NIck Saban doesn't believe Oklahoma is as bad as people think
· Yahoo Sports
The Oklahoma Sooners desperately need to change the narrative around the program this season. The Sooners entered the season ranked No. 10 and had College Football Playoff aspirations after making the CFP last season.
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Oklahoma ranked No. 12 in returning production at 65%. That included quarterback John Mateer, running backs Xavier Robinson and Tory Blaylock, wide receiver Isaiah Sategna, four of its five starting offensive linemen and several key pieces from one of the best defenses in college football.
Despite returning all of that production, the Sooners are 2-2 and have one of the worst offenses in college football. Oklahoma ranks No. 119 in total offense, No. 80 in passing, and No. 130 in rushing. The biggest issue might be the turnovers, as the Sooners rank No. 128 in turnovers lost this season.
Legendary former head coach Nick Saban said turnovers are why people are so down on the Sooners.
"Oklahoma is really not as bad as you think," Saban said. "I know they're struggling on the offensive line. They haven't been able to run the ball. If they don't turn the ball over four times, they gave Georgia basically 24 points in the game; that would be a game. It would be a competitive game. They still have enough firepower. They still have enough weapons. If they would just eliminate their bad plays. I used to tell players that all of the time. 'You are creating bad plays for yourself because you are trying to make big plays so badly that you are messing it up.'"
Saban's assessment gives Oklahoma a clear path forward: take better care of the football and stop letting costly mistakes derail promising drives. The Sooners still have talent on both sides of the ball, and if they can turn that potential into more consistent execution, they have a chance to look much more like the team many expected entering the season.
There may not be a better opportunity to prove that than Saturday's Red River Rivalry against the No. 1 Texas Longhorns. A cleaner performance against the Longhorns would give Oklahoma a chance to silence some of the criticism, restore confidence and build momentum for the rest of the season. The Sooners don't need to fix everything at once, but eliminating the mistakes that have held them back could be the first step toward turning their season around.
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This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: NIck Saban doesn't believe Oklahoma is as bad as people think