The good, the bad and the ugly of Oklahoma’s 37-17 loss to LSU

There wasn’t much to like about Oklahoma’s performance in the 37-17 loss to the LSU Tigers. It was a disappointment after what they had done to the Alabama Crimson Tide the week before. It was an unfortunate end to the season, and now the Sooners are hoping to find the answer with the offensive coordinator and get some guys healthy before the 2025 season.

As we await Oklahoma’s offensive coordinator’s decision and open the early signing period and transfer portal, here is the latest edition of “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly” from Oklahoma’s loss to LSU.

The Good: Defensive line

The Oklahoma Sooners scored their first score of the game when the defensive line applied pressure, Gracen Halton forced a fumble and R Mason Thomas then picked it up and ran into the end zone for a touchdown. The Sooners tied the game at seven and looked like they had a chance against the Tigers.

Later in the first half, Thomas recorded his ninth sack of the season when he cleanly beat left tackle, blasted Garrett Nussmeier and forced a fumble. LSU regained the ball and, remarkably, Nussmeier came back into the game later in the second quarter and had a great game.

But the defensive line played a good game. Was it the best game they had this season? No, but it was far from the biggest problem on the defensive side of the ball Saturday night. The defensive front held LSU to 3.8 yards per carry and 110 rushing yards.

Brent Venables, Todd Bates and Miguel Chavis have worked over the past few years to transform the Sooners’ defensive front into a unit that could wreak havoc in the SEC, and that’s exactly what they’re doing.

If the Sooners can convince Thomas to come back for another year, it would be huge for a defense that will be without Danny Stutsman, Billy Bowman and Ethan Downs this offseason.

Next: Things are getting worse in Oklahoma

The bad: The offense is stagnating

Like most of the 2024 season, the Sooners’ offense wasn’t very good. Things didn’t go particularly well in the loss to LSU either. They had a touchdown drive and a drive that ended in a field goal. All in the first half.

At Oklahoma, five possessions ended in a punt, one in an interception, one in a failed fourth down conversion and drives that ended the end of the first half, and one that ended the game. Only two of the Sooners 11 drives ended in points.

The running game was difficult outside of Jackson Arnold and Arnold couldn’t get the ball down the field despite completing 67% of his passes.

It was a microcosm of the 2024 season. The offense needs to get significantly better this offseason if they want to have a chance of improving on their six wins this season.

The Ugly Ones: The trick played itself

Whatever the reason, Joe Jon Finley loves a good rebound pass. The Sooners scored in almost every game in which he served as offensive coordinator. The Sooners had some success scoring a touchdown against Missouri, but for the most part it was ineffective. Saturday night against LSU, it was a risk not worth taking.

Oklahoma had a second and sixth in LSU territory. They had moved the ball 38 yards on the drive. They had three plays to get a first down and didn’t have to throw the ball five yards behind the line of scrimmage to their tight end in hopes of making the trick play. Bauer Sharp had nowhere to go with the ball as Jackson Arnold was covered on the return throw and the wide receiver was covered down the field.

It was a bad play made worse by Sharp’s attempt to throw the ball while in the grasp of an LSU defender. Simply throwing the ball in the air to no one in particular resulted in an interception that prevented the Sooners from cutting into the Tigers’ 14-point lead.

This play call essentially ended the game for the Sooners.

This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: The good, the bad and the ugly after Oklahoma’s 37-17 loss to LSU