The Oklahoma Sooners suffered arguably their worst loss since joining the SEC. At relatively full strength, the Sooners were manhandled by the South Carolina Gamecocks on their own turf. All the momentum and positive will gained from the Texas win have evaporated, and the Sooners now sit 4-4 on the year and 2-3 in SEC play.
Former OU assistant Shane Beamer and the Gamecocks walked away from Norman with a dominant 42-25 win over the Sooners, and the score doesn't reflect how dominant South Carolina was.
Seven Sooner points came on the Kip Lewis interception return for a touchdown, and another seven came in garbage time. South Carolina could have beaten Oklahoma by 50, and that's a big red flag for the once-proud blue blood program from Norman.
The Sooners have a lot of soul-searching to do as they prepare for their final four games of the season, but they have to find a lot more than that if they want to finish the season on a high note.
1. Oklahoma Outplayed
The Oklahoma Sooners' defense forced a punt on the opening drive, and Kip Lewis provided a pick-six. The Sooners were absolutely outclassed in every aspect of the game.
South Carolina were the more physical team. They were the more disciplined team. They executed on the offensive side of the ball. They were better prepared, and the coaching staff got outcoached.
Maybe in other losses the Sooners could point to being banged up. But that wasn't the case in the loss to South Carolina. All it was was bad football.
2. Sooners Offense Flounders (again)
The Oklahoma Sooners couldn't run the ball, aside from a nice drive that featured Jonathan Hatton in the second quarter. John Mateer wouldn't throw the ball, even when the design got something open. Just when it felt like the offense turned the corner, they took a massive step back to the group we saw the first four weeks of the season.
Through three quarters, John Mateer was 10 of 18 for 44 yards passing. That's just 2.44 yards per pass attempt. Oklahoma was rushing for 3.1 yards per attempt. Still not good, but that's just how abysmal Mateer was in the first three quarters. Mateer was tentative through the first 45 minutes, unwilling to throw the football, and indecisive as a runner.
Oklahoma won the turnover battle, but the offense was so inept that it couldn't do anything with it.
3. Defensive Letdown
Given how the Sooners' offense has played this season, Oklahoma's defense has had no margin for error. They've been so good for much of the last two and a half seasons. Saturday's performance was a huge letdown.
The Sooners allowed 521 yards of total offense, which is nearly 250 yards more than their season average. Oklahoma's defense allowed LaNorris Sellers to account for nearly 400 yards of total offense while completing 78% of his passes.
Oklahoma allowed 4.8 yards per carry and generated just 10 total pressures, according to Pro Football Focus.
Pro Football Focus had Oklahoma down for 24 missed tackles in the game, including six from Kip Lewis and three each from Owen Heinecke and Jayden Jackson. That trio is three of Oklahoma's best players.
It was a bad day to have their worst day in several years, but all in all, the Oklahoma defense is far from the biggest issue on the team.
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X (formerly known as Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow John on X @john9williams.
This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Takeaways from Oklahoma's 42-25 loss to South Carolina
