As a Raider fan, it is truly a sad day as legendary coach and owner Al Davis has passed away.
The Oakland Raiders official web site will have a family statement later today.
The 1992 NFL Hall of Fame Inductee was 82 years old. Rest in peace Al. Win lose or tie, Raiders til I die!
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Friday, October 7, 2011
College Football: Week 6 (Friday)
Friday with Boise? Again? Give Me the 'Real' Teams, Please
by Brett Hill
the football imp
(...this is going to be a little feature I going to start trying to do regularly on the eve of each college football week...just my thoughts on the week-to-week college football landscape...)
So, we approach week 6 with yet another Boise State Friday night matchup. Sitting in Texas Roadhouse in Mesquite, Tx preparing for the OU / Texas game tomorrow, I yawned, then watched the Cardinals and Phillies. How long will we be force fed Boise State and their program?
Forgive me Bronco fans - if there are any outside the state of Idaho - but playing in the Mountain West, beating a mediocre Georgia team, and pounding Fresno State, Tulsa, Toledo and Nevada does not warrant a top five ranking in my supposition. I will give them credit for doing something that even the mighty SEC-bound Texas A & M Aggies haven't done...ever, and that is actually BEAT and SEC team. So bravo Broncos, now, either attmept to join an AQ conference, play a tougher non-conference schedule, or go away.
Had I a vote to cast in the weekly AP Poll, Boise would NEVER make it past #10 in my rankings. They simply do not deserve such high accolades. They do not have to play the constant, tough schedule that other teams must face. They never have to visit an opposing stadium akin to that of Georgia more than once a season. Think about it:
That first game against Georgia...if you are Coach Peterson, how difficult is it to get your team up for that game. "Guys, you go out and win this game, and the rest of the season is a crap-shoot. We won't face ONE more intimidating crowd ALL season long. The most any road game stadium is going to have is 40,000...maybe."
You will never convince me that, if Boise State had, say, Oklahoma State's schedule, that they would go through it unscathed. Road games against Texas A & M, Texas, Missouri, Texas Tech, plus home games against top 25 ranked Baylor, Kansas State and Oklahoma? Please. Don't attempt to make me laugh. I won't; ever.
So go on Boise State University. Play on Friday night when most football fans are at their children's games. Go play on Wednesday when church is in service. Play on Thursday when X-Factor and CSI will torch the television ratings, play on Saturday when you can, if you can. Let the rest of relevant football teams have the spotlight on Saturdays.
And please, before you think I am being harsh, think about it first. Sure, you hear pundits on ESPN talk about how great the Boise defense is; their offense; their special teams; oh MY! What those pundits fail to make you see is those numbers they like to quote, like total defense/scoring defense/turnovers/etc. are all against the likes of Toledo, Tulsa, Nevada, Freson, Colorado State, et al.
Call me when the schedule toughens up to a respectable top 10 ranked team type of schedule.
Meanwhile, OU and Texas are preparing for yet another matchup that will major ramifications on the college football landscape. The number 1 or 3 ranked Sooners take on the number 10 or 11 ranked Longhorns in the Cotton Bowl tomorrow. Should prove to be a more than interesting game.
On a serious note as well, best wishes for a hopeful speedy recovery go out to Oregon runningback LaMichael James as he injured his arm Thursday evening as the Ducks beat the Cal Golden Bears. Oregon fans just need to hope and pray that Willie Lyles, Phil Knight and the Boise-like attitude of playing on weekdays doesn't come back to bite their rising program.
And finally, my wish for tomorrow is to see a real Heisman-performance on Saturday. With early favorites like Landry Jones (..too many ints...), LaMicheal James (...pending results of his injury...), Marcus Lattimore (...suffering a loss to unranked Auburn...), Robert Grifiin, III (...loss to Kansas State...), Justin Blackmon (...Tulsa knocks off your 100 yard recieving streak???) and Brandon Weeden (...see Landry Jones...) having lackluster starts to the season, the stiff-arm award looks be heading West this December for what would be Stanford University's second winner, Andrew Luck, who hasn't really had that "Heisman-like" performance week-to-week that voters come to expect.
Jones will surely get his chacne to shine against a "supposedly" (...in my opinion, untested...) vaunted and improved Texas defense, headed by new defensive coordinator Manny Diaz, who loves to mix blitz packages and send an extra guy after the quarterback. My prediction: OU wins, but Jones struggles locking on to his "favs" Ryan Broyles and Kenny Stills. Look for James Hanna, Austin Haywood, Dejuan Miller and / or Trey Millard to have that "game" tomorrow that gives them a name in OU circles for years to come. Score: OU 34, Texas 20.
by Brett Hill
the football imp
(...this is going to be a little feature I going to start trying to do regularly on the eve of each college football week...just my thoughts on the week-to-week college football landscape...)
So, we approach week 6 with yet another Boise State Friday night matchup. Sitting in Texas Roadhouse in Mesquite, Tx preparing for the OU / Texas game tomorrow, I yawned, then watched the Cardinals and Phillies. How long will we be force fed Boise State and their program?
