Mason Young
Tulsa World OU Sports Reporter
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Isaiah Sategna shines vs. Auburn
Arkansas transfer Isaiah Sategna’s footprints were all over Oklahoma’s win against Auburn last Saturday afternoon.
Sategna scored OU’s first touchdown on a now-controversial hideout play. He also had a massive 31-yard catch on the Sooners’ go-ahead TD drive in the fourth quarter.
“I thought he was fantastic,” head coach Brent Venables said of Sategna. “Been bragging about him. He’s a football player. The moment’s never too big for him. Between the kickoff returns and what he’s able to do catching some balls over the middle, the shots he takes, his durability is something else.
“He’s not a huge guy. He’s not small, but he’s a smaller receiver compared to some of the bigger ones that are out there but he plays big. He’s got great toughness, an excellent skillset.”
Sategna finished the Sooners’ Southeastern Conference opener with career-highs of nine catches and 127 yards.
“The first couple of games I wasn’t really getting the ball,” Sategna said. “Really gotta keep in mind that every time I get the ball, gotta make them count, make them feel me every time I get it.”
True, Sategna had only six catches for 60 yards through OU’s first two games this season. In the last two games, he had reeled in 16 catches for 224 yards.
The Sooners figure to continue getting Sategna the ball when they resume play after their bye week, against Kent State on Oct. 4.
“Really proud of Isaiah,” offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle said. “Made some big-time plays for us, especially whenever we needed it. Just a consistent kid that brings it every single day. Really talented kid. Smart, high football IQ and someone that (John Mateer) trusts, I trust, Coach (Emmett) Jones trusts, BV trusts, everybody trusts him. Just proud of the work he’s been putting in and awesome to see him get to go out there and make some big-time plays.”
Jaren Kanak’s karate kick
OU tight end Jaren Kanak remained productive in the Sooners’ win over Auburn, with four catches for 62 yards.
Kanak’s 307 yards through four games still ranks first nationally among tight ends and is fifth among all pass catchers in the Southeastern Conference.
Kanak’s best highlight against Auburn? After a third quarter reception, he tried to hurdle an Auburn defender, but Karate kicked him instead. It was straight out of the video game Mortal Kombat, or a Mr. Miyagi move, depending on generational relatability.
“I don’t want to talk about it alright. I thought I had hops,” Kanak said. “I thought I had bunnies. It kind of turned into a cool flying kick, I guess. I was trying to get over him.”
OU receiver Deion Burks said he might have to take some Karate lessons from Kanak now.
“Oh, you seen him kick somebody today? I was on the field, and I said, ‘Whoa, you kind of spammed your button too quick.’ But it was a funny thing, man,” Burks said. “He’s definitely a competitor. I’m glad he made that play too.”
Fans help Sooners win
Venables said postgame that he would give the game ball to the fans.
The Oklahoma Memorial Stadium crowd was deafening at times last Saturday, leading to multiple false starts by the Auburn offense.
“They help our defense out and they torment the other team. So the environment was awesome,” Arbuckle concurred. “The fans brought it today. The fans are just as much a part of that win as anybody in this building. Shoutout to them. We’re gonna need them to continue to show up and be passionate about Oklahoma football.”
Attacking the bye week
Now OU is on its bye week. What’s important in preparing for Kent State, and after that, the Red River Rivalry game against Texas?
“There’s a lot of different things that happen in a bye week,” Arbuckle said. “I think you can always get back to the basics. I think that’s huge — getting back to the basics and getting your body right. Everybody, whether you’re a little dinged up or not. Maintaining your body and getting ready for whenever we do get back to a game.
“But also there’s game prep going on because we do have an opponent. There might be a bye week, but we do have an opponent coming up, making sure we’re on top of that. There’s a lot of different things you can get out of a bye week. Just have to take advantage of the time and the resources we have.”
mason.young@tulsaworld.com
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Mason Young
Tulsa World OU Sports Reporter
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