Oklahoma QB Dillon Gabriel Looking for Improvement After Misfires Against Cincinnati
NORMAN — Oklahoma quarterback Dillon Gabriel has had an impressive start to the season.
At least, that's what his stats would imply.
The Sooners' starting QB ranks as one of the nation's top 15 signal callers in nearly every statistical category this year, yet, OU fans are not satisfied with the redshirt senior's performance.
Coming off of a 20-point outing for Oklahoma's offense, a large portion of the fanbase has voiced its frustration on social media, with some even calling for Jackson Arnold take Gabriel's place in the starting lineup.
In OU's matchup against the Bearcats, Gabriel made multiple glaring mistakes that kept the Sooners from putting points on the scoreboard.
First, the veteran signal caller was unprepared for a snap that ended up bouncing off his shoulder. Gabriel was able to pick the ball up off the turf and throw it away, but it prevented Oklahoma from moving the chains on an early third down.
Next, the redshirt senior QB fumbled the ball inside the red zone on a designed run play that kept the Sooners from kicking a field goal. Later, Gabriel misfired on a throw to Jalil Farooq, who had a step on his defender and likely would have walked into the endzone for an easy touchdown if Gabriel's pass was on target.
On another throw later in the game, Gabriel threw the ball high and behind Drake Stoops, who was streaking across the field on a crossing route. At one point, the fifth-year QB tried to toss a speed option pitch to Andrel Anthony that hit the ground and rolled out of bounds.
These missed opportunities didn't cost OU the game on Saturday, but against teams like the Texas Longhorns, Oklahoma may not be able to recover from the same mistakes.
At practice on Monday, Gabriel admitted that he made a few misfires on Saturday, acknowledging that he can play better.
"Definitely missed some stuff," Gabriel said when asked about his performance against Cincinnati. "Things we've all got to get better at, myself included. So just as a group we just left stuff on the field. So I think that's the biggest takeaway."
Despite the aforementioned mistakes, Gabriel played a solid game at Nippert Stadium, throwing for 322 yards and a touchdown while adding 23 yards and another score on the ground.
While the former UCF quarterback likely wishes he could have a few of his throws from last Saturday back, Gabriel played a good game overall.
On Tuesday, Brent Venables said that his starting signal caller played well against the Bearcats, but also mentioned that the talented passer still has improvements to make.
"He played good," Venables said. "He played well. He managed things well, he made good decisions. He led with toughness. He played with some toughness. He had several positive plays in the run game for positive yards. He played well. Now does that mean he played perfect? Nobody got on that plane playing perfectly. That's never expected, but he did a lot. It was fantastic in the game, and he gave us a chance to win."
If the Mililani, HI, native does fix the slight mistakes he made against Cincinnati, the Sooners' offense shouldn't have a hard time getting into the endzone against Iowa State this weekend.
Even in a win, the Cyclones are coming off their worst defensive performance of the season, allowing 27 points to an Oklahoma State squad that couldn't muster more than one score against South Alabama. Cowboys' quarterback Alan Bowman threw for 278 yards and two touchdowns in Oklahoma State's loss to ISU.
Bowman was the first QB this season to record more than 165 passing yards against Iowa State's defense. After watching Bowman find success downfield against the Cyclones, however, it would not be surprising to see Gabriel and company have similar success against Matt Campbell's defense.
"Every game's different," Gabriel said. "Every play is a play within itself. Being able to stay present and find ways to create completions and then create positives."
The Sooners will meet Iowa State at 6 p.m. CT on Saturday, Sept. 30 in Gaylord-Family Memorial Stadium.
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