Ryan AberThe Oklahoman
NORMAN —Jackson Arnold had a strong home debut as OU’s starting quarterback, and the Sooners’ defense had a strong first game.
Arnold threw four touchdown passes to lead the 16th-ranked Sooners to a 51-3 win over Temple on Friday night at Gaylord Family —Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.
The Sooners have won eight consecutive season openers and 14 of their last 15.
Things weren’t all roses, though, for OU.
The offense struggled on third down and the Sooners’ suffered a couple of key injuries.
Up next for the Sooners: A 6:45 p.m. game next Saturday night at home against Houston.
Here are five takeaways from the Sooners’ win:
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Jackson Arnold looks strong leading the offense
OU’s offense wasn’t at its best, but that doesn’t mean Arnold wasn’t solid against the Owls.
Arnold finished 17 of 25 for 141 yards and four touchdowns before giving way to freshman Michael Hawkins Jr. on OU's first possession of the fourth quarter with OU leading 37-3.
Most of Arnold’s throws were short, with only one completed for more than 15 yards.
But Arnold looked mostly in command of the offense, and also had 11 carries for 34 yards, with 15 of those coming on one second-quarter run.
Seth Littrell’s offense didn’t appear to open the playbook much, though.
Arnold’s one long completion came on his first pass of the game, as he hit Jalil Farooq for a 47-yard gain to set up OU’s first touchdown —a 14-yarder to Bauer Sharp.
The Sooners missed on their first 11 third-down tries, not converting one until Taylor Tatum's touchdown run with just more than three minutes remaining.
Their only other second-half touchdown outside of Tatum's came on Jaren Kanak's 21-yard fumble return after a Temple fumbled punt.
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Zac Alley’s defense shines
OU’s defense will face much stiffer challenges this season, but it was a strong opener for Zac Alley’s defense.
The Sooners forced four turnovers —all in the first half —leading to 20 of OU’s 34 first-half points.
Perhaps the biggest highlight of the turnovers came when cheetah Kendel Dolby first broke up Forrest Brock’s pass to Dante Wright and then batted it back into Kani Walker’s arms late in the first quarter.
The Sooners’ defensive line, expected to be a strength of the defense, came through in a big way as well with forced fumbles from Gracen Halton and Ethan Downs.
Halton had 1.5 of the Sooners’ six sacks, with Ashton Sanders teaming up with Halton for one of them and Markus Strong adding two in the final moments.
OU had six fumble recoveries all of last season and had four Friday.
They added another turnover late on Jaydan Hardy's interception.
The Sooners forced six turnovers for the first time since the 2003 OU-Texas matchup.
Temple finished with 197 yards of total offense.
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Sooners find different ways to use Deion Burks
It’s no surprise Deion Burks played a major role in the passing game.
Burks was Jackson Arnold’s favorite target, especially in the red zone, with Burks hauling in three first-half touchdown passes.
Burks’ three-touchdown game was the first of his career.
He caught two touchdowns in last season’s Purdue season opener against Fresno State.
None of Burks’ six catches went for more than 14 yards. He finished with 36 receiving yards.
Burks was also used several times in the running game, with three carries for 14 yards.
Burks had only seven career rushing attempts coming into the game, with his only multi-carry game coming against Indiana in the final Boilermakers game last season.
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Jalil Farooq, Branson Hickman injured
OU’s wide receiver group was banged up coming into the game, with receiver Nic Anderson out and Andrel Anthony still working at less than 100%.
But the Sooners’ took another hit at the position early, when Jalil Farooq left the game with what the radio broadcast described as a “left leg injury.”
Farooq did not return.
He had a 47-yard catch on the Sooners’ first possession of the game.
While OU’s two-deep was available on the offensive line, the group clearly wasn’t at 100% coming into the game.
The Sooners lost center Branson Hickman early to an apparent ankle injury, forcing yet another shuffle up front.
OU moved Geirean Hatchett, who started at left guard, to center after Hickman’s injury while Spencer Brown came into the game.
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Kicking game shines
Tyler Keltner might’ve solidified his spot as OU’s kicker.
The Florida State transfer —who spent his first four seasons at East Tennessee State —drilled a 50-yard field goal late in the first quarter to put the Sooners up 17-0.
It was the Sooners’ first 50-yard field goal since Gabe Brkic’s 53-yarder against Texas Tech in 2021.
Keltner later hit field goals of 42 and 28 yards.
Keltner and Zach Schmit, last season’s kicker, were in a position battle throughout preseason camp for the spot.
They were listed as co-starters at kicker on the depth chart, with Schmit listed as the kickoff specialist.
Schmit handled the kickoff duties, but after going 15 of 21 on field goals last season, Keltner might’ve gone a long way toward solidifying the spot moving forward.
