"My eyes weren't good": John Mateer makes feelings known on disastrous outing vs. Texas in Red River shootout

Oklahoma Sooners quarterback John Mateer had a disappointing outing during their Red River rivalry showdown against the Texas Longhorns on Saturday. The game ended with his team suffering a humiliating 23-6 defeat at Cotton Bowl Stadium.

In the post-game press conference, John Mateer shared his thoughts about this disastrous outing. The quarterback stated that he didn't perform well mentally, even though he was physically ready for the game.

"Yeah, I said the pain level's nothing," Mateer said. "I mean, theres's no excuse. I was ready to go physically. But mentally I just adidn't perform. My eyes weren't as good as they needed to be. And when your quarterback doesn't play good football, it's hard to win in this league. And that's what happened." "But, honored to play in the game and get to see the atmosphere and, but I just didn't play good enough."

John Mateer joined the Sooners in December 2024 after spending the first three seasons of his collegiate career with Washington State. He helped the team start the season with a five-game winning streak. This loss against Texas is Oklahoma's first defeat of the year.

In this game, the quarterback completed 20 of the 38 passes he attempted for 202 yards. Mateer did not score any touchdowns and had three interceptions to his name. The Sooners found themselves on the scoreboard thanks to two field goals by T. Sandell in the first half.

Before this, John Mateer had recorded 1,215 yards and six TDs passing, along with five rushing touchdowns in the four games that he played.

Last week, the team decided to go with Michael Hawkins Jr. against Kent State while Mateer recovered from his hand surgery. He helped them secure a 44-0 whitewash victory while recording 162 passing yards and four total touchdowns.

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Skip Bayless shares his thoughts on John Mateer's return after surgery against Texas

On social media, Skip Bayless shared his honest thoughts on how Mateer performed in his comeback game for Oklahoma against Texas.

He stated that the quarterback looked like a different person with less confidence than he previously had. Bayless also believed that this should not hamper Mateer from giving it his all in the game.

"John Mateer just doesn't look quite right with his broken thumb," Bayless tweeted. "He's jumpied than he was pre-injury, less poised, less in command. Again, understandable. But if you're going to suck it up and play, you have to PLAY. No excuses."

The Oklahoma Sooners are next scheduled to take on the South Carolina Gamecocks on Oct.18. Can Mateer redeem himself next week?

Edited by Priyam Hazarika