Oklahoma Sooners contact Alabama football again on Saturday.
Fueled by three Alabama With turnovers and 10 points gifted by the Crimson Tide, the 10th-ranked Sooners beat the fourth-ranked Tide 23-21 at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa. Oklahoma has won all but one of the six meetings between the two programs since 2002.
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The Sooners won the contest because Alabama's Ty Simpson intercepted Eli Bowen and the Sooners quarterback returned it 87 yards for a pick-six touchdown and a 10-0 lead. And since Ryan Williams couldn't keep the ball on the punt, he decided to return it from the Alabama 16-yard line.
And also because Conor Talty partially blocked a 36-yard field goal attempt before halftime. Talty had words for his teammate, despite the fact that there was absolutely no confidence that his shot would be good even with a perfect snap, as evidenced by the sophomore's 11-for-15 mark in previous attempts this season.
Alabama (8-2, 6-1) had 406 yards of offense to Oklahoma's 212, but the Sooners (8-2, 4-2) celebrated the win in Tuscaloosa by taking advantage of the Crimson Tide's mistakes – and making virtually none of their own.
As a result, Alabama will now have to beat Auburn in two weeks at Jordan-Hare Stadium to secure a spot in the College Football Playoff. (What could go wrong there?)
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After Saturday's game, Oklahoma coach Brent Venables met with journalists to discuss his team's victory over the Crimson Tide. Here's what the Sooners coach had to say about the new win over Alabama.
Brent Venables Reflects on Oklahoma Sooners' Upset Win over Alabama Football
“Wow. What a hell of a football game. First of all, I would just like to congratulate Coach DeBoer and his team, their players. No one really deserved to lose this football game. It was a well-played, hard-fought battle. Incredibly grateful and proud. just brotherhood and faith in each other. There's something special about this.
“These guys, again, if I said it once, I've said it a hundred times: they love to work. They like to compete. They like each other and I think it shows. I don't think you'll find a way to win our fourth real away game the way we did against the quality of opposition we did unless you have a lot of ingredients that maybe aren't on the stat sheet. But we have the right people in all groups.”
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Why Brent Venables felt Oklahoma had the advantage against Alabama in the second half
“I thought our second half was much more complimentary than maybe the first half. There were some good things in the first half though (but) not that sloppy. But man, did we talk about the battle for losses and what does an eye test say about physical strength? And I just really like the way we threw punches and put our hands on people. The pile continued to fall towards the Sooners and we got a lot of balls. One of them was called back for interference and we blocked a field goal right before the half, Taylor Wayne got a strip sack and again, just some things as a byproduct.”
What Oklahoma's Brent Venables said about Bryant-Denny Stadium after the upset win over Alabama
“This place had the longest winning streak in the country and hadn't lost an SEC home game since maybe 2019.” And (this is) our highest-rated away win since 2017. So it's really special.”
Venables added that he thought Oklahoma dominated the game in “hidden yardage” and plays that don't show up on the stat sheet.
“On our special teams, we thought maybe we had an opportunity to really stand out, and that turned out to be true. There were no final numbers, but it felt like we were dominating in hidden yardage. We got some key returns and (wide receiver Isaiah Sateña) did a great job of taking possession of the football and not letting the ball go to the ground.”
“Our defense, our cover units. Man, we had some tackles for turnovers on our coverage units. Just really impressive. I'm really impressed with how this team has continued to respond time and time again. Grayson Miller, he made it to… Ray Guy (list of finalists for the award)? He played like one tonight. Man, he was just amazing. And then there's Tate Sandell, the school record for most consecutive field goals set at age 21. Just a big event.
“No offense, I thought Alabama from a ball movement (perspective) made some explosive plays in the first half and so the numbers were really lopsided, just like Tennessee. But the Sooners were up by three going into halftime, and I really believe turnovers were a big part of that. Taylor Wayne played a big role in this.
“(Alabama) was 5 of 13 on third down. We were 3 of 13… but turnovers played a big role and I think it's about starting the game and then defending.”
Brent Venables talks about Oklahoma's halftime adjustments against Alabama
“I think we really got into a good rhythm in the second half. We've played a little tougher with our coverage and changed some of our coverages, and it's just the will of the players.
“At the end of the day, I wasn’t covering for anyone. None of our employees fought with anyone. Nobody defended himself.
“So we're 8-2 and we're proud again of the effort it took to get to 8-2, but we have some really good, quality opponents sitting in front of us, starting with Missouri. So we’ll celebrate for a few hours, get back to Norman and get back to business.”
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What did Oklahoma do well in its win over Alabama? Brent Venables describes what he saw
“For me, we really attacked. We forced, you know, some big losses. Sometimes when it's said the way it's said, it's like, “Oh, well, if that hadn't happened” – well, it happened, number one. And number two, we forced them with a lot of pressure up front, guys running towards the ball, grabbing the football. There were a few times we didn't get the ball, but if you pay attention and really lift your hood and look at it. Man, our guys attacked the football. They were relentless.
“There is no more important indicator in football than turnovers, and of course we said that this would be the indicator that would matter in the statistics table. And then the eye check from a fitness standpoint: you know the fittest team is going to win. There should be no doubt in anyone's mind who watched the game.”
“I thought Alabama was very physical. I thought they were hitting back to the body, but in the end we were able to do a little more than them. So I’m really proud of our guys.”
Brent Venables takes issue with reporter's comment that Oklahoma didn't win 'nicely'
“For whom is this not beautiful? What does it mean? Some people like it. I like it. But yeah, I think that's a reflection that you see in our league. I don't know what happened in the league today, but we're playing with some really good people. (be) part of it. Having to overcome bad things will be part of it, and the team that can figure that out will win.
“So I don't mind winning that way. No apologies. I’m proud of our guys for their fight.”
Watch Venables' full post-game press conference below.
2025 Alabama Football Schedule
All beginning times are central.
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September 6: vs. UL Monroe (W, 73-0)
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Oct. 4: vs. Vanderbilt (V, 30-14)
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October 11: at Missouri (B, 27–24)
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Oct. 18: vs. Tennessee (B, 37-20)
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Oct. 25: at South Carolina (B, 29–22)
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November 8: vs. LSU (B, 20-9)
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November 15: vs. Oklahoma (L, 23-21)
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Nov. 22 – Eastern Illinois, 1 p.m., ESPN+
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This article originally appeared on Roll Tide Wire: Oklahoma HC Brent Venables speaks out after win over Alabama
