Snark, Innuendo, Uninformed Opinion; It's Steamroller Week 1 - Florida Atlantic

Welcome back to the 2018 edition of the Steamroller. I watched a lot of soccer and baseball during the football offseason. I didn't check out the Red-White Game, I avoid message boards out of principal and The Oklahoman's football preview centered around the uniform change from Nike to Jordan. So, I feel really well prepared for this season.

I do know it's year two  of the Lincoln Riley era, year one of the post-Baker Damn Mayfield era and, apparently, year six of the return of Mike Stoops. It's been a while since there was so much uncertainty entering the season. This uncertainty does not come with diminished expectations.

I'll deal with my anxiety from least to greatest and start with Lincoln Riley. If I have confidence in anyone being able to lose a Heisman Trophy quarterback and take any cast and turn it into a 40 point scoring unit it's Lincoln Riley and it's not as if the cupboard is bare. Rodney Anderson was the most pleasant surprise on offense last year and is coming into the season healthy. CeeDee Lamb and Marquise "Hollywood" Brown are monsters in complementary ways. Trey Sermon has a year of experience under his belt. Only Landry Jones could do less with more. 

Speaking of Landry, the bar for Kyler Murray is anything greater than Landry and better or equal to Baker Mayfield. That will win another Big 12 championship. We know he has the arm and the wheels. Does he shit his pants and take off running too often in the face of a half assed pass rush? Can he check down multiple receivers? Can he make quality decisions on a consistent basis? He's played before and he's done well. The earlier these questions get answered, the better. But again, while there is no greater pressure on a QB in the country there is help carrying the load and the more effectively said load is distributed, the better off the offense will be. Quick reminder: Lincoln Riley is calling plays.

Finally there's Mike Stoops, who, according to wikipedia, has one career highlight since 2012:

In 2012, after a disappointing return as defensive coordinator to the University of Oklahoma, Mike Stoops impregnated an exotic dancer at the popular local haunt "Sugers" in Norman, Oklahoma.

It's safe to say the return of Mike Stoops has been underwhelming. He's been relegated to the booth on game days because his temperament is ill-suited (in a bad way) for today's culture. The last few years his defense's scoring average has been more formulaic (Whatever OU scores +/- 1 defensive stop  = points given up) than of consistent quality. It has made for thrilling viewing in the same way a drunk fart can fall on a knifes edge.

I am convinced that Stoops was coaching for his job every game after Iowa State last year. There's no way to know if I was right or wrong (which is precisely the sort of thin limb I like to step out on) but he's still in charge of the D. It sounds like recruiting is on the uptick and the most ballyhooed freshman on the squad will be starting on his side of the ball for the second straight year.

What I'm telling you is there is no better time to be optimistic about this defense than right now. It won't take long to find out if they are worth a damn or not.

OFFENSE

The focus will be on Kyler Murray and my suspicion is that Riley will not hold back utilizing him in any conceivable way. He should be giddy at the thought of unleashing the wheels of Marquise Brown and the arm of a big league center fielder.

I think a lot of coaches would lean more heavily on Rodney Anderson or maybe try to keep Murray in the pocket but that's not how this offense operates. Having to account for Murray's speed is the key to the show. He's my choice for OPOG. I think he's going to have some alarmingly easy throws to make.

DEFENSE

I'd by lying if I said I wasn't a little worried about a Lane Kiffin offense seemingly comprised of degenerate castoffs and transfers going up against a Mike Stoops defense in game one. The good news is there is good experience at all levels. The cornerbacks are solid and settled.

Can anyone tackle? It'd be a lot cooler if they could.

I'm throwing a week 1 dart in true Steamroller fashion and taking Tre Norwood for my DPOG. It's sheer gut instinct. My wet dream would be for someone from the D-Line or linebacker group to prove themselves a force that must be accounted for on every play. I'm not too nervous for my bedsheets though.

THE SCORE

There will be some good, bad and ugly in this one. But the Sooners need to be sharp overall. The first four weeks of this season are the toughest I can remember any year.

I think the offense will be smooth enough to score enough and the D comes out hungry ready to show that they can make a leap.

Sooners 45, FAU 24

Boomer to the motherfuckin Sooner

Florida Atlantic

We're back again loyal reader(s) for another year of the oft ignored/seldom read Steamroller. I am not sure how long we've been doing these posts but I'm thinking it has to be getting close, if not surpassing, ten years. Not a lot has changed save the forgettable and undoubtedly maligned audio/visual season. I could fairly easily go back and look up exactly how long it's been but that type of superficial research would break precedent of this half-assed site. Instead we'll press onward, facts and accuracy be damned. Welcome back. 

Last seasoned ended in unceremonious if not typical sooner fashion, with copious scoring and a steadfast refusal to attempt anything resembling defense. Several key players are gone from that very good sooner team none more notable than Baker Mayfield. When a player is drafted first overall, it's generally safe to say his replacement will represent a decline in production. For the first time in a few seasons QB is a question mark, however it's not a question of whom, but of how big that decline will be. Much of the luster has worn off of Kyler Murray since his freshman year at texas A&M. In part due to an underwhelming first year there, but also simply because time tends to create doubt, warranted or not. He looked good in tiny appearances last season, but teams gameplanning for him specifically represents a completely different obstacle. It will be interesting to see how he does. 

Offense

The aforementioned QB change aside, plenty has changed on the offense otherwise. Most notably the loss of key components on the offensive line. As any analyst worthy of an ESPN Under Armor high-school all-star game will tell you, this is where games are won and lost. Mayfield was great, make no mistake, but great protection and running game certainly help. Speaking of running game, last year's committee at RB slowly evolved into the Rodney Anderson show (who's inexplicable abandoning against Georgia cost OU the game in my opinion, but I digress), and what a show it was. That said the Sooners still possess great depth here. I'm a sucker for Trey Sermon who's a beast and it speaks to Anderson that he's gotten almost no hype going in to the season. WR looks well stocked and Calcaterra appears to be a capable replacement at TE. In this one however, I have to go with Anderson. Ball control will be essential against a fast paced, capable offense like FAU, and feeding Rod (really need a solid nickname here, The Rod?) will be a must. I think he goes for 150 on the ground and scores twice.  

Defense

As optimistic as I am with the offense, the defense is equally discouraging. I'm not sure where to find optimism, though I'm sure Mitchy can, yin/yang etc. Has anyone had a wider swing of adoration to loathing than Mike Stoops? I have ran the gamut with him and I've come to the conclusion that he's probably a great coach, coaching in the wrong era and unable to adapt. This could be a week one problem against a Lane Kiffin team that might as well be in the Big 12 with their style of play. Oh yeah, I'm supposed to pick a player here. I will go with Caleb Kelly. My main reasons are he has shown promise in the past, was a physically gifted recruit, and I'm 75% sure he's still on the team. 

Score

I think, as most do based on what I've read, that this will be a shootout. If OU comes to play defense in this one, let's just say it will be a welcome break of character. The last line I saw had OU -21, I would take FAU in that one, and I might now that Mississippi has sports books and I'm passing through there this weekend. I didn't see an over/under but barring something absurd I'll take the over. I do like the Sooners at home, and I think they do enough to win this in an angst provoking win. Sooners take it 47-33. It feels good to be back and it feels good to again say:

Boomer to the Motherfuckin' Sooner