Fanrun SEC Roadtrip Recap: John Mateer Sucks, Arch Manning Shows Up In Red River Beatdown
Image: Sarah Phillips/The Oklahoman
By Aidan Sidoti
John Mateer just threw another interception while I was typing this.
Okay, not literally, but no Oklahoma fan would be shocked.
The Sooner quarterback, who was 17 days removed from thumb surgery, looked like a guy who needed 17 more.
No touchdowns, three picks, five sacks, and blood-soaked pants that screamed “get this guy the fuck out of the game.”
Yet, Oklahoma held a 6-0 lead in the second quarter and went into halftime up 6-3.
It felt like another one of those games where Texas was sleepwalking and OU might just steal it with a quarterback who barely had a thumb.
Then, the second half started, and the Sooners completely imploded.
Not a single point the rest of the way.
The offense stalled, sputtered, and collapsed like the Texas student I saw who got a little too mouthy with an OU fan much larger than him.
Hope he’s alright.
Meanwhile, Arch Manning finally showed up.
Nothing heroic, no panicking, just a clean game from the QB the media ripped to shreds all week.
He threw for 166 yards and a touchdown, didn’t turn the ball over, and only got sacked once.
The Texas offensive line finally gave Arch time to throw, and the New Orleans native capitalized, finishing the game 21-for-27.
The moment that broke the game open?
Ryan Niblett’s 75-yard punt return in the fourth quarter that resulted in me getting a cold beer shower from the very excited man behind me.
It was hotter than hell inside the Cotton Bowl, so I wasn’t complaining.
That made it 20-6 for Texas, and sent Sooner fans sprinting for the exits like it was a fire drill.
Shoutout to the State Fair, I got my Fletcher’s Corny Dog and fried butter (the cinnamon sugar on top was a game-changer).
The fried Coke?
Couldn’t find it.
Devastating.
I walked around that damn fair for 3 hours looking for that booth and came up empty.
All in all, the river runs burnt orange again this year, and if Arch keeps playing mistake-free– and the Longhorn O-line keeps giving him time to throw the rock, the Horns could find themselves back in the SEC conversation.
