Oklahoma Falls 41-13; Venables Discussed Benching Mateer

Oklahoma fell to Georgia 41-13 after trailing 28-0 at halftime. John Mateer turned the ball over on three consecutive second-quarter drives. He fumbled near the goal line, and Chris Cole returned it 85 yards for a touchdown. KJ Bolden intercepted Mateer on the next drive. Raylen Wilson forced a fumble on a sack minutes later that Cole recovered. Oklahoma ran out the clock on its final first-half drive. Mateer completed 25 of 34 passes for 231 yards, two touchdowns, one interception and two lost fumbles. He has six turnovers in his last three games. Brent Venables said he and his staff discussed benching Mateer at halftime. "It's something that, you know, we discussed. We'll look at everything, you know, how to get better," Venables said. Ben Arbuckle said they discussed all options on the headset and ultimately still felt Mateer was their best choice to win the game. Venables said people are pissed and that nothing impacts a game like turnovers. Mateer said he is still playing fast, the process is where it needs to be, and the team is not going to quit. CONTESTED: none found among rated outlets. The record shows one left-rated headline and no center or right-rated coverage.