Forgive me Bronco fans - if there are any outside the state of Idaho - but playing in the Mountain West, beating a mediocre Georgia team, and pounding Fresno State, Tulsa, Toledo and Nevada does not warrant a top five ranking in my supposition. I will give them credit for doing something that even the mighty SEC-bound Texas A & M Aggies haven't done...ever, and that is actually BEAT and SEC team. So bravo Broncos, now, either attmept to join an AQ conference, play a tougher non-conference schedule, or go away.
Had I a vote to cast in the weekly AP Poll, Boise would NEVER make it past #10 in my rankings. They simply do not deserve such high accolades. They do not have to play the constant, tough schedule that other teams must face. They never have to visit an opposing stadium akin to that of Georgia more than once a season. Think about it:
That first game against Georgia...if you are Coach Peterson, how difficult is it to get your team up for that game. "Guys, you go out and win this game, and the rest of the season is a crap-shoot. We won't face ONE more intimidating crowd ALL season long. The most any road game stadium is going to have is 40,000...maybe."
You will never convince me that, if Boise State had, say, Oklahoma State's schedule, that they would go through it unscathed. Road games against Texas A & M, Texas, Missouri, Texas Tech, plus home games against top 25 ranked Baylor, Kansas State and Oklahoma? Please. Don't attempt to make me laugh. I won't; ever.
So go on Boise State University. Play on Friday night when most football fans are at their children's games. Go play on Wednesday when church is in service. Play on Thursday when X-Factor and CSI will torch the television ratings, play on Saturday when you can, if you can. Let the rest of relevant football teams have the spotlight on Saturdays.
And please, before you think I am being harsh, think about it first. Sure, you hear pundits on ESPN talk about how great the Boise defense is; their offense; their special teams; oh MY! What those pundits fail to make you see is those numbers they like to quote, like total defense/scoring defense/turnovers/etc. are all against the likes of Toledo, Tulsa, Nevada, Freson, Colorado State, et al.
Call me when the schedule toughens up to a respectable top 10 ranked team type of schedule.
Meanwhile, OU and Texas are preparing for yet another matchup that will major ramifications on the college football landscape. The number 1 or 3 ranked Sooners take on the number 10 or 11 ranked Longhorns in the Cotton Bowl tomorrow. Should prove to be a more than interesting game.
On a serious note as well, best wishes for a hopeful speedy recovery go out to Oregon runningback LaMichael James as he injured his arm Thursday evening as the Ducks beat the Cal Golden Bears. Oregon fans just need to hope and pray that Willie Lyles, Phil Knight and the Boise-like attitude of playing on weekdays doesn't come back to bite their rising program.
And finally, my wish for tomorrow is to see a real Heisman-performance on Saturday. With early favorites like Landry Jones (..too many ints...), LaMicheal James (...pending results of his injury...), Marcus Lattimore (...suffering a loss to unranked Auburn...), Robert Grifiin, III (...loss to Kansas State...), Justin Blackmon (...Tulsa knocks off your 100 yard recieving streak???) and Brandon Weeden (...see Landry Jones...) having lackluster starts to the season, the stiff-arm award looks be heading West this December for what would be Stanford University's second winner, Andrew Luck, who hasn't really had that "Heisman-like" performance week-to-week that voters come to expect.
Jones will surely get his chacne to shine against a "supposedly" (...in my opinion, untested...) vaunted and improved Texas defense, headed by new defensive coordinator Manny Diaz, who loves to mix blitz packages and send an extra guy after the quarterback. My prediction: OU wins, but Jones struggles locking on to his "favs" Ryan Broyles and Kenny Stills. Look for James Hanna, Austin Haywood, Dejuan Miller and / or Trey Millard to have that "game" tomorrow that gives them a name in OU circles for years to come. Score: OU 34, Texas 20.
OU v. Ball State Game Article
Oklahoma Routs Ball State, Prepares for “Texas Week”
By Brett Hill, NCAA Correspondent
Norman – Oklahoma came in to this week’s matchup with Ball State University coming off their first conference win against the Missouri Tigers 38-28 in a lackluster performance that earned OU a downgrade by the Associated Press in their weekly poll to No.2 in the country; however, they were able to retain the No. 1 ranking in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. The Sooners were a team upset, mad, disappointed, embarrassed and ready get back to “Sooner Football” as seniors Travis Lewis and Frank Alexander put it last week.
Last week, many of the Sooner players noticed a lack of intensity and focus during practices leading up to the Missouri game a week ago, the Sooners MVP of the evening – Tony Jefferson – shed some light on what he felt was a better week of practices, “We definitely made improvements [on the defense]. I saw that this week. We were hungry for it and knew we had to bounce back.”
So, the Cardinals from Muncie, Indiana came in to Norman to face a team ready to prove those who doubted them wrong and, after 655 offensive yards against just 214 for Ball State, four forced turnovers by the Sooners and 62 points later, Oklahoma sent the Cardinals limping home as they prepare for the Red River Rivalry against the Longhorns at the State Fair of Texas in Dallas.
