PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – The Oklahoma men’s golf team opened its 2021-22 season Friday in the opening round of the Carmel Cup, firing a 1-under 359 in a six-count-five scoring format. The seventh-ranked Sooners sit in sixth place after 18 holes, just four shots behind day one leaders Georgia at the tournament hosted annually at the Pebble Beach Golf Links.

NORMAN — The University of Oklahoma soccer team collected its second straight double overtime victory Friday night, beating Kansas City 2-1 off a golden header from senior Jazzy Richards.

The Sooners survived, but it wasn’t pretty.

On a toasty Saturday afternoon, the No. 2 Oklahoma Sooners survived a mega upset bid by the Tulane Green Wave after narrowly escaping with a 40-35 season opening victory. With the win, OU extends its overall winning streak to nine games and starts the 2021 campaign, 1-0. Still, this team clearly has a lot of soul searching ahead of them.

A bad decision from Spencer Rattler resulted in an interception on the first drive of the game, but the redshirt sophomore rebounded for a respectable half. In total, it wasn’t the best showing for the Heisman hopeful, as he ultimately finished the contest completing 30 of 39 passes (76.9%) for 304 yards, one touchdown and two INTs.

It was an inauspicious start for the Sooners, who opened the game with a negative play and a turnover. Meanwhile, Tulane took advantage of the opportunity with consecutive touchdown drives to take an early 14-7 lead. Oklahoma would eventually assert its dominance, scoring 30 straight points to close the first half.

In the second half, OU looked lost once again, except this time the issues spread to both sides of the ball. The defense consistently gave up plays across the middle, and showed poor tackling effort from start to finish. On offense, Tulane smothered Rattler and company, and simply looked like the more ready, more prepared team. Shockingly enough, the Green Wave outscored the Sooners, 21-3 over the final two quarters, and if it wasn’t for a miraculous stop on fourth down, Oklahoma could have very well opened the season with a gut-wrenching loss.

The lone bright spot on Saturday for Lincoln Riley’s squad was redshirt junior placekicker Gabe Brkic showed why he’s a two-time Lou Groza Award semifinalist. On the day, the Chardon, Ohio product made four of his five field goal attempts, with three of his makes good from beyond 50 yards out.

Up next, Oklahoma welcomes the Western Carolina Catamounts to Norman on Saturday, Sept. 11. Kick-off is set for 6 p.m. CT, and the game will only be available on pay-per-view via FOX Sports.

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What will be our takeaways from this first game?

This is the final installment of three preseason roundtable sessions pertaining to the 2021 Oklahoma Sooners. After covering the offense and the defense, we enter the miscellaneous category.

I think we all know who we’re picking to win the Big 12 in 2021, but who finishes second?

Allen: TCU, but I’ve picked the Horned Frogs to finish second for five straight years now.

Stephen: Iowa State. They have the experience and the coach to do it all over again.

Seth: Kansas State, just so Lincoln Riley can even the score against Chris Klieman.

Jack: Texas. I think beating Texas twice in one season would be neat.

In an attempt to predict the future, what do you think will be your main takeaway following the season opener versus Tulane?

Allen: The Sooners will look sharp and build enough of a first-half lead to pull the starters for the second half. Even if the Green Wave put a few scores on the board late, there shouldn’t be any of the questions about “killer instinct” that dogged OU a season ago.

Stephen: Oklahoma looks the part of a national championship contender. Alex Grinch’s most complete defense yet. Oklahoma’s offense looks improved and someone will suggest Caleb Williams should be QB1 moving forward.

Seth: Defense. Defense. Defense. Specifically the D-line. I expect that group to live up to their lofty projections and put on a show from start to finish. I’m talking pass breakups, forced fumbles, multiple sacks and tackles-for-loss for multiple players. The whole nine.

Jack: Rattler impresses by distributing the rock fairly evenly amongst his targets. The defense looked solid after some busted plays in the early going. The newcomers (Mike Woods, Eric Gray, Mario Williams, Billy Bowman) stand out the most.

The current line for OU-Tulane is -31.5. Do the Sooners cover?

Allen: Tulane will sneak in the back door for a late cover.

Stephen: Oklahoma covers. I think Lincoln will want to see what he has offensively which means he won’t take the foot off the pedal.

Seth: I definitely see OU covering, and I don’t think it’ll be all that close. It would honestly shock me if the Sooners win this by only four touchdowns. I’m actually predicting the final margin to be in the neighborhood of 35-42 points.

Jack: I’ll go with an OU cover, as I think the depth of this team — particularly on defense — will keep that intact in the second half.

