from the right and brings it from the left, forcing Iamaleava to throw quickly into the end zone. Kani Walker pivots and defends the throw nicely. Then on third down, Iamaleava escapes momentarily but Danny Stutsman eventually gets him down for no gain. Tennessee gets on the scoreboard first with a 26-yard field goal.

The OU offense answers with a nice drive, a good mix of run and pass that ties it up. After Arnold misses Thompson on a quick slant to the left, Barnes turns in his best run of the night, a 17-yard dash up the left sideline. Burks gets 7 on another jet sweep handoff, and Taylor Tatum gets 6 up the middle but takes a hard shot to the back. Tatum gets the next handoff, but he fumbles and quickly recovers for a gain of 4. Arnold connects with Bauer Sharp on a stick route to the left for 11 yards. On first-and-10 from the Tennessee 29, Arnold throws too high to Thompson on an RPO pass that he probably should have handed off. Arnold whips a quick slant to Burks across the middle for 9, but the entire right side of the OU offensive line gets driven into the backfield and Barnes gets stuffed for no gain on third-and-1. Tyler Keltner’s 37-yard field goal ends a 10-play drive and ties it at 3-3.

Iamaleava’s quick screen to White picks up 14 because the OU corners are lined up 10 yards deep. On the next play, Kani Walker is still eight yards deep on Dont’e Thornton, who runs by Walker uncontested on a quick post and turns it into a 66-yard touchdown to give Tennessee a 10-3 lead.

Arnold moves the pocket with a rollout to the right and finds Thompson for a gain of 12 on the last play of the quarter, setting up first down at the OU 37.

SECOND QUARTER

Arnold zips a screen pass to Burks, but his throw is too hard and well behind Burks and falls incomplete. Arnold’s deep ball to Thompson down the right sideline is overthrown by 5 yards and it’s another punt by Luke Elzinga, this one a 63-yard bomb.

Iamaleava misses his receiver on first down, and Sampson picks up 5 on a handoff up the middle. On third-and-5, Iamaleava is strip-sacked from behind by Spears-Jennings, and Ethan Downs nearly scoops it up for a touchdown — a narrow miss that could have changed the complexion of the game. Instead, Downs falls on the ball at the Vols 5.

The next play ends up being the biggest play of the game: Arnold looks confused again as he fakes a pitch to Barnes and keeps into a pileup at the 5-yard line. The ball is ripped out before Arnold hits the ground and Joshua Josephs recovers at the 6.

DeSean Bishop gashes the middle of the OU defense for 16 yards on the next three plays as the Oklahoma defense looks a bit shell-shocked from the sudden switch. Thornton gets 7 on a short throw in front of Washington, and Bishop makes two tacklers miss as he cuts up for 12 yards. The OU secondary has everyone covered on first down and R Mason Thomas and Da’Jon Terry combine to get him for a sack and a loss of 2. More pressure by Jackson from the middle of OU’s 3-man front as Iamaleava throws high on second own, and more swarming defense from the Sooners, who get Dolby and Stutsman to collaborate on a screen pass for no gain.

Jackson Ross’ 57-yard punt checks up and puts the Sooners at their own 4. After a false false start by Heath Ozaeta pushes it to the 2, Barnes is stuffed in the end zone by linebacker Jayson Jennings, who comes unblocked in a massive gap between Hickman and Febechi Nwaiwu. Now it’s 12-3 Tennessee with 9:12 to play before halftime.

OU gets another massive break when Zach Schmit’s free kick is fielded at the 6 by Squirrel White, who slips to the ground. On Bishop’s 4-yard run off left tackle, Dolby goes down with a gruesome right ankle injury that is later revealed as a dislocation. Brent Venables says later that Dolby, a senior from Springfield, OH, and a junior college transfer from NEO, will require surgery and is lost for the season. That’s bad news for the defense as Dolby was a critical player at a crucial position. Iamaleava rolls out but can’t escape Kip Lewis for a 1-yard gain. Spears-Jennings, Sammy Omasigho and Lewis deliver a punishing tackle to Bishop for a gain of 3, and it’s yet another Tennessee punt — this one 56 yards.

Oklahoma’s offense hasn’t been good at all, but things are about to go sideways. Arnold opens with another screen out wide to Barnes that goes for a loss of 2. On second-and-12, Keenan Pili chases Arnold on a roll to the left and delivers a hard hit into the turf as Arnold yanks the ball out of bounds. On third-and-12, Arnold is in a shooting gallery as the OU pass protection collapses. Still, he escapes three different Tennessee defenders and gets a clever ball to Sharp for an easy first down, but the ball slips through Sharp’s fingers and forces a punt. In retrospect, those last two plays — the big hit from Pili and having to dodge the rush from all angles — may have planted a seed in Arnold’s head. He never looked comfortable again after this series.

