Costumes were everywhere Saturday night at Owen Field. Oklahoma showed up in one for Halloween, too. The Sooners looked a lot like last season's team in downing Kansas State 42-30.
The rugged defense that carried OU throughout its first seven games struggled. But an offense that had limped along in big games thus far finally hit its stride.
The uniforms were identical, but little else was.
"We stepped up," said quarterback Landry Jones, who looked an awful lot like Sam Bradford Saturday night, throwing for 294 yards and four touchdowns. "In the second half, we got things rolling."
In that way, OU looked an awful lot like last year's team. For the first time this year against a quality opponent (Kansas State arrived in Norman leading the Big 12 North), the Sooners were explosive when they had the ball.
Chris Brown and DeMarco Murray combined to rush for 145 yards, with Murray, who played for the first time since the Texas game due to a sore ankle, scoring on a pair of touchdown runs.
Running backs found open holes, Jones found open receivers and receivers made tough catches. They also made them when they had to.
OU's defense didn't have its best night. The Wildcats (5-4, 3-2 Big 12) twice rallied from a three-touchdown deficit to get within five points.
"The offense answered every time they scored and that helped us out a lot," OU defensive end Jeremy Beal said. "The defense didn't play as well as we needed to in the second half."
After Kansas State closed to the gap to 35-30 on Brandon Banks' 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown (another throwback to OU's struggles covering kicks last season), the Sooners answered with a methodic 11-play touchdown drive.
It was that drive and the one that preceded it that put a big smile on OU coach Bob Stoops' face.
"Everything we have gone through offensively through the year with the personnel changes and all, to answer back and to keep answering back was really special," he said.
Jones, who was 26-for-37 on the night, completed 14 straight during OU's final two scoring drives and got a big night from his receivers. DeJuan Miller set career highs with nine catches for 94 yards and Ryan Broyles hauled in eight for 91. Two finished in the end zone, but none were more spectacular than a 25-yard grab early in the fourth quarter that allowed OU to convert third-and-24.
"I didn't want to get tackled. Every time I get the ball I feel that way," Broyles said. "It was third-and-24 and we needed a play. I'm glad I got the shot to make it happen."
It might not have been necessary if the Sooners (5-3, 3-1) had played the whole game like they started.
They scored touchdowns on their first three possessions and were up 21-0 with four minutes left in the first quarter. Jones found open receivers all over the field, and Brown and Murray had no problem finding running room.
"The tempo was great out there today. We had a combination of run and pass," Murray said. "It helped us out a lot. They (the Wildcats) didn't know what we were doing."
But OU had similar problems with Kansas State's option attack. Daniel Thomas rushed for 88 yards and a touchdown, and Keithen Valentine added two touchdowns to keep the Wildcats in the game.
"In the second half, they worked us a little bit," Stoops said.
The Wildcats rushed for 149 yards and Gregory Grant threw for 174. It might have been enough to get the Wildcats over the hump as early as two weeks ago.
The Sooner offense, however, turned a corner Saturday night. With a struggling defense, it stepped in and carried the load.
"The offense knew that we needed to go out and every time we touched the ball, score," Miller said. "Whether it's a touchdown or a field goal, because we knew at that point the defense was kind of struggling, so we knew we had to pick up the slack."
OU did that all the time last season. OU picked the right night to pay tribute to their former selves. It couldn't have won any other way.
John Shinn 366-3536 jshinn@normantranscript.com
OU Sports
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