Groundhog Day for Oklahoma Needs to Have an Alternate Ending in Saturday's Game at South Carolina

Last year and this year had similar outcomes for the Red River Rivalry. A back up quarterback here, a rusty quarterback there with the same conclusion: watching the Golden Hat travel to Austin.

Brent Venables and Oklahoma have done a fantastic job climbing out of the hole they dug for themselves in their first season of Southeastern Conference football. But the loss to Texas brought back some of the same ghosts that haunted the team last year -- inept offense, a banged-up offensive line and a defense that played well but not well enough.

If Oklahoma wants to move past their first loss of 2025 and further distance themselves from last season, they have the same opportunity they did last year -- defeat the South Carolina Gamecocks.

Last year's contest against South Carolina was anything but. The game kicked off at 11:45 a.m. and was over by the time a few thousand late-comers shuffled into their seats at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.

Seth Littrell, Oklahoma Sooner — It would be Seth Littrell's final game as Oklahoma's offensive coordinator following a 35-9 loss. Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Okla., Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024, The Oklahoman | BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Sooner quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. turned the ball over three times in his first nine plays from scrimmage -- the first led to a South Carolina five-play drive for a touchdown. The next two turnovers were back-to-back defensive scores that extracted any hope for an Oklahoma victory that day.

“What we put out there today as a football team is nothing remotely close to the standard here at the University of Oklahoma, certainly not what we planned for today," Venables said last season following the loss. "My job as a head coach is to evaluate everything and figure it out and find a way to put us in a better position to be successful.”

Fast forward to 2025, despite the loss to Texas, this Oklahoma team appears better positioned to put a disappointment behind them. Their first road game in conference this season looms as a symbolic pivot from last year’s struggles to the standard Venables has been entrusted to defend.

Players who experienced last year's nightmare understand that their match against the Gamecocks provides them the chance to course correct. Defensive tackle Damonic Williams is finding motivation in their next challenge.

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"We know what to do," Williams said on Monday. "We have all the answers I feel like and knowing we have all the answers, we’ve got to execute. Our coaches are doing such a great job at teaching this. We’re ready to run through a brick wall for them."

Venables remembers and understands what needs to change if the Sooners are going to see their fortunes change.

“We need to play really efficient,” Venables said Tuesday. “Take care of the ball, clean up mistakes, and sustain it for four quarters.”

Oklahoma Sooners, John Mateer — Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer | Carson Field, Sooners On SI

His message wasn’t just about last week’s loss to Texas, when turnovers derailed any hope for second half heroics. It also echoed the frustration of last year’s collapse against South Carolina. Either way, Oklahoma’s offense has yet to put together four complete quarters this season — something Venables knows must change.

If the Sooners want more than redemption against South Carolina and hope to keep their goals intact, Saturday has to be the start of it.