After the game, all of the players comments were geared toward their anticipation of the upcoming Red River game in Dallas, something all OU players, coaches and fans simply cannot wait to get to each season.
“I sensed in the locker room that there wasn’t anybody jumping up and down. Already there’s a lot of anticipation for next week and we’ve got a lot of work to do to keep pushing and building on this team – to get better play – and I know the guys will be anxious to come back next week to polish some things up and get ready for [Texas] week,” were Coach Stoops’ thoughts on his team’s performance leading into the Texas game.
In a surprise start to this week’s game, Ball State lined up for the opening kickoff and caught the Sooners sleeping with an opening on-side kick, which they recovered. Fortunately for Sooner fans, the defense was able to force a three-and-out and the Sooners offense was able to take over on their own fifteen.
Ten plays and eighty-five yards later, OU would light the scoreboard first via a Landry Jones six yard touchdown pass to tight end James Hanna. Interestingly, placekicker duties were handled by Michael Hunnicutt after he took over the job for Jimmy Stevens last week as Stevens was said to have been hampered by a quad injury. At the 10:14 mark of the first quarter, OU led 7-0.
When Ball State received their next possession, they were again forced into a three-and-out, but were given a golden opportunity as the usually sure-handed and veteran wide receiver and All-American Ryan Broyles fumbled the punt and gave the Cardinals the ball on the OU 26.
Again, the Sooners defense stiffened and held Ball State to a field goal attempt of 34 yards which Steven Schott nailed, putting the Cardinals on the board 7-3 at the 6:59 mark.
The Sooners offense would be somewhat disappointing the remainder of the quarter and the defense would follow suit as OU quarterback Landry Jones would lead the Sooners offense into Ball State territory, only to have their drive stall out on the twenty-seven yard line, settling for a forty-four yard field goal that Hunnicutt banged off the upright and in for a 10-3 lead.
The Sooners defense would proceed to give up a Ball State drive that lasted 7:08 covering sixty-one yards in fifteen plays. However, all the Cardinals would be able to get out of the drive was three points, giving the Sooners a 10-6 lead early in the second quarter.
The Cardinals would not score for the remainder of the contest, as the field goal seemed to serve as added motivation to the Sooners to pick up their intensity and put on a dominant performance the rest of the way on both sides of the ball, taking advantage of several Cardinal miscues.
After a kickoff penalty caused the Sooners offense to start on their own eight yard line, Jones and company put together a twelve play, ninety-two yard drive capped off by a twenty-five yard touchdown run by walk-on sensation running back Dominique Whaley, giving the Sooners a 17-6 advantage.
One interesting note coming into the game was that Ball State sophomore quarterback Keith Wenning had not thrown an interception through his first three games. At the 8:10 mark of the second quarter, sophomore linebacker Tony Jefferson remedied that problem for Wenning as he picked off an attempted screen pass that was tipped at the line of scrimmage by senior defensive end Frank Alexander giving the Sooners the ball on the Cardinal ten yard line.
Thirty-seven seconds later, Landry Jones found Kenny Stills, who ended the evening with seven grabs for eighty yards, in the back of the end zone for a 23-6 OU lead.
The turnovers and touchdowns were literally coming in waves and the Cardinals offense and defense had no answer for the Sooners.
On the next drive, Tony Jefferson once again intercepted Wenning as the Ball State quarterback seemed to be attempting to throw the ball out-of-bounds but missed his mark as Jefferson leaped into the air, extending his right arm to secure the interception, giving Jones and the Sooners offense the ball on their own twenty-three yard line.
“[Tony Jefferson] is an excellent athlete as he demonstrated out there tonight. Tony has a real knack for the ball. He had a huge night tonight,” Stoops said of his sophomore linebacker from California.
Keyed by a forty-seven yard catch-and-run by running back Roy Finch, the Sooners had the ball deep into Cardinal territory once again and capped off a six play, seventy-seven scoring drive with a one yard Dominique Whaley dive, giving the Sooners a 31-6 lead. Whaley would end the his evening with 109 yards on the ground and one score.
Ball State quarterback Keith Wenning must have thought he was experiencing déjà-vu as linebacker Tony Jefferson again picked off his pass that was tipped at the line by junior defensive end RJ Washington, setting up the Sooners on the Cardinal twenty-seven yard line.
Jefferson had this to say about his three interception career night: “It was weird. It just kept happening over and over again. On the fourth one [referencing a fourth interception he missed on the possession after his third] I was like, ‘…this is too good to be true, what’s going on here?’”
It only took Jones thirteen seconds to find his favorite receiver target as he hooked up with Ryan Broyles for a twenty-seven yard touchdown, extending the Sooners lead to 38-6. That catch tied Ryan Broyles for the all-time Big 12 receptions lead with 303 for his career. After that score, both squads play became somewhat sloppy and the Sooners committed their first turnover of the game as well.
With just 1:41 left in the half, Jones tossed his first interception of the game when an errant throw missed receiver Kenny Stills and was picked off by Ball State free safety Kyle Hoke.