Which college football pundit is going to irritate you the most in 2021?

Allen: Kirk Herbstreit. He’s actually a fine analyst, but with his kids playing at Clemson, he has an obvious conflict of interest. He has basically turned into a Dabo Swinney hype man.

Stephen: Not sure I have one specific. I’ll say anyone that suggests it was Oklahoma’s decision to move to the SEC is bad for college football but fails to recognize Bowlsby’s ineptitude to keep a P5 conference together. I’ll also go with Joey Galloway since he doesn’t watch much football.

Seth: Whenever Jim Mora Jr. is on my screen, I lose brain cells. I don’t know if he’s still employed by ESPN or if he’s somewhere else, but wherever he is, I hope his mic is turned off. Also, I really, really hope Tim Brando is never assigned to call another OU game for as long as I shall live.

Jack: Tommy Tuberville is now in the US Senate, so my first choice is gone.

Does OU win Natty No. 8 this year?

Allen: Yes.

Stephen: Yes.

Seth: Yes.

Jack: At the risk of allowing myself to be hurt again… yes.

BONUS: What’s your favorite thing about New Orleans? (Note: Can answer even if you haven’t been)

Allen: I love everything about New Orleans, but my favorite thing is Port of Call on Esplanade.

Stephen: I’ve never been to New Orleans, but will be making my first trip there next spring. I plan on asking Trevor Knight where he got whatever voodoo magic he used against Alabama. Also heard beignets are good.

Seth: I’ve not had the pleasure of visiting NOLA, but I do fancy Cajun cuisine. So whenever I do make the trip, my favorite part will probably be the food.

Jack: The food is superb (shout-out to the Court of Two Sisters). Live music at places like Tipitinas is an experience to put on the bucket list. The to-go drink situation is obviously nice, but you’ll actually be able to do that on game day in Norman this year. The historical significance of the town is endless. It’s really difficult to pick one thing.

DOUBLE BONUS: Once OU joins the SEC, which fan base within the conference will you despise the most?

Allen: Alabama. It’s more the guys in the stands with pom-poms… er, “shakers.”

Stephen: Hard to pick between Texas A&M and LSU. I’ll go with A&M though.

Seth: During football season – probably Auburn fans. During softball season – definitely ‘Bama fans.

Jack: Arkansas fans are already under the impression that OU is their rival, so this is just going to add fuel to that inferiority complex. I love Hog fans, but my word… their delusion knows no bounds.

Head on down to the comments section to give us your thoughts on the game and everything else throughout the day!

With Hurricane Ida displacing most of Southeast Louisiana and moving this weekend’s contest to Norman, the Oklahoma Sooners and Tulane Green Wave are set for an unconventional event in which Willie Fritz’s program will officially be the home team. The fact that this is even taking place is a testament to each of these two athletic departments, and they each deserve an emphatic tip of the cap for their efforts.

Before we go any further, I wanted to share a link to The Greater New Orleans Foundation’s Hurricane Ida Relief Fund, which is the charity Tulane endorses.

Time & TV: Saturday, Sept. 4 at 11 a.m. CT on ABV

Commentary: Dave Pasch, Dusty Dvoracek and Tom Luginbill

Streaming: WatchESPN

Line: Oklahoma -31.5 (as of Friday at 11:30 p.m. CT)

O/U: 68

OU-Tulane Preview Podcast with Fear the Wave

Gambling Picks from Allen & the Skinny

2021 Game Day Polices & Procedures

Lincoln Riley Week One Presser Notes

OU Depth Chart Against Tulane

Five Big Questions: Offense

Five Big Questions: Defense

My Week 1 Gambling Picks

Oklahoma -31.5 vs. Tulana

Wisconsin -5.5 vs. Penn State

Kansas State -3.5 vs. Stanford

Miami +19.5 vs. Alabama in Atlanta

Indiana +4 at Iowa

West Virginia -2.5 at Maryland

Texas -9.0 vs. Louisiana

Houston -1.5 vs. Texas Tech at NRG Stadium

Clemson -3 vs. Georgia in Charlotte

Notre Dame -7 at Florida State

No Hand Grenades on Bourbon Street. No beers at The Boot. No live music on Frenchmen Street. No burgers at Port of Call. No bad decisions (or at least fewer bad decisions). No bachelor party in New Orleans for yours truly.

We might not be enjoying the opening of football season down in New Orleans, but I’m as excited for this game as any in quite some time. OU fans are getting a true “Party at the Palace” for the first time since November of 2019, and I’m sure as hell not taking that for granted.

Happy game day, Sooner Nation!