NORMAN, Okla. — No. 2 Oklahoma escaped with a 40-35 win against an unranked Tulane team that nearly pulled off one of the biggest upsets in school history on Saturday.
Sooners quarterback Spencer Rattler passed for 304 yards in a game that was relocated from New Orleans because of Hurricane Ida.
Oklahoma led by five in the fourth quarter and Tulane had possession, but quarterback Michael Pratt ran for 12 yards on a fourth-and-13 play. Tulane turned the ball over on downs, and Oklahoma ran out the clock.
Oklahoma’s Gabe Brkic tied an FBS record with three field goals of 50 or more yards, and Marvin Mims had five catches for 117 yards for the Sooners (1-0).
Pratt passed for 296 yards and three touchdowns for the Green Wave (0-1). He also ran for another score.
Oklahoma had the Green Wave painted on the 25-yard lines, and Sooners fans cheered when Tulane’s players ran onto the field before the game.
Tulane opened the scoring on a 6-yard touchdown pass from Pratt to Cameron Carroll. The Green Wave went up 14-7 in the first quarter on a 15-yard touchdown run by Jaetavian Toles.
Oklahoma scored the next 30 points and took a 37-14 lead into the break.
Brkic made three field goals in the second quarter. His second was a 51-yarder, and then he closed the half with a career-high 56-yarder. It was the longest field goal for an Oklahoma kicker since 1977.
Pratt scored on a 4-yard keeper, and the Green Wave got the 2-point conversion to make it 37-22.
Tulane trimmed its deficit to 40-28 when Pratt threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Carroll. Pratt stumbled and fell in the backfield on the 2-point try.
Brkic missed a 31-yard field goal, giving Tulane a shot late. Pratt’s 5-yard touchdown pass to Will Wallace made it 40-35 with 2:18 remaining, and Tulane recovered the onside kick before failing to score.
The Sooners could not run the ball in the second half, so they couldn’t put the game away. Oklahoma scored just three points after the break.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.