Three Takeaways From No. 24 Oklahoma's Ugly Win Over New Mexico

NORMAN — Oklahoma needed a response on Saturday.

But the No. 24 Sooners’ performance against New Mexico won’t inspire much confidence.

The offensive struggles at The Big House proved to be more than a fluke, as OU ended up in a fistfight against the Lobos.

John Mateer’s pair of touchdown passes were overshadowed by his two interceptions and his unit’s misfires, which allowed the visitors to hang in the game despite their own struggles against Brent Venables’ defense.

Still, defensive tackle David Stone needed to stuff a fourth-and-2 run with 3:02 left in the game to preserve a 14-6 victory.

Here are three takeaways from the performance:

The offense is a major issue

Oklahoma Sooners, John Mateer — Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer looks to the sideline before a snap in the first half against New Mexico. | Carson Field / Sooners on SI

After a week full of criticism, Oklahoma’s offense needed a good start to get fans back onside.

Instead, Mateer locked in on Isaiah Sategna and threw an interception on the third offensive snap of the game.

The offense followed that up by moving the chains once on the second drive, then it promptly stalled out to draw some boos.

Those only got louder as the first half went on.

Mateer threw another interception in the second quarter — this one leading to a New Mexico field goal — and everyone bungled the final drive of the half to usher in the loudest protests of the night.

OU finished the first half with just 42 rushing yards, averaging 2.2 yards per attempt, again putting the pressure on Mateer’s right arm.

Thankfully for the Sooners, Mateer’s hesitation when Sategna broke open in the third quarter wasn’t punished, as he was still able to hit the streaking receiver for a 53-yard touchdown to extend the lead to 14-6.

Oklahoma Sooners, Isaiah Sategna — Oklahoma receiver Isaiah Sategna crosses the goal line for a touchdown against New Mexico. | Carson Field / Sooners on SI

That touchdown came with 8:05 left in the third quarter. Unfortunately, the Sooners moved the chains just one more time before the final possession, when they converted on third-and-3 to help ice the game.

Sategna's 9-yard grab truly brought the night to an end, but there was no curtain call for the team before fans started to file out.

Poor game management pops up again

The end of the first half was puzzling.

Oklahoma started the drive on its own 26 with one timeout, and New Mexico had its full set of potential stoppages.

The Sooners got rolling with a couple of quick passes, and a 12-yard completion to Rocky Beers set OU up with a fresh set of downs on New Mexico’s 32-yard line.

That’s where things fell apart.

Offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle called two straight run plays, one of which got nine yards and the other was stuffed at the line. With no timeouts, OU was forced to spike the ball and settle for a field goal attempt.

How Arbuckle arrived at the idea to call two rushing plays with the clock still rolling is one question. Why Venables allowed his offense to execute that plan was equally concerning.

The problem was compounded because Tate Sandell missed the 41-yard attempt. Boos rained down on the Sooners as they trotted to the locker room in protest of the product on display in the first half.

Fair or not, all of the pressure is on the defense

Oklahoma Sooners, David Stone — Oklahoma defensive tackle David Stone celebrates after a sack against New Mexico. | Carson Field / Sooners on SI

Oklahoma fans are tired of asking the defense to play perfect to win games.

That might be the story in 2026, however.

For the most part, the defense cleaned up the tackling issues that plagued it in the first half of the first two games in Saturday’s opening two quarters.

There was a bad play here or there — notably Reggie Powers’ missed tackle on fourth-and-1 in the third quarter — but he erased that disappointment with a 13-yard sack two plays later.

Safety Peyton Bowen had the chance at a pair of potential pick-sixes in the first half, which both ended as incompletions.

Had Bowen housed those opportunities early, Oklahoma may not have needed to make a fourth-down stop leading by eight late in the fourth quarter.

Those didn’t end up costing the Sooners the win on Saturday night, but the plays will have to be made next weekend in Athens if OU hopes to stand any chance of upsetting No. 2 Georgia.

It’s not unfamiliar territory for Venables’ defense, but it looks like it will be the case as Oklahoma opens up conference play next week.

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