The top-ranked Oklahoma Sooners defeated the Tulsa Golden Hurricane 47-14 in front of a record-setting crowd of 85,260 Saturday night at Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.
Sophomore running back Brennan Clay touched the ball on the first four plays – one pass, three runs – of the game. Clay, who finished the day with 14 carries for 64 yards and one touchdown, was part of a rushing attack that compiled 248 yards and five touchdowns.
Senior kicker Jimmy Stevens scored the first points of the 2011 season, nailing a 28-yard field goal on the Sooners’ second drive with 7:53 to go in the first quarter.
After a slow start, however, the Sooners’ offense got into a rhythm as junior quarterback Landry Jones connected with senior wide receiver Ryan Broyles for a 15-yard reception, which led to the first of three consecutive touchdown runs by junior running back Dominique Whaley.
Whaley, a walk-on who transferred from Langston University, had an impressive debut for the crimson and cream clad Sooners, carrying the ball 18 times for 131 yards and four touchdowns, including a 32-yard run for a touchdown late in the third quarter.
"Maybe he should have [started at Langston],” OU head football coach Bob Stoops said. “He has really done a great job. He's strong. He has great vision. He was great taking care of the football. Dom [Dominique], he's quiet and easy going. He was the first one to get a game ball tonight."
The Sooners’ final scoring drive of the first half ended in a 10-yard throw and catch from Jones to Broyles in the corner of the end zone to make it 30-0 with 4:23 left.
Jones ended up completing 35 of 47 passes for 375 yards and one touchdown.
Broyles, on the other hand, tied the school record for catches in a quarter with seven receptions, including a 50-yard reception late in the first quarter.
The All-American wideout finished the day one catch shy of the school record for receptions in a game, catching 14 passes for 158 yards and one touchdown.
"I sometimes find myself taking it [Ryan Broyles' ability] for granted,” Stoops said. “The guy is just so sure-handed and elusive. It is good to see him jump out and have a huge night right off the bat. We actually missed him on a couple spots where we had him on a few plays."
Leading 30-7 at the half, the Sooners started the third quarter on defense.
Despite allowing 400 yards of total offense, the Sooners’ defense was relatively solid against the Golden Hurricane, which averaged 41.4 points a game last season.
Junior defensive backs Javon Harris and Demontre Hurst each forced a fumble while senior defensive end Frank Alexander arguably had the best game of the bunch, notching six tackles, one sack and two pass breakups. Alexander also recorded his first career interception in the second quarter for a 27-yard return on a pass broken up by senior defensive back Jamell Fleming.
However, the Sooners’ defense has plenty of room to improve, having surrendered three separate passing plays of 69, 56 and 44 yards.
"They are correctable,” OU defensive coordinator Brent Venerables said. “We have got to put pressure on them, but we got a lot of big hits and three turnovers. For the first three quarters we played very controlled. I am very pleased with our guys. There were some three and outs that were good as well as some timely turnovers.
“We will go back and see how we did, but he [G.J. Kinne] is a tough quarterback to get consistent on. We let him get outside on one of the blitzes where we let [Kinne] get of the contained guy one time and they were able to get a big play."
With the win, Oklahoma improved to 812-304-53 all-time, 89-22-6 in season openers and 46-9-5 in home openers.
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