Sooners OC Ben Arbuckle is learning from his mistakes, and that should make the rest of the SEC worried

Ben Arbuckle changed the run game and it worked

Several weeks ago, I wrote a piece about Tory Blaylock taking over as the RB1 after the Sooners' 42-3 win over Temple. In it, I talked about what I wanted Oklahoma's run game to look like moving forward in 2025.

"The Sooners’ rushing attack isn’t perfect yet. I would still like for them to get more vertical in the run game and rely on more gap and “duo” runs up front to help the offensive line create more push and create defined lanes for Oklahoma’s backs, letting backs like Blaylock use their explosiveness to get downfield quickly instead of asking them to read in the backfield. None of their backs have that kind of vision or processing just yet. However, Blaylock is comfortably their most promising option no matter what concepts they decide to run."

Up until last week, the Sooners hadn't listened to me. Up until South Carolina, 50.3% of Oklahoma's total runs were inside and outside zone. Heading into the week, the Sooners weren't averaging even a measly four yards per carry combined on those runs. Meanwhile, they averaged 5.7 yards per carry on counter, 4.8 on power, and a whopping 6.2 on man ("duo") runs. Duo was just 8.2% of their total run calls, despite it being a clear strength of the team and adjustment they needed to make. Oklahoma averaged .260 EPA/Play on duo runs. For comparison, .260 EPA/Rush would rank 4th in the nation.

However, Arbuckle changed his tune this week against South Carolina, and it paid off in a big way. Oklahoma comfortably had their best looking game on the ground against Power 4 competition, the offensive line looked substantially better, and Blaylock was named SEC Freshman of the Week.

Against South Carolina, Oklahoma's most called run play was duo, and it was the only run they put up double digit carries with. They averaged an astounding 7.5 yards per carry on it, picked up three first downs on duo runs, and averaged 4.6 yards before contact on all of those runs. Those numbers are an astounding success for a unit that has been this troubled all year.

If Oklahoma can replicate that success, they have a strong matchup opportunity this week to do just that. Ole Miss sits 129th in the country in rushing success allowed and 125th in EPA/Rush. Given the Rebels' high-flying offense, the Sooners might want to rely on their newfound ground game to play ball control and keep Ole Miss off the field. If they can do that, they unlock a completely new side of this team and one that could spell trouble for the rest of the SEC.