NORMAN — In the midst of a forgettable blowout against Texas in 2022, there was a sign of things to come for Oklahoma.
Kip Lewis and Kobie McKinzie, who were both true freshmen, entered late in the fourth quarter for the first collegiate snaps of their careers. Lewis actually came away with a half-tackle for loss in that game, but it was a very small detail in what was a miserable day for the Sooners.
Fast forward two later, and both have become significant parts of OU's defense. And neither of them are gonna have to wait until garbage time to make an impact this Saturday against Texas (2:30 p.m. ABC).
This weekend will mark the third Red River Rivalry for the linebacker duo, and for McKinzie, and there's nothing quite like the atmosphere at the Cotton Bowl.
"To be honest with you, I just think it's in the dirt," McKinzie said. "Whatever happened there over these hundreds of years is just there. Like, you just hit that field, it feels like it's hard to breathe. There's nowhere to go. It's literally only one way in and only one way out, and I think that's why they still play it there.
"The spreads don't matter, how good this team or that team is going into it. That has literally never mattered if you look at it. It literally never has. So just as far as just it being 'that game,' it's the best of the best from the states, as they played it."
The game comes as both players are hitting their strides under Brent Venables.
Lewis emerged late last season and it's continued this year, starting four of the Sooners' five games while playing the 10th-most snaps on the team (168). He's fourth on the team in tackles (21), adding 1.5 tackles for loss.
He had his signature career moment against Auburn with a 63-yard pick-six — the Sooners' longest play from scrimmage on either side of the ball — that gave OU a late lead in the fourth quarter. Lewis now ranks second on the team in coverage with an 85.2 grade, per Pro Football Focus.
But McKinzie has been right there with him. He's played 152 snaps — just 13 fewer than he played all of last season — recording 13 tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack. He's played at least 21 snaps in all five games and logged a career-best PFF grade of 74.3 against the Tigers.
Lewis and McKinzie's growth has been huge, giving the Sooners consistency and production particularly with the injury to Dasan McCullough.
"They play faster, they grade at a higher winning percentage more often," Venables said of the junior duo. "They’re better at coverage. They’re better in their run fits, they’re better in their blitz angles, they take adversity better and handle it better. They take tough coaching better. So there’s not an area that they’re not better in from where they were two years ago.
"They got baptized. I remember, they got in the (Texas game in 2022), we didn’t coach well or play well at all in that game. They both got in there and did some good things. Just running every play. I remember the last couple of series — we try to have amnesia about what took place that day — but they actually got in there, both of ‘em, they made a few tackles in that game. Much different players now. What you’d expect. Just maturing, developing."
Venables also credited their growth to consistency in the system, which has been more difficult to come by as transfer portal activity continues to skyrocket. McKinzie, Lewis and Robert Spears-Jennings are all third-year players who have emerged into big-time roles for OU's defense.
"For everybody in year three, I felt like a lot of people saw Billy (Bowman) and Danny (Stutsman) last year because previously the year before they had played a lot more snaps than everybody else," McKinzie said. "But for me, Kip... RJ's another guy, we're all in year three and it's showing."
McKinzie and Lewis are going to be needed early and often against No. 1 Texas this weekend. The Longhorns are averaging 45 points per game, which ranks seventh nationally, and are 15-point favorites over the Sooners.
If McKinzie has learned anything in his first two experiences, it's that there's no way to predict what'll happen.
"I'm excited personally. I love the challenge of it," McKinzie said. "Like I said, it can't get here fast enough honestly. But it's going to be fun."
