Oklahoma's special teams were special against Alabama

The Oklahoma Sooners got a monumental win over Alabama last week, as Brent Venables’ team went into Tuscaloosa and beat the Crimson Tide by two points. OU won primarily on the shoulders of a strong defense, but there was another unit that stepped up in the win.

As much as OU’s offense has improved from last year, it’s still not at the level it needs to be to win against great teams if the defense doesn’t play excellent football. Luckily, the Sooners have gotten great performances defensively in the last two wins.

With the game hanging in the balance in Bryant-Denny Stadium, it was Oklahoma’s special teams that stepped up and outplayed Bama to help secure a pivotal win. While not all of them see the field each week, the eight-man group of kickers Tate Sandell, Austin Welch, Liam Evans and Preston Tarpley, kicker/punter Grayson Miller, punter Jacob Ulrich, and long snappers Ben Anderson and Seth Freeman, along with special teams coordinator Doug Deakin, deserve credit for the improvements they’ve made this season.

Sandell has turned into one of the best kickers in the country, and he was a star again versus the Tide. He made all three of his field goal attempts, including a 52-yard bomb and the 24-yarder that was the difference in the game. Conversely, Alabama missed their only field goal attempt, as defensive lineman Taylor Wein nicked the ball to end the first half. The whole starting field goal unit of Sandell, Anderson and Ulrich at holder has been lights out in SEC play.

Miller has been really good at punter for the Sooners, and he averaged 46.7 yards per punt against Bama. His final punt backed the Tide up deep in their own territory at their own six, forcing a long field for what would be their final drive of the game. With the length of the field to go, the Crimson Tide couldn’t move into scoring position against Venables’ defense.

However, it wasn’t just the specialists that had an impact on special teams. Wide receiver Isaiah Sategna III had a 42-yard punt return that set the Sooners up for the first of Sandell’s three made field goals. On a punt return by Alabama’s Ryan Williams, defensive back Jaydan Hardy punched the ball out, and linebacker Sammy Omosigho wrestled the ball away at the bottom of the pile for a huge turnover. That play led to OU’s only offensive touchdown of the game, a great scoring run by quarterback John Mateer.

Those players like Wein, Sategna, Hardy and Omosigho that are working so hard to improve and develop at their normal positions, but also play special teams are real unsung heroes for this team, and it's likely that it would've been much harder for the Sooners to beat the Tide had one of those plays not go OU's way.

Oklahoma had the edge in special teams all afternoon long against Alabama, and it’s an interesting comparison when you realize that Deakin’s predecessor in the role at OU, Jay Nunez, is now the special teams coordinator for the Crimson Tide. OU’s special teams have improved steadily under Deakin’s watch, and they played maybe their best special teams game of the Venables era on Saturday.

The Sooners are really good defensively, and that defense could be enough to lead the way to the College Football Playoff, but Oklahoma knows they need more out of the offense. Oklahoma isn’t bad offensively, and it’s a way better unit than last year’s offense was, but they’ve got to execute better and help out that strong defense by playing complementary football against the best of the best. Luckily for the Sooners, it was the special teams unit rising to the challenge against Alabama, on what was a rough day for the offense. Deakin’s group gave OU’s stingy defense enough help, mixed with a couple of timely offensive plays, to go get the upset win over the Crimson Tide.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Aaron on X@Aaron_Gelvin.

This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: The Sooners got a boost on special teams in a special road win