Three Quick Takeaways From Oklahoma's Win Over Kent State

NORMAN — Brent Venables’ Oklahoma Sooners got the job done on Saturday, but it wasn’t pretty.

It took OU’s offense an entire half to wake up, as the Sooners turned a 7-3 halftime advantage into a 33-3 victory over the Kent State Golden Flashes at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.

The defense stood tall for the No. 7-ranked Sooners, however, buying the OU offense plenty of time to get rolling.

A 24-point third quarter got the offense back on track, and the Sooners eventually delivered the expected blowout.

Here are three takeaways from Venables’ second career win:

Marvin Mims is the Engine

Oklahoma’s offense misfired for essentially the entire first half, finally getting into gear on the final drive before halftime.

Before going up 7-3, a 32-yard pass to Marvin Mims was really the only good play Jeff Lebby’s offense had. So it should come as no shock that Dillon Gabriel finally found some rhythm honing in on Mims.

Gabriel connected with Mims on three straight plays to punch in the first score, finishing off Oklahoma’s first touchdown drive with a 36-yard pass to the junior playmaker.

Lebby didn’t stop there, dialing up another pair of passes to Mims to start the second half resulting in a 7-yard completion and then a pass interference call deep down the field.

While the Sooners still try to round their offensive line into shape, Mims needs to be the go-to guy to keep the chains moving.

Mims added a 58-yard touchdown grab in the third quarter, and he finished with seven catches for 163 yards and two touchdowns, all career highs the junior.

Offensive Line Takes Step Back

Playing again without Wanya Morris, who is listed as Oklahoma’s starting right tackle, the Sooners made a minor swap up front.

Anton Harrison and Tyler Guyton flipped sides at tackle, returning Harrison back to left tackle after manning the right tackle spot against UTEP.

Regardless of the changes, the Sooners struggled to get anything going in the first half.

OU ended the first half with just seven rushing yards, the least in a half since last year’s contest in Lawrence where the Sooners also mustered seven yards.

Gabriel also ate a pair of sacks in the first half, matching the total from last week’s season opener against UTEP.

Morris is expected to return next week as the Sooners make their first road trek of the season, but there are plenty of issues to sort through up front before OU takes the field against Nebraska.

Defense Carries the Weight

While the offense had an identity crisis in the first half, Oklahoma’s defense held strong.

Once again on the short end of a lopsided time of possession battle, Venables’ defense held the Flashes to just three points.

The unit was by no means dominant in the first half, giving up 11 first downs and 154 yards of offense, but they responded drive after drive to keep Kent State out of the end zone.

Linebacker Danny Stutsman once again starred for the OU defense, finishing the contest with 12 tackles, one quarterback sack and four tackles for loss, including a stop on fourth-and-1 to stall a Kent State drive in the red zone.

Safety Billy Bowman also had a nice game, forcing a fumble to go along with his 11 total tackles agains the Flashes.

The Sooner defense stood tall playing without starting safety Key Lawrence, as Justin Broiles slid in and added another 11 tackles alongside Bowman.

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