By Jake Trotter
Staff Writer
NORMAN — For much of this season,
Juaquin Iglesias has been
Oklahoma's sure-handed receiver.
But against Missouri,
Iglesias put two balls on the ground that led to two Tiger touchdowns.
"I've got to keep it in the back of my mind not to fumble,” he said.
Saturday at Iowa State,
Iglesias will begin mending his confidence.
He said after his second fumble, he couldn't shake it off, especially after the Tigers scored to take the lead 24-23.
It wasn't until
Iglesias made a critical third-down grab to keep OU's go-ahead drive alive that he was able to stop thinking about the fumbles and focus on the game.
"I tried to forget about it, but it was still on my mind,” he said.
Despite the fumbles,
Iglesias is having about as productive a year as any receiver in the
Big 12 outside of
Texas Tech's
Michael Crabtree, who leads the country in receptions, receiving yards and touchdown catches.
Iglesias has 42 catches for 635 yards and four touchdowns, including OU's first score against Missouri. He also had seven catches for 77 yards against the Tigers.
But it was
Iglesias' two turnovers that drew the ire of coach
Bob Stoops after the game.
"Turnovers change everything,” Stoops said. "They almost lost the game for us.”
Iglesias fumbled on OU's first offensive snap, which led to a quick Missouri 7-0 lead after the Sooner defense had forced the Tigers to punt on their first offensive drive.
In the second half, he quickly erased the results of a 41-yard kickoff return by fumbling the ball while making a cut back.
The Tigers promptly scored eight plays later.
"On the first one, I started to fumble when I tried to stiff arm,” he said.
"On the kickoff, I was trying to cut back, and that's when someone knocked it out. Coaches have been preaching that's the thing that will get us beat the most.
"That's why I can't fumble anymore.”