Some football games are memorable.
Others become legends.
Then there was October 22, 2016.
With 66 days remaining until Oklahoma football returns to Owen Field, our Countdown to Kickoff looks back at perhaps the wildest offensive explosion college football has ever witnessed—a game so statistically absurd that it still feels like something out of a video game.
Oklahoma 66.
Texas Tech 59.
The final score was only the beginning.
Revenge in Lubbock
The stage couldn’t have been more fitting.
No. 16 Oklahoma traveled to Lubbock to face Texas Tech, the school where Baker Mayfield’s college career began. As a walk-on freshman in 2013, Mayfield won the Red Raiders’ starting quarterback job before injuries and a scholarship dispute led him to transfer.
Returning to Jones AT&T Stadium, Mayfield faced a hostile crowd eager to spoil his homecoming.
Instead, he authored one of the greatest performances in Oklahoma football history.
Standing across from him was another future NFL superstar—Patrick Mahomes.
Neither quarterback disappointed.
A Night That Rewrote the Record Books
By the time the final whistle sounded, the numbers looked almost unbelievable.
The two teams combined for 1,708 yards of total offense, an NCAA FBS record that still stands.
Even crazier?
Both teams finished with exactly 854 yards.
Not 853.
Not 855.
Exactly 854 apiece.
Together, Mayfield and Mahomes combined for 1,279 passing yards, setting an NCAA record for two opposing quarterbacks in a single game.
It wasn’t just an offensive showcase.
It was offensive perfection.
Baker’s Masterpiece
Mayfield was simply unstoppable.
He completed 27 of 36 passes for 545 yards and seven touchdowns, setting an Oklahoma single-game record for touchdown passes.
Every throw seemed effortless.
Every drive ended in points.
Against the program where his journey began, Mayfield delivered the ultimate statement.
He didn’t just win.
He etched his name even deeper into Oklahoma history.
Joe Mixon’s Night for the Ages
As remarkable as Mayfield was, Oklahoma’s most unbelievable statistical performance belonged to Joe Mixon.
The dynamic running back produced one of the greatest all-around games ever by a Sooner.
He rushed for 263 yards.
He added 114 receiving yards.
He scored five total touchdowns.
By night’s end, Mixon had accumulated 377 all-purpose yards, becoming the first player in Oklahoma history to record both 200 rushing yards and 100 receiving yards in the same game.
One of those touchdowns featured a spectacular one-handed catch, leading to a touchdown, showcasing the versatility that made him nearly impossible to defend.
His 377 all-purpose yards remain the second-highest single-game total in school history, trailing only Samaje Perine’s NCAA-record performance against Kansas in 2014.
The Big Three
While Mayfield orchestrated the offense and Mixon carried the load, Dede Westbrook added another unforgettable performance.
The future Biletnikoff Award winner caught nine passes for 202 yards and two touchdowns, averaging more than 22 yards every time he touched the football.
Together, Mayfield, Mixon, and Westbrook formed one of the most explosive offensive trios Oklahoma has ever fielded.
Texas Tech had no answers.
Few teams in college football history would have.
Mahomes Wouldn’t Go Away
Yet no lead ever felt safe.
Patrick Mahomes responded to every Oklahoma score with another spectacular drive of his own.
The future Super Bowl champion tied the NCAA single-game record with 734 passing yards, completed 52 passes, threw the ball an astonishing 88 times, and added 85 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
Mahomes personally accounted for 819 of Texas Tech’s 854 total yards.
It remains one of the greatest individual performances in college football history.
It just happened to come in a losing effort.
Nearly a Mile of Offense
The numbers somehow become even more outrageous.
Neither offense slowed down.
Oklahoma never punted.
Texas Tech punted only once.
The teams combined for 73 first downs.
There were 17 touchdowns, averaging one every three-and-a-half minutes.
Oklahoma averaged an astonishing 11.2 yards every time it snapped the football.
And if you stretched those 1,708 combined yards across a football field?
The two teams gained nearly one full mile of offense in a single evening.
The Knockout Punch
Despite the fireworks, Oklahoma could never completely shake the Red Raiders.
Every time the Sooners built a two-score lead, Mahomes answered.
Finally, with under five minutes remaining and Oklahoma clinging to a 59-52 advantage, Joe Mixon delivered the decisive blow.
He burst through the line, accelerated into the secondary, and sprinted 42 yards for the touchdown that pushed the Sooners to a 66-52 advantage.
Texas Tech scored once more, but Oklahoma recovered the ensuing onside kick to finally bring one of college football’s greatest shootouts to an end.
A Game Unlike Any Other
The 66-59 thriller remains one of the defining games of the Baker Mayfield era.
It showcased two future NFL superstars at quarterback.
It rewrote NCAA and Oklahoma record books.
And it reminded everyone why college football remains the most unpredictable sport in America.
Some games are remembered because of championships.
Others because of rivalries.
This one is remembered because, for four unforgettable quarters, offense reached a level that may never be matched again.
Countdown to Kickoff: 66 days.
By the Numbers
- Final Score: Oklahoma 66, Texas Tech 59
- Combined Total Offense: 1,708 yards (NCAA FBS record)
- Oklahoma Total Offense: 854 yards
- Texas Tech Total Offense: 854 yards
- Baker Mayfield: 27-of-36, 545 yards, 7 TDs (OU single-game record)
- Patrick Mahomes: 52-of-88, 734 yards, 5 passing TDs, 85 rushing yards, 2 rushing TDs
- Joe Mixon: 263 rushing yards, 114 receiving yards, 5 total TDs, 377 all-purpose yards
- Dede Westbrook: 9 receptions, 202 yards, 2 TDs
- Punts: Oklahoma 0, Texas Tech 1
- Combined First Downs: 73
- Yards Per Play: 11.2