John Shinn
Oklahoma had been in the position before. For the third straight week, it was entering the fourth quarter with the game on the line.
It had failed against Colorado two weeks earlier. Texas had gone toe-to-toe with the Sooners last week until the knockout shot was finally delivered in the final minutes.
There’s no doubt familiarity with the situation is a blessing, not a curse. No. 6 OU rose the occasion once again and dropped No. 11 Missouri 41-31 Saturday night at Owen Field.
“When you play an undefeated team like they are you can’t expect to make all the plays or to not have any tough situations that you have to play through.” Sooner coach Bob Stoops said.
After running roughshod over their first four opponents, the Sooners once again had to go the distance. Saturday night’s tilt, however, was for Big 12 Conference supremacy.
The Tigers (5-1, 1-1 Big 12) were trying to stake their claim as the conference’s super power and were close, very close, to planting their flag at the mountaintop when Jimmy Jackson busted into the end zone with 90 seconds left in the third quarter to give the Tigers a 24-23 lead.
The Sooners (6-1, 2-1) were far from hitting on all cylinders. The biggest reason Missouri was leading was a pair of Juaquin Iglesias fumbles that led to two touchdowns.
But that’s when the Sooners’ lights went from flickering to burning bright.
Chris Brown rushed for three touchdowns, with two coming in the fourth quarter, and linebacker Curtis Lofton scooped up a fumble and returned it 12 yards for a touchdown to solidify the Sooners as the midseason king of the Big 12 while still climbing in the national polls.
“Every game isn’t going to be a blowout. We talk about that all the time,” Brown said. “They were a great team coming in and we knew we were going to have our hands full with those guys. We just had to bite down and handle it like men.”
The game contained all the offensive fireworks most expected with two of the highest-scoring teams in the nation battling back and forth.
The quarterback duel between OU’s Sam Bradford and Missouri’s Chase Daniel was nearly a draw.
Bradford completed 24-of-34 attempts for 266 yards and a pair of first-half touchdowns. Daniel was 37-for-47 for 361 and one touchdown.
The difference was the turnovers. Bradford was flawless in that regard. Daniel wasn’t, getting picked off twice as part of a three-interception night for the Tigers.
“In big games like this, generally the team that makes the fewest mistakes is going to win, and that’s what happened,” Missouri coach Gary Pinkel said.
Brown put the Sooners ahead for good with a 1-yard touchdown run with 12:26 remaining. Less than a minute later, Lofton scooped up a botched hand-off and scored to put OU up 35-24.
The Sooner defense wasn’t dominant, allowing 418 yards, but it kept making big plays when it had to.
Besides the three interceptions by defensive backs Reggie Smith, D.J. Wolfe and Nic Harris, the Sooners also kept Daniel on a tight leash.
He was sacked three times and 13 rushing attempt failed to yield positive yardage.
“You can’t let that guy set his feet,” OU defensive tackle DeMarcus Granger said. “If you let him do that he’ll burn you.”
He did at times, but not in the fourth quarter.
After Lofton’s touchdown, the Sooners put the clamps down. Auston English recorded the second of his two sacks to end one possession and tipped the pass that ended up in Harris’ hands.
“That’s something we preached all week, since Day 1,” English said. “We are going to be a team that finishes in the fourth quarter. The last two games we’ve really done that.”
Brown, who finished with 67 yards on 13 carries, followed up Harris’ pick with a 23-yard TD run with 2:39 remaining to seal the win.
The significance of it wasn’t lost on the Sooners.
Two more undefeated teams — No. 1 LSU and No. 2 California — tumbled from the unbeaten ranks Saturday.
The fact OU managed to win another fight in the final rounds means they’re right back in the position they were in prior to the loss to Colorado.
“That’s college football this year,” said wide receiver Malcolm Kelly, who made five catches for 58 yards. “Everyone has to come out and play every week. Things are happening in our favor right now. The only thing we can control is winning every game.”
For the second straight week, OU did it when the chips were on the line in the fourth quarter.
John Shinn
366-3536
jshinn@normantranscript.com