The Cardinals were not able to capitalize off the turnover and with time winding down, the Sooners tried to make one last drive for points as Jones was able to find receiver Jaz Reynolds who almost scored on a slant route, but was brought down after gaining sixty-two yards.
Jones threw three incomplete passes and Michael Hunnicutt’s thirty yard field goal attempt floated wide left and the Sooners led 38-6 going into halftime.
OU started off the second half looking to take the fight out of the Cardinals, and the Sooners did just that going on a scoring rampage and demoralizing their MAC foe putting up thirty-one points within the first four minutes of the second half.
After Ball State went three-and-out and punted to the Oklahoma thirty-six, Jones was able to find Broyles again, this time on a second and ten that went sixty-four yards, giving the Sooners a 45-6 lead.
The Cardinals next possession followed with a punt and it took Jones exactly nine seconds to find the end zone again as he hit Jaz Reynolds streaking down the west sideline for a fifty-six yard score.
After the ensuing kickoff, Ball State took over on their own twenty and quarterback Keith Wenning rushed for a one yard gain as senior linebacker Travis Lewis applied a hit that caused him to fumble the ball that was scooped up by fellow backer Tom Wort and returned twenty-two yards, giving the Sooners a ridiculous 59-6 advantage. Wort’s score was the Sooners first defensive touchdown of the 2011 season for the Sooners defense.
The flurry of scores in the third quarter came in a markedly fast pace. Three minutes and twenty-six seconds ticked off while the Sooners took their halftime lead from 38-6 to 59-6.
As the quarter came ticking to an end, Jones would find Ryan Broyles for a six yard gainer that gave Broyles the all-time Big 12 receptions record with 304 grabs for his illustrious career in the Crimson and Cream.
Jones, who finished the contest with 425 yards passing, one interception and five touchdowns said, “We wanted to get that record for [Ryan]. He’s such a great athlete and to be able to play alongside him is a real honor,” of Broyles performance.
“I felt like today there was a good chance for me to break [the Big 12 record] and I’m very blessed to be in this position and put on these pads for OU,” was all the humble senior receiver had to say on his record-breaking performance. He recorded the four catches needed to secure the record all for himself and racked up 109 yards receiving with two touchdowns.
On that same drive that extended into the fourth quarter, the Sooners would add to their lead as their drive stalled on the Ball State twenty-two yard line, giving Michael Hunnicutt a chance to redeem himself for an earlier miss and the red-shirt freshman kicker did not disappoint, hitting the thirty-nine yard try, putting the Sooners over the sixty point mark, 62-6.
Not since a 2009 contest with Texas A & M in Norman have the Sooners posted sixty points in a game. Also, the Sooners defense had not had as good a day in the turnover department since recording three fumble recoveries and an interception against Nebraska in the 2010 Big 12 Championship Game.
With the win, the Sooners put any doubts they might have a difficult time “getting up” for the MAC Conference foe and walked away almost fully healthy – the lone Sooner injury coming to running back Brennan Clay who looked to have a shoulder injury early in the second quarter but was said to be fine going into “Texas Week.”
On where he feels his team is going into the Texas game, Coach Stoops said, “I feel good that we made good progress; I feel good that the players aren’t overjoyed about anything meaning they know there’s more to come and they’re anticipating that and they know we need to keep getting better in some areas. So, I feel we’re in a good spot and I know they’re always excited about this game…everybody is, so they’ll work hard this week and get ready for it.”
After many of the players noticed a lack of intensity and focus during practice leading up to the Missouri game a week ago, the Sooners MVP of the evening – Tony Jefferson – shed some light on what he felt was a better week of practices while adding his thoughts on the upcoming tilt with Texas, “We definitely made improvements [on the defense]. I saw that this week. We were hungry for it and knew we had to bounce back. This week is going to be a dogfight and I’m ready to go out there and beat the Longhorns. Let’s play some ball.”
“Tonight was a great game for us, but we’re ready for Texas now and ready to go. Everyone from both state’s get so into it, it’s going to be a great game,” Wort added after the game. His fellow backer, Travis Lewis also was ready to get to the business of the Texas saying, “[Both teams] undefeated, Texas / OU. It can’t get any bigger than that. So, they’re trying to take off our heads, we’re trying to take off theirs and it should be an exciting game to watch.”
Oh, and for the matter of rankings in post-Saturday action in college football, the Sooners took yet another drop in the Associated Press Poll as former #3 Alabama flip flopped positions with Oklahoma after their win at Florida. In the ESPN / USA Today Coaches Poll – the only poll used in computing BCS rankings that will come out later this month – OU was able to hold on to the top spot in the nation by eleven points.
The annual Red River Rivalry game will take place this Saturday at 11:00 AM from the State Fair of Texas in Dallas and will be broadcast on ABC. For more coverage, log on to my blog at http://footballimp.blogspot.com.
