When Oklahoma took a 28-0 lead against Oklahoma State in the first quarter Saturday night, OU fans had visions of an all-time beatdown dancing in their heads.

The Sooners, of course, never scored again in a 28-13 victory. Everybody is happy about the win, happy about getting the sixth victory to be bowl eligible, but then you start wondering what in the world happened offensively in the final three quarters.

Breaking it down even more, the second half is something nobody ever wants to watch again. One mistake after another, and offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby said it starts with him.

“After those first two series, the rest of it is on me getting too conservative,” Lebby said. “Everybody wants to point the fingers, it’s me being too conservative. I mean, 16 of the last 18 plays, we run the football. You know, the first quarter, we scored a bunch of points because we were able to throw the football and make some plays.

“Should have stuck to that a little more and stayed aggressive, instead of what we did. I think we would have had a little different outcome. Thankfully, defensively, we were lights out. Our crowd was unbelievable and we were able to get it done.”

That’s understandable, but there was another problem. If you’re conservative, the least the offense could do was run some time.

That didn’t happen, either. OU had zero drives last more than two minutes in the second half, routinely putting a tired defense out there time after time.

Like Lebby said, though, the defense was up to the challenge.

“That should really show up in the last three to four series of the game,” Lebby said. “Those last four series of the fourth quarter, that's when you have the ability to truly shorten the game.”

Drops an issue

You can pinpoint multiple reasons for what happened offensively in the final three quarters, but you have to include the drops as a reason.

The Sooners have had some very strange drops in recent weeks. It had been Marvin Mims dropping some gimmes, but this time around, it was Jalil Farooq not being able to corral some very catchable balls.

“The drops from that standpoint – had five drops on the day,” Lebby said. “All at critical times because you're just trying not to waste a play but we did make some plays and we played really good early on and that's what ultimately gave us the chance to win.

“He'll (Farooq) be able to bounce back because he's had production. He knows what he's capable of. I think he know he left some big yards out there. Two of the touch drops, those were actually had the ability to be really big plays and then obviously the scramble on third down, Dillon makes an unbelievable play for us there. We've got to make that play.”

Third down woes

Another stat to circle is third down conversions. For the second straight game, the Sooners were dreadful on that pivotal down. OU was 1-for-14 against OSU.

Maybe even more disturbing is that there wasn’t one thing to emphasize because there were errors at different points of time by all involved.

“It was a different position game and a different person in every single scenario,” Lebby said. “I think that's maybe the most frustrating part.

“Whether it was some version of mesh or QB draw and we fall down or we give up a pressure when we've got a guy wide open or we don't throw and catch when we've got two guys wide open. We squeeze the ball and don't let it go when we're supposed to. I think that's the most frustrating thing is that it was somebody different every single time.

Coldon on a roll

When you think about to OU giving up all those points earlier in the conference season, you start wondering how that would have been different with C.J. Coldon at cornerback.

He was sensational once again vs. OSU, with an interception and three pass breakups.

“He was a guy, who got here, didn't have the role that he wanted to have,” defensive coordinator Ted Roof said. “Instead of pouting about it and making excuses for whatever, he just kept working.

“As a result of that, he's earned more opportunities and he's taken advantage of his opportunities. That's a really good example for the younger players of how it's supposed to look. He's made some big plays for us and he needs to make some more.”

Coldon was name the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week for his performance.

Getting ready for Tech

You have to prepare for a lot with Texas Tech because the Red Raiders have had a lot of different looks at quarterback throughout the season.

And then when you compare Tech in Lubbock compared to on the road, and it’s been a completely different story.

“That’s a good question. Here’s how it works,” Roof said. “We look at all of it and we prepare for all of it. Because you want to make sure you’re doing your due diligence and have answers for problems or situations as they unfold. We’re gonna look at all of it and have a plan for all of it.

“I think they’re 5-1 at home and they’ve scored at least 33 points in every home game. They’ve got a certain comfort level playing at home. It’s a challenge because they spread it all over the lot, throw it all over the lot, and they’ve got a solid running game that creates explosive plays.”