NORMAN, Okla. (AP) -Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops didn’t need to be in front of a television to know what was going on in the Big 12 South race and perhaps beyond. Even after the Sooners’ blowout of Nebraska, OU’s followers stuck around and let him know through their screams everything he needed to know.
Fans packed the concourses at Owen Field after Oklahoma’s 62-28 win against the Huskers, gathering around any TV screen they could find to watch what wound up being a last-second 39-33 defeat for archrival Texas against Texas Tech.
With their voices, the fans let their disappointment be known when the Longhorns scored with 89 seconds left to take the lead. And it was unquestionable what had happened when Tech scored with 1 second left to win the game, even as Stoops addressed reporters in his postgame news conference.
“You know who just scored,” Stoops said. “You guys need to quit asking me questions. Let’s go get on the radio.”
erth that goes along with it. And after last year’s crazy finish to the football season, maybe even the national championship isn’t out of the question for Oklahoma (8-1, 4-1 Big 12).
M, Texas Tech and Oklahoma State. But the chances of catching Texas if the Longhorns made it unscathed through a gauntlet of four straight games against ranked opponents were awfully slim.
“It gives you life. And we knew we had life,” Stoops said. “But still we’ve got three more games to go. We’ve got to keep making improvement. It just changes things, and you just have to keep after it.”
The BCS standings weren’t to be released until later Sunday, but Oklahoma seemed poised to drop despite a win that started with a 35-0 first-quarter lead. The Sooners fell two spots to No. 6 in The Associated Press poll on Sunday, keeping them just behind Texas – which beat the Sooners 45-35 win on a neutral field earlier this year.
Harris Poll voters dropped them one spot to fifth, while the coaches kept them in fourth.
It’s a backward step that could be taken care of if the Sooners take care of business against the second-ranked Red Raiders and No. 8 Oklahoma State – but first up is the Aggies, who’ve won back-to-back games for the first time this season.
at won’t take long for them to understand that. They already do,” Stoops said. “But none of it matters if you don’t go play well in this game.”
M and the Sooners had the tiebreak.
“We just have to make sure we take care of business,” defensive captain Gerald McCoy said. “That game is over now, so we just need to handle what is in front of us.”
While Oklahoma only narrowly avoided giving up 30 points in a fourth straight game for the first time in school history, Stoops said he was encouraged by the defense’s improvement – particularly early, when three of Nebraska’s first five plays resulted in turnovers.
That helped create the big lead, and Stoops said the score was skewed after that because strategies change when the game is out of hand.
“I feel good. I feel like they’re working hard. We’ve just got to keep after it,” Stoops said. “You just have to keep pushing for improvement and keep a good attitude through a long year. It’s staying up and staying focused, and I think our guys are doing that.”
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