2023 Regular Season Recap

The season had to end at some point, and we have reached that point. Our only game left is the bowl game. With the sadness that comes with the end of the season, I also feel a sense of pride and joy for how this season played out. A night and day difference from the team that showed up in 2022. A new spark in the Sooner defense that we haven't seen in over a decade. And hope for next season as we leave the Big 12 and head to the SEC. Let's take this year and break it down into four three-game sections. We'll discuss what went well, what didn't, breakout players, and more. So that you know, this is going to be a longer post than usual.

Games 1-3 (Non-Conference)

The opening section of the season was by far the easiest for OU. Despite struggling against SMU, we made it look easy against our three non-conference opponents and clearly stated that we had improved since last season.

Offensive MVP: Dillon Gabriel

Defensive MVP: Danny Stutsman

Breakout Player: Andrel Anthony/Nic Anderson

Arkansas State (76-0 OU)

The season opener against the Red Wolves somehow exceeded expectations. When going up against a team like Arkansas State, especially when led by Butch Jones, it's not too much to expect that it'll end in a blowout. That said, no one was prepared for the 76-0 throttling we sent them. We saw signs of what would be a great group of receivers and elevated QB play. Dillon Gabriel had taken strides since last season. The defense also looked very different than they did at any point last year. They were fast, physical, tough, and relentless for all 60 minutes. Oh, and we got a glimpse of what Jackson Arnold will look like next year. That was fun.

Going up against an easy opponent in the season opener, we all knew we wouldn't see our team's best look, and Brent Venables wouldn't open the entire playbook. That said, the run game took a noticeable step back from last year. Our best runner of the day had 49 total yards. This was a preview of some struggles we would have offensively throughout the year. On top of this, despite having a dominant defensive line, we could not hit the QB. If memory serves me right, we only sacked them once, and that was from Ethan Downs in the fourth quarter. The pass rush wouldn't have too many great games in 2023.

SMU (28-11 OU)

Looking back, this game was far more important than it seemed at the time. SMU ended the season with a top-10 scoring offense, and we held them to 11 points. Tawee Walker had a breakout game, running 21 times for 117 yards. Marcus Major helped the offense. Peyton Bowen introduced himself to the defense and special teams as a playmaker. A lot went well in this game. But our refusal to let SMU find consistent success helped us win this game. They couldn't run the ball well (except for the one long run that ended in a fumble recovered by OU), and we shut down passing windows all game. OU's defense passed their first test of the season.

The offense showed signs of what would be an inconsistent unit throughout the season. After scoring 76 against Arkansas State the week before, we entered the fourth quarter with only 14 points. Granted, SMU ended up having an excellent defense this year. But for the second week in a row, while our running game gained a ton of yards, there was no type of consistent success. We would be stuffed for a yard gained or less on four runs in a row, then have an 11-yard run. The inconsistency on the ground put OU in predictable playcalling scenarios. On top of all this, we had more issues getting to the QB.

Tulsa (66-17 OU)

This game was the most fun to watch in the opening series of games. Our offense played lights out almost the entire game. Starting the game with an interception by Gentry Williams and a deep shot to Andrel Anthony was certainly fun. The defense intercepted five passes, including a Danny Stutsman pick-six. The run game had their best game of the season, allowing only 1.6 yards per rush. After Tulsa's opening drive of the second half, we held them to nine yards the rest of the game. Our team showed they were a force to be reckoned with and serious Big 12/playoff contenders. The best part of this game was how Nic Anderson introduced himself to Sooner Nation, catching three passes for 120 yards and three touchdowns.

Our run game issues persisted in this game. Of the five players who ran the ball throughout the game, only one player (Tawee Walker) eclipsed 25 yards. We did a little better in our pursuit of the QB but had blown coverages for a lot of the second quarter/early third quarter. Those lapses in coverage gave up two wide-open touchdowns and were a preview of some weaknesses other teams would exploit throughout the season. Finally, our third down defense began to show some weakness, with the Golden Hurricanes converting almost 50% of their third downs. This certainly wasn't the best defensive showing, regardless of how fun it was to watch.

