NORMAN — Scrambling ahead of the line of scrimmage before retreating back with several precise cuts, Kyler Murray dared defenders to chase him on the Sooners’ opening drive.
Showing shades of Reggie Bush, the Oklahoma quarterback reversed field in a jiffy and made several Florida Atlantic players look silly diving at his elusive dance moves. Murray gained 15 yards on the first down scramble after covering at least 35 yards due to his crafty east-west running.
“I was back deep watching him (Murray),” said OU wide receiver Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown, who caught six passes for 133 yards and a touchdown. “I was like, ‘Oh, oh, oh.’ Brother’s got moves, and they can’t bring him down. It was fun to watch.”
“We do a lot of live ball so I trust him (Murray),” echoed Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley. “You’ve got to have players who can make those plays sometimes even when they aren’t there.”
With the Owls so fixated on Murray, OU running back Rodney Anderson, who had five carries for 102 yards and two touchdowns, made FAU pay on the very next play, when the Sooners’ Heisman candidate galloped up the gut for a 30-yard touchdown run.
Whenever Murray made a big play in Saturday’s season opener, his teammates responded with a big play of their own on the ensuing play as No. 7 Oklahoma obliterated Florida Atlantic, 63-14.
Murray, who tacked on 23 rushing yards and kept several plays alive with his feet, completed each of his first six passes and finished with 9-of-11 for 209 yards, two touchdowns and an impressive 301.4 passer rating in one half of football.
“It’s something I feel like I bring to the game,” Murray said of his running ability. “I’m definitely blessed to run around and make plays like that with my feet.”
The No. 9 MLB draft pick who will play for the Oakland Athletics next year also showed off his arm when he rolled out to the left for a play action pass and fired the ball in a pinpoint spiral 58 yards through the air. Murray’s deep ball hit Brown in stride for a 65-yard touchdown pass to give OU a 42-0 lead heading into halftime.
“Kyler has always had a good sense of knowing, ‘I’m athletic and can run, but I know I have to be able to throw the ball, too,’” said Riley, who watched his high-powered air raid offense replace three unanimous All-Americans and NFL draft picks. “He’s got a good overall demeanor about it.”
On Murray’s second quarter jump ball throw 29 yards downfield, Marquise “Hollywood” Brown, the redshirt junior transfer, showed just how much K1 trusts his wide receivers as Brown adjusted mid-air to make a stellar catch.
“When you play quarterback your whole life, you’re kind of taught to sit in the pocket and throw the ball,” Murray said. “For me, it’s evolved since my freshman year. I can sit there (in the pocket) because I trust the guys up front with our great O-line and our guys downfield who are going to get open. I don’t think you’re going to guard them for very long. So my job is to sit in there and deliver the ball.”
Murray and Brown’s big connection set up Trey Sermon’s 17-yard touchdown run on the next play to give the Sooners a 28-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Heisman Trophy winner Baker Mayfield made big play after big play last season, and the Sooners fed off that. When Murray made Baker-like plays with his feet and his arm on Saturday, his teammates followed suit.
“Our guys played well around Kyler,” Riley said. “He was very efficient, threw the ball well, commanded the group and played very much within himself.”
Murray also had his short passing game working when he hit tight end Lee Morris on a check down curl. Morris did the rest as he boxed out a defender for the catch, shed a tackle and broke loose for 75-yard touchdown, thanks to a great block by CeeDee Lamb to spring him the final 20 yards and across the pylon.
“Lee was in game-breaker mode,” Brown said. “He really showed up big today. That play showed he can be another playmaker for us.”
Oklahoma may boast an even more lethal rushing attack this season as shown by Murray’s speed option pitch to Rodney Anderson, who turned another gear down the sideline and took it 65 yards to the house.
Murray also showed he can scramble with just as much finesse as Mayfield when he dropped back to pass in the second quarter only to find no one open.
No problem.
Murray took a broken play with no options and turned it into a 12-yard first down run with ease.
“Kyler will certainly run if it’s there,” Riley said. “But one of the most dangerous things a quarterback can do is extend plays and still keep the throw alive. He did that a couple of times because he’s comfortable with what we’re doing.”
Will Grier of West Virginia may be the Big 12’s best quarterback but the dual-threat Murray will give him a run for his money for Big 12 Player of the Year this fall.
The sellout crimson and crème crowd of 86,402 erupted after the first of nine Sooner touchdowns.
Despite the Sooners’ beloved Baker gone, the OU faithful know the program is in good hands under the thriving Kyler Murray.
Seeing firsthand how devastated Mayfield was after the Sooners’ heartbreaking double overtime Rose Bowl loss to Georgia exactly eight months ago, Murray — who said he has the “most confidence in myself” — is eager to deliver OU back to the College Football Playoff.
“There’s unfinished business,” Murray said. “We’ve come up short the past three years, and for me, it’s my goal to win a national championship.”
solson@swoknews.com