Jackson Arnold threw two touchdown passes, helping No. 15 Oklahoma edge out Houston 16-12 on Saturday night.
The Sooners (2-0) had difficulty moving the ball and had to punt eight times. The Cougars (0-2) gained more total yards than Oklahoma, 318 to 249, with a passing yard advantage of 260 to 174.
Oklahoma secured the win with a late interception by Robert Spears-Jennings and a crucial safety by Gracen Halton to keep their narrow lead.
“We did enough things wrong to deserve to lose,” said Oklahoma coach Brent Venables. “We were fortunate to find a way to win. Our offense wasn’t very good today, but I’m proud of the players who stepped up when needed.”
Arnold, a sophomore, completed 19 of 32 passes for 174 yards, threw an interception, and rushed for 40 yards on 11 carries. He was sacked three times.
“A win is a win, no matter how ugly it was,” Arnold said. “It was pretty ugly, but we’ll take it.”
Arnold was outperformed by Houston’s Donovan Smith, who completed 24 of 28 passes for 260 yards and a touchdown, despite an interception. Smith had a better game compared to his performance in a 27-7 loss to UNLV.
“We played really hard and were competitive from start to finish,” said Houston coach Willie Fritz. “That was a big step forward, but playing the No. 15 team means you need to play smart, and we made some mistakes at key moments.”
Oklahoma led 14-6 at halftime. They initially struggled with two punts, but took a 7-0 lead after a muffed punt by Houston’s Mekhi Mews, which Arnold converted into a 10-yard touchdown pass to Brenan Thompson on the next play.