Record in this stretch: 3-0.

Overall record: 3-0.

Games 4-6

The Oklahoma defense in this stretch did the exact opposite of what they did in 2022. It was the start of conference play last year when our defense began to show they weren't as good as they looked in non-conference play. This year? Our defense dominated these three games to start conference play, which was why we won two. One last thing that might excite you is that the win over Texas will (very likely) keep Texas out of the College Football Playoff.

Offensive MVP: Dillon Gabriel

Defensive MVP: Danny Stutsman

Breakout Player: Gentry Williams

Cincinnati (20-6 OU)

How about that Oklahoma defense? Going up against a top-10 rushing offense in college football, we held them to less than 100 yards by the time the fourth quarter started. They only eclipsed 100 yards because of some garbage-time scrambles by Emory Jones. The Sooners held Cincinnati to 3-15 on third down and 1-4 on fourth down. Considering third down defense was the bane of our existence last season, this game showed us that entering conference play, we would stand strong against opposing offenses on third down.

As well as the defense played, the offense somewhat faultered. We could not run the ball against them. Of the season's first four games, all four showed issues with the ground attack. Dillon Gabriel was on point through the air the entire game, but we couldn't find any type of offensive rhythm to put the Bearcats away at any point. Our struggles to get to the QB continued in this game. There were multiple instances where what should've been a major tackle for loss turned into a significant gain. These mistakes would cost us later in the season, but thankfully, not in the conference opener.

Iowa State (50-20 OU)

Almost every issue with our offense vanished in this game against Iowa State. We scored 50 points against a team that ended up having one of the best defenses in the Big 12. Dillon Gabriel decided to put his name in the conversation, throwing bomb after bomb against the Cyclones. Nic Anderson continued to dominate. The offensive line had begun to come to life. The offense we saw in this game was a preview of how explosive our offense could be for the rest of the season. Finally, the defense pitched a second-half shutout against a good offense. This is no easy task against any team. This game was the first of three sets of back-to-back games with an interception for Billy Bowman.

While looking slightly better, the run game still hadn't yet found any rhythm. This created some challenging situations for us, but nothing we couldn't escape. Our defense also showed something in this game that would become a pattern for the rest of the year. For a few quarters, they would play at an elite level. But for random periods of the game, they would completely collapse. After opening the game with a pick-six, we suddenly couldn't stop their air attack and big plays on the ground. This eventually got remedied in the second half but was a preview of woes to come for our defense.

Texas (34-30 OU)

The Red River Rivalry in 2023 was the game of the year. OU forced an opening drive interception against a Heisman-caliber QB (thank you, Gentry Williams), we shut down their run game for most of the game, our pass rush sacked Quinn Ewers five times, our run game finally found a rhythm, and so much more happened. But when it mattered the most, our team did in this game what they couldn't last year throughout the season: step up in the crucial scenarios. Texas, down seven, has it first and goal at the one in the fourth quarter? Goal line stand. Texas takes a 30-27 lead with 1:17 to go, and OU has no timeouts? Game winning touchdown drive led by Dillon Gabriel, capped off by Nic Anderson. After a 49-0 humiliation last year, Oklahoma redeemed themselves, put Dillon Gabriel in the Heisman race, and (potentially) kept Texas out of the College Football Playoff. What a game.

As great as the team played against Texas, there were some glaring issues, too. After starting 5-9 for 13 yards and two interceptions, we suddenly couldn't stop Quinn Ewers. He completed 26 of his next 28 passes for 333 yards and a touchdown. Our running defense somewhat collapsed after the goal-line stand. Those missed coverages I discussed in the Tulsa recap became a significant factor for Texas' offense throughout the game. The offense couldn't find consistency, either. They were either driving down the field or couldn't gain a yard. There was no middle ground. Finally, we didn't know it then, but a blocked punt (recovered by Texas for a touchdown) and a missed field goal (that would've given us a 30-20 lead) foreshadowed special teams issues for OU the rest of the season.

