Adrian Martinez, Kansas State stun the No. 6 Oklahoma Sooners 41-34

Kansas State came out in the first quarter and jumped out to a 14-0 lead. Oklahoma battled back to make it a one-score game in the second quarter, but penalties and missed throws from quarterback Dillon Gabriel prevented the Sooners from stringing together any consistent offense in the second half as the Oklahoma Sooners fell to Kansas State 41-34 on Saturday night.

The Wildcats opened the scoring with a methodical 12-play, 75-yard touchdown drive capped off by an Adrian Martinez six-yard touchdown run. Oklahoma was unable to respond in kind and the Wildcats scored again, this time in just seven plays, going 80 yards culminating in a Martinez touchdown pass to Deuce Vaughn.

Oklahoma started to gain some momentum at the end of the first half when Dillon Gabriel hit a wide-open Theo Wease for a 56-yard touchdown to make it 14-7. It seemed the defense was also starting to settle in as they forced back-to-back three and outs.

After a Kansas State punt, the Sooners then got another big play in the passing game, this time, Gabriel found Marvin Mims deep down the sideline for a 50-yard touchdown.

After the Mims touchdown, the Sooners’ offense would stall out when they crossed the 50, settling for a couple of field goals or having drives completely stall out because of pre-snap penalties.

The Sooners fell behind by 14 in the fourth quarter, but a touchdown pass to Brayden Willis brought the Sooners to within seven giving them an opportunity to stay in the game.

The defense put Kansas State in a 3rd and 16 and looked to be on the verge of getting the ball back. Then Adrian Martinez happened again.

The Wildcats went empty backfield, leaving Martinez alone in the backfield. After the Sooners rushed four, Martinez bought time in the pocket before taking off downfield and picking up 55 yards, putting Kansas state inside the 10-yard line. Two plays later, Martinez plunged into the end zone for his fourth rushing touchdown of the game.

While Oklahoma made a furious effort to come back, but there wasn’t enough time on the clock with just one time out remaining.

Story continues

The story of the game was the play of Wildcats’ quarterback Adrian Martinez who played like an entirely different quarterback than what he showed in the first three weeks of the season. He was poised and calculated, pushing the ball down the field, and punishing Oklahoma’s defense as a runner.

The Sooners’ front seven struggled to get much push from the defensive line, and tackling was an issue at the linebacker and defensive back level.

Offensively, the passing game couldn’t sustain any drives. Dillon Gabriel missed several throws, including a would-be touchdown to Drake Stoops and then a wide-open Stoops on a fourth down late in the game.

It’s back to the drawing board for the Oklahoma Sooners, who now fall to 3-1 on the season as a road trip to face the TCU Horned Frogs awaits.

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Story originally appeared on Sooners Wire