Oklahoma is hoping a coordinator change can spark its offense.
Oklahoma announced Sunday night that the Sooners (4-3) have fired offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Seth Littrell after OU was blown out for a second straight week on Saturday.
Oklahoma lost 32-9 to South Carolina after the Gamecocks took a 21-0 lead early in the first quarter when Oklahoma turned the ball over on each of its first three possessions. Running back Rocket Sanders scored South Carolina’s first touchdown, and the Gamecocks then got a fumble return for a TD and a pick 6.
“Seth is an all-time great Sooner,” Oklahoma coach Brent Venables said in a statement. “He has a deep love for this university and football program, and has poured his heart and soul into both. Despite that, our performance as an offense this season has not at all lived up to the OU standard and I felt a change was necessary now.
Co-offensive coordinator Joe Jon Finley will take over as the team’s play-caller after Littrell’s firing.
Oklahoma has been searching for offensive answers all season. Freshman Michael Hawkins started the game vs. South Carolina after taking over at QB in the Sooners’ 25-15 loss to Tennessee. He replaced Jackson Arnold in that UT game, and Arnold took over for Hawkins on Saturday.
The offensive stats are ugly for OU in 2024. The Sooners are averaging just 4.1 yards a play as the run game can’t get going. Hawkins and Arnold are a combined 124-of-210 passing for 1,239 yards and have thrown nine TDs and five interceptions.
Just two teams — Stanford and FBS-level newcomer Kennesaw State — are averaging fewer yards per play than Oklahoma per TeamRankings.com.
To be fair to Littrell and the Sooners’ offense, injuries have been a major factor this season. Oklahoma has been playing much of the season without its top five wide receivers. Leading receiver Deion Burks has played in just four games this season. He has 26 catches for 201 yards and three scores. Just one other player — Brenan Thompson — has caught more than one TD pass.
Littrell was in his first season as Oklahoma’s play-caller after offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby became the head coach at Mississippi State. The former North Texas head coach and Oklahoma native served as an offensive assistant in 2023 after he was fired by UNT at the end of the 2022 season. In seven seasons with the Mean Green, Littrell was 44-44.
