Oklahoma benched starting quarterback Jackson Arnold on its final possession of the first half on Saturday night against No. 6 Tennessee, turning instead to freshman Michael Hawkins Jr. The surprising move came after Arnold committed three turnovers, which handicapped the No. 15 Sooners in their first conference game as a member of the SEC.
When OU pulled Arnold, he was 7 of 16 passing for 54 yards with an interception. Arnold also fumbled on a first-and-goal at the Tennessee 5-yard line, squandering a golden scoring opportunity early in the second quarter. Later in the second quarter, Arnold threw a swing pass that was ruled a lateral and recovered by the Volunteers.
Hawkins didn’t fare much better as he fumbled his first snap. The former three-star prospect was credited with two rushes for 10 yards on a three-and-out possession before the Sooners punted the football back to the Volunteers in the waning moments of the half. OU finished with -19 yards of offense in the second quarter and also surrendered a safety.
While Hawkins got the nod to come in for Arnold, fellow reserve quarterback Casey Thompson was also spotted warming up on the sideline as the Sooners sought a spark. Oklahoma’s lone scoring drive in the first half against the volunteers went 55 yards on 10 plays and resulted in a field goal.
Arnold completed an 11-yard pass to Bauer Sharp and a 9-yard pass to Deion Burks on the series. While Arnold was far from perfect, the Sooners’ offensive line struggles continued in the first half as Tennessee picked up six tackles for loss. Additionally, veteran receiver Nic Anderson left the game in the first half with injury and was ruled out after playing just a few snaps in his season debut.
