Gracen Halton brought down Stacy Sneed in the end zone for a safety in the final two minutes to help No. 15 Oklahoma eke out a 16-12 win over Houston on Saturday in Norman, Okla.
The Cougars got the ball back with 1:46 remaining at their own 5 with a chance to drive for the win. But on first down, Halton cut right through the Houston offensive line and brought down Sneed for the safety.
The play was the last in a string of big defensive stops by the Sooners (2-0).
After Houston (0-2) cut the deficit to 14-12 early in the second half, Oklahoma’s defense came up with four consecutive stops to put the game away.
The Cougars got one more chance, getting the ball back at their own 13 with 29 seconds remaining, but couldn’t get the ball into Oklahoma territory before time ran out.
Houston outgained the Sooners 318-249.
The 249 yards were Oklahoma’s fewest since 2022.
Jackson Arnold threw for 174 yards and two touchdowns for the Sooners, who ran for just 75 yards.
The Cougars’ Donovan Smith was 24-of-28 passing for 260 yards and a touchdown.
After scoring two touchdowns on its first four drives — one with an extremely short field — Oklahoma’s offense struggled.
The Sooners came up empty on their next five drives, with four punts and an interception.
After Houston scored to pull within 14-12, Oklahoma was moving the ball downfield early in the third, picking up three first downs and moving into Houston territory.
But Arnold underthrew a deep ball to Deion Burks and Jeremiah Wilson came up with the interception.
On the first drive of the third quarter, just after an Oklahoma interception was wiped out by a pass interference call, the Cougars came up big.
Smith hit Joseph Manjack IV for a 44-yard touchdown to pull Houston with two.
A two-point conversion attempt failed.
After forcing six turnovers in their season-opening win, it didn’t take long for the Sooners to come up with a takeaway against Houston.
Oklahoma’s punt on the game’s first drive bounced in front of and past Mekhi Mews. Neither Mews nor the Sooners’ Jacobe Johnson reacted as the ball looked to be going out of bounds, but it remained in bounds and Oklahoma’s Lewis Carter dove on it as officials signaled the turnover.
The play stood after a review, and on the first play of the next drive, Arnold hit Brenen Thompson for a 10-yard touchdown to put the Sooners ahead.
–Field Level Media
