Three Quick Takeaways From Oklahoma's Loss to South Carolina

The Gamecocks led the game 21-0 after the Sooners' first three offensive possessions as things went from bad to worse in Norman.

Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. walks off the field beside Oklahoma Sooners offensive lineman Troy Everett after a fumble that was returned for a touchdown. / BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

NORMAN — Just when you thought things couldn’t get worse, Oklahoma found a way. 

The Sooners (4-3, 1-3 SEC) were embarrassed for the second straight week, this time at the hands of South Carolina (4-3, 2-3).

Shane Beamer’s Gamecocks turned three first quarter turnovers into 21 quick points, burying OU before the game truly got underway at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on Saturday. 

It finished as a 35-9 victory for the visitors, who enjoyed the first-ever meeting between the two programs. 

Bowl eligibility is now a very real question for Brent Venables. 

Beating the Maine Black Bears will get Oklahoma to five wins in 2024, but every remaining SEC contest comes against a team currently in the AP Top 25. 

Every week brings more questions than answers, a concerning trend for the Sooners who look lost and out of their depth in their first year in the Southeastern Conference. 

QB Change Necessary, But Does it Matter?

Michael Hawkins Jr. entered this week with pressure on his shoulders. 

Through 10 quarters of football, he had only accounted for one turnover (a fumble), but he hadn’t taken the risks required to move the offense down the field, much less throw an interception. 

The first three drives of the game went about as poorly as anyone could have imagined. 

He threw a pick on the first play of the game, and then followed it up with a fumble that was returned for a touchdown and a pick six. 

Just as was the case against Tennessee, a change had to be made. 

But Jackson Arnold’s return, just as Hawkins’ arrival, didn’t guarantee any better results. 

Oklahoma’s offensive line was completely overmatched by the Gamecocks’ defensive front. 

Bill Bedenbaugh was forced to tinker once again with his offensive line, first by replacing Heath Ozaeta at left guard with Jacob Sexton and returning Michael Tarquin to the lineup, and then eventually turning to Spencer Brown in favor of right tackle Jake Taylor — all in the first half. 

The Gamecocks finished the first half with five sacks, which tied OU’s worst performance of the season (Texas finished last week’s drubbing with five sacks).

Oklahoma’s lone bright spot in the first half was true freshman walk-on Jacob Jordan, who had three catches for 42 yards on the Sooners’ first half scoring drive. 

Arnold did connect with Brenen Thompson for a 54-yard touchdown in the third quarter, but that was the last bright spot for the offense. 

Running back Jovantae Barnes committed OU’s fourth turnover of the game when he fumbled on Oklahoma’s own 21-yard line in the fourth quarter, and the offensive line finished the game having surrendered nine sacks. 

Arnold finished 18-of-36, passing for 225 yards and a touchdown. Hawkins ended just 3-of-5 for 18 yards and two interceptions. 

At Least the Defense Fought?

No matter how well they played, the Sooner defense was going to be on the losing side on Saturday. 

Considering the circumstances, the defense did all it could without actually forcing a turnover. 

South Carolina’s first touchdown came after Hawkins gifted the Gamecocks a short field. 

The defense didn’t see the field again until OU was down 21-0.

When the Sooners’ fake punt failed on Oklahoma’s own 21-yard line, South Carolina gained just four yards and was forced to kick a field goal. 

With the game well out of reach in the second half, the Gamecocks had to punt on the first four drives before Barnes’ fumble set up the visitors for another field goal. 

Oklahoma dragged down quarterback LaNorris Sellers for six of its own sacks and held the Gamecocks to 254 total yards of offense, though there is no silver lining in a team performance as bad as Saturday’s.

Seat Warmers On

Oklahoma’s offensive staff has already been under fire for the historically bad first half of the season. 

But things spiraled so quickly in the first quarter that the entire operation at least deserves a review, even if brief. 

The defense was fine considering the impossible hole it was put in after the first three offensive series, but even that side of the ball wasn’t without its warts. 

R Mason Thomas jumped offside on fourth-and-5 in a spot where the Gamecocks were obviously just trying to draw a flag, something an undisciplined football team does. Four plays later, South Carolina extended the lead to 32-3. 

A dysfunctional defensive substitution cost OU a timeout in the third quarter, and while insignificant to Saturday’s result, it fits into the pattern of game management issues under Venables. 

Just last week, the Sooners were still getting play calls from the sideline as Texas snapped the football, Robert Spears-Jennings had to run onto the field late due to a missed substitution that led to a Longhorn touchdown and Venables’ slow decision to kick a field goal on the first drive of the game led to Tyler Keltner rushing his routine and shanking the attempt. 

At the end of September, Oklahoma needed an Auburn meltdown to notch its lone SEC win. 

The OU sideline has never felt calm in the Venables Era, even when the Sooners have rolled. 

Venables likely will get a fourth year to get his program on track, but anytime the record books are getting dusted off at halftime to research the worst home losses in program history, one week after fielding an uncompetitive team against Texas, all questions surrounding the future of Oklahoma football are fair.