Baker Mayfield (6) scrambles to avoid a Texas defender during Saturday's game. Mayfield threw a long touchdown pass in the final minutes to help the Sooners rally to a victory. (Courtesy/Associated Press)
DALLAS — I was going to start off this column with a parody of the Humpty Dumpty nursery rhyme, but to my colleague Kyle Vrska’s liking, Baker Mayfield prevented such a cringe-worthy idea from hitting the press.
However, it probably wouldn’t have been as cringey as Oklahoma’s offense performance in the second half.
For the second-straight week, the Oklahoma offense stalled in the second half, and if it weren’t for the heroics of the Heisman hopeful, the Sooners (5-1, 2-1 Big 12) would’ve left Cotton Bowl Stadium in Dallas with yet another head-scratching loss, this time to Texas.
Despite his own struggles, Mayfield made a play when it mattered the most, finding a wide-open Mark Andrews for a 54-yard touchdown to give OU a 29-24 lead with 6:53 remaining in the ballgame.
Mayfield finished 302 yards and two touchdowns on 17-of-27 passing. He also threw his first interception of the season.
That score was the only touchdown the Sooners managed in the latter quarters, much like the Iowa State game last week. They tacked on a field goal this time, though, making their performance a tad more respectable depending on what you consider good football.
OU has tallied only 16 points in the second halves of the past two games — an embarrassing number by typical Sooner standards.
Although OU somehow survived Texas’ furious 24-9 run, problems have been mounting since the Ohio State win on Sept. 9. The question is why.
The Sooners looked like world beaters after the win in Columbus, Ohio, and though that contest was just more than a month ago, that team looks to be long gone at this point. What happened?
Is it complacency, or have other teams simply figured out the formula to slowing down the once-potent offensive machine?
Perhaps the team is more focused on its (slim) chances to make the College Football Playoff, but even that doesn’t make sense if Mayfield was telling the truth following the game.
“For us, it’s a singular focus,” Mayfield said. “The thought of the College Football Playoff is not what’s running through your head right there. It’s about doing your job and winning that game.”
Maybe OU fans would be more comfortable with the lackluster outings if the offense was somehow kidnapped by an alien spaceship, and the players on the field are mere clones with a lifespan matching the length of a half of football.
I’m being facetious, of course. It is obviously too soon to tell, but one thing is certain — this team isn’t what we thought it was.
Maybe the Longhorns (3-3, 2-1) and the Cyclones deserve more credit than I’m giving them, though I hesitate to consider that just yet.
It’s quite the perplexing topic to wrap my head around, but Texas coach Tom Herman had a simple explanation for his team’s success in the second half — it wanted it more.
“I’m extremely proud of the effort, the enthusiasm, the belief and the fortitude of our guys,” Herman said. “Extremely proud of our defense to hold one of if the not the best offenses in the country to three field goals.
“An offense like that, with the best player in the country at quarterback, they’re going to make plays. But our defense continued to go out and battle and hold them to field goals.”
That’s another problem — field goals.
OU jumped out to a quick 20-0 lead, and though that probably looked impressive to some, it could’ve and probably should’ve been 28-0.
Of the three field goals the Sooners made throughout the game, two were taken inside the Texas 20-yard line. Much like last week, OU squandered multiple opportunities to put the hammer down and finish the opponent quickly, settling for three points instead of six.
“There was ups and downs and everything in between for us — we started off great offensively,” Mayfield said. “Yeah, we could have finished better on a lot of our drives. Too many field goals for us — we’ll take care of that.”
Suddenly, that 20-point advantage dwindled to 13 and then to 10 before halftime. The trend continued in the second half until the Longhorns eventually completed the comeback and took a 24-23 lead with 8:01 to play.
“Playing well early is a big thing — we’re doing that really well,” OU coach Lincoln Riley said. “We’ve got to do a better job maintaining that and stepping on their throats when we get the chance to.
“The most disappointing thing was just having to settle for all those field goals. We were getting down there. Give Texas credit — they did a good job defensively in those areas.”
Another major reason for the Sooners’ offensive struggles was their inability to convert on third downs. OU finished 5-of-15 on plays of that variety — 3-of-8 in the second half.
As a result, Austin Seibert had to punt four times during the Texas rally.
Yes, the Sooners finished with 518 yards of offense, but most of that came in the opening half when the offense had a pulse. They mustered only 176 yards (!!) in the most crucial part of the game, 34 percent of which came on that game-winning touchdown play.
Regardless, if OU doesn’t figure something out quickly, this season will end in disappointment.
If the Sooners want to improve and rise up the rankings, they need to develop a killer instinct — an insatiable hunger to crush opponents.
This thirst for victory isn't an unnatural desire. Deep within the core of every football player lies the honed instinct to dominate their enemies.
Right now, OU doesn't have that.
The Sooners seemingly try to defeat their enemies with bare-minimum effort and sheer name power, and it simply doesn't work.
If OU isn't willing to assert its strength to retain its champion distinction, Iowa State won't be the only team to get the best of it. The Sooners still have Kansas State, Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, TCU and West Virginia on deck — by far the meat of the schedule.
None of those teams will hesitate to knock the defending conference champs from their throne, stomp on their crown and crush their national title hopes.
Which means we might bear witness to a new king of the Big 12 for the first time since 2014.