OU v. Tulsa Game Article
Whaley Steals the Show; Sooners Trounce Golden Hurricane 47-14
By Brett Hill
NCAA Correspondent
Norman, OK – When game week in the NCAA rolls around, one of the first orders of business for the head coach is to release his preliminary depth chart. Bob Stoops’ first depth chart of the 2011 season included a surprising name when it came to the running backs: walk-on, former Langston University running back and now, co-starter Dominique Whaley.
That’s right, Dominique Whaley. A former Lawton MacArthur Highlander selected to play in the Oklahoma Coaches Association all state game as a defensive back. He played 10 games at NAIA Langston in 2008, racking up a grand total of 258 yards and 2 touchdowns before transferring to Oklahoma in 2009.
The coaching staff talked up Whaley to a degree in 2009, but cautiously since he would not have been eligible to play until the 2010 season. The talk of Whaley, albeit not all that uncommon for players in spring ball, was positive and sounded promising as far as the world of walk-ons is concerned. Whaley was a “nice” player, looked “good” in practices, the usual “coach talk.”
The 2010 season saw more of the same talk as Stoops continued to mention Whaley as a potential player at running back that might possibly seem action. That talk never came to pass and Whaley never saw the field; so when Stoops ramped up the rhetoric on Whaley this summer and into the fall camp, most felt it was more of the same and possibly a ploy by Stoops to motivate the other running backs.
On Saturday, Whaley proved to those that doubted him that they were dead wrong. Whaley ended the evening with 18 rushes for 132 yards and 4 touchdowns. He also hauled in two passes for 12 yards, helping Oklahoma route in-state rival Tulsa. His 7.3 average per rush is one of the best averages for any running back in the Stoops era for a single game and his 3 first half touchdowns were the most in school history for a walk-on.
Whaley’s longest run of the evening came at the 10:00 mark in the first quarter when he took a handoff from Landry Jones and scampered down the field for 35 yards. But his best run came when he scored his last touchdown of the evening the third quarter.
With a 37-7 lead at the 3:03 mark, Whaley took a handoff from Jones on the Tulsa 32 yard line and headed right of the Golden Hurricane defense. After breaking 2 tackles near the line of scrimmage, Whaley broke 2 more en route to the end zone.
The highlight-reel score gave the Sooners their largest lead of the night and helped Whaley not only earn a game ball from Coach Stoops, but also a helmet sticker from Chris Fowler on ESPN’s College Gameday later that night.
On his performance, Whaley said, “I feel like I can be a lot better and never stop trying to get better. You can never be satisfied at OU.” Then, Whaley was asked to grade his performance on the night, and, surprisingly, the walk-on game-breaker replied, “Well, I did have a couple of busted assignments, one of them that could have killed our quarterback, so I’m going to give myself a ‘C,’ maybe even lower.”
When Stoops was told he must have been surprised by Whaley, he responded, “Why? Why do I ‘have’ to be? I’ve told [the media] he’s a good football player. You guys just don’t believe me. I’m not a bit surprised.”
OU’s 246 total rushing yards was almost double their average output for the 2010 season and their 5.3 yards per carry as a team was a full 2 yards better than their 3.36 average last year. Stoops had previously said that it was a goal of the offense this year to be better at running the ball, especially inside the red zone, and the Sooners did just that Saturday.
“[The running game] still needs to be polished up, but we’re getting there. It was a little bit better tonight,” said the Sooners’ head man.
Referring to their difficulties at Texas A & M last year scoring from goal to go situations, starting left tackle Donald Stephenson said, “We just wanted to improve on [running the ball], especially after [the Texas A & M game] last year, we’ve been working hard to get better rushing the ball and I think we took the first step tonight.”
Some of the “household” name Sooners also had big evening as Heisman-hopefuls Landry Jones and Ryan Broyles continued to show off their synchronization as Jones found Broyles 14 times – just 2 shy of the OU record – for 158 yards – including one 50 yarder with seconds to go in the 1st quarter – and one touchdown. Jones went 35 for 47 for 375 yards and the one touchdown pass to Broyles.
The “other” co-starter at running back for OU also had a nice evening as Brennan Clay rushed 14 times for a 4.6 yard average, including an 11 yard touchdown. Placekickers Jimmy Stevens and Michael Hunnicutt added a field goal apiece to round out the Sooners scoring.
As for the Golden Hurricanes, it was a difficult day throughout as TU was only able to muster 14 points. And playing without the NCAA’s record-holding all-purpose yardage player, wide receiver Damarius Johnson, suspended indefinitely pending an embezzlement charge and investigation stemming from two separate incidents at a Tulsa Macy’s department store However, definitely hurt the Golden Hurricane’s chances.
Tulsa did show flashes of what might still prove to be a productive season as the Golden Hurricane’s were able to identify and exploit OU’s seemingly one weak spot on defense: the free safety.
Starter Javon Harris began the game solidly, holding his ground in the run and pass game throughout, even forcing a fumble in the second quarter on tailback Ja’Terian Douglas. But with 3:08 remaining the first half, Harris busted his coverage of receiver Bryan Burnham and was beat for a 44 yard touchdown pass from GJ Kinne.
