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Oklahoma

Kyler Murray praises Dillon Gabriel after Red River Rivalry win

On3-Social-Profile_GRAYby:On3 Staff Report•10/07/23
Syndication: The Oklahoman
Oklahoma's Jackson Arnold (10) and Dillon Gabriel (8) warm up before the college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners and the Southern Methodist University Mustangs at the Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Okla., Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023.

Oklahoma pulled off an impressive 34-30 win over rival Texas on Saturday, with quarterback Dillon Gabriel turning in one of his best performances of the season.

It was a strong enough showing for Gabriel to earn some praise from one of the program greats.

“Big time bro, big time..” former Oklahoma quarterback and 2018 Heisman Trophy winner Kyler Murray tweeted after the game.

Murray would know a thing or two about how hard it is to win a Red River Rivalry game. He piloted the Sooners in two of them in 2017 and 2018, winning 29-24 in 2017 before falling 48-45 in a shootout during his Heisman Trophy winning season.

For his part, Gabriel was superb against the Longhorns.

He went 23-of-38 passing for 285 yards and a touchdown, without throwing an interception. He also ran 14 times for 113 yards and a touchdown.

“This is what OU football is all about,” Gabriel told ESPN’s Holly Rowe after the win. “This is why I came here, this game. Lots of respect to Texas. They played their butt off … At the end of the day, making plays.”

Dillon Gabriel, Oklahoma engineer comeback

Gabriel and the offense embraced chaos in the game against Texas. After Oklahoma took a 7-0 lead, the Longhorns’ special teams got in on the fun and scored on a punt block.

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However, Oklahoma took a 20-17 lead into the halftime locker room. Gabriel engineered a drive in the third quarter to get the Sooners ahead 27-17 and everyone was feeling good.

Texas chipped away and tied things up. Eventually, the Longhorns had a lead after a late field goal.

But that’s where Dillon Gabriel stepped it up for Oklahoma and led a five-play, 75-yard touchdown drive in just 1:02 of game time.

“Embrace the chaos,” head coach Brent Venables told Rowe on the ABC broadcast at halftime. “We talked about that a lot. No pressure is a privilege. Chaos is what this game is all about, always has been.”

Gabriel proved he could manage it quite effectively.

“(They) told me to do whatever it takes,” Gabriel said. “I’m all about OU football, I love this place, this is what college football is all about, let’s go. I love my teammates, I love my team. That’s always what I’ve been about. God is good. God is good.”

On3’s Nick Kosko also contributed to this report.