NORMAN — The dust has settled on Oklahoma’s 31-29 win over UCF.

It wasn’t pretty. There were moments of genuine anxiety for the Sooners, who trailed by six points entering the fourth quarter. But they did just enough to escape with a win and move to 7-0 on the season, while UCF felt to 3-4.

However, there’s a lot to analyze from the game, especially as the Sooners look ahead to potentially tough contests at Kansas and Oklahoma State in the next two weeks. Here’s a look at my grades for OU’s offensive performance against UCF:

Total yards: 442

Rushing output: 189 yards, 46 attempts, 1 TD

Passing output: 253, 25/38 attempts, 3 TDs

Turnovers: 1

Third down: 7/16

Fourth down: 1/1

Time of possession: 29:44

Here’s the thing. At face value, it was a decent day for Dillon Gabriel and the wide receivers. Gabriel completed 65.8 percent (25/38) of his passes for 253 yards and three touchdowns. Nic Anderson put on a show in his first collegiate start, finishing with five receptions for a team-high 105 yards and two touchdowns. Anderson continues to prove he can make plays — his touchdowns were on gains of 42 yards and 29 yards, respectively — and that’s huge for an offense that will be without Andrel Anthony for the remainder of the season. Drake Stoops (7 receptions, 60 yards, 1 TD) also continues to have a career-best season and caught a pivotal fourth-quarter touchdown to give the Sooners a one-point lead.

However, there were a couple of things that are a bit alarming. For one, the Sooners barely threatened the Knights down the field. The Sooners averaged just 10.1 yards per completion, their fewest in a game since SMU (9.26), another game where the passing offense was limited. Against the Knights, the Sooners had just four completed passes of 15 yards or more. UCF had five. Outside of Anderson and Jayden Gibson, who had one catch for 17 yards, no other receiver averaged more than 8.6 yards per reception.

A big reason for that missing explosiveness was the lack of touches for Jalil Farooq in the passing game. Farooq caught just three passes for 23 yards on eight targets, marking the fourth time this season Farooq had fewer than four receptions and 50 yards in the same game. Gabriel and Farooq just couldn’t get on the same page. With Anthony out, the Sooners have to find ways to get Farooq going.

All in all, there were good moments in the passing game but there were times when things felt disjoined. The biggest example — Gabriel had just 11 passing yards in the third quarter. The Sooners’ offensive line also gave up three sacks after surrendering just five through the first six weeks.

UCF does rank 33rd in passing yards allowed per game (199). But the Knights have defended just 208 pass attempts this season, the 34th fewest in the FBS. Teams haven’t had to throw the ball against the Knights because they’re so bad at defending the run. That leads to the next point…

At face value, it was another average day for the Sooners’ rushing attack. The team finished with 189 yards on 46 carries and one touchdown, averaging 4.1 yards per carry. That’s exactly how many YPC the Sooners are averaging this season.

But again, with context, that output was a bit disappointing.

UCF came into the game ranked 123rd in rushing defense, allowing 197 yards per game and 5.0 yards per carry. The Knights surrendered 399 rushing yards to Kansas in their previous outing. The stage was set for the Sooners’ rushing attack to have an explosive day. Instead the Sooners struggled out of the gate, recording just 57 yards on 19 attempts in the first half (3.0 yards per carry).

The Sooners were trending towards their worst rushing performance of the season until Gavin Sawchuk broke off a few chunk plays in the second half, including a 30-yard touchdown late in the fourth quarter. Marcus Major, who played with a hurt shoulder, finished with a season-best 82 yards on 18 carries thanks to some productive season-half runs. But without Tawee Walker, the Sooners even resorted to using Farooq and Gavin Freeman as traditional running backs early in the first half.

Did the Sooners simply struggle without Walker? Maybe. Was their increased production in the second half encouraging? Maybe. Was the absence of right guard McKade Mettauer a significant reason for the struggles? Probably. But it was ultimately discouraging to see the Sooners struggle for much of the game against one of the worst rushing defenses in the country. The Sooners' rushing offense continues to be a source of confusion and a potential weak spot moving forward.

Final takeaway: The Sooners did manage to score 31 points and record 422 yards of total offense. It's not all bad. But there were too many inconsistencies in both the rushing and passing attacks that simply have to be fixed moving forward.

Quarterback — C+

Wide receivers — C+

Running backs — C-

Offensive line — D+