And, in the second half, Harris was exposed again on wheel routes the Sooners were said to have specifically have worked on with a great amount of detail. At 10:08 in the third quarter, Tulsa receiver Willie Carter beat Harris as he looked inside for the run and caught a Kinne lob and took off for 69 yards to the OU 10 yard line.
Luckily for Harris, redemption was only a play away as Kinne tossed a screen pass to receiver Jordan James who was hit by Sooners cornerback Demontre Hurst. Harris covered the fumble by James to help avoid Tulsa’s second score.
However, the fourth quarter saw Harris fall for the wheel route again as Willie Carter once again sprinted around Harris going for a 42 yard gainer that helped set up Tulsa’s second and final score of the game 4 plays later on a halfback pass from Kinne to Trey Watts over the middle, who ran through an arm tackle of Harris’ replacement, free safety Sam Proctor.
“Yeah, it looked like [busted coverage]. It was just bad coverage. The defense was just really good. Other than those three busts, it was good,” Stoops said when asked specifically about the three big plays given up on the defense.
Other notable players on the Sooners defense Saturday were defensive ends Frank Alexander, Ronnell Lewis, strong safety Aaron Colvin and middle linebacker Tom Wort.
Lewis, who entered the contest just being cleared by the NCAA to participate this season on September 1st, co-led the team with 8 tackles, 1 sack, and 2.5 tackles for loss.
On getting off this season to a good start, Lewis humbly replied, “I’m just a team player and I just do my job. That’s all. I just want to help the team the best I can and go out there and do what I do, making plays and getting the crowd pumped up.”
His fellow end, Frank Alexander, gets my vote for defensive MVP of the game as he recorded 6 tackles, 1 sack, 1.5 tackles for loss, 2 pass breakups, and one interception – the first of his career – with a return of 27 yards at the 11:48 mark of the second quarter as Tulsa was driving for their first score of the game.
Alexander said, “I try to work with the receivers a little bit in practices sometime just so, if I ever get that opportunity, I know what to do with the ball because you never know,” when asked about his int. “I felt like we went out there with a chip on our shoulders to prove that we could be a good D-Line. I felt like everybody stoop up and put everything they had into it and it came out good tonight.”
Colvin, the other leader in tackles, also had 1 pass breakup and one fumble recovery. Wort only recorded 5 tackles on the night, but also tallied 2 quarterback hurries and helped safety Javon Harris cause a fumble in the first half.
Wort also was the first player this year for the Sooners defense to wear #12 in memory of Austin Box who passed away May 19th of an overdose of painkillers. With a heavy heart, Wort took the field adorning Box’s number and had this to say about the moment: “It was a special moment, something I’m never going to forget. I absolutely think he would be proud of us tonight, but he wouldn’t want us to win just one game and stop there. We’ve got the whole season ahead of us and are looking forward to it.”
Obviously, the Sooners seem to have found their answer at running back going forward this season. OU goes into next week on a bye and comes back to action with their first road game of the year at Florida State on September 17th at 7:00 PM. The ‘Noles are coming off a 34-0 blitz of Louisiana-Monroe at Tallahassee going into their game with Charleston Southern this Saturday.
Barring a miracle, the Sooners and Seminoles will meet up in a battle of top 5 teams. Last season, the Sooners met up with the Seminoles in Norman where they were handed a 47-17 beat down. The Seminoles are without quarterback Christian Ponder, now with the Minnesota Vikings, but have sophomore EJ Manuel, a more diverse quarterback that can throw and run.
If the Sooners hope to leave Tallahassee with a win, Harris and the other safeties will have to shore up their deficiencies in the pass game and the offense will have to work hard on keeping up the run game as the ‘Noles boast one of, if not the best defensive front seven’s in the nation.
However, getting back receiver Kenny Stills and defensive tackle Stacey McGee, who were on suspension this week for transgressions during the offseason, should help the Sooners immensely as they travel to play Florida State for the first time since in the state of Florida since their 2000 National Championship Win.
For Tulsa, a 2:30 kick at Tulane awaits the Golden Hurricane this Saturday. Then, contests with two more top ten teams in Oklahoma State and Boise State await TU. For more, visit footballimp.blogspot.com.
OSU Preseason Article for the McAlester News-Capital
Expectations High in Stillwater;
Defense the Major Concern
By: Brett Hill
NCAA Correspondent
Stillwater – Coming off the best single-season in Cowboy football history, expectations are soaring around the football program these days in Stillwater. Coach Gundy knows it; Brandon Weeden knows it; as does Justin Blackmon. The coaches, players and fans can’t wait to see what new offensive product new offensive coordinator Todd Monken will put on the field.
Monken returns to Oklahoma State after 4 years at LSU and the last 2 with the Jacksonville Jaguars. He takes over the “air raid” offense that Dana Holgorsen left behind when he took the head coaching job at West Virgina. Monken will surely be looked to in keeping pace with what many fans became accustomed to as the Cowboys embarked on their historic season in 2010.
