Alabama

The College Football Playoff commences today with our beloved Sooners facing the mighty Crimson Tide from Alabama in the second of two huge games. This marks the third time OU has been to the College Playoffs and the second consecutive year in it. Alas, the next win in this setting for the Sooners will be their first. Going into this game last year, I felt OU had a decent chance of winning. Sure Georgia was tough, but OU had proved their mettle, in spite of a bad defense, with a road win at Ohio State. This year the defense is worse--much worse--and with no real banner wins, my confidence level is near zero.

If you own a TV, or have a reasonable idea of what a TV is, you've probably heard that Alabama is good. As usual, they have a defense that is loaded with NFL prospects and first-round draft picks. They are huge and athletic and fast and mean and can actually fly in short, 15- 20-yard increments. One of their linebackers is in actuality a minotaur that lives on the blood unborn sheep and can bench press 3500 pounds. So yeah, they're imposing. What stands out however, is not the mythical half man/half bull they signed out of rural New Mexico, it's that they have an offense that can score. Not only can they score, they're actually really good at it. So good in fact that their starters hardly played at all in the 4th quarter this season. I present the Sooners first 13 games as exhibits A-M in my case for OU as worst defense of all time. This is not a good matchup.

Optimism? Fear not, I'm sure Mitch will be your divining rod for optimism in the Sahara of this game. I, however, will do my best. Saban has historically had trouble defending an offense like OU. Alabama generally does well against NFL-style offenses found in the SEC. Improvising quarterbacks, and speed based offenses that spread the field and attack are a Big 12 novelty, and not easy to defend. OU is very good at doing these things, and with a stout offensive line, they might actually be able to move the ball and put up some points, minotaur be damned. The other side of the ball? Well, I don't want to ruin the ending for you.

Offense

Last year, you may remember, OU came out very strong and looked all but unstoppable against a good Georgia defense. Then Lincoln Riley showed his youth and inexperience by getting cute and moving away from the bludgeoning run game that had been so effective in the first half. It's not likely that scenario plays out again, but in the event something is working well, let's hope the Sooners stick with it. I think Kyler Murray winning the Heisman was cool, but what Alabama didn't need was material for their bulletin board. With that in mind, I think the Tide is going to be frothing over the chance to crush Kyler. I think Trey Sermon is the Sooners answer. Make no mistake, Murray has to be great, maybe transcendent for OU to have a chance, but I think OU rides Sermon behind a good offensive line.

Defense

Alabama has, for once, a good offense, maybe even a great offense. The Sooners defense is unbelievably bad. I think I'll be surprised if Alabama punts before half time. Oh how I hope I'm wrong. I think the Sooners best chance is to make Alabama sustain drives, and hope for a few lucky bounces with turnovers, dropped passes etc. The fact that this is what I'm hoping will happen is really not good. I will pick Curtis Bolton today simply for the fact that he is often the most fired-up guy. Here's hoping he lays a few big hits and disrupts their offense a bit.

Score

One thing I like about the build-up to this game is that nobody, and I mean nobody, thinks the Sooners have a realistic chance of winning. That's a potent motivator, and I hope Riley and his staff are reminding the team of that often. OU will need to play not only its best game of the season, it will have to be damn near perfect in all phases (no gimme field goals allowed on special teams right before half time, please). I'm fired up to watch this game, and I'm hoping OU comes out and stuns everyone from the get-go, but I just can't do it, Alabama wins it 49-38.

Boomer to the Motherfuckin' Sooner

Big 12 Championship

After yet another week of winning a game they probably shouldn’t have, the Sooners find themselves on the cusp of another Conference Championship and, with a little help, the college football playoff. It’s a testament to Lincoln Riley and his offensive genius that this is even happening. Let’s face it, OU has no business being in the playoffs. Anyone with a defense that terrible shouldn’t win their conference even…which they might not still.

The longhorns dealt OU its only loss a few weeks ago. As much as I hate losing to anyone, let alone texas, the lone silver lining was that it resulted in the firing of Mike Stoops. This move was approximately 3 years later than was reasonable. Much to my chagrin, the defense got no better and possibly (is it possible?) worse. On the few plays where he wasn’t throwing to a wide-open receiver on 3^rdand 12 for 18 yards, Ehrlinger looked like Larry Csonka circa ’72. It was a maddening, yet tidy microcosm of the Sooners defensive 2018. Despite the thirst for revenge, a repeat today will surely net the same results.

Offense

The previous iteration of this game was probably Kyler Murray’s second worst performance of the year (I think texas tech is easily first). A costly fumble and a failure to get the offense moving until desperation time in the 4^thput the Sooners in a position they can ill afford to be in: one where they are depending on their D. I think Murray does a much better job today of coming out and putting the Sooners in the lead where they can dictate rather than try to play catch-up. I like Murray again this week for my OPG.

Defense

I didn’t get to watch much of last week’s game but I did see that when they weren’t doing a Roger Dorn olé impression, they actually forced a couple of turnovers. It ended up being the difference in the game. I’m certainly not counting on it, but I’m hopeful that OU can get the texas punter on the field earlier than the 3^rdquarter this time, even if it’s only once or twice. I’m picking Curtis Bolton today, he’s no world beater but he seems to play hard, and hopefully that’s enough.

