Oklahoma routs TCU in Big 12 Championship Game: 3 takeaways

The Oklahoma Sooners are the champions of the Big 12 after defeating TCU and this is what it means for Baker Mayfield and company.

Oklahoma raced out to a quick 17-0 lead in the first quarter to effectively put away any chance of TCU pulling off the upset in the Big 12 Championship Game. The Sooners led the Horned Frogs get back into it in the second quarter as they took a 24-17 lead into the break, but poured it on in the decisive third quarter en route to the 41-17 win. Oklahoma previously beat TCU by 18 in October.

The win clinches a spot in the College Football Playoff and their seed will be revealed during Sunday afternoon’s Selection Show on ESPN. The game also presented a few important takeaways we learned about this team and what it means for the Heisman and the playoff seeding.

Don’t sleep on the Oklahoma defense

The offense has been the source for the headlines and highlights for Oklahoma this year. Rightfully so as we’ll get to in a second when assessing Baker Mayfield’s Heisman hopes. Lincoln Riley has proven up to the task of succeeding Bob Stoops as the head coach but don’t sleep on the defense in the playoff. The old adage of “defense wins championships” has been around for decades for a reason. Offense sells tickets but it’s the defense that has to show up for Oklahoma to win the national championship. Against TCU, the Sooner defense held the Horned Frogs to 317 total yards and only 83 on the ground for a 3.5 yards per carry average. They also forced two turnovers. Oklahoma will need that type of effort no matter who they match up with in the playoff

Baker Mayfield clinched the Heisman Trophy

I think the Heisman race was over for the better part of the last five-six weeks, but there is zero chance he won’t join Billy Sims, Jason White Sam Bradford as Heisman winners from Oklahoma. Mayfield entered the game leading the nation in passer rating and was first or second in most every other passing metric.

He added four more touchdown passes on 15-of-23 passing for 243 yards. Mayfield also showed off his wheels on a 54-yard scamper and had 65 yards rushing for the game. After being a finalist the previous two years and coming up short, Mayfield will finally be able to take the stage and deliver a speech that should be one for the ages next Saturday from the Downtown Athletic Club in New York City.

Sooners make case for No. 1

I thought Oklahoma was going to be No. 2 in the College Football Playoff rankings when they were revealed on Tuesday. They came in at No. 3 behind Clemson and Auburn, but after the one-sided fashion they took care of TCU in the Big 12 Championship Game, they have a chance to be No. 1 in the rankings on Sunday afternoon. This isn’t a slight on Clemson or Auburn, who play later today in their conference championship games, rather a testament to the level of play this team has exhibited for the last several weeks.

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Oklahoma is the hottest offense in the country that can hurt a defense in so many ways and gives defensive backs nightmares because they’re living on an island for 60 minutes. If Clemson loses to Miami or even wins by seven points or less, I think the door is open for Oklahoma to pass them by. Flashier offenses always get the benefit of the doubt compared to dominant defenses like Clemson has. In the case of passing Auburn, if the Tigers lose to Georgia, that’s that. But if Auburn beats Georgia and wins the SEC, I don’t think it’s a guarantee that the two-loss Tigers keep the No. 2 spot. Oklahoma’s win was just so impressive in every phase of the game that it could be the difference in moving all the way up to No. 1