Jackson Arnold’s body slammed into the turf with R Mason Thomas running off in celebration.
The senior defensive lineman had just taken down the Auburn junior quarterback in the end zone for OU’s ninth sack of the game. It came as Thomas’ second in the game after sitting out the first half due to a targeting penalty in a 42-3 win over Temple.
“R Mason Thomas came off the bench and really impacted the game,” head coach Brent Venables said.
Thomas’ sack also tied a school record for team sacks in a game while capping off a 24-17 win over the Tigers.
“No doubt about it, I loved the way we played defensively,” head coach Brent Venables said.
The game was more than a performance on par with the past, though, as the Sooner defense has strengthened from 2024 to 2025. In 2024, the unit ranked No. 19 in total defense but has shifted to No. 3 in 2025so far.
While the defense has grown, it has happened under Venables’ direction. In 2022-24, the Sooners went down a rocky road of 6-7, 10-3 and 6-7 during the tenures of former defensive coordinators, Ted Roof and Zac Alley. However, Venables, who served as Clemson’s defensive coordinator from 2012-21, has now returned to defensive play-calling.
Venables led Clemson to ranking No. 2 in the nation in scoring defense in 2021 and has had an impressive start to his time as OU defensive play-caller.
“He’s one of the best we’ve faced,” Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze said. “He does an incredible job.”
Venables’ work against Auburn marks OU’s second win over an AP Top 25 team in 2025 after the Sooners only won one game against an AP Top 25 team in 2024. Venables’ leadership became especially important during the last drive of the game, as his players followed his halftime direction.
“I’m proud of our players’ determination, resolve, grit, ability to overcome, keep fighting back, keep striking,” Venables said. “I told them at halftime, it is going to come down to the last drive of the game.”
The OU defense held Arnold, who played for the Sooners in 2023-24, to 220 passing yards and one touchdown. It also kept the Tigers to 67 rushing yards and Arnold to negative rushing yards despite Auburn’s offense ranking No. 12 in the nation in rushing yards per game.
Venables, though, praised the quarterback after his defense’s performance.
“He’s got amazing courage and toughness,” Venables said. “He’s going to have plenty of amazing days, had some amazing moments today. He’s still just a baby; all of his best days are in front of him.”
Contributing to the defense’s display, redshirt junior linebacker Kip Lewis and junior linebacker Sammy Omosigho recorded 10 and six tackles, respectively, while sophomore defensive linemen, David Stone and Jayden Jackson, each finished with five. Jackson also added 2 ½ sacks, and Thomas finished with two.
“We got some dogs,” senior defensive lineman Gracen Halton said. “We call it the dog pound. After one dog gets out, another is going to come in.”
Jackson, in particular, doubled his career total in sacks with his performance.
“He’s a monster,” Lewis said. “He’s a force to be reckoned with.”
However, the Sooner defense still dealt with imperfections, with freshman defensive back Courtland Guillory struggling. Guillory matched up with Auburn sophomore wide receiver Cam Coleman for the majority of snaps, and the freshman gave up 88 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Venables, though, remains unconcerned about the freshman’s abilities.
“All the great ones will have a day that, man, you’d like to have back,” Venables said. “You just want to go somewhere and hide. … It is not all on him, but this will help him. He’s a really tough kid.”
As the defense looks to grow further, the Sooners strive for excellence like Thomas’ game-sealing sack rather than perfection.
“You gain some confidence,” Venables said. “Some of the confidence is we try to preach to our guys all the time (when) so many of them naturally just want to carry all this burden of pressure and having to be perfect. … This is another example that you don’t have to play perfect or have this amazing four-quarter game. You (need) to be good at the right moments.”
This story was edited by Daniel Homrok.