Dec. 30—Orlando, Fla. — Following Oklahoma’s hard-fought loss to Florida State, 35-32, in the Cheez-It Bowl on Thursday, Brent Venables summarized what he saw from his team.

“Incredibly proud of our team,” Venables said during his postgame press conference. “Disappointed for them in the loss. As I told them going into the game, [we’re] not going to play the scoreboard. I want to see fight. I want to see guts. I want to see courage. I want to see toughness. I want to see physicality, not perfection, all right. I want to see belief. We saw that tonight from our guys.

“They have done everything that we have asked from them, and couldn’t be more proud of them for that. Disappointed in, again, not being able to find a way to win the game. They made a couple more competitive plays than we did, and we certainly had our opportunities tonight. Like the normal ebbs and flows of any game, they did enough to win.”

That summarized the game, and the season, for the Sooners in their threepoint loss at Camping World Stadium.

The Sooners entered the game as 10-point underdogs to the 13th-ranked Seminoles and also without the services of starting running back Eric Gray and four of their five starting offensive linemen. Despite being short-handed, the Sooners jumped out to a 7-3 lead after the first quarter.

OU quarterback Dillon Gabriel found Jalil Farooq for a 22-yard touchdown in the first quarter and then pushed the lead to 14-3 on an eight-yard run early in the second quarter. The defense did its part, too, holding the Seminoles scoreless on five of their seven drives to help the Sooners take a 17-11 lead into halftime.

But Florida State’s talent and size advantage wore the Sooners down as the game went on.

Despite the shortcomings on the offensive line, the Sooners found success running the ball with Jovantae Barnes (27 carries, 108 yards) and Gavin Sawchuk (15 carries, 100 yards). But the Seminoles’ defensive line — which ranks 20th nationally in sacks (34) — overwhelmed the Sooners’ passing offense, as OU surrendered a season- high six sacks. Gabriel struggled to find time to throw, completing just 7-of-11 attempts in the second half.

“I thought the way our guys battled and competed and strained was impressive,” OU offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby said. “For the very limited amount of time that they’ve played and for them to play as hard as they played tonight, I was proud of that.”

Offensively, the Seminoles found success through the air, as quarterback Jordan Travis led them on a 15-play, 94-yard touchdown to take a one-point lead in the third quarter.

But the Sooners kept fighting, as back-to-back touchdowns by Sawchuk and Barnes helped the Sooners tie the game at 32-32 with 3:37 remaining in the game.

The Sooners’ defense needed a stop. But Travis found receiver Johnny Wilson, listed at 6-foot-7, for a 58-yard gain over OU defensive back Justin Broiles, listed at 5-foot-11, to the OU 15-yard line. The Seminoles were able to run out the clock and kick a 32-yard field goal to seal the win with 57 seconds left.

Gabriel finished with 243 yards on 14-of-24 passing and two total touchdowns. Farooq finished with four catches for 59 yards and a score. Travis led the Seminoles with 478 total yards and two touchdowns. The Seminoles’ defense finished with six sacks and 11 tackles for loss.

The loss marks the Sooners’ fourthstraight defeat by three points, as the team struggled all season to make enough plays down the stretch in close games.

“Football’s all about momentum,” OU linebacker Danny Stutsman said. “They came out and the momentum was for them. We kept fighting, kept attacking, but at the end of the day, they had more big plays, more explosive plays than us, and they got us in the end.”

The loss also finishes the Sooners’ season with a 6-7 record, their first losing season since 1998.

But the Sooners are confident that the team has built a foundation this season, and that their fight in the bowl game gives them momentum heading into the offseason.

Venables thinks so, too. “For me, for us, I know what the future looks like,” Venables said. “I have been seeing it in that locker room. The winning will come. I know that without question.”