Disastrous start leads Tulsa to 66-17 defeat against Oklahoma

Tulsa fans will always wonder what would have happened if Cardell Williams had started against No. 19 OU.

That's because the start without him was an absolute horror movie.

Spotting a good team 28 points with a third string quarterback throwing 3 interceptions in the first quarter isn't going to cut it.

The result of Roman Fuller's early struggles, combined with Williams playing well when he finally entered the game, and a defense playing against an Oklahoma offense that was clicking, was a 66-17 OU victory Saturday afternoon in front of a sellout crowd of 30,000 at H.A. Chapman Stadium.

Tulsa (1-2) started Fuller because Williams was banged up with a bruised throwing hand that he injured last week at No. 8 Washington. With Williams still not completely healthy, the plan was to play both Fuller and Williams. But since Williams was not 100 percent, he didn't get the start.

"We felt like Roman played well last week coming in, and we thought we would need both of them today," said TU coach Kevin Wilson. "We kind of felt Cardell would do better, maybe, being the second guy in."

Once it was apparent that Fuller was shell shocked after going 6 of 10 for 21 yards and 3 interceptions, Williams entered the game.

Instant adrenalin for TU resulted. Williams threw TD passes on his first 2 drives, and Tulsa only trailed 38-14 at halftime. Williams was 7 of 9 for 115 yards in the first half.

"He ignited us, came in and gave us some juice, made some plays," Wilson said of Williams.

With Tulsa getting the kickoff to start the first half, there was life for the Golden Hurricane. Perhaps they could get back in the game?

Williams picked up where he left off to start the second half, leading TU down to the OU 2-yard-line. But TU couldn't punch it in, and kicked a field goal on fourth-and-2 instead of going for it.

From that point on, the air was completely out of Tulsa's tires. OU went down and scored, and at 45-17, OU had its swagger back. And Tulsa was finished for the day.

"After that first drive in the third quarter, they just teed off up front, controlled the line of scrimmage, pushed the pocket," Wilson said.

Williams ended up being pulled for precautionary reasons after trying to make a tackle after being intercepted early in the fourth quarter. From that point on with Fuller back in, it was time to hand the ball off and get to the next game at that point.

For the game, Williams was 11 of 17 for 196 yards, with 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. He was sacked 3 times.

OU (3-0) made plays and took advantage of Tulsa's miscues. The Sooners are the better team. They just didn't need any extra help from Tulsa mistakes.

TU made OU quarterback Dillon Gabriel look like Roman Gabriel of the 1960's, as Gabriel threw for almost 197 yards in the 28-0 first quarter. After that, he wasn't as lethal, getting intercepted in the second quarter after being hit while throwing. The diving interception by Demarco Jones was of highlight reel quality.

Gabriel finished 28 of 31 for 421 yards and 5 TD's before getting pulled with a big lead. He made good throws, but mostly wasn't pressured. A lot of wide-open receivers. Jalil Farooq, Andrel Anthony, and Nic Anderson all went over 100 yards. Drake Stoops caught 2 TD passes. All of Anderson's 3 catches were TD's.

It was Gabriel's first win against TU in 3 starts. The last time he played at TU, in 2019, Tulsa prevailed 34-31.

Wilson talked about what made OU's offense click.

"Their speed on the perimeter," Wilson said. "Their quarterback is pretty good. We gave up too many easy pass plays."

Translated, Tulsa wasn't doing a good job covering receivers. Gabriel had too much time to throw. And OU's receivers were getting separation.

Devan Williams did the best job among Tulsa's receivers, catching 6 passes for 71 yards and an 18-yard touchdown. Marquis Shoulders caught 3 passes for 51 yards, including a 19-yard TD pass for Tulsa's first score. Kamdyn Benjamin caught 2 passes for 61 yards.

As for running the ball, Anthony Watkins started and ran hard, but the yardage was tough to come by. He finished with 32 yards on 15 carries. Bill Jackson led TU with 40 yards on 10 carries.

Tulsa will hope that Williams is recovered enough from his sore hand that he will start next week. Regular starter Braylon Braxton will likely not be quite yet ready.

A better start is needed when Tulsa plays at Northern Illinois next Saturday in a game that could define TU’s season. A tough road test against a team that Tulsa has the talent to beat.

But the Golden Hurricane can't afford another disastrous start like it had against the Sooners.