Lewis Carter knocks down Sampson for 2 yards, and then takes down White on screen pass for a loss of 1. Iamaleava can’t get away from another blitz and is sacked again on third-and-9 as Trace Ford knocks the football out and Gracen Halton recovers.

The momentum shift again lasts just one play as Arnold throws a screen pass to Ragins out wide to the left and it’s ruled a lateral. Tennessee covers the ball and it’s a loss of 21 yards and Tennessee football. Replay confirms it’s a backwards pass, and Arnold retires to the sideline and pounds his helmet in frustration. Nic Anderson puts his arm around Arnold’s shoulder and tries to comfort his quarterback, but it’s not happening tonight.

Again the OU defense is called upon, but it’s asking too much this time. Sampson breaks three tackles and spins for a 10-yard run on third-and-2 and pounds through another defender for 6 yards on a speed-option pitch from Iamaleava on third-and-5. It’s clear the valiant Oklahoma defense is beginning to wear down. Sampson breaks a tackle by Dez Malone to pick up 16 yards to the 1, and then he spins through a tackle by Stutsman in the backfield and reaches the ball across the goal line. It’s a backbreaking turnover and offensive possession and puts the Sooners in a 19-3 hole heading into halftime.

Michael Hawkins, who warmed up on the sideline with Arnold prior to the previous drive, spent the entire timeout throwing with third-team QB Casey Thompson. Hawkins somehow saves Hickman’s wide snap on his first play and recovers for a loss of 4, then scrambles for 9 yards and scrambles again for 1 before Elzinga ends the half with a 58-yard punt. 

THIRD QUARTER

After Sampson powers for 5 yards, Iamaleava throws for Holden Staes for a sideline conversion on third down. He finds McCoy for a gain for 7, then Sampson again gets hit in the backfield but spins forward  for another first down. Sampson goes down for a loss of 4, however, when Trace Ford rushes untouched off the edge and buries him for a loss of 4. Iamaleava escapes pressure and finds Thorton on a comeback in front of Malone. Thornton then spins away from Malone for a 50-yard gain, but the play is wiped out by a Tennessee holding penalty. Bowen comes up from his deep middle safety position and drops Sampson for a 5-yard gain, and after Kobie McKinzie and Gracen Halton pressure Iamaleava into a throwaway, Tennessee punts again.

Sam Franklin, a transfer from Tennessee-Martin, runs very tentatively in his first carry and gets smashed down for a loss of 3. Hawkins is pressured back to the goal line and throws it away on second down. On third-and-13, Hawkins throws a bubble screen to motion man Deion Burks, but Burks can only scoot for 8 yards. Elzinga flips the field again with a 54-yard punt. OU has 87 yards total offense, and the Sooners’ last six possessions have yielded just 12 plays for minus-16 yards with two fumbles, three three-and-outs and a safety.

On second-and-4, McCoy beats Washington off the line in one-on-one coverage and makes a great stretching catch of Iamaleava’s deep ball for a 42-yard gain. OU stiffens thanks to three straight tackles by Carter, and Max Gilbert hits a 41-yard field goal to make it 25-3 with 6:03 left in the quarter.

Hawkins scrambles and draws a facemask penalty on the first play, but two of the next three plays — both runs by Barnes — net zero yards. Only Hawkins’ 6-yard completion to Thompson on the left side nets positive yardage before another punt. The third-down handoff to Barnes is especially curious: Roberts lines up as the H-back to Barnes’ left and actually lets an defender crash into the backfield uncontested as he turns and looks for a pass from Hawkins. Hawkins has already handed off, and Barnes goes nowhere as that unblocked defender smashes him for no gain. Clearly Roberts and Hawkins are not seeing the same thing if one is going out for a pass and letting a defender come unchecked while the other is reading a blitzed and handing off to the running back up the middle. It’s a stark example of how disconnected the OU offense is.

The Oklahoma defense isn’t backing down. Damonic Williams beats his man off the snap and throws Sampson for a 1-yard loss. After a 6-yard run by Sampson, Iamaleava finds Ethan Davis for 8 yards and a first down on the sideline in front of Washington. Eli Bowen tackles McCoy quickly on a quick throw to the left, and they try to pick on the freshman again, but Bowen has McCoy covered well downfield and he breaks up the pass. On third-and-5, OU rushes six and Iamaleava is pressured into a bad throw.

