OU football grades for John Mateer, Sooners in massive SEC road win vs Tennessee
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KNOXVILLE, TN — The Sooners showed off their survival skills Saturday night.
They survived a dreadful first half on both sides of the ball. Survived a late turnover. Survived to see another day in the race to the College Football Playoff.
OU beat Tennessee 33-27 on the first night of what will be a season-defining November for the Sooners.
Let’s get to the grades.
John Mateer: C
The old version of John Mateer came out of the locker room at halftime and donned a crimson cape.
The Sooner quarterback put a bad first half behind him and put the OU offense on his shoulders.
Mateer wasn’t perfect — why was OU throwing on first down late in the fourth quarter? — but he was gritty. After throwing for 44 yards in the first half he had 101 passing yards in the second half.
He was better on the ground, too, finishing with 80 rushing yards and a touchdown.
Tackling: C-
Peyton Bowen and Courtland Guillory were in position to sandwich Tennessee receiver Braylon Staley for a modest gain, but Staley split the Sooners and ran free for a 54-yard go-ahead touchdown.
Guillory didn’t even attempt to wrap up Staley. It was a rough night for the freshman corner. Don’t give up on Guillory, though. He’s still incredibly promising.
OU had way too many missed tackles.
Owen Heinecke: A
Have yourself a half, Mr. Heinecke.
The Sooner linebacker had 12 tackles and forced a sack-fumble in the first half, which R Mason Thomas returned for a touchdown.
Not bad for a lacrosse player.
Heinecke only had one tackle in the second half but still finished with a team-high 13.
Game flow: D
A smooth game it was not.
The first quarter took 50 minutes. The first half lasted an hour and 45 minutes.
Curse all of the ABC TV timeouts.
The game barely snuck under the four-hour mark.
Blackout: A+
It was a bummer to not see Tennessee wear its patented pale orange, but even I, a curmudgeonly traditionalist, have to admit the blackout was pretty cool. Especially for the first night game of the season at Neyland Stadium. On the day after Halloween.
Tennessee wore all-black uniforms with orange accents, a sharp contrast against OU’s road whites.
Tennessee has had an annual “dark mode” game in each of Josh Heupel’s five seasons in Knoxville.
The atmosphere was A+ all around. Fans were in their seats a half hour before kickoff. The pregame lightshow was spectacular. It was 56 degrees at kickoff — football weather — without a hint of wind.
Everyone in the Sooner press contingent agreed: This was the best SEC atmosphere OU has played in.
Penalties: F
The Sooners were a flag away from forcing a Tennessee punt on the game’s opening possession. Instead, the Volunteers marched down the field and took a 7-0 lead.
Sooner freshman cornerback Courtland Guillory was penalized for pass interference on a third-and-15 pass that sailed over everyone’s heads. The ball was uncatchable, but Guillory was a little too handsy.
The Vols, granted new life, made good on it.
Late in the first quarter, the Sooners were called for a false start on a punt because they had a man running on too late who wasn’t set.
OU had guys frantically running on and off on both sides of the ball.
The Sooners won despite being penalized 11 times for 104 yards.
R Mason Thomas: A
R Mason Thomas went all Marshawn Lynch, dragging Tennesee tight end Miles Kitselman for the better part of 20 yards before shedding the Vol en route to a 71-yard scoop-and-score touchdown.
It was the play of the game for the Sooners. Maybe the play of the season.
Thomas injured his hamstring on the play and never returned.
Tate Sandell: A+
Tate Sandell’s 55-yard field goal in the second quarter tied for the longest field goal in Neyland Stadium history. They’ve been playing football here since 1921.
Then he drilled another 55-yarder later in the game! Sandell finished 4 for 4. All four of his field goals were from 40-plus yards, and three of them were from 50-plus yards.
The UTSA transfer has been nails for the Sooners.
Joe Mussatto is a sports columnist for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Joe? Email him at jmussatto@oklahoman.com. Support Joe’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU football grades for John Mateer, Sooners in win vs Tennessee
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