Record in this stretch: 3-0.

Overall record: 6-0.

Games 7-9

This was, without a doubt, the worst three-game stretch of the season for Oklahoma. Two losses against teams we should've beaten soundly, foolish mistakes, questionable playcalling, and an inability to put the game away made OU fans worry that after starting 7-0, we might finish the season 7-5.

Offensive MVP: Dillon Gabriel/Tawee Walker

Defensive MVP: Billy Bowman/Ethan Downs

Breakout Player: Kip Lewis

UCF (31-29 OU)

The first-quarter defense in this game was a UNIT. One first down was allowed on the last play of the quarter, and that was it. Our third-down defense dominated this close game, allowing only four conversions on 16 attempts. Dillon Gabriel had a solid game, and Nic Anderson kept his name in the running for freshman of the year, catching five passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns. Finally, Brent Venables' ability to adjust in the second half prevailed again. After an abysmal second quarter, we didn't allow a touchdown until UCF's final drive of the game.

Momentum is a huge factor in sports, and it showed up big here. Two weeks prior, we got a goal-line stand against Texas. It looked like we might get another against UCF when we stuffed them on third and goal at the one. But an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty from Jaren Kanak gave UCF momentum we couldn't get ahold of. We suddenly couldn't stop their rushing attack (after shutting it down in the first quarter) and were blowing coverages left and right. On top of this, our special teams were abysmal. Two missed field goals put OU in a tough situation. Special Teams would not improve as the season went on.

Kansas (38-33 Kansas)

Our running offense was on top of it. Even though we lost this game, we were running the ball all over the Jayhawks. Also, despite how this game ended, we had a dominant third-down defense. Something that almost no one was able to do this season was convert on third down against our defense. Billy Bowman started his fantastic second half of the season by getting a fourth-quarter interception. Finally, when Danny Stutsman went down, Kip Lewis stepped in big time. He helped our defense despite it not being enough to get the win.

Our defense had a total collapse in this game. On top of that, the playcalling was... awful. Dillon Gabriel threw a pick-six on the game's first drive, but he was still a Heisman-caliber QB. Despite this, for whatever reason, Jeff Lebby did not trust Gabriel to throw the ball. This made our offense one-dimensional and kept us from scoring/converting when we needed to the most. Finally, our defense's inability to get a fourth down stop ended up costing us the game.

Oklahoma State (27-24 OSU)

Gavin Sawchuk had his breakout game against OSU. He ran the ball all over the Cowboys, fully healthy from injury. Dillon Gabriel's air attack was on it. Drake Stoops had a phenomenal game. And the defense played phenomenally. Except for one run, the OU defense mostly shut down Ollie Gordon. We shut him down on multiple fourth and short attempts, and the Cowboy offense had incredible difficulty on third and fourth down. On top of all this, Billy Bowman got an interception in his second game in a row. This concluded the second set of back-to-back games with an interception by Billy Bowman. Kip Lewis had a phenomenal game with 15 tackles, doing his best to fill in for an injured Stutsman.

There was more incredibly questionable playcalling in this game. When Gavin Sawchuk got hot, he was replaced with Tawee Walker. On the most crucial fourth down attempt of the season (five yards to go), an incomplete three-yard out route was called. The offense refused to run plays vertically down the field instead of horizontally across the field. You'd think with three turnovers on downs and an interception, our offense could find some sense of rhythm. The playcalling made sure they couldn't. Beyond this, we also kept messing up snaps, and the wide receivers couldn't catch passes dropped right in their chest. Did I mention we missed a field goal that made a big difference in the game (we lost by three)? And don't get me started on continuing with soft zone coverage.

Record in this stretch: 1-2.

Overall record: 7-2.

Games 10-12

The offense looked like they did early in the year in the final three games. They dominated and imposed their will on defenses. The defense looked... good enough. Considering how the last two games had gone, this was a much-needed sigh of relief to end the season.

