NORMAN, Okla. — Josh Heupel zigged and zagged, making his way through dozens of back pats and handshakes from Oklahoma and Tennessee players and coaches on the field, and after he leapt from his feet to complete a final high-five with a fan in the stands, he found refuge in the southwest tunnel at Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.
At the bottom of the ramp outside Tennessee’s locker room stood his proud father, Ken, waiting patiently for an opportunity to deliver a celebratory shove and a sweet embrace.
No. 6 Tennessee’s 25-15 victory at No. 15 Oklahoma was as dominant of a 10-point win you will see in college football. It was also the most emotional you will see the usually stoic Tennessee head coach in this setting. Back at his alma mater, where he led the Sooners to a national title as quarterback in 2000, he finally allowed the moment to wash over him, and as he wrapped up a press conference late Saturday night, he wanted to share a story.
His voice cracked.
“I’ve gotten a chance to meet a lot of people that had an impact on my mom while she was here, and there’s a bunch that I haven’t (thanked),” Heupel said. “But I just want to thank you for the relationships and what you meant for her.”
The Tennessee head coach spent the entire offseason — and more often this week — avoiding the storyline: prodigal son returns to Oklahoma, where he was fired in 2014 by his mentor, Bob Stoops, after a nine-year coaching career. Bad blood or not, the only thing that mattered was the win and Heupel’s fond memories of the place he called home. His mother, Cindy, moved back here in 2007 as an educator to teach and to watch her son coach football as a living legend in Norman, Oklahoma. She died May 14 at her home in nearby Edmond, Oklahoma at the age of 69.
“Ultimately, I know Mom’s watching up top,” Heupel told ABC’s Holly Rowe in his postgame interview on the field.
Heupel received countless messages from former Oklahoma teammates and friends this week, and many went unanswered during a busy week. Heupel promised to return those messages and would do so somewhere 30,000 feet in the air on the team plane over Arkansas and Tennessee.
“You guys have changed my life and my family’s life forever, and I’m eternally grateful for all of you,” he said.
That’s how the night ended, but Heupel was still in coach mode, redirecting the attention after handing the Sooners a double-digit loss in their SEC debut. The win was meaningful but also monumental for Tennessee, which cemented itself as a title contender while also making history. The Vols snapped a 28-game losing streak on the road against top-15 opponents. The offense didn’t dazzle, but not many do that against Oklahoma’s vaunted defensive front, and the defense was marvelous, limiting the Sooners to only 98 yards through three quarters (worst since 2015) and 36 rushing yards for the game, the fewest since 2012.
“It meant something to be here and to play and to win, yes, but that’s just not what it was about in coming back here,” Heupel said. “We’ve got a good football team, got high expectations and they continue to compete extremely hard every day to grow to become better.”
The Vols entered the SEC with the nation’s highest-scoring offense (63.7 points per game) behind a whip-smart quarterback, but they didn’t win with finesse Saturday, they did it with brute force without two offensive linemen. With left tackle Lance Heard out for a second straight week and right tackle John Campbell Jr. suffering an apparent knee injury in the first half, the Vols opted to run into the teeth of Brent Venables’ vaunted defense.
And the Vols punched the Sooners’ teeth out.
“Running the football is our baseline, our bread and butter,” Heupel said. “It’s how we get started.”
One drive encapsulated the night. Late in the first half, with the Sooners mixing coverages and Brent Venables throwing pressures that Heupel had not seen on film during the week, he called eight straight running plays. The Sooners chewed up 46 yards with Dylan Sampson slipping through tackle attempts at the hips, and bullying the ball over the goal line to give the Vols a 19-3 lead. It was the stuff of the SEC’s yesteryear — and here were the Vols, the team with the fancy passing offense, punishing the Sooners in the trenches.
“Just keeping our foot on their throat,” said quarterback Nico Iamaleava, who threw for 194 yards and one touchdown on 13 of 21 passing.
Meanwhile, Tennessee’s defensive line and linebackers were spectacular, flashing the speed and demolition spirit of the Vols of the late 1990s. In a performance that echoed the days of Albert Haynesworth and John Henderson, the Vols smothered the Sooners in the backfield, evoking one longtime columnist in the Sooner State to call the dreadful second quarter (minus-20 yards) as the worst 15 minutes in school history. Ten straight plays went for zero or negative yardage, with two turnovers. It was so bad, Oklahoma benched ballyhooed quarterback Jackson Arnold in favor of freshman Michael Hawkins Jr.
“It’s just energizing. We love it,” said edge rusher Joshua Josephs. “We love to be on the field. We love to play. And as a D-line, we got so much depth, you can just rotate, rotate.”
Ten players combined for 11 tackles for loss, including three sacks, and the defense didn’t allow a touchdown until the fourth quarter, snapping a streak of 19 straight quarters without allowing an offensive touchdown.
“They’re the anchor of our team,” said Iamaleava.
“We still feel like we have the best pass rush unit in all of college football,” said Josephs.
Yes, it’s an indictment on OU’s yet-to-jell offensive line that is still fighting through injuries, but this wasn’t just a one-game hiccup or a flash-in-the-pan demolition by Tennessee’s defense. OU has lost only four games by double digits at home this century, but this one felt so much different.
It’s quite possible Tennessee has built its most talented, deepest defensive front in 25 years. It has not yet mattered the opponent, the quality of the offensive lines or the situation on the field, the Vols simply eat the middle of the field. Oklahoma combined for minus-4 yards of offense in the second and third quarters.
“At the end of the day, if you want to play really high level football, you got to have a high level defense and our guys are playing really well,” Heupel said. “They’re excited about the way they’re playing but they also know there’s more out there. It’s been fun seeing this group continue to grow.”
In the locker room late Saturday night, the Vols could be heard bellowing their celebratory song and dance after the big victory.
“We don’t give a damn about the whole state of Oklahoma! We’re … from … Tennessee!”
It was a big win, one that could catapult the Vols to a special season, though Josephs said it may only be in his “top seven” victories as a Vol.
It clearly carried more importance for Heupel, who cares plenty about Oklahoma.
Moments earlier, after picking up a first down to clinch an easier-than-expected win, Iamaleava handed the game ball to his coach.
“It’ll go in the office,” said Heupel, “for sure.”