Blackmon said he has made a nice transition with the team. “He’s been great. He came in in the spring and we’ve just been running with [the new offense] ever since.”
And, if Cowboy Heisman hopeful Brandon Weeden has anything to say about it, Poke fans just might see another Cowboy receiver emerge as a second Biletnikoff candidate on the OSU receiver core: Josh Cooper. When I asked Weeden about a player he thought might surprise fans, he had this to say, “A guy that I think had a big, humongous year last year and that I think doesn’t get enough ‘pub’ , and I really don’t understand it, is Josh Cooper,”
“Josh Cooper is about as good as it gets. He’s the best route-runner – probably in the country – and he’s got some of the best hands. The guy is a great wide receiver. Fortunately I have [Justin] Blackmon, which takes some of the shadow off of him, and it sounds crazy, but I might rather throw the ball to Josh Cooper over Justin Blackmon.”
The Cowboys also return a veteran group across the offensive line and, while losing former All-American running back Kendall Hunter to graduation hurts, the Cowboys have a returning weapon in the backfield with sophomore Joseph Randle and Jeremy Smith.
“Having Kendall was great, but he’s gone now and we just have to step up, keep working hard and not let that situation get to us. We learned a lot from Kendall and we’ve just had to take those things and give that to the younger guys,” Smith said.
While the offense looks to be set across the board, it’s defensive coordinator Bill Young and his front seven that might give some pause when discussing how far this Cowboy team can go this year. After losing both defensive tackles and two of three starting linebackers to graduation, the pokes look to be a little thin in the front. Defensive tackles Nigel Nicholas and Chris Littlehead / Anthony Rogers, along with linebackers Caleb Lavey and Joe Mitchell will be leaned upon heavily in the early going.
“We have a defense that will have to grow up fast in the front seven,” Gundy said. “These guys will be key on the interior seven on the defensive side of the ball for us.”
Cowboy defensive back Broderick Brown had arguably the most stellar play in college football last year when he tipped a Landry Jones pass from out-of-bounds back into play to linebacker Shaun Lewis. Brown sounded very confident, “Defensive expectations are very high. We were top ranked in the Big 12 and the country last year in turnovers and total defense, so we have big expectations going forward.”
One Cowboy defender that was identified by several of his fellow teammates was safety Justin Gilbert. Gilbert said, “We expect to be among the top ten or top five secondary’s in the country this year. Coach Young has stayed on us and made sure that we’re where we need to be and in the right position on the field.”
With so much talent and high hopes for another run at the Big XII title, the Cowboys will have a lot to live up to in the eyes of college football and the fans that follow them. Last year at this time, the media had Coach Gundy’s Pokes picked at or near the bottom of the Big XII South Division. This year, they are picked no worse than third and many feel that on December 3rd, the Big XII Championship Trophy will be handed out to whichever team walks off the field victorious.
Make no mistake about it, the Cowboy offense will yet again have the weapons to attack and scorch opposing team’s scoreboards. OSU is confident and ready to step up to the challenges set forth to them. The only problematic areas you can find with this team are, once again, nagging questions regarding the defense and those high expectations. This group has never had to deal with pressure from within and from outside the program to perform at a national-title-contender-level.
It will be an interesting September for the Pokes as they take on Arizona September 8th, travel up the interstate to Tulsa on the 17th, then that all important, highly talked-about showdown in College Station with Texas A & M on the 24th. October should prove to be just as challenging as they face road trip to Austin to take on the Longhorns on the 15th, then turn around and head to Columbia the following week to take on the Missouri Tigers.
And lastly, November will see the Pokes take on one sure-fire test when they travel to Lubbock on the 12th to take on the Red Raiders of Texas Tech, a place that has continually haunted Cowboy fans. If the Cowboys can successfully navigate the schedule unscathed until December 3rd, well then all bets are literally off. Bedlam could very well see not only the crowning of a Big XII Champion, but a birth for the BCS National Championship granted to the winner as well.
My prediction for the Cowboys this season: the many road games the Pokes will have to face will prove a little tougher than most realize or are willing to admit. The difficult thing about being on the road is that you have to be able to defend the run. The questions along the front seven are too concerning and with little experience to put out on the field, the Cowboys will finish behind OU and Texas A & M in so certain order. I predict they trip up twice on their tough road schedule, lose what will be another wild Bedlam game and go 10-3 with a trip back to the Alamo Bowl.
Tulsa Preseason Article for the McAlester News-Capital
Golden Hurricane See Opportunity
Despite “Expert” Opinions
by Brett Hill
NCAA Correspondent
Tulsa - The 2010 Tulsa Golden Hurricane football team finished with a 10-3 record, capping their season by convincingly defeating the University of Hawaii Warriors in the self-named Sheraton Hawaii Bowl, 62-35. After their dismantling of the Warriors, a few important questions were left to be answered going forward. Would head coach Todd Graham be back for the ’11 season and would NCAA record-holder and Tulsa playmaker Damarius Johnson return for his senior season?
