Every play matters in a college football game but some do a better job of explaining the outcome than others. Here are the five plays that told the story of Oklahoma’s 52-42 victory against No. 19 Kansas.
OU 52, KU 42
Play No. 1: Welcome back, Gabriel & Wease
The very first completion allowed OU fans to breathe and realize the offense was back. Quarterback Dillon Gabriel finding wide receiver Theo Wease, and off we went.
It was just an 11-yard gain, but it showed how sharp Gabriel was after missing the last seven quarters in concussion protocol and got Wease involved in the game plan again.
“We trusted our coaches and got a lot of trust in the building and in them putting us in the best position possible,” Gabriel said. “I think we had one of our best weeks preparing in the sense of just the focus, the energy, the juice in practice.”
Gabriel completed 4 of 6 passes for 68 yards on the drive that ended with a Jovantae Barnes touchdown. No shutout today.
Play No. 2: Freeman laying it all out there
So it’s 14-14 in the opening seconds of the second quarter when freshman Gavin Freeman once again made one of the best plays of the game.
Facing a first-and-10 from the KU 47 yard line, Gabriel put it out there for Freeman, who laid out for it to make an outstanding grab.
“He’s electric. Gavin, I love his personality,” wide receiver Marvin Mims said. “I’m sitting there right next to him in the receiver room every day. Just the guy he is, I can’t tell you what we talk about but he’s just a funny dude. He’s just a kid and it’s nice to be around him. I see him going out there and having fun, he always has a great attitude.”
Championship strain? Yep, that’s what that is.
Play No. 3: Coldon did what?!?
If you’re going to have your first takeaway in the first half, might as well make it something as memorable as what cornerback C.J. Coldon did.
It’s still OU 21-14 when KU is starting to drive for the tie. Coldon leaps and bats it with one hand, bobbles it again on his way to the ground but holds onto the ball.
“It was crazy. It kind of felt like sandlot football, just playing with your friends,” Coldon said. I just jumped up, tipped it and try to get a PBU and knock it down. Then I saw I was able to reach out and grab it. It counted. I was trying to make sure it counted.”
Coldon’s second interception in as many weeks, and OU paid it off with a touchdown pass from Gabriel to Wease.
Play No. 4: White gets his INT
The DaShaun White as Cheetah drive.
OU is up 35-21 to start the third quarter, and White comes off the edge to bring the pressure and knock the pass down.
Now on third down, White drops back in coverage and has his first-career interception on a beautiful read.
“Whenever they do run the RPO they always play off of what my position does,” White said. “So I kind of faked it outside and then I jumped under it knowing that as soon as I went outside they would either go to a stick or a slant. And I kind of got lucky with the stick because I know that I have help if it were to be a slant.
“Long overdue. Long, long overdue. No, it felt good. Hope to hell I can get a lot more.”
OU cashed in again to separate on the scoreboard.
Play No. 5: Willis continues to shine
Every game, you see something from Brayden Willis. He had already made a nice impact, but he stamped his senior homecoming with a 26-yard touchdown reception to give OU a 49-28 lead late in the third quarter.
It was a nice catch, but then a great job by Willis to not go out of bounds along the sideline.
“Watching his tape and again, every time I’ve had an opportunity to brag on him, sing his praises, I have,” offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby said. “You’re just seeing a guy that’s been incredibly unselfish, has worked incredibly hard and is now creating a ton of production for himself, which to me is really fun to see.”
It is the first 100-yard receiving game in Willis’ career. He had five catches for 102 yards.
