NORMAN — Alex Grinch admits his initial reaction was one of disgust.
“Why did it break? How could we let that happen?” Oklahoma’s defensive coordinator said he thought as Texas Tech’s SaRodorick Thompson burst into open space in Saturday’s second quarter and looked almost sure to finish with a 60-yard touchdown run.
But Oklahoma sophomore safety Delarrin Turner-Yell turned on the jets and chased down Thompson at the 2-yard line.
The Sooners, already with a three-possession lead at that point, went on to blow out the Red Raiders 55-16 on Owen Field.
While the game's outcome was never in doubt, Turner-Yell’s chase down, and the defensive stop that followed, were just the latest example that Oklahoma’s defense is improved in its first season under Grinch.