It’s game day in Norman, and it’s expected to be a wet contest between the No. 11 Oklahoma Sooners and the No. 8 Ole Miss Rebels. It’s a game that will set the winner up to be a factor in the College Football Playoff race and stay in the SEC title race.
For the Sooners to come out on top, they’ll need a strong defensive effort against an Ole Miss offense that’s one of the best in the nation. But you can’t win the game unless you score points. Here are three keys to the game for the Oklahoma Sooners’ offense.
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1. Keep Pounding
The Oklahoma Sooners found an answer in the running game on Saturday. Tory Blaylock had his second career 100-yard day, carrying the ball 19 times for 101 yards and a touchdown. Xavier Robinson was good as well, running for 58 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries.
It may have taken seven games into the season for Oklahoma to figure out its running back rotation, but they found a rhythm against South Carolina, and the Sooners need to lean into it. As much as Ben Arbuckle wants to put the ball in John Mateer’s hands, the Sooners are a defensive team. That means they need to continue to prioritize the running game and feed Blaylock and Robinson.
2. More Play Action
According to Pro Football Focus, the Sooners only ran play action on five of Mateer’s 29 dropbacks. With Mateer’s ability to move and Oklahoma finding a more effective running game, play-action will only help the Sooners’ passing game.
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3. Stay ahead of the chains
The Ole Miss defense ranks eighth in the SEC in third-down conversion defense. However, they’ve allowed the third-most first downs in the conference. If the Sooners can win on first and second down and either avoid third down altogether or get into third and less than five yards to go, they’ll be in great shape to keep the chains moving, score points, and get the win.
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This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Tory Blaylock, John Mateer key to Oklahoma’s success vs. Ole Miss
