The Oklahoma Sooners fell to 2-2 on the season after a 41-13 loss to the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday. The Sooners struggled and were never truly competitive.
That was in large part due to the turnovers. The Sooners had four turnovers. The first turnover came in the second quarter. Oklahoma trailed 14-0. The Sooners were inside Georgia's five-yard line, and quarterback John Mateer had a wide-open touchdown before the ball slipped out of his hands and was returned for a score.
On the next drive, Oklahoma was again driving it before Mateer underthrew his receiver, resulting in an interception. On the very next drive, Oklahoma went for it on fourth down, and Mateer rolled out before being sacked and fumbling the ball again. That resulted in another
Georgia touchdown.
The last turnover was a fumble by Rocky Beers on the first play of a second-half drive. That resulted in a field goal. Head coach Brent Venables' opening statement after the game discussed just how back-breaking those turnovers were.
"Nothing impacts the game like turnovers," Venables said. "Be able to come to Athens, Ga., and have an opportunity to compete and win the game. Obviously, the No. 1 priority is taking care of the football. We certainly failed miserably at doing that."
For Oklahoma, the lesson from Athens is painfully simple: the Sooners didn't need to outgain Georgia to have a chance. They needed to stop giving the Bulldogs points. Until Oklahoma eliminates the turnovers that have plagued it over the past three games, it will be difficult for the Sooners to turn strong defensive performances into wins.
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This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Brent Venables reacts to Oklahoma's dominating loss to Georgia
