OU vs. West Virginia football: Five takeaways from Sooners' loss to Mountaineers

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — OU’s woes continued Saturday.

The Sooners struggled offensively outside of another monster day from Eric Gray, the defense showed some promise early and then faded at key times, and ultimately West Virginia kicked a field goal on the final play to beat the Sooners 23-20 at Milan Puskar Stadium.

It was the Sooners’ first-ever loss in Morgantown.

OU goes into the final two games of the season still needing another win to secure bowl eligibility after dropping their second consecutive and fifth in the last seven games.

Here are five takeaways from the Sooners’ loss:

More:'He played inspired': OU struggles to contain Garrett Greene in loss to West Virginia

Offense wastes chances

It’s easy to point to the Sooners’ offensive struggles in the second half — OU had just 135 yards after halftime — but it was much more than just that.

Wide receiver Marvin Mims dropped a couple of first-half passes that could’ve gone for long gains, and once again, critical penalties stymied the Sooners.

OU finished with 426 yards — just 190 through the air.

The weather certainly played somewhat of a factor — it was pouring for much of the first half and again late. But the Sooners have struggled plenty even in optimal weather conditions.

More:OU football: 'Frustrating' offensive performance puts Sooners in tough spot

Sooners’ DL finally gets it going, but fades

OU’s defensive line was a strength early in the season during the Sooners’ strong start.

It hadn’t made much of an impact since.

But Saturday, Brent Venables and defensive coordinator Ted Roof brought pressure from the start, and no group benefited more than the defensive front.

On West Virginia’s first drive of the game, the Mountaineers went for it on fourth-and-3 from the OU 46.

Defensive end Reggie Grimes’ rush forced West Virginia quarterback J.T. Daniels to get rid of the ball quicker than he would’ve liked, helping lead to Danny Stutsman’s interception.

Ethan Downs eventually recorded his first sack since Sept. 17 against Nebraska, Grimes teams with Stutsman on a sack, and the OU defensive line eventually combined for six tackles for loss. Downs finished with three.

Five different Sooners’ defensive linemen were in on at least one tackle for loss.

But when Garrett Greene replaced Daniels as West Virginia’s quarterback, the impact of the defensive front lessened as the Mountaineers relied mostly on the run.

More:Tramel: 'Oklahoma beat Oklahoma,' Venables said, and that's a believable script

Wild flurry to end first half

When OU’s offense got the ball at their own 4 with 2:08 remaining in the first half, there was no reason to think the Sooners would move quickly down the field.

Jeff Lebby’s offense spent much of the first half sputtering, with just three points to show from their first six drives.

But the ensuing drive kicked off a wild flurry to end the half.

First, Dillon Gabriel hit Marvin Mims for a 67-yard completion to get OU within striking distance.

Eric Gray followed with a 12-yard touchdown run to put the Sooners up 10-0 and with the way the Mountaineers’ offense was performing, it appeared OU was well in control.

But then Sam James returned the kickoff to the West Virginia 47, and Mountaineers’ backup quarterback Garrett Greene jumpstarted their offense.

With a completion and two Greene runs, the Mountaineers were on the board for the first time.

But the wackiness wasn’t done.

West Virginia holder Kolten McGee couldn’t handle the snap, and kicker Casey Legg froze after picking up the ball from his feet.

Freshman Robert Spears-Jennings delivered a hard hit to Legg’s back, jarring the ball to the turf where it was scooped up by Billy Bowman and returned for a defensive two-point conversion that eventually sent the game into halftime with OU leading 12-6.

It was the Sooners’ first defensive conversion since Pat Field’s blocked PAT return against Nebraska last season.

More:OU football report card: Sooners fail to stop West Virginia backup quarterback Garrett Greene

Injuries pile up

The Sooners’ offensive line has been their best overall unit so far, but that group took a big hit Saturday.

Center Andrew Raym left the game in the third quarter with an apparent shoulder injury, though he remained on the sidelines with his pads on.

Raym was replaced by senior Robert Congel. Congel had primarily played guard this season, though has starting experience at center and has been Raym’s backup.

The Sooners’ secondary was decimated by injuries.

Even before the game began, they were without Jaden Davis and Key Lawrence, who had combined four 13 starts this season.

By the time the first half ended, OU was also without Justin Broiles.

Broiles, who has played all over the place on the back end of the Sooners’ defense suffered an apparent injury to his left leg late in the second quarter and had to be helped off the field.

Broiles remained on the sidelines, without a helmet and moving gingerly on his left leg, after playing what might’ve been his final game in an OU uniform.

Billy Bowman returned to the starting lineup at strong safety in Lawrence’s place, while C.J. Coldon started for Davis.

OU freshman tight end Jason Llewellyn was banged up on a special teams play late in the first half.

More:OU football suffers first loss at West Virginia in program history & more key stats

Eric Gray reaches milestone

Running back Eric Gray has been a stalwart for the Sooners this season, making a big leap after his mostly disappointing 2021 first season in Norman.

Late in the second quarter, Gray’s 13-yard carry put him over the 1,000-yard mark for the season.

Before this season, Gray hadn’t rushed for more than 772 yards.

Gray finished with 211 yards and a touchdown for his fourth consecutive 100-yard game and seventh of the season.

Since the start of the 2014 season, the Sooners have 11 individual seasons of at least 1,000 rushing yards. No other team in the Football Bowl Subdivision has more.

More:OU football: What to know about the Oklahoma Sooners' 2022 schedule, roster and more

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This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU vs. West Virginia football: Mountaineers beat Sooners on late FG