Oklahoma Cruises To 3-0 Despite Early Miscues
Boone Tillman // Sooner Born • Published: September 14th, 2031
There were a few more bumps along the way than expected, but in the end, the Oklahoma Sooners dispatched the South Carolina Gamecocks with relative ease in their SEC opener for the 2031 season. Despite only building a 21-10 halftime lead, with both Gamecock scores coming off Markelle Nickey interceptions, the Sooners buckled down in the second half, outscoring South Carolina 23-0 to close out the game.
Early on, it was the Isaac Adcock show as the running back scored two rushing touchdowns, then secured his third touchdown on an electric punt return to give Oklahoma a 21-7 lead. Attempting to drive for last-minute points, Nickey threw his second interception of the contest at midfield. South Carolina was unable to turn the mistake into more than a field goal in what would be their final scoring opportunity.
The injury to kicker Ty Dexter reared it's head early in the game as well, adding to the Sooners' first half miscues. A 35-yard field goal attempt in the first quarter went awry, forcing Nickey to throw a desperation ball on fourth-and-seven early in the second quarter, leading to his first interception and eventually, the Gamecocks' only touchdown in the contest.
In the end, Oklahoma's defense snuffed out any hope on the Gamecocks sideline, sacking quarterback Titus Fair eight times and holding the Gamecocks offense to a meager 201 yards in the contest by the time of the final whistle.
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Question One - James McDavid (OU Daily): "Coach Leon, you said pre-game that while Marvin Honeycutt had kicking experience, you'd likely eschew any kicking opportunities unless they were necessary. Then, you went out and had him kick six extra points and attempt a field goal. Was the pregame talk more to keep the Gamecocks guessing, or were you unsure yourself how Honeycutt would do kicking in a live game?"
Armando Leon: "A little of both, James. Marvin hit some kicks in practice on Friday, but nothing definitive. I told him we'd give him a chance on PATs and field goals, if needed, before we completely nixed them from the game plan. The PATs weren't impressive, but they went through the uprights and that's all that matters. The field goal? Eh, different story and that's why you saw us not attempt another one. I wish we could have that interception stricken from Nick's stat line; it was more of an arm punt than anything. We aren't the only team to suffer an unfortunate injury and we won't be the last, you adjust and carry on."
Question Two - Meg Semental (SEC Network): "Dillon Slye has struggled running between the tackles as a primary back this season and in this contest we saw him line up in the slot a majority of the time. Is that a game-by-game adjustment, or should we expect to see more Isaac Adcock and Tyler Ryder in the backfield, with Dillon out wide?"
Armando Leon: "Part of what made Dill so explosive last year, when healthy, was his ability to do both at a high level. I think having him solely be a running back is underselling his value. We tried it, it didn't work. Good teams don't bash their head into a wall when something doesn't work, you adjust and keep moving. I'd expect to see a lot more Tyler Ryder and Isaac Adcock in the backfield, with Dill filling in a variety of ways, going forward."
Question Three - Lester Uphill (The Daily Gamecock): "Your defense has been smothering quarterbacks to start the season, already racking up 18 sacks in just three games. Who do you attribute that success to and more importantly, is it sustainable?"
Armando Leon: "Cole Leo, without a doubt. He's the one who gets everything moving. He can handle a double team with the best of them and still split it to push the pocket. Once he starts getting into the backfield, the quarterback gets jumpy, the line starts to wiggle, and everyone is firing through. He is hands down the biggest key to our pass rush."
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I said last week I'd be happy if the offense met us in the middle, which is exactly what they did this week. Sans the interceptions, and Dillon's sudden inability to run the ball, I'm more than happy with what we put on paper.
The defense continues to suffocate, and occasionally give up the big play, while the offense and special teams are getting enough done to give them a comfortable lead. Like I said, if Nick can stop this sudden desire to throw interceptions, we're more than golden. I will say, the last two weeks haven't been against the stoutest opponents, but you can only play who they put in front of you.
Next week against Oregon will tell us just how talented this team really is. If we can keep the momentum going and generate another blowout victory, the gravy train will roll right back to Atlanta, Georgia.
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final |
| South Carolina | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Oklahoma | 14 | 7 | 7 | 16 | 44 |
| Q | Team | Time | Play | South Carolina | Oklahoma |
| 1st | Oklahoma | 5:24 | Isaac Adcock, 7 Yd Run | 0 | 7 |
| 1st | South Carolina | 1:05 | Titus Fair, 3 Yd Run | 7 | 7 |
| 1st | Oklahoma | 0:51 | Isaac Adcock, 81 Yd Run | 7 | 14 |
| 2nd | Oklahoma | 8:08 | Isaac Adcock, Returned Punt 85 Yds | 7 | 21 |
| 2nd | South Carolina | 0:10 | Greg Gibbs, 43 Yd FG | 10 | 21 |
| 3rd | Oklahoma | 1:04 | JaMichael Buggs, 7 Yd Pass From Markelle Nickey | 10 | 28 |
| 4th | Oklahoma | 9:56 | Safety | 10 | 30 |
| 4th | Oklahoma | 6:23 | Jesse Velasquez, 8 Yd Pass From Markelle NIckey | 10 | 37 |
| 4th | Oklahoma | 0:53 | Tyler Ryder, 1 Yd Run | 10 | 44 |
South Carolina Oklahoma Passing | Stats Passing | Stats ----------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------ Titus Fair | 10/16, 151 Yds Markelle Nickey | 28/36, 266 Yds, 2 TD, 2 INT Bernard Marvin | 4/5, 59 Yds Rushing | Stats Rushing | Stats ----------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------ Titus Nunn | 13 Att, 22 Yds Tyler Ryder | 10 Att, 54 Yds, TD Titus Fair | 10 Att, -48 Yds, TD Isaac Adcock | 5 Att, 102 Yds, 2 TD Receiving | Stats Receiving | Stats ----------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------ Fredrick Landry | 7 Rec, 140 Yds Dillon Slye | 9 Rec, 83 Yds Willie Chubb | 1 Rec, 10 Yds Dillon Booker | 6 Rec, 72 Yds Matthew Slaughter | 4 Rec, 46 Yds JaMichael Buggs | 5 Rec, 25 Yds, TD Defensive | Stats Defensive | Stats ----------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------ FS Roland Blount | 7 Tkl, TFL, INT MLB Jason Pilgrim | 5 Tkl, 3 TFL, 1.5 Sacks MLB Frank Fournette | 10 Tkl, 2 TFL, Sack INT DT Cole Leo | 4 Tkl, 3 TFL, 2 Sacks DT Cam Godwin | Tkl, TFL, Sack DT Dom Ivory | 5 Tkl, 4 TFL, Sack
SEC Week Three Results
41 #6 Georgia (2-1) @ #19 Miami (1-2) 30
31 North Texas (1-1) @ #23 Missouri (3-0) 59
17 UTEP (0-2) @ #3 Texas (3-0) 38
6 Eastern Michigan (1-2) @ Ole Miss (3-0) 48
10 Northern Illinois (0-2) @ #4 Tennessee (3-0) 59
21 Mississippi State (1-2) @ LSU (3-0) 52
10 FCS @ Kentucky (2-1) 35
56 #10 Arizona State (2-0) @ Florida (2-1) 21
24 #7 Texas Tech (2-0) @ Arkansas (1-1) 17
16 Texas A&M (1-2) @ Baylor (3-0) 23
56 #15 Alabama (3-0) @ Boston College (2-1) 34
21 Kent State (0-2) @ Vanderbilt (1-2) 28
10 FCS @ #8 Auburn (3-0) 55