Oklahoma straight up took the soul out of No. 24 Florida on Saturday night, gutting them with a ridiculous 20-play, 89-yard drive that clocked in at a mind-bending 12 minutes and 45 seconds. That monster drive ended with John Mateer hitting Isaiah Sategna III for a 6-yard touchdown, giving the Sooners a 13-point lead and officially sealing a massive 23-7 victory right there in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Per SoonerStats.com, this wasn’t just *a* long drive, it was the longest by time and plays in at least 18 years. Talk about draining The Swamp, huh?
Witten’s Offense Is a Vibe
This win was pure chaos and exactly what Oklahoma needed, especially with interim offensive coordinator Jason Witten making his debut. His group looked totally different from the jump, putting up 352 total yards. Listen to this: OU scored on its first two possessions, which is the first time they’ve done that in an SEC game since joining the conference. Not only that, they scored on three of their four first-half possessions. That’s efficiency, baby! Third- and fourth-down conversions were key, too, with the Sooners going 10 for 18 on third down and a perfect 1 for 1 on fourth. Beyond that epic fourth-quarter drive, they also had a 15-play, 84-yard touchdown drive in the second quarter. Witten’s first touchdown call as interim OC? Pure genius. Mateer faked a handoff to Tory Blaylock, then faked a reverse to Sategna III, only to find Hayden Hansen wide open in the end zone for a 3-yard score. It was Hansen’s second TD of the season, and yeah, it was fitting it went to a tight end from Witten. Hayden knows The Swamp, too, after transferring to OU in January following four years at Florida.
Mateer’s Redemption and Defensive Dominance
Quarterback John Mateer was absolutely sensational. After a tough outing last week in a loss to South Carolina, he bounced back big time, completing 21 of his 33 passes for 207 yards and two touchdowns, plus he rushed for 56 yards. His mentor, Ben Arbuckle, got fired just last Monday, so for Mateer to show up like this in Witten’s debut? That’s grit. On that epic game-sealing drive in the fourth quarter, Mateer was surgical, going 6 for 7 for 50 yards and a touchdown, adding 23 rushing yards. And you gotta shout out Jacob Jordan, the junior wide receiver who was a total third-down warrior, converting four third-down receptions, including an 18-yard snag on that crucial final drive. He ended the night with four catches for 36 yards.
But don’t sleep on the defense, either. Owen Heinecke was all over the field, straight up wrecking the Gators’ offense. He slammed Florida quarterback Tramell Jones Jr. as he threw, leading to an interception by Courtland Guillory. Heinecke logged a team-high 10 tackles, including half a sack and 1.5 tackles for loss. You saw Brent Venables celebrating with him on the sideline. That’s the kind of energy you want!
Next up, the Sooners (5-4) get to host No. 10 Ole Miss next Saturday at Gaylord Family , Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Ole Miss is coming off a loss to Georgia on Saturday night, so you know they’ll be looking to bounce back. This is a massive chance for Oklahoma to prove this wasn’t a fluke and keep that momentum rolling!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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