Sherrone Moore Labels John Mateer Advantage for Oklahoma as Brent Venables Exposes Big Michigan Concern

Brent Venables Oklahoma Sooners held off Sherrone Moore’s Michigan in a blue-blood battle. Week 2 featured just one game between ranked opponents. No. 18 Oklahoma logged its biggest win of 24-13 against the No.15 Wolverines. Talking about hot seat? Both the head coaches are standing in deep waters. Venables wrapped up the 2024 season with a 6-7 record. On the flip side, Moore’s program crumbled down failing to defend the national title last season. But this time, luck favored someone. It was Venables. Moore thinks the credit goes to their quarterback John Mateer. During the game, a loophole of the Wolverines game plan also got exposed. 

On September 6, George Stoia III tweeted, “Michigan coach Sherrone Moore says John Mateer’s legs were a big difference maker. “He’s a tough kid… We saw that on tape.” #Sooners.” Mateer led the way for the Sooners. The redshirt junior quarterback cruised through the Memorial Stadium gridiron, completing 21 of his 34 passes for 270 yards and three total touchdowns.

Mateer led Oklahoma’s opening drive straight down the field, connecting with Deion Burks on a 9-yard touchdown pass. He later punched in a 2-yard rushing score just before halftime, putting the Sooners up 14-0. Moore’s boys tried their best to trim the gap and entered the fourth quarter, 21-13. But they had no answer for Mateer.

The Washington State transfer orchestrated a 78-yard march down the field, setting up Tate Sandell to nail a 21-yard field goal. And that was a pivotal moment for Venables’ program, as he cut the deficit to 24-13 with just one minute forty four seconds left on the clock. This came with a wake up call for Moore and the No.1 quarterback recruit, Bryce Underwood. 

The 18-year-old Michigan quarterback was rattled by Venables’ boys. Just when Moore might have thought that the pairing of  Underwood and Chip Lindsey worked wonders after their Week 1 win against New Mexico, this game showed the real picture. His stats? Completed 9 of 24 passes for just 142 yards. But this is just one of many concerns for Moore and his squad. 

How luck did not favor Sherrone Moore’s Michigan

It was indeed an important day for Underwood. Moore’s quarterback faced off in his first road game. However, it fell flat. The reasons? Moore’s own wobbly weapons. Michigan caught a break when Oklahoma mishandled a punt. But their luck didn’t favor them after that. Moore’s boys could only manage a 42-yard field goal, trimming the gap to 21-10 midway through the third. Underwood struggled, completing just 6 of 14 passes for 77 yards, while Sooners junior Mateer has thoroughly outshined him. But what went wrong in Moore’s scheme?

Senior editor at Maize and Blue Review, Trevor McCue tweeted, “Staff has been candid, we’ve been reporting since Week 1, they had concerns about the depth at TE. Klein’s injury, Hansen still limited, clearly handcuffed Chip and forced a frankly horrific game plan. OL couldn’t protect Bryce, and he never stood a chance.” 

Moore’s tight end room fell prey to injuries. For instance, Marlin Klein was spotted pregame on the field with a large wrap around his right ankle. Hogan Hansen, the tight end No. 2 in Steve Casula’s room has been limited after recovering from knee surgery. And who had to bear the cost? Moore’s quarterback. The protection of the offensive line did not deliver. Even Cousin Shane had already predicted a poor outcome for Moore’s fight against Oklahoma.