Among the teams that had the best Week 1s, Oklahoma certainly makes the short list. Placed on double secret upset alert by many across the country (including yours truly), the seventh-ranked Sooners stomped defending Conference USA champion Florida Atlantic like they stole something.
OU led 21-0 barely 10 minutes into the game, 28-0 after the opening frame, 42-0 at the half and 56-0 before the Owls got on the board. Oklahoma won the game 63-14.
There were a number of stars along the way for Oklahoma, as there are any time you win a game by 49 points. Kyler Murray completed 9-of-11 passes for 209 yards and two touchdowns. Rodney Anderson needed only five carries to hit 100 yards and two touchdowns. Marquise Brown caught six balls for 133 yards and a score. The entire defense looked vastly improved from a year ago.
But the unsung hero of Saturday's game was definitely Lee Morris. A redshirt junior from Allen, Texas, Morris is the son of former Sooner Lee Morris, Jr and appeared in 26 games over the past two seasons.
On Saturday, Morris nearly single-handedly broke the game open for the Sooners. First, with the outcome still in doubt at 7-0 midway through the first quarter, Morris blocked an FAU punt, which Curtis Bolton hopped on in the end zone for an Oklahoma touchdown. Morris became the first Sooner to block a punt since 2013 and the first to block one for a touchdown since 2002.
Then, after the Oklahoma defense forced a three-and-out, Morris all but ended the game when he snagged a 65-yard touchdown heave from Murray, staking OU to a 21-0 lead at the 4:49 mark of the first quarter.
“I guess the guy tried to wrap me up and he slipped off me — it was hot out there so I can see why,” Morris told The Oklahomanon Saturday. “I saw those two defenders coming at me from both sides. I knew if I split them, I was going to do the rest and score.”
After the game, OU head coach Lincoln Riley was asked if he was going to put Morris on scholarship. By Monday, Morris had his full ride.
Riley didn't need another weapon to threaten defenses with, but he has one in Morris. And now Morris's hard work has been rewarded in kind.