Oklahoma Football: 4 Takeaways from loss to Iowa State

Oklahoma football saw their College Football Playoff hopes marred by a stunning home loss. Here’s what we learned from a shocking upset at the hands of Iowa State in Week 6.

Iowa State entered Saturday with the monumental task of winning on the road against No. 3 Oklahoma. The Cyclones had yet to beat a Power-5 team, but they’d given Iowa and Texas a run for their money so far.

The Sooners had played a few close games, but even with a scare from the win-less Baylor Bears, they’d held serve at the top of the Big 12. Oklahoma entered this game as the favorite to win the Big 12 and maybe more. With a huge non-conference win under their belt, the Sooners looked to be a real contender for the College Football Playoff.

That dream is on life support after a loss to Iowa State on Saturday. Here are three things we learned from the Sooners’ loss to the Cyclones in Week 6.

4. Bob Stoops, we miss you

Oklahoma is 4-1. Still, it’s time to ask whether or not the Sooners were a byproduct of Bob Stoops’ coaching prowess. Replacing Baker Mayfield next year will be a challenge, as will next week’s Red River Rivalry game with Texas. Lincoln Riley had answered every challenge up until Saturday, even if it hasn’t been in dominant fashion. The loss to Iowa State however, is inexplicable.

There aren’t very many proven championship-caliber coaches in college football. In fact, only four active coaches (Nick Saban, Urban Meyer, Jimbo Fisher and Dabo Swinney) have won a National Championship.

3. Iowa State might be okay without Jacob Park

On the eve of the Cyclones biggest game of the season the news came out that Iowa State starting quarterback Jacob Park would not play against Oklahoma in Week 6. Not only was Park ruled out for Saturday due to “undisclosed medical issues”, there is no time table set for his return.

Park was the heart and soul of this Iowa State team and the rest of the quarterbacks on their roster had a combined one attempted pass this season entering Week 6. Kyle Kempt drew the start. A road game in Norman was going to be incredibly challenging with a full complement of players. Losing Park was a big blow, but you could hardly tell on Saturday.

Kempt led an Iowa State touchdown drive to cap off the third quarter. A two-point conversion pass from Kept to star receiver Allen Lazard tied the game, 24-24. ISU wasn’t able to hang on, but Kempt’s 18-for-24 for 343 yards and three touchdown performance was extremely encouraging. Of course, it helps when you have Allen Lazard doing things like this:

The Cyclones were picked to finish near the bottom of the Big 12 this season. While they lack the depth of teams like Oklahoma, Texas and even Kansas State, ISU has proven they have taken a step forward from last season. That step is largely dependent on the offense, led by Park. With Park sidelined, it looks like Kempt might be able to keep the Clones relevant, and that’s a big statement in itself.

2. Baker Mayfield is an elite college quarterback

If you’ve checked out any of the latest mock drafts there are plenty of quarterbacks projected to come off the board in the first round. The demand is high and the supply is a bit lacking. Names like Sam Darnold, Josh Rose, Lamar Jackson and even Mason Rudolph seem to be fairly safe bets to hear their names called on day one. But Baker Mayfield is conspicuously missing from most first round projections.

The critiques have been varied, but the consensus is that Mayfield just doesn’t have the tools to make it at the next level. He’s “too small” (6-foot-1), he relies too much on his receivers making big plays and doesn’t have to make difficult reads. Playing behind the best offensive line in the nation has left him relatively untested against pressure in the pocket. He seems a bit more like Johnny Manziel than Marcus Mariota.

But the Oklahoma Sooners don’t care. As Mayfield’s draft stock is continued to be questioned, the senior quarterback just keeps posting ridiculous numbers. Entering OU’s matchup with Iowa State, Mayfield led the Big 12 in completion percentage (75.2), yards per attempt (13.2) and interceptions thrown (zero).

On Saturday Mayfield kept those numbers crisp, even in defeat. He posted 306 yards passing and two touchdowns through the air with 57 yards rushing and a touchdown on the ground. Sooner fans don’t care what NFL Draft pundits think. Even in defeat, Mayfield is pretty darn good.

1. The Big-12 might play themselves out of the Playoff

Oklahoma and Oklahoma State were picked to finish head and shoulders ahead of the rest of the Big 12. Whether it was Mayfield or Mason Rudolph one of the passers from the state of Oklahoma was destined to lead his team to a Big 12 Title and hopefully more. Bedlam has long since been circled on the calendar and people were talking about a rematch between those two teams as early as Week 3.

Now, both of those squads have already been handed their first loss. The Cowboys lost to TCU and Oklahoma dropped Saturday’s contest to ISU. That leaves TCU as the only undefeated team left in the conference, and they still have to play Oklahoma, at least once.

At this point it looks like the chance of TCU making it through a full Big 12 slate without a loss are slim to none. If the Horned Frogs do lose, that puts this conference in trouble. The “what-if” scenarios are going to be run over and over again for the next two months, but the outcome is still bleak, no matter how you slice it.

Next: Latest 2018 NFL Mock Draft entering Week 6

This win was huge for Iowa State. No player on their roster was alive the last time the Cyclones beat the Sooners. However, it likely means the Big 12 will be watching the Playoff from home, again. That’s not what this conference was hoping for to start the season.