Box Score
NORMAN, Okla. (9/1/07) DeMarco Murray rushed for five touchdowns to lead No. 8 Oklahoma football team to a 79-10 victory against North Texas in front of 84,472 at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on Saturday night.
The Mean Green (0-1) lost its first game in the era of head coach Todd Dodge. North Texas is now 36-53-3 in season openers and 0-7 in the series versus Oklahoma. The Sooners start off their season, 1-0.
In the first game of his career, Murray rushed for 87 yards on 17 carries. He scored four touchdowns in the first half and one in the second. The Sooners rushed for 265 in the game, while North Texas managed only 15 yards.
Sooners wide receiver Malcolm Kelly caught two touchdowns in the game, both in the second quarter. His first was a 65-yard reception,his longest catch of the day. His second touchdown grab came at the end of the first half, giving OU a 49-0 halftime lead. The 49 points is the largest halftime deficit for the Mean Green in the modern era. Texas scored 44 first-half points against the Mean Green in the 2004 season opener.
Three of the OU’s four touchdowns in the second half came off North Texas turnovers. Daniel Meager was picked off at the start of the second half, while Giovanni Vizza was intercepted once in each quarter.
Meager started the game at quarterback and went 15-for-27 for 108 yards. Vizza relieved Meager in the third quarter and went 4-for-11 for 124 yards and one touchdown. Oklahoma passed for 403 yards in the game, compared to NT’s 232.
North Texas’ first scoring drive of the game came midway through the third quarter. After the Mean Green recovered a fumble on the North Texas 41-yard line, Vizza led North Texas on a 47-yard drive. Thomas Moreland connected on his first-ever field-goal attempt, a 29-yard kick.
Vizza connected with Casey Fitzgerald for a 69-yard touchdown reception at the start of the fourth quarter. Fitzgerald caught a career-high seven catches for 126 yards.
The Oklahoma Sooners needed only 32 seconds to get on the scoreboard. The eighth-ranked football team went four plays for 68 yards on its very first drive of the game, culminating with a 15-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Sam Bradford to wide receiver Jermaine Gresham.
North Texas returns to action on Saturday, Sept. 8 when it faces SMU on the road at 7 pm.
