Don’t Call it a Comeback! Jalen Hurts and Oklahoma stun Baylor

In a game where everything seemed to go wrong for Oklahoma, and everything seemed to go right for Baylor, Oklahoma did the impossible. The Sooners erased a 31-10 halftime deficit to stun the now defeated Baylor Bears by a score of 34-31. Let’s look at how they did it and what this means for these teams.

Charlie Brewer Dominates First Half

For the first 30 minutes, it looked clear that Baylor was dominating both sides of the ball. Baylor was led by quarterback Charlie Brewer. In the first half, the junior had four total touchdowns (two rushing, two passing) and was pacing the Baylor offense up and down the field. To finish the game, Brewer went 18/29 for 194 yards and 2 TD and 1 INT. On the ground, Brewer carried the ball 17 times for 65 yards and 2 TD. It was all Bears early on, and Brewer was the focal point of their success. Both of Brewer’s passing touchdowns were thrown to Denzel Mims, who also totaled 92 yards on the day.

Early Miscues by Oklahoma

The key to beating a good team is taking advantage of their mistakes. Heisman candidate Jalen Hurts had a first half to forget, and Baylor took advantage. In the first quarter around midfield, Hurts was sacked by Blake Lynch and fumbled the ball, which was recovered by Blake Lynch, Baylor linebacker. Two plays later, Charlie Brewer crossed the goal line for a four-yard rushing touchdown. Later in the half, with Oklahoma approaching the red zone, Hurts had a pass intercepted and returned for 71 yards. The next play… a Charlie Brewer touchdown pass, putting the Bears up 28-3. Hurts also fumbled in the second half just before he crossed the goal line that looked like a crucial play at the time.

Heisman Gets Hot

In the second half, the Heisman candidate woke up, and so did Oklahoma. The Sooners marched down the field against the Bears, starting the second half with a six-minute drive that ended in a three-yard touchdown to Austin Stogner. With the score of 31-17 going into the fourth quarter and the absence of star wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, a comeback seemed to be a little too farfetched.  Just 1:30 into the last quarter, Hurts connected with Theo Wease for a 19-yard touchdown. After a three-and-out, the Sooners got the ball back, and Hurts put the team on his back. Totaling 71 yards on the drive, Jalen Hurts led a six-minute drive into the endzone for a touchdown, a two-yard touchdown pass to Brayden Willis. This was Hurts’ fourth touchdown on the day, and it brought the game to a dead tie at 31-31 with a little over five minutes to play.

The Final Drive

After another three-and-out by Baylor, Oklahoma would yet again drive down the field and kick a 31-yard field goal that would put them ahead 34-31 with under two minutes to go. Baylor had a chance to win the game. Their drive was starting to get going. Charlie Brewer completed 3 passes for almost 40 yards and got the ball to the Oklahoma 40. With 40 seconds on the clock, this drive was do-or-died for Baylor. 5-10 more yards would put them into field goal range. Baylor would never get into field goal range though, because, on the next play, Brewer fired a pass that was jumped by Nik Bonitto for an interception, icing the game at 34-31 for a wild Oklahoma victory.

Recap

Facing the impossible, Jalen Hurts and the Sooners completed the largest comeback in school history. This win improved Oklahoma to 9-1, and dropped Baylor to 9-1, their first loss of the season. Every Heisman candidate needs a signature moment to boost their chances. After Joe Burrow beat Alabama last week, Jalen Hurts topped that with a historic comeback against a ranked team in their conference. With this win, Oklahoma is now the top team in the Big 12 with the tiebreaker over Baylor. Next week, the Sooners will face off against TCU (5-5) and Baylor will look to rebound against a suddenly mediocre Texas team (6-4).

Player of the Game

Jalen Hurts

Passing 30/42 297 Yards 4 TD 1 INT

Rushing 27 carries 114 yards

-By: Richie Dordas

Writer/Interviewer