NORMAN — Jackson Arnold hit a low point in September.

The former five-star quarterback was benched against Tennessee following three first-half turnovers, as the Sooners turned to Michael Hawkins. The coaching staff remained committed to Hawkins after that game, as the true freshman started the next three games.

Arnold sensed the trend, as OU coach Brent Venables reiterated his confidence in Michael Hawkins during Tuesday's press conference. Arnold and Venables even had a conversation about a potential redshirt, as the true sophomore had only appeared in four games and was interested in potentially preserving an extra year of eligibility.

But Arnold also left the door open — if the Sooners needed him, he'd be there.

That opportunity came on Saturday against South Carolina. Michael Hawkins was disastrous to start the game, turning the ball over three times on the first nine plays of the game. Two of those turnovers were returned for touchdowns, which gave South Carolina a 21-0 lead at the 9:27 mark of the first quarter.

So the decision was made — Arnold was thrust back into action for the first time in a month, eliminating the chance of a redshirt. But Arnold was ready.

"I knew that I'd prepared the same way the past couple weeks," Arnold said. "I knew God was going to provide time for me to step up and be there for my team and I was today."

It wasn't the perfect return for Arnold — that was very unlikely, given the offensive struggles all season and that the Sooners were down multiple touchdowns — but there were important flashes in there.

Arnold completed 18 of 36 passes for 225 yards, marking the first time an OU quarterback has thrown for 200 yards this season. More importantly, there was some semblance of an explosive passing attack. Arnold completed seven passes of 15 yards or more after Hawkins had completed just six such passes combined against Texas and Auburn. One of those explosive plays was a 54-yard touchdown to Brenen Thompson, which was the second-longest offensive play of the season and the first touchdown reception by a receiver since Week 2.

Arnold averaged 12.5 yards per completion, a huge improvement over the 9.5 YPC the Sooners averaged over the first six weeks. That was particularly impressive given he was sacked eight times and rarely had time to throw, and he finished the game without a turnover.

It was an encouraging return for Arnold, who acknowledged that the last few weeks had been difficult.

"It was probably the hardest few weeks of my life," Arnold said. "A lot of soul searching, a lot of diving into what I really care about, what I really care for. I leaned heavily on my relationships: family, friends, God and all the above. Like I said, it was the hardest couple weeks of my life but it's character building, that's what I see it as. I trust the plan that God has for me, just going out there preparing the same way."

"In a way, (the last few weeks) allowed me to step back and see the game in a different lens, for sure. But it was good being back out there, I was comfortable being back out there."

Arnold's return provided some glimpse of life in an offense that has struggled all season, and things aren't going to get easier. Now, the Sooners again face the question who starts at quarterback moving forward.

Both Arnold and Hawkins have had significant ups and downs at quarterback, but they've both shown the limitations of the offense around them. The offensive line surrendered a program-high nine sacks and 13 tackles for loss against the Gamecocks, and the Sooners have surrendered 15 sacks over the last two weeks. The Sooners rank 93rd in scoring offense (22.1 points per game) and 125th in total offense (288.1 yards per game), and they've only scored 47 points on offense in four conference games.

Arnold also said the pressures of being Oklahoma's starting quarterback were difficult to overcome early in the year.

"Just how it is playing at this university — a lot of high expectations, maybe even unrealistic expectations put on me, and it really did weigh me down," Venables said. "But at the same time, I don’t want to use that as an excuse. I honestly am grateful for being able to step back and kind of see things through a different lens now."

Now it's back to the drawing board for an OU team that is 4-3 and 1-3 in conference play. They will be a significant underdog for next week's game at Ole Miss. It's been a carousel for the Sooners at quarterback, and Venables was non-committal about who would be the starter moving forward.

Arnold certainly threw his hat back in the ring, particularly with the possibility of a redshirt off the table. And if he is the starter moving forward, he's confident he's learned from the struggles this season.

"Just playing free still," Arnold said. "Again, you've got nothing else to lose. We’re 4-3 now, just lost two big games. Got nothing to lose, just go out and give our all these next couple of weeks. Great test this week. Nothing better than us going on the road and getting a win."

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