Peyton Bowen gets the next possession started right with a 17-yard punt return, and Hawkins keeps it going with a 13-yard hookup to Bauer Sharp across the middle — OU’s longest pass of the night. Hawkins shows nice patience to wait for clear the zone, then drops his arm angle to sling it through a tight window. But the good vibes are over quickly as Gavin Sawchuk gets dropped for a 2-yard loss and Hawkins gets swarmed by three unabated pass rushers for a 16-yard loss. Hawkins runs a QB draw for 10 yards to end the period.

FOURTH QUARTER

Elzinga is the hero again, this time opening the final quarter with a 60-yard punt to the UT 10. Elzinga’s kicks ensure that Tennessee continues to open its possessions conservatively; otherwise Josh Heupel might be tempted to get aggressive and light up the scoreboard. Bishop breaks up the sideline for a 17-yard gain, and Eli Bowen slings him out of bounds. Bowen then covers Chris Brazzell on a deep ball. On second-and-10, David Stone knifes through a combo block and chases down Bishop for a loss of 4, and on third-and-14, Gracen Halton and Kani Walker corral Bishop for a loss of 1 to force another punt.

This time, Hawkins puts it all together. After an incomplete pass under pressure, he zips a low throw to Sharp one the middle for 7 yards. Hawkins then hits an intermediate strike over the middle to Jaquaize Pettaway for 19 yards. Hawkins scrambles for 3, then finds Sharp again to the right side for 5 yards. Hawkins makes a nice throw to Ragins, getting off a 10-yard pass before drawing a roughing-the-passer penalty. The throw itself is feathered nicely over a short defender and underneath a safety on the sideline. Hawkins escapes pressure for a throwaway on first down, then scrambles up the middle for what appears to be a 12-yard touchdown run. Despite Hawkins lowering his shoulder and running over two tacklers, replay determines Hawkins was short of the goal line. Hawkins then gets thrown down for a loss of 1, so he throws a 2-yard touchdown pass to Barnes and cuts it 22-9. Barnes lines up to Hawkins’ left, fakes taking the handoff as Hawkins avoids an edge rusher and throws to Barnes. It’s the first touchdown allowed by the Tennessee defense in 19 quarters — the longest in FBS football in 20 years. Hawkins executes another play-action fake and throws a 2-point conversion pass to Pettaway wide open in the corner of the end zone, but it’s negated by a hands-to-the-face personal foul penalty by Jacob Sexton. After the 15-yard penalty, Tyler Keltner’s 37-yard PAT kick goes wide right — his first missed career extra point after 144 successful tries.

Another Tennessee penalty results in a three-and-out and punt, but as OU gets the ball back with 6:28 to play, Hawkins and the offense immediately go backwards with a 7-yard sack despite what looked like max protection. Hawkins scrambles for 3 yards, but his third-down throw to Sharp over the middle is broken up by Will Brooks, and his fourth-down rollout pass to Pettaway is overthrown downfield, giving the Vols possession at the OU 23 with 5:15 left.

Iamaleava throws to White at the 10, but the throw is well defended by Billy Bowman and falls incomplete. It turns into another three-and-out was Kani Walker drops Iamaleava short of the first down, bringing on Gilbert for a 32-yard field goal.

Hawkins seems to be developing a rapport with Pettaway, rolling right and throwing a running dart to Pettaway on the sideline for a 14-yard gain. He then drops a perfect throw to Pettaway just coming out of his break behind the Tennessee safety, and Pettaway turns it up for a 46-yard gain. Hawkins scrambles twice, once for 4 yards and once for a throwaway, and then avoids a sack and sprints up the right sideline for a gain of 4. It’s the second time he’s stepped out of bounds short of the first down marker. On fourth-and-2 after the 2-minute timeout, Hawkins is pressured into an incompletion, but Tennessee’s Arion Carter is flagged for a late hit on Hawkins, giving the Sooners a first down at the 4. Hawkins’ first-down throw to Roberts is another clever, lofted toss for 2 yards. An incomplete pass to Sharp in the end zone makes it third-and-goal, and Hawkins escapes more pressure, cuts upfield and explodes to the goal line, flipping into the end zone. “This kid’s your quarterback,” says ABC’s Kirk Herbstreit. “This is your quarterback. No. 9.” Once again, however, Hawkins’ goal-line heroics are rebuked by instant replay review, and the Sooners are forced to fourth down. Arnold comes in for one play, taking the shotgun snap and handing it to Barnes, who cashes it in again with a 1-inch plunge to make it 25-15 with 1:14 to play. OU goes for 2 to try to cut it to one possession, but Hawkins is sacked on the conversion.

Schmit’s deep onside kick is covered by the Vols, and the Sooners will use all three timeouts. OU is close to getting the ball back with 58 seconds to play, but Iamaleava’s 16-yard pickup on third-and-1 ends it as Brent Venables and Josh Heupel embrace at midfield.