Will OU football have Dillon Gabriel back for TCU game? Brent Venables is optimistic

PROVO, Utah — OU coach Brent Venables was vague when it came to describing the injury Dillon Gabriel suffered in the first half of the Sooners’ 31-24 win over BYU on Saturday at LaVell Edwards Stadium.

“He’s got an upper-body injury,” Venables said. “But think he’ll be back and available pretty quick.”

Gabriel appeared to suffer the injury on OU’s next-to-last offensive play of the first half, when he was brought down by Cougars safety Talan Alfrey on a rolling tackle that bounced Gabriel’s head off the field.

Gabriel remained in for the next play, throwing an incomplete pass before the Sooners kicked a field goal.

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Gabriel finished 13-of-21 passing for 191 yards and two touchdowns. He was replaced after halftime by freshman Jackson Arnold, who went 5-of-9 passing for 33 yards.

Venables later said he thought it was realistic for Gabriel to return for Friday’s regular-season finale against TCU (11 a.m., Fox).

“Yes. We’ll see how it all goes,” Venables said. “I really honestly haven’t spoken to anybody since halftime.”

When Gabriel was injured last season — against TCU — things turned south in a hurry as neither Davis Beville or the other options they tried worked out well in the loss to the Horned Frogs or the next week in a 49-0 shellacking at the hands of Texas.

But with Arnold on the roster, things are much different for the Sooners this time around.

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This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU football QB Dillon Gabriel's status for TCU game up in the air