OU vs. Kansas

There's not enough fingers to point to all the blame from last week. I mean, what a pathetic performance. [Air quote] Props [Un-Air Quote] to Texas for executing well. But you want to talk about poor football? You want to talk about being your own worst nightmare? Egads. What a miserable day. Terrible run defense, terrible 3rd down defense. Nothing resembling flow on offense. Stupid penalties. Fucking hell.

Now we turn from that spanking to what, on paper, should be the reverse. Perennial doormat Kansas comes a calling. This should be a salve on the wound of the Sooners but the Sooners have no freaking idea what to do on offense and the defense is shredded by injury. Piling on, this is lose-lose. Win big and you did what you were supposed to do. Win by a little and you haven't solved anything. Lose and a mushroom cloud appears over Norman this week.

OFFENSE

This is how bad the offense has gotten. This week on the same day in the Oklahoman, there was a story about how the running game has to step up. Right next to that was a story about how Jalen Saunders and Sterling Sheperd need to pick it up. Jenni Carlson dusted off the Sorry Landry Jones love letter she wrote this past offseason. Berry Tramel wrote an article explaining the benefits of the forward pass in modern football.  The top two quarterbacks are pretty bad. This thing is a train wreck and the only person who seems to be coming out unscathed is Josh Heupel. What the hell?

Today I'm going with Keith Ford because he's A) A bright shining star in a sea of average and B) it seems clear that if any change is going to happen offensively it's going to be giving him more reps.

Maybe the passing game looks decent today. Maybe Saunders or Sheperd do get a lot of catches. It will be a damn miracle. I am very bearish on this offense. Woe is me and the sky is falling, etc.

DEFENSE

The story here is injuries obviously. This is a different unit with Jordan Phillips missing up front. When he was lost the D looked an awful lot like it did late last year. Co. Nelson hurts even worse. I don't know if Aaron Colvin is playing or not. That's three of the top four players on your defense (Ass Tapper obvs) "dinged" up. Tough to overcome. But overcome they must.

I haven't gone back and watched the tape. I rarely do on losses because I'm a sore loser. I know the longhorns went after the youngin' Dominique Alexander but 19 tackles is insane. He and Franky Shannon had almost 40 between them. Pretty hard on paper.

That said I'm not picking either of them today. I'm going out of the box here and going Quentin Hayes. Sure, why not. He seems like he's been relatively solid.

THE SCORE

Well, it's blowout or bust. Even though I don't think Josh Heupel likes "scoring points" or "routs" the Sooners have to have it. I don't know how they'll do it if Kansas doesn't go tits up. I wear crimson colored glasses and believe it will happen.

OU 31, Kansas 17 in a not as close as the score would indicate type game.

Boomer to the motherfuckin Sooner.