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After four consecutive home games, the No. 21 Oklahoma Sooners will finally travel to Auburn to take on the Tigers this Saturday at 3:30 pm.
Both teams have announced major offensive changes ahead of Saturdays game following SEC road losses. Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables announced Monday night that true freshman Michael Hawkins Jr. will be the Sooners’ starting quarterback for Saturday’s game, replacing Jackson Arnold.
For Auburn, the QB carousel continues to dizzy its fans, especially after both QBs combined for four total interceptions in their 24-14 loss to Arkansas. The Tigers have now switched QBs twice, going from Hank Brown back to original starter Payton Thorne on Saturday. Head coach Hugh Freeze has yet to announce a starter for Saturday.
"I know that there's people open and I know that we're running the football. We've got to find a guy that won't throw it to the other team and we've got to find running backs that hold on to it." – Hugh Freeze after Auburn's turnover-filled loss to Arkansas pic.twitter.com/7CQ4ii7ij9
— The Next Round (@NextRoundLive) September 21, 2024
Tigers Troubles At QB
The Tigers’ offense has been extremely productive through the first four games, racking up a whopping eight yards per play, good for sixth in the nation. Even with a highly productive offense, the Tigers’ kryptonite has become clear.
“We’ve got to find a guy that won’t throw it to the other team,” Freeze said.
Through four weeks, only Eastern Carolina has more turnovers in all of FBS.
Last week, Auburn opened up conference play with a loss to Arkansas despite outperforming the Razorbacks on offense with 431 total yards to 334. Self-imposed mistakes seemed to be the key factor in their loss as both QBs threw for a combined four interceptions.
“I’m telling you, the hard truth is we play them nine more times we beat them nine times. And that’s what’s hard to take,” Freeze said after the game.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, that’s not how it works. But lucky for them, they do have eight more games. That means a winnable game like this could build enough momentum to take on its daunting schedule ahead.
Sooners Struggles at QB
Although Oklahoma fell to Tennessee last week, the Sooners offense looked to find a much-needed spark in the second half, outscoring the Vols 19-3 under Hawkins Jr.
The decision comes after Arnold started 7-of-16 for 54 yards with two lost fumbles and an interception in Oklahoma’s 25-15 loss to Tennessee. Hawkins came off the bench for the second half, finishing 11-of-18 for 132 yards, a touchdown as well as 22 rushing yards.
Arnold has long been viewed as the program’s future at QB once last year’s starting QB, Dillon Gabriel, entered the transfer portal. Despite Arnold not quite panning out, this weekend we’ll see if this is the QB change they’ve needed.
Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables announced Hawkins Jr. as the starter on Wednesday.
How Hawkins Can Compensate for Oklahoma’s Struggles at O-Line
The Sooners’ kryptonite, on the other hand, looks to be its lackluster production from the offensive line. Oklahoma now ranks 101st nationally in rushing offense (128.3 yards per game) and 105th in yards per carry (3.56). Oklahoma rolled out its fourth-different starting line in as many weeks, inevitable leading to its fourth-straight game of allowing three or more sacks.
The Sooners scraped together just 222 total offensive yards and 36 rushing yards last week for an average of 1.1 yards per rush attempt, the program’s worst single-game rushing performance since 2012.
Hawkins Jr.’s ability to scramble was a boost to an OU offense that struggled to block the Volunteers all night. Last week, they allowed 17 total QB pressures for the sixth-worst pass-blocking efficiency rating among FBS offensive lines.
“He’s a tremendous athlete,” Venables said. “There were several times there where we had edge pressure that we didn’t block and he got outside of it. So he has some playmaking ability and he can hurt you with his legs.”
Although there are still some unanswered questions for both teams, the No. 21 Oklahoma Sooners are 2.5 point favorites heading into Saturdays SEC matchup.
