Oklahoma defense can’t stop anyone but Sooners path to the Playoff

The offense has been great all year, but the Oklahoma defense will be what keeps the Sooners out of the College Football Playoff.

Oklahoma made a change at defensive coordinator after losing to Texas, but replacing Mark Stoops with Ruffin McNeill has not produced the results the Sooners need.

As expected, it is a shootout for the 113th Bedlam Series and despite being a double-digit favorite over Oklahoma State, the Sooners defense is making it clear what will be the primary reason they don’t make the College Football Playoff.

As great as Kyler Murray, Cee Dee Lamb and the Oklahoma offense has been this year, it’s the defense that has been a constant weak spot and could be what keeps the Sooners from winning the Big 12 and out of a return to the playoff.

Oklahoma allowed 28 points in the first half and 358 total yards, 304 of them coming through the air where the Sooner secondary was routinely and repeatedly beat. That’s not what you’d expect from a team trying to get style points and impress the playoff committee.

McNeil might be hesitant to dial up blitz pressure and risk putting his young secondary on an island because of the fear of giving up another big play, but he has to try something. They are playing super conservative giving Oklahoma State quarterback Taylor Cornelius a lot of time to pick holes in the short zone and dish it to his receivers.

In order for the Sooners to make a statement, the defense can not keep putting Murray in this position to bail them out every time just because he wears a Superman cape and is capable of doing so. It cost the Sooners in their lone loss to Texas when the defense couldn’t stop Sam Ehlinger and there wasn’t enough time for Murray to pull off another superhero scoring drive.

The same issues prevented Oklahoma from playing for a national title last year when Baker Mayfield won the Heisman. Mayfield was able to lead the Sooners to 48 points against Georgia but the defense allowed 54 and it seems as if history could be repeating itself this season for another dismal performance from the Sooners defense.