KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- The wild finish to Oklahoma's comeback 31-24 win over Tennessee in double overtime had emotions boiling Saturday night at Neyland Stadium.
After Zack Sanchez's interception sealed the win for the Sooners, Tennessee coach Butch Jones grabbed Oklahoma senior defensive end Eric Striker on the field and apparently took exception to Striker's postgame antics.
"Zack got the pick, and I ran over there talking to our fans and saying, 'Yeah, yeah,' to all their fans, and [Jones] grabbed me and said, 'Eric, you're a helluva player, but have some damn class,'" he said.
Striker, one of the more outspoken players in college football, said he didn't fire back.
"I just shrugged it off. I didn't say anything back, but I didn't see what was so classless about that," Striker said. "I was just passionate. I'm a passionate competitor. If we win, I'm going to stick my chest out a little bit. But I wasn't trying to be classless. I was looking at their fans and our fans. I didn't see anything wrong with it."
Tennessee fans were already in a bad mood after seeing the Vols blow a 17-point lead at home and were even more riled after watching some of the Oklahoma players soak up the win afterward. Oklahoma safety Hatari Byrd was caught on video giving the Tennessee fans the middle finger as he exited the field to the visiting locker room.
Leading up to the game, Striker stirred it up when he said there was "nothing special" about Tennessee running back Jalen Hurd, and Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops didn't endear himself to Tennessee fans when he dismissed the notion that playing at Neyland Stadium would be any different than playing in some of the other famed venues the Sooners had played in during his tenure.
"It got real quiet," Striker said. "You shut up 102,000 people. That was big. It was real quiet. I'm talking some angry fans."
Striker also called it a bigger win than the Sooners' victory over Alabama two years ago in the Sugar Bowl.
"It was a half of a stadium in New Orleans," Striker said. "This was a full house against you and packed, and we fought through adversity. That was the best thing I've ever been a part of in my life."
He said there were no hard feelings with Hurd and that he never meant it to be personal during the week.
"It was like me versus Hurd. That's not what I was trying to do or say," Striker said. "He's a great running back. I just said he goes down like the rest of them. He might have taken it personally. He had some words for me during the game, but that's just all competition."