The Oklahoma Sooners have an excellent opportunity ahead of their matchup with FCS Maine Black Bears. They can get back above .500 on the season, but beyond what happens on the scoreboard, it’s an opportunity to get a lot of younger players to take significant snaps in the game.
The Sooners will be the more talented team and are favored for the first time since their win over Tulane. That’s the kind of year it has been for a team that’s changed offensive playcallers and quarterbacks. But with one month remaining in the season, the Sooners still have a chance to close the season on a high note, and that begins with their matchup on Saturday vs. Maine.
Let’s take a look at how the staff here at Sooners Wire thinks the game will go.
Oklahoma Sooners Staff Predictions
Oklahoma gets back into the win column against an inferior opponent, and it’s once again the defense that leads the way.
They’ve played at a high level for most of the season, and I think they’ll play great on Saturday. OU’s offense won’t suddenly transform into something spectacular, but putting points on the board will come a lot easier against the FCS, as opposed to the SEC.
The Sooners improve to 5-4 before a crucial final month for the team.
Oklahoma 28, Maine 0
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Up Next: More Predictions for Oklahoma vs. Maine
For the first time since September, Oklahoma is favored to win a football game. The SEC schedule has been far from kind, with the Sooners only tallying one conference victory in their inaugural season in their new league.
Everything that can go wrong has, but the Sooners will get a chance to win a game and give themselves a much-needed boost of confidence to kick start the final month of the season.
Against Maine, I expect Oklahoma to build on the first half offensive performance we saw against Ole Miss. Physicality at the point of attack, designed runs for Jackson Arnold, and a heavy dose of running backs sprinkled in with some excellent quick passing concepts.
The defense should force a few turnovers out of a Maine offense that is far from explosive. The talent discrepancy will show, and things should feel good for at least one weekend in Norman.
I’ve got Jackson Arnold tossing two touchdowns, Taylor Tatum touching the end zone, and we see a special teams score this weekend.
Oklahoma 44, Maine 9
Contact/Follow Bryant Crews
Up Next: More Predictions for Oklahoma vs. Maine
In two games wearing the Unity alternates, the Oklahoma Sooners are averaging 55.5 points per game. Both times the Sooners wore the alternate uniform, they broke multi-game losing streaks. In 2022, the unranked Sooners broke a three-game losing streak with a 52-42 win over No. 19 Kansas Jayhawks. In 2023, OU ended a two-game losing streak with a 59-20 win over West Virginia.
Unity might be the strongest adjective to describe the Oklahoma Sooners in 2024. Not much has gone right for the Sooners this season. They’ve been banged up, endured multiple quarterback changes, and their first foray into the SEC has been a disaster. But despite all that, from the outside looking in, this team has stuck together.
There haven’t been a lot of feel-good moments for the Sooners this season, but this week against Maine provides the opportunity for everyone to have a great Saturday at Gaylord Family Oklahoma-Memorial Stadium.
The Black Bears are 4-4 this season and are averaging 25.37 points per game. They’re allowing 27 points per game, but have allowed opponents to score 41 or more three times, including a 51-point game to Monmouth.
The Sooners’ defense has been playing great ball this year, and there’s no reason to expect anything different this week, even as the coaching staff looks to get more of the younger depth involved.
Offensively, OU found some things against Ole Miss. Though they only scored 14 points, it was as step in the right direction. They had two drives into the red zone where they didn’t come away with points after failed fourth down conversion attempts, one of which was at the two-yard line.
Look for the Sooners’ offense to take another positive step this week in Joe Jon Finley’s second game as a playcaller. The Sooners will hit a couple of big pass plays but show improved efficiency throughout the game en route to their largest point total of the season.
Oklahoma 66, Maine 3
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This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Predictions for Oklahoma Football vs. Maine Black Bears
