Boomer: Brooks 2 late TDs, No. 6 Oklahoma beats Texas 55-48

Oklahoma quarterback Spencer Rattler (7) is sacked by Texas defensive lineman Alfred Collins (95) during the first half of an NCAA college football game at the Cotton Bowl, Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Jeffrey McWhorter)

By Stephen Hawkins

AP Sports Writer

DALLAS Kennedy Brooks ran for 217 yards and two go-ahead touchdowns in the fourth quarter, including a 33-yard romp with 3 seconds left, and sixth-ranked Oklahoma beat No. 21 Texas 55-48 on Saturday in the Red River rivalry that will soon move to the Southeastern Conference.

The Sooners (6-0, 3-0 Big 12), who benched starting quarterback Spencer Rattler in favor of Caleb Williams, appeared to be trying to set up for a game-ending field goal when Brooks instead broke free for a sprint to the end zone.

Oklahoma hadn’t even led until Brooks had an 18-yard score with 7:10 left that made it 48-41. His rush was the first play from scrimmage after OU tied the game and kicked off to Xavier Worthy, who had the ball stripped away by Caleb Kelly.

Worthy did have nine catches for 261 yards and two scores, and his 31-yard TD catch tied the game with 1:32 left before the winning drive by the Sooners.

Texas (4-2, 2-1) had a 14-0 lead less than two minutes into the game. The Longhorns, who had won three in a row since a loss to future SEC foe Arkansas in Week 2, had never lost when scoring at least 48 points.

The Sooners overcame a 21-point deficit, matching the second-largest comeback in program history. And when it was over, Oklahoma students who were part of the sellout crowd at 92,100-seat Cotton Bowl Stadium streamed onto the field to celebrate with their team.

Williams ran for a 66-yard score and completed 15 of 24 passes for 211 yards and two touchdowns after replacing Rattler, who had two turnovers in the first half that led to Texas touchdowns. Rattler did return to throw the tying 2-point conversion after Williams’ 52-yard TD pass to Marvin Mims with 7:25 left.

Mims had five catches for 136 yards, including his first two touchdowns of the season.

Longhorns quarterback Casey Thompson, whose father played for Oklahoma, was 20-of-34 passing for 388 yards and five touchdowns even though he banged his thumb early in the game. Bijan Robinson ran 20 times for 137 yards and an early touchdown.

Gabe Brkic kicked four field goals (26, 29, 35 and 40 yards) for the Sooners, but after the last run instead kicked his fifth extra point.

THE TAKEAWAY

Oklahoma: The turnovers by Rattler are a troublesome sign for the Sooners, but Williams played steadily and had some big throws on the run. After both of Rattler’s turnovers, when the Sooners were trying to get within one score, Texas got in the end zone three plays later. Rattler had a 4-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio (28-7) as a freshman last year, but that is down to 2-to-1 (10-5) for the preseason AP All-American at the midpoint of this regular season.

Texas: The Longhorns could play Oklahoma again if both finish in the top two of the Big 12 standings and meet in the conference championship game in December about 20 miles away. Texas has to recover quickly with 12th-ranked Oklahoma State (5-0, 2-0) up next, another game that could go a long way in determining if the Longhorns get that chance.

UP NEXT

Oklahoma: The Sooners play at home for the only time in a four-game span when they host TCU next Saturday.

Texas: The Longhorns were the home team Saturday, but the game against Oklahoma State next Saturday will be their only one on the Austin campus in a six-week span that includes their bye week.