No. 12 Oklahoma’s late-game magic lifts it over No. 3 Texas in wild Red River Rivalry dustup

DALLAS – Oklahoma quarterback Dillon Gabriel hit Nic Anderson for the game-winning, three-yard touchdown pass with 15 seconds remaining as the No. 12 Sooners made the plays they needed in a final, decisive drive in a 34-30 win over No. 3 Texas on Saturday.

[Join Inside Texas today and get 50 PERCENT off an annual subscription!]

Gabriel finished with 398 total yards, passing for 285 and a touchdown and rushing for 113 more and another score, and was unflappable in Oklahoma’s final drive, moving the Sooners (6-0, 3-0 Big 12) 75 yards in just five plays to secure the win.

Texas had a last-gasp possession but quarterback Quinn Ewers’ desperation pass into the end zone as time expired fell to the turf, setting off a celebration on the Oklahoma side of the stadium.

Ewers finished with 346 yards and a touchdown passing but also was intercepted twice, fumbled once and endured five sacks. Still, it looked like the Longhorns (5-1, 2-1 Big 12) had done enough to pull out a victory when they took a short-lived 30-27 lead on a 47-yard field goal from Bert Auburn with 1:17 to play.

But then Gabriel and the Sooners produced their game winning drive in stunningly easy fashion to win a battle of unbeaten teams that were playing for the final time in the regular season as members of the Big 12 Conference.

Texas had plenty of highlights. Jonathon Brooks reeled off 129 yards on 22 carries to record his fourth straight 100-plus yard game. Jordan Whittington racked up a career-high 10 catches for 113 yards and Xavier Worthy hauled in eight of Ewers’ throws for 108 yards.

In the end it was the turnovers, nine penalties for 70 yards and the failure to score and stop Oklahoma from scoring in the red zone that doomed the Longhorns.

The Sooners took advantage of Texas’s early case of nerves and an interception by Gentry Williams on the game’s second snap to move smartly to a Gabriel nine-yard TD run and a 7-0 lead at the 13:11 mark of the first quarter.

The Longhorns pushed for the equalizer, with Whittington running 20 yards on a fake punt to convert one fourth down and short yardage running back (and former high school quarterback) Savion Red passing 25 yards to Gunnar Helm to move the chains on a second. That drive ended with a second interception of Ewers, this one on a pass tipped by Ja’Tavion Sanders near the goal line and intercepted by the Sooners’ Kendel Dolby at the OU 10.

It was Ewers’ first game with two interceptions since the loss to Oklahoma State in week 8 of last season.

Texas held on three snaps, forcing a Sooners punt that was blocked in the end zone by Kitan Crawford and picked up for a touchdown by Malik Muhammed for the tying score.

Oklahoma retook the lead on a 27-yard field goal by Zach Schmit with 14:14 to play in the second quarter at the end of a 78-yard, 13-play drive. The possession was kept alive by a running-into-the punter penalty and highlighted by a 43-yard pass from Gabriel to Jalil Farooq.

The Longhorns responded with a 22-yard TD pass from Ewers to Helm, again on fourth down, to take their first lead of the game, 14-10, with 9:27 to play until halftime. Oklahoma countered with a one-yard Tawee Walker scoring run to cap a 75-yard march and retake the advantage at 17-14 with 5:23 remaining before the break.

Texas moved to the OU 5 before settling for a 24-yard FG by Bert Auburn with 1:53 to play in the half that tied the game at 17. That gave the Sooners enough time produce a drive that ended in a 26-yard field goal by Schmit and a 20-17 lead at intermission.

Oklahoma added to its lead on the opening possession of the third quarter, again driving 75 yards to a one-yard touchdown run by Walker with 10:21 to play. The Longhorns jabbed back with a 45-yard Auburn field goal to pull to within 27-20 with 1:53 to play in the third.

The Longhorns were denied on four snaps from the OU 1 early in the fourth quarter, when three runs by Brooks and a fourth-down pass to Worthy could not get the ball into the end zone.

Oklahoma immediately came off the goal line with a 12-yard run by Walker, kept its march alive with a 12-yard scramble by Gabriel on third down and moved into Longhorns’ territory when Gabriel got loose again for a 44-yard run up the middle. The drive ended at the UT 27, from where Schmit was short on a 45-yard field goal attempt with 7:55 to play.

That gave the Longhorns some momentum and they used it well. Brooks got loose around left end for a 29-yard touchdown run that tied the game at 27 with 6:10 to play, setting the table for the furious finish.

[Sign up NOW for the Inside Texas newsletter for Texas Longhorns daily updates and breaking news in your inbox!]

The Longhorns will have 13 days to lick their wounds before traveling to Houston to face the Cougars on Oct. 21.