Oklahoma Sooners Offensive Players to Watch vs. Red Raiders
The Texas Tech Red Raiders will close the regular season out by hosting conference rival Oklahoma. The Sooners had lost two games straight before getting back in the win column last weekend against Oklahoma State. Both Tech and OU are 6-5 on the year, so this should be a tightly contested battles as the two programs jockey for position in the bowl selection race.
Despite their middle-of-the-pack record, Oklahoma's 22nd best in the country according to total offense and this unit's got some seriously talented skill players on that side of the ball. To win this game, Texas Tech's defense will have to put forth one of its best performances of the year and contain the Sooners.
Here are the Sooners that the Red Raiders need to stop on Saturday.
RB Eric Gray
2022 Stats: 185 car/ 1,203 yds/ 11 TDs, 31 rec/ 219 yds
Few running backs in college football carry a heavier workload than Gray. The senior's carried the ball 20 times or more in each of Oklahoma's last five games and has eclipsed the 1,200-yard mark in 2022, adding 11 rushing touchdowns. It's safe to say that the Sooners offense will feature a heavy dose of the 211-pound ball carrier when they visit Lubbock, Texas.
As impressive as his durability is, its his reliability that makes him such an important piece to Oklahoma's offense. In 216 touches this year (185 rush/31 rec), Gray has only fumbled once, so don't expect him to cough up the rock in this one. He's averaging over six yards per carry and gains positive ground just about every time he has the ball. Texas Tech will need to get to Gray in the backfield and swarm him with multiple tacklers to make sure he goes down.
QB Dillon Gabriel
2022 Stats: 188-for-303/ 2,476 yds/ 18 TDs/ 5 INTs, 68 car/ 279 yds/ 5 TDs
Gabriel made his way to Oklahoma from UCF and really hasn't missed a beat. The junior looks like his old self after batting off the injury bug earlier this year. He's on his way to a 2,500-yard season and will likely add a couple more passing touchdowns before the year wraps up. The diminutive, but dynamic, 5-foot-11 gunslinger is creative with the ball in his hands and the Red Raiders will need to stick to their assignments until the final whistle blows.
Although he's only thrown five picks all year, four of those have come in Oklahoma's last three games. Tech may be able to find a weakness on film that the Sooners' previous opponents were able to exploit to create those turnovers. Winning that turnover battle will be the key for this defense on Saturday.
WR Marvin Mims
2022 Stats: 47 rec/ 844 yds/ 4 TDs
It's easy to see that Mims is Gabriel's favorite target. The junior route runner leads Oklahoma with 47 catches this year, which is almost double the amount that the Sooners' second-leading pass catcher has (Jalil Farooq, 29 rec). Mims is quick off the line, and has the speed to run past defenders. Tech's secondary will have to be aware of his location at all times.
While he racks up yardage, Mims has only scored four times this year. It'll be crucial for the Red Raiders to keep him out of the end zone in this one. If Mims starts getting open, he's still plenty capable of punishing Tech's defense for touchdowns.
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