Offensive MVP: Dillon Gabriel/Drake Stoops

Defensive MVP: Billy Bowman

Breakout Player: Gavin Sawchuk

West Virginia (59-20 OU)

Who thought that one person would be responsible for eight touchdowns coming into this game? Dillon Gabriel threw five touchdown passes, three to Drake Stoops, and ran for three touchdowns. Drake Stoops was an unstoppable force against the Mountaineer defense. Our secondary (for the most part) shut down the passing game. On top of all this, the Oklahoma defense forced their second goal-line stand of the season. This game was a masterpiece, offensively and defensively. After their first drive of the second half, West Virginia could not move the ball, just like in the Tulsa game.

Dillon Gabriel didn't get off to the hottest start. He hit receivers in the chest in stride or missed them by 20 yards. Our defense could not stop them for a good chunk of the second quarter and the first drive of the third quarter. The Mountaineers found something in our secondary that made them want to take deep shot after deep shot, several of which were successful until we adjusted. There isn't too much to complain about this game.

BYU (31-24 OU)

How many 100-yard pick sixes have you seen in your time? Because Billy Bowman decided he wanted one for himself. Jayden Gibson caught a bomb downfield that almost went for six. We continued our streak of shutting down teams on third down. Gavin Sawchuk tore the Cougar defense a new one. On top of all this, the defense had a phenomenal second half. After allowing 17 first-half points, they only allowed seven second-half points. That's what went well.

The rushing defense had a complete breakdown, allowing over 200 yards and 5.7 yards per rush. There was nothing our defense could do to stop the BYU run game. This issue nearly cost us the game against a team we should've blown out (we were 24.5-point favorites). Our pass coverage was quite soft, like they were for much of the season, allowing their backup to torch our secondary. The pick-six was the play that bailed out our defense. The playcalling was very suspect in this game, too. First and goal from within the five, averaging over five yards per run with our running backs, and not one handoff to a running back? Don't forget, another missed kick in this game.

TCU (69-45 OU)

I've never seen the OU offense look so unstoppable against a power-five opponent. Dillon Gabriel was responsible for 436 yards and four touchdowns. Gavin Sawchuk ran wild and scored three touchdowns. It was bombs away in the first quarter through the air. The first-half defense was phenomenal. And what better way to enjoy senior day than to watch Drake Stoops have one of the best games of his career? Finally, Billy Bowman got a pick-six for the second game in a row, capping off the three sets of back-to-back games with an interception for him.

I can't explain why, but our defense was non-existent in the second half. We forced a turnover on downs and got a pick-six. After allowing over 200 yards of offense and 22 points in the third quarter, that is. The issues we are constantly facing against the short/mid-range pass game turning into big plays is something we must address before our bowl game if we want to finish the season with a decisive win.

Record in this stretch: 3-0.

Overall record: 10-2.

Key Players of the Season:

• Dillon Gabriel: 266-384, 3,660 yards, 69.3% completions, 30 touchdowns, six interceptions. 93 rushes, 373 yards, four yards per rush, 12 touchdowns.

• Drake Stoops: 78 catches, 880 yards, 11.3 yards per catch 10 touchdowns.

• Nic Anderson: 31 catches, 725 yards, 23.4 yards per catch, nine touchdowns.

• Gavin Sawchuk: 105 rushes, 610 yards, 5.8 yards per rush, eight touchdowns.

• Tawee Walker: 95 rushes, 496 yards, 5.2 yards per rush, seven touchdowns.

• Danny Stutsman: 99 tackles, 47 solo, three sacks, two pass deflections, one interception (returned for a TD), two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery.

• Billy Bowman: 61 tackles, four pass deflections, six interceptions, gaining 238 yards and scoring three touchdowns.

This was a fun season. The Sooners far exceeded everyone's expectations and gave Sooner Nation a level of fun we haven't had in a while. Going to the SEC next year, OU's future has never looked brighter. I'm looking forward to the bowl game, next season, and the next time we win the national championship. Boomer Sooner!

All stats above courtesy of ESPN.