Oklahoma vs. TCU: Game Grades, Analysis for Sooners vs. Horned Frogs
In a contest that epitomized the characterization of a back-and-forth game, Oklahoma held on late Saturday to down the TCU Horned Frogs 52-46 at Amon G. Carter Stadium.
TCU raced out to a 21-3 lead early, but Oklahoma began imposing its will in the middle two quarters. The Sooners controlled the tempo of the game with a dominant rushing attack and a revitalized defensive effort. Still, the Horned Frogs nearly overcame a 25-point fourth-quarter deficit as they were stopped on fourth down with under two minutes to play.
With the win, Oklahoma gets its Big 12 title quest on the right track, while TCU must try to pick up the pieces to avoid an emotional letdown next week at Kansas. The Sooners will take on rival Texas.
With so many points scored, there was plenty to like from both offenses, but the defenses left much to be desired. Still, the offenses were not perfect, and neither were the coaching staffs.
With that in mind, let us take a look at how these three components graded out for Oklahoma and TCU.
Oklahoma Offense
1 of 6
Grade: A-
Oklahoma entered this game boasting arguably the top backfield in all of college football, and it showed why in this showdown.
Quarterback Baker Mayfield demonstrated tremendous poise all night, displaying his dual-threat ability with some great throws and timely runs. He finished with 274 yards and two touchdowns on 23-of-30 passing, while also adding 55 yards and two scores rushing. Mayfield also made excellent use of his top receiving weapon, as Dede Westbrook reeled in seven receptions for 158 yards and two touchdowns.
The running game was the story for this unit. Joe Mixon and Samaje Perine displayed why they are such a dangerous combination, Mixon making plays with his versatility and Perine wearing the TCU defense down with his strength.
Mixon ended the night with 16 rushes for 105 yards and a touchdown to go with five catches for 70 yards. Perine chipped in with 17 carries for 98 yards and two scores.
The Sooners were stout as they racked up 534 yards of total offense while scoring at will for most of the night. The reason why this unit falls short of an A is turnovers. Mayfield was stripped twice, which set up the Horned Frogs nicely on both occasions. These need to be limited for the team moving forward.
TCU Offense
2 of 6
Grade: A-
For as good as Oklahoma was offensively, TCU pretty much matched it in a different fashion.
The Sooners used long, draining drives to score, but TCU relied on the big play to bring it back from the abyss in the fourth quarter.
Quarterback Kenny Hill hit receiver Taj Williams for three huge completions to set up TCU's fourth-quarter touchdowns, including scoring receptions of 64 and 74 yards. The team also used a balanced attack early thanks to Kyle Hicks' 15 carries for 61 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
Hill shredded the Oklahoma secondary to the tune of 449 yards, five touchdowns and a pick. Williams was on the verge of having to pay rent behind the Oklahoma secondary, as he torched the Sooners for 210 yards on only five catches. Hicks also added six receptions for 81 yards and a score.
If not for a mid-game lull, this unit could have pushed for 70 points against a hapless Sooners defense. Still, it takes four quarters of football to win, and the TCU offense fell just short of that on Saturday.
Oklahoma Defense
3 of 6
Grade: D-
After blowout losses to Houston and Ohio State, one would have thought that Oklahoma would begin to put together a decent defense considering the talent it has on that side of the ball. Well, that process certainly did not begin on Saturday.
The Sooners secondary was absolutely eviscerated, as this group was the main culprit for the team's near collapse. Hill routinely took advantage of busted coverages and poor spacing to move TCU down the field in huge chunks. The Horned Frogs averaged a staggering 10 yards per completion, as they scored three passing touchdowns over 60 yards.
The defensive line was the lone bright spot for this unit, as it was able to create enough havoc to pressure Hill and win the game. TCU also averaged a mere 2.2 yards rushing on 29 attempts. Still, the excessive missed tackles and overall confusion on this defense is extremely concerning, as it could very well cost Oklahoma a Big 12 title later in the year.
TCU Defense
4 of 6
Grade: D-
The symmetry continues here as TCU pretty much matched Oklahoma in putridness on the defensive side of the ball.
The Horned Frogs were helpless all night against the run. Oklahoma averaged 5.3 yards per rush due to its overwhelming advantage in physicality up front. As a result, the Sooners took the air out of TCU and its home crowd for much of the game with long drives that were powered by the ground attack.
The secondary was not much better, as Mayfield completed 76.6 percent of his throws while being able to scramble out of the pocket whenever he was in trouble.
TCU did force a pair of turnovers, along with several three-and-outs in the fourth quarter. However, one of these defenses needed to do just enough to lift the team to victory, and TCU did not do so.
Oklahoma Coaching
5 of 6
Grade: C-
Oklahoma obviously has some deficiencies on defense, but the coaching staff did not do much to help this unit out late in the game.
With a 25-point lead in the fourth quarter, the most important thing that the Sooners needed to do was to make sure no Horned Frogs got behind the secondary. Instead of keeping a safety deep, Oklahoma left the middle of the field wide open, and Williams was able to take full advantage. Whether or not this was a busted assignment by a player does not really matter; the fact is that it is Week 5 and this error is still being made.
On the offensive side of the ball, Oklahoma did a great job playing to its strength with the running game. This also set up two zone-read touchdowns by Mayfield near the goal line, and a flea flicker that went 67 yards for a score. However, the coaching staff inexplicably drifted away from this in the fourth quarter, which helped TCU find some extra time to build a comeback.
Moving forward, Oklahoma needs to lean on its rushing attack throughout the course of the game to offset the obvious disadvantages its defense will have in defending the pass.
TCU Coaching
6 of 6
Grade: C
TCU came into this game with a nice offensive game plan.
The team used a great mix of quick passes and zone rushes to keep Oklahoma on its heels in the first quarter. However, this faded when the Sooners began controlling the tempo of the game with their power rushing attack.
It took the staff until the fourth quarter to figure out that Oklahoma is awful against the deep pass. The team then took a ton of shots downfield with great success, but it was too late to salvage a win.
If not for the obvious mismatches TCU faced on defense, it would have definitely won this game, but the coaching staff was not prompt enough in its adjustments on Saturday.
Statistics are courtesy of NCAA.com.