As we found out, the latter came true for the Golden Hurricane, but the former did not. With Graham taking his first BCS conference job at Pittsburgh, the void a head coach was left to be filled by Tulsa area native, former Tulsa Union Coach, and current running wide receiver and running back coach, Bill Blankenship.
And, while the players on the Golden Hurricane team seem not to mind the change, those media “experts” and fellow coaches obviously feel that Coach Blankenship has a virtual mountain to climb. One might point to Tulsa’s non-conference schedule as an area of great concern - after all, it is the toughest of all division 1 FBS teams. Just don’t tell that to the players.
Wide-out Thomas Roberson said, “I see [our schedule] as an opportunity for us to see how good of a team we are right off the bat. It’s an opportunity and we want to embrace it. Playing the number one team to start the season, I think, is going to be a benefit to our team. Everyone’s going to go out and try that much harder, work out that much harder, so I think our team is really going to benefit from our schedule.”
Alex Singleton, who looks to be in the mix for starting running back, shared in his teammate’s enthusiasm, “Our schedule could have more top five teams…whatever, I’m going into the season with the attitude that, ‘Hey, they’re human, they’re not machines. It’s just a name and we’ll try our best to break them down.’”
With a total of nineteen returning starters, Tulsa’s veteran group is poised to make a statement early on this season. With road trips to Norman and Boise, one might feel that the Hurricane’s chances are slim. But allow me to remind you of a trip this team made last season to South Bend, Indiana. That contest saw a Tulsa team with a 4-3 record go in, heavy underdogs, only to pull out a last second victory on the hands of John Flanders as he intercepted a would-be touchdown pass.
Sophomore linebacker Shawn Jackson shared his thoughts about the experienced group coming back on both sides of the ball, “Our expectations are very high. We have a lot of starters coming back on both sides of the ball. We feel like we have a strong team overall and special teams is going to be a big part of [our season] as well.”
“I think our strength is that we have a lot of guys coming back and I don’t think we have any weaknesses,” boasted pre-season Conference-USA guard Clint Anderson. Anderson also added that “...I usually don’t get into [paying attention to the polls], if I’m reading a magazine, it’s usually a fishing magazine, but yeah, when someone thinks you’re not good, it makes you want to go out and show them a little something.”
I will be the first to concede that Notre Dame isn’t anywhere near the level of competition the Golden Hurricane will find when they step on the Sooners and Broncos field this September. However, with this team’s success from the previous season and with all the returning starters, one has to believe that both OU and BSU will have their hands full when Tulsa storms into town.
John Flanders shared his thoughts about having to travel to difficult venues like Norman and Boise and if the Hurricane’s previous year’s schedules at Notre Dame, Arkansas, et al have helped the team in preparation for the 2011 season.
“It gives us more confidence because we’ve played at a couple of big schools and after [the Notre Dame win] and going out to Hawaii and winning our bowl game out there, our confidence kept boosting up and after all our hard work, we feel like we can go in anywhere and get a win.”
After the success that Todd Graham continued after taking over for Steve Kragthorpe, expectations are indeed high again for Coach Blankenship and the Tulsa Hurricane. A common theme, especially amongst the seniors, was the expectation to win the Conference-USA Championship. The two “big names” on the football team going into the 2011 season – quarterback GJ Kinne and wide receiver and return specialist Damarius Johnson – were more than happy to offer their thoughts on what this Tulsa team can and will accomplish.
Johnson said, “The one thing we haven’t achieved yet since I’ve been here has been a conference championship. My freshman year, we went there, got beat, and seeing the seniors…I was a young and mad and didn’t understand it and now, as a senior, my time has went by so fast. I feel good about our chances to do that and win the conference this year.”
“Our schedule gives us a great opportunity. Playing Oklahoma, Boise and Oklahoma State will be great for us and I look forward to seeing how we match up to those guys. Our number one goal is to win a conference championship, so, whatever we have to do to get there is what we’re going to do,” Kinne added.
Lastly, having to deal with a new head coach and another new offensive coordinator, many college athletes would have balked at having to go through so much change. Fortunately for Tulsa, their quarterback has not been fazed by the constant change. But, being the reigning Conference-USA Player of the year will do that for you.
“It’s not a big deal. Coach Blankenship has been here and I am totally comfortable with him. I think he is going to continue our winning ways and I’m proud to play for him.”
Coming off three consecutive 10-win seasons, having two deadly weapons like Kinne and Johnson on offense, returning a solid offensive line, and riding a 7 game win streak dating back to their October 16th win against Tulane, expectations couldn’t be higher for this group.
Look for an experienced Golden Hurricane squad to give the likes of Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Boise State all they want and more come September 3rd, 17th and 24th, respectively. All 11 of Tulsa’s games are slated for television at this time, so be sure to tune in for all those Golden Hurricane games this season as we know one area standout, Adam Boyd, will for sure be watching intently as Tulsa takes the field this year. My prediction for the Golden Hurricane in 2011: 11-2 with a Liberty Bowl appearance, which means that coveted Conference-USA Championship these players crave.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)