Jackson Arnold takes over at QB for OU vs. South Carolina

There was some early drama around the SEC football conference in the early slate of games on Oct. 19. The 11 a.m. CT kickoff for the slate of SEC games late in the morning in Week 8 didn't feature any ranked matchups. But there were many teams needing bounce-back victories to stay alive in SEC play in the early slate of conference games.

OU switches QBs in the first half early vs. South Carolina at home from true freshman Michael Hawkins Jr. to second-year QB Jackson Arnold

The Oklahoma Sooners and South Carolina Gamecocks both need a victory in the SEC as the two squads meet in an important matchup in Norman in Week 8. Oklahoma has lost two out of three games to start SEC play, including double-digit defeats at the hands of the No. 1 Texas Longhorns and the No. 5 Tennessee Volunteers.

After struggling to score points and keep up with Tennessee and Texas on the scoreboard in the past few weeks in SEC play, the Sooners switched quarterbacks late in the game against the Vols. In that late-September matchup against Tennessee in Norman, OU tried to get an offensive spark by switching from second-year quarterback Jackson Arnold to true freshman dual-threat Michael Hawkins Jr.

Hawkins gave Oklahoma's offense a boost, with the dynamism of his throwing and running ability opening up the playbook and explosiveness late in the game against the Vols when the Sooners needed it in the second half.

But Hawkins has struggled to get points for an Oklahoma team that is decimated by injuries in the receiving corps and hasn't held up in pass protection along the offensive line.

Oklahoma's offense has struggled mightily in SEC play this season, to say the very least. In the past five quarters, Oklahoma has only scored three points. This isn't all Hawkins's fault, as Oklahoma's lack of weapons in the receiving corps and non-existent ground game has forced him to make magic happen to keep the chains moving for the Sooners.

It appears that Hawkins' magic has run out, though, for the Oklahoma offense. After falling back 21-0 early in the first quarter against the Gamecocks in Norman today in the early slate of games, Oklahoma switched quarterbacks again.

Arnold went in the game after a handful of drives that resulted in defensive turnovers for touchdowns for the Gamecocks that extended the lead to multiple scores.

It doesn't look like the quarterback switch from Hawkins to Arnold made much of an immediate impact on the OU offense, as the Sooners didn't score in Jackson's first two drives of the game.

This big start with two defensive scores, meanwhile, is what South Carolina was looking for on the road to build a solid lead and get confidence on each side of the ball in a tough road environment in Norman, OK.

South Carolina has also lost two straight coming into this weekend against Oklahoma. Head coach Shane Beamer's squad is getting close to losing control of the season, with a 1-3 record in SEC conference play after a tough last-minute loss to the No. 7 Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa last weekend.

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