NORMAN — Oklahoma has a tough balancing act on its hands with John Mateer . By his own admission, the redshirt junior must play a lot better to help OU’s offense progress. But the Sooners need Mateer to remain confident despite shaky performances against Texas and Ole Miss.

The Oklahoma Sooners defense had their worst day of the year against Ole Miss and now face a huge challenge with the Tennessee Volunteers.

Oklahoma’s mistakes on special teams and eight costly penalties proved too much to overcome, as Brent Venables emphasized discipline and fundamentals moving forward.

This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/tennessee as Oklahoma Football vs Tennessee Football Injury Report. The Oklahoma Sooners (6-2, 2-2) are set to travel to Knoxville to take on the Tennessee Volunteers (6-2, 3-2) in a pivotal game that holds major post-season implications.

Next up for these Sooners: at No. 14 Tennessee, at No. 4 Alabama and vs. No. 19 Missouri — not as tough as October 2000, but if you expand it out, it’s bookended by a game against ranked Ole Miss on the last weekend of October and a Nov. 29 season finale against flailing-yet-talented LSU.

The Oklahoma Sooners are preparing for a challenging game against the Tennessee Volunteers, with quarterback John Mateer facing scrutiny after recent performances.

John Hoover, Ryan Chapman, Carson Field and Ryan Aber previewed No. 18 OU's trip to take on No. 14 Tennessee on the latest Sooners on SI Podcast.

Oklahoma last played at Tennessee on Sept. 12, 2015. The Sooners won, 31-24, in double overtime. Tennessee led, 17-3, at halftime after scoring the first 17 points of the contest.