Final thoughts on Oklahoma Sooners vs. Iowa State Cyclones
The Oklahoma Sooners welcome to Norman a team that’s been a nemesis of sorts in recent years, the Iowa State Cyclones.
Though Iowa State hasn’t been a national power, they’ve made life difficult on the Sooners, picking up a pair of wins in the Matt Campbell era. The 2022 matchup was the first game in Campbell’s tenure that the Oklahoma Sooners won by two touchdowns or more.
And that was the Sooners worst team in 25 years.
It won’t be an easy matchup, but the Sooners are more than talented enough to come away with another big win on the season.
Getting ready for the primetime matchup, here are some final thoughts for Oklahoma vs. Iowa State.
Defensive Difference
The Iowa State Cyclones have become one of the better teams in the Big 12 on the defensive side of the football. For several years, they’ve been a stingy unit for the most part under John Heacock. The Cyclones’ issue is that they haven’t had an offense to match.
With Brent Venables at the helm, the Oklahoma Sooners are beginning to resemble a defensive team.
Oklahoma has the offense to score a bunch of points, as we’ve seen over the last two years. But now, the defense is narrowing the gap and proving they can be the reason Oklahoma wins football games.
It’s been a long time since that’s been the case, but it’s refreshing to see a defensive football team again.
Oh, and Oklahoma’s offense is still really, really good. When both sides of the ball are clicking, they’ll be hard to beat.
Is it Fixed?
Oklahoma’s running game showed signs of life in the second half against Cincinnati. After struggling in the first half with under two yards per carry, the Sooners responded with more than four yards per carry in the second half.
The Cincinnati Bearcats have a great defensive front and really good run defense. They just held BYU to 2.5 yards per carry on Friday night. If the run game breakout is about to happen, the second half in Cincinnati was the turning point.
Patience is a Virtue
Iowa State isn’t going to give up many big plays. Before the Cyclones win over Oklahoma State they’d allowed teams to complete 3 of 16 pass attempts greater than 20 yards down the field.
Alan Bowman and the Cowboys found much more success last week going 4 of 5 on deep throws.
The Cyclones’ defense wants to keep everything in front of them and force teams to drive the field. They’re allowing just 4.4 yards per play and are 70th in the nation in plays allowed per game.
Jeff Lebby, and Dillon Gabriel will have to be patient in the passing game. Take what they’re given, create positive plays, and simply move the chains.
To an Extent
Yes, you don’t want your quarterback throwing into triple coverage or throwing to covered wide receivers on every attempt. Yet, the Oklahoma Sooners have coverage beaters at the wide receiver position. Whether it’s Andrel Anthony’s speed or Nic Anderson and Jayden Gibson’s size, they’ve got players that are mismatches on the outside.
Jayden Gibson is 3-for-3 on contested catches this season. Nic Anderson has caught all eight of his targets and has four touchdowns. It’s time to get these guys on the field more. If Iowa State wants to drop eight into coverage, targeting your players with size is a great way to mitigate zone coverage.
And if you’re not going to get much from the tight end anyway, putting Anderson or Gibson on the field to create four-wide receiver sets provides another playmaker in the passing game.
Take Care of Business
The Oklahoma Sooners are the better team. They’re more talented on both sides of the ball. They should win.
While we get caught up in the style points, the only thing that matters is winning. Our staff here at Sooners Wire believes Oklahoma will cover a point spread that’s anywhere from 19.5 to 20.5 points, but ultimately, the only thing that matters is that the Sooners keep winning.
Oklahoma is 4-0 against the spread this season after going just 5-8 last season. As the old adage goes, “good teams win, great teams cover.”
The Oklahoma Sooners have proven to be a much better team than they were a season ago and this contest against Iowa State is the next step in proving what they’re capable of in 2023.
Key Lawrence Rising to the Occasion
From 2020-2022, Key Lawrence was in three different defensive systems. He showed flashes with the Sooners in 2021 and 2022, but in 2023, he’s taking off.
Finally, in a consistent defensive scheme for two straight seasons, Lawrence is proving to be a key component to the Oklahoma Sooners defense. He’s forced turnovers in three straight games and looks to be ascending as a player.
The sky’s the limit for the Sooners’ safety.
Home Cookin'
Oklahoma’s defense traveled incredible well on their trip to Cincinnati. But now they’re back in the friendly confines of Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. The Sooners’ crowd is going to be jacked to welcome the No. 2 scoring defense in the nation.
The home crowd can be such an advantage when a defense is playing as well as the Oklahoma Sooners unit.
Welcoming Rocco Becht, a talented young quarterback, Sooner Nation should be pumped to provide a very inhospitable environment. It’ll be Becht’s first big road test and easily the biggest environment he’s ever played in.
Time for Sooner Nation to make a statement.
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