No. 2 Oklahoma survives Tulane comeback
Spencer Rattler passed for 304 yards and a touchdown and ran for another score as No. 2 Oklahoma held off Tulane 40-35 at home on Saturday afternoon.
The season opener was originally scheduled to be played in New Orleans before damage caused by Hurricane Ida forced the game to be moved to Norman.
Rattler completed 30 of 39 passes and the Sooners (1-0) jumped out to a big lead, but the Heisman Trophy hopeful’s two interceptions helped keep the Green Wave (0-1) in the game until the end.
Tulane sliced what was a 23-point halftime deficit down to five with 2:18 to play, then recovered an onside kick to keep its upset hopes alive.
But Perrion Winfrey and Nik Bonitto teamed up for a sack on third down and then Green Wave quarterback Michael Pratt was stopped just short of the first down on the next play, giving Oklahoma the ball back to run out the clock.
Pratt threw for 296 yards and three touchdowns.
Tulane outgained the Sooners 230-118 in the second half, outscoring Oklahoma 21-3.
The Green Wave seemed plenty comfortable early, jumping ahead 7-0 and 14-7, moving the ball down the field quickly on their first two drives, with 130 yards on 12 plays.
From there, though, the Sooners’ defense turned up the heat.
On its next five drives, Tulane managed just 36 combined yards on 21 plays, turning the ball over three times.
If it weren’t for Gabe Brkic, though, the Sooners would’ve struggled to make much from the Tulane turnovers.
Oklahoma didn’t pick up a first down on any of its drives following the three fumble recoveries, but the Sooners got points on each possession thanks to field goals of 26, 51 and 56 yards by Brkic.
The junior added a 55-yarder in the third quarter.
It was the first time in Oklahoma history that a kicker made multiple field goals of 50 or more yards in a game and Brkic tied an FBS single-game record with three 50-plus yard field goals.
His 56-yarder as time expired in the first half gave the Sooners a 37-14 lead at the break.
Marvin Mims finished with five catches for 117 yards for Oklahoma.
–Field Level Media
