Auburn cheerleader takes out Oklahoma player as teams run onto field
As Oklahoma ran onto the field for Saturday’s game against Auburn, the Tigers’ cheerleaders were still performing their routine. One of them was wrapping up – and he took out a Sooners player in the process.
The collision occurred as Auburn was running out of its tunnel. Toward the other end zone, the cheerleader flipped directly into an Oklahoma player, knocking both to the ground. They both got up afterward and appeared to be alright.
It was a scary moment ahead of one of the most intriguing SEC games of Saturday’s slate. Both Oklahoma and Auburn are dealing with quarterback controversies, which add to the pressure around the matchup.
Oklahoma struck first on the opening drive. Michael Hawkins – starting in place of Jackson Arnold – took a 48-yard rush to the house to give the Sooners a 7-0 lead with 12:30 to go in the quarter. However, Auburn was marching on its ensuing possession, but came up short at the goal line on a direct snap to Sam Jackson.
Oklahoma and Auburn are both dealing with questions at the quarterback spot. The Sooners benched Arnold last week in the loss to Tennessee while the Tigers again turned to Payton Thorne after taking a look at Hank Brown against Arkansas a week ago.
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The pressure appears to be rising around both programs, and the quarterback movement adds fuel to the fire. But it’s also leading to a conversation about how much patience coaches should have before making a chance.
“The lack of patience at the quarterback position, some of it justified,” ESPN’s Rece Davis said on “The Paul Finebaum Show” Tuesday. “That is something I’ve noticed about quarterback changes and coaches being candid about reasoning, which I’m not against at all — I think with the professionalization of college football particularly, you get to a point where if a guy is maybe not performing to the best of his capabilities or he’s not performing quite at the level you had hoped, you’re going to say so.
“We’ve seen that Oklahoma, we’ve seen it at Auburn. And I think in the past maybe guys were a little more reluctant to do so. But that’s been something I’ve noticed from a grand scheme in terms of how coaches are dealing with the success or failure or frustrations of their teams.”