For the second consecutive week, the Sooners can trace their loss to two main areas.
Turnovers and penalties.
They were the primary culprits in the loss to Kansas last weekend, and they were again huge issues in the 27-24 defeat on Saturday night at Oklahoma State.
But there were plenty of other things that told the story for the Sooners. Here's a look at the numbers behind the Sooners' loss to Oklahoma State:
3
The number of turnovers the Sooners committed against Oklahoma State, marking the second straight games the Sooners coughed the ball up three times. The first one came on an odd snap that was bobbled by Jovantae Barnes; the second came when Dillon Gabriel threw downfield into double coverage; and the third one came in the fourth quarter on another fumbled snap. The turnovers were particularly a killer for the Sooners — all 10 of the Cowboys' second-half points came off of OU giveaways.
The Sooners had five total turnovers the first seven games. They've now had six in the past two games.
8
The Sooners committed eight penalties for 55 yards against the Cowboys. OSU, meanwhile, were whistled just four times for 29 yards. Three of those penalties came on false starts that were committed by the wide receiver group. The toughest sequence came in the fourth quarter. Makari Vickers was flagged for a questionable pass interference, then Brent Venables was assessed an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for arguing the call. The back-to-back penalties cost the Sooners 30 yards.
The Sooners are dead last in the Big 12 in penalties per game (7.1) and penalty yards per game (59.2).
134
One positive — Drake Stoops had his best day as a Sooner, setting career highs in receptions (12), yards (134) and targets (15). All three stats also led the Sooners receiving corps. He also added a six-yard touchdown in the first half. Coming into Saturday, Stoops had never caught more than eight passes or had more 93 yards in a single game.
4.2
Oklahoma State running back Ollie Gordon came into Saturday averaging over eight yards per carry in conference play. Gordon finished with 132 yards and a touchdown on 33 carries, and his 4.2 yards per carry was by far his lowest against a Big 12 opponent. Gordon did have three carries of 10 yards or more, including a 35-yard tote in the third quarter, but the Sooners largely exceeded at limiting Gordon's explosiveness.
334
Despite the Sooners having some success against Gordon, the Cowboys were still able to move the ball in the passing game. OSU quarterback Alan Bowman, who came into the game averaging fewer than 200 yards a game, finished with 334 yards. That's just two yards away from tying his career high. Most of his damage came in the first quarter, when he threw for 127 yards while completing 12-of-14 attempts.
Bowman also added a 13-yard rushing touchdown.
5.5
The Sooners had their most efficient rushing performance of the season, running for 148 yards on 27 carries (5.5 yards per carry). Gavin Sawchuk made his third career start and finished with 111 yards on 13 carries (8.5 yards per carry), including a 64-yard rushing touchdown. Tawee Walker also had a productive day, rushing for 59 yards and a touchdown on 7.4 yards per carry.
7.7
Despite the turnovers, the OU offense had periods where it moved the ball. The Sooners averaged 7.7 yards per play compared to 5.9 for Oklahoma State. The problem, however, is that the Sooners had a time of possession of just 22 minutes and 46 seconds, which is by far their lowest mark of the season. The Cowboys possessed the ball for 37:14 of game time and ran 81 plays to OU's 64.
The OU offense finished with 492 total yards compared to 480 for OSU.
0
The number of sacks for the OU defense, marking just the second time this season the Sooners haven't had at least one. The other occurrence? Last week against Kansas.
The Sooners also had just three tackles for loss, which tied a season low. The other time the Sooners finished with three TFLs? Last week against Kansas.
