Stoops Ties Coaching Wins Record As Oklahoma Cruises

NORMAN, Okla. -- Bob Stoops and Barry Switzer are linked again. For now, at least.

Stoops matched Switzer's record for most coaching victories at Oklahoma when the 22nd-ranked Sooners cruised to a 48-10 victory over Iowa State on Saturday.

Trevor Knight led the way as Stoops recorded win No. 157 with Oklahoma (8-2, 5-2 Big 12), which closed the game with 45 unanswered points over the final three quarters. The backup quarterback, which replaced the injured Blake Bell in the second quarter, was 8-of-14 passing for 61 yards and rushed for 123 yards and one touchdown.

Iowa State (1-9, 0-7) held Oklahoma scoreless in the first quarter and led 10-3 before Jalen Saunders returned a punt 91 yards for a touchdown right before halftime. Damien Williams added 10 carries for 128 yards and two touchdowns for the Sooners.

Knight provided an instant spark after replacing Bell early in the second. Bell was 2-of-5 passing for 10 yards before he appeared to get injured on a fumble with the Sooners trailing 7-0.

Stoops stuck with Bell as his starting quarterback after Oklahoma managed only 237 yards of offense in a 41-12 loss at then-No. 5 Baylor. And while the Sooners got off to another slow start, they outscored the Cyclones 38-0 in the second half.

Williams scored on a 69-yard touchdown run in the opening minute of the third quarter, lifting Oklahoma to its first lead of the day. The two-play, 75-yard drive showed the Sooners are capable of scoring in a hurry.

Brennan Clay added a 63-yard touchdown later in the third to extend Oklahoma's lead to 27-10. The two long touchdown runs all but dashed Iowa State's hopes of snapping a 15-game losing streak to Oklahoma.

Oklahoma's offensive woes carried over into Saturday, and things didn't begin to get better until Knight took over.

The Sooners managed just one first down and 25 yards of total offense in the first quarter. It marked the fourth straight game that Oklahoma failed to score in the first.

Saunders scored Oklahoma's only touchdown of the first half when he fielded a punt at the 9, eluded a few defenders, and raced to the end zone with 1:09 remaining in the second quarter.

The Cyclones, losers of seven in a row, jumped out to a 7-0 lead when Sam Richardson ran untouched on a 4-yard touchdown run with 14:18 left in the second quarter.

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