Score

This is a big one. I won’t be able to watch today due to a lack of internet/American tv broadcasts, but I’ll be checking the score as much as I can. At this point, if it’s anything other than a shootout then it’s probably bad for OU. I think the revenge factor is on high, and OU does enough to win another conference title while paying back texas at the same time (you can have your stupid golden cowboy hat). Sooners win another track meet, 56-52.

Boomer to the Motherfuckin’ Sooner

Oklahoma Sooners vs. Texas Christian

Two weeks ago, at halftime of the OU-texas train wreck, the writers of this blog and its most loyal reader openly speculated, nee pleaded, for Mike Stoops to get fired at halftime. We hoped Lincoln Riley would hand the playbook and play calling duties  to Ruffin McNeil and allow Mikey to scream up in the booth to his heart's content whist causing no further damage to the Sooners.

Turns out it may have happened. Stoops was gone by Monday. Now the most intriguing part of this is not that Ruffin McNeil will be calling plays. That will be improvement enough. No, it's this Bob Diaco fellow. He's had a bit of a winding road at Notre Dame, UConn, Nebraska and now here. But, at OU he's been a "defensive analyst". The job description sounds a lot like any other asshole watching games except he got to meet with coaches and help conceive game plans (get turnovers, tackle, etc.). He couldn't go to practices, he couldn't interact with players and he couldn't be near the field on game days.

Now he can. So he can be an actual breath of fresh air for the players while Ruffin McNeil provides some transitional stability. Given that Mike should have been let go when Lincoln Riley came on board but was let go mid-season a year and a half too late, I guess this is as good an outcome as we could hope for.

OFFENSE

I'm running out of superlatives for Kyler Murray. You can watch any other game and see quarterbacks who look like they are in quicksand when the pocket collapses. Murray's ability to not only escape but be at full speed in two steps is a game changer. His 60 yard run against texas probably would have vaulted him to the top of the Heisman heap had the Sooners had an inkling of a defense.

The best news for this offense coming into this week is that the running game is rounding into form. The Sooners averaged seven yards per carry against texas. I'm not buying what TCU is selling this year. These numbers should continue for the Sooners.

Out of sheer vanity I don't like Kyler Murray leading in rushing. However, that's moronic. If it works do it.

That said, I'm going with my guy Hollywood this week. I just want to see him shred the Horned Frogs.

DEFENSE

We all know the D is going to look like baby eaters this week. They played so bad they got their coach fired. Now they have a new voice, a fresh start, open positions and they are facing a quarterback who, in 100% honesty, I have never seen make such poor decisions at the position.

Have you ever seen a razzle dazzle play where a non-quarterback is throwing the ball, the play unravels, he shits his pants and makes the worst decision of all time to throw across the field into triple coverage? The TCU quarterback does it five times a game. No shit, I cannot imagine how bare the cupboard is behind him. He has no business being on the field.

So, the Sooners will likely force more turnovers on Saturday than they have up to this point this season combined (5).

For my DPOG I'll go Curtis Bolton. He apparently was the most fired up about the D's woeful showing. He's been as good as anyone all year. He's a senior. He should step up.

I'd also like to say for the record that while a solid defensive showing is so predictable that Vegas isn't taking bets on it, the real thing to watch for is two or three weeks from now. What the D looks like then will determine the fate of this football team. Literally anything looking like competence could give the Sooners a sporting chance to make the Playoff.

THE SCORE

This is the perfect situation for the Sooners. A coaching change coming off a loss and a bye week. They play against what might be the worst starting quarterback in the Big 12 (saying something). The Sooners are going to cruise.

Sooners 56 Horned Frogs 17

Boomer to the motherfuckin Sooner

texas

This is a big one today. No matter the stakes as they pertain to the national picture, this game gets me more fired up than any non-playoff game. I'm guessing that's true for most of Sooner nation. For the first time in a while (a more definite time frame would require 3 seconds of effort) both teams are ranked in the top 20. After stumbling to a respectable Maryland team, texas has rattled off nothing but wins. But as I was discussing this with my friends Mark and Mitchy, neither of them were too impressed with the opponents. "Who the fuck is T C U?" was asked incredulously. Nonetheless, I'm predictably nervous in this one.

texas always plays OU tough and last season they were about the only defense to really contain Riley's high-flying offense. Expect more of the same today. The O/U is 60.5, I think given the competitiveness of this game I would take the under there. Yes, that's probably giving undue credit to the Mike Stoops powder puffs, but I'm optimistic they'll do something resembling a defense. Either way, I'm hoping the OU can do enough to get out of this game with a win.


Offense

This is Kyler Murray's first and, likely, only Red River game. Everything I've read about him (read: very little) indicates he won't be the least bit intimidated. Up to now he's basically duplicated Mayfield's Heisman winning season from last year; the numbers are pretty uncanny. But, I think the atmosphere gets to him some and he has, by his own standards, an off day today. Even though I still like him to make several improv plays that delights OU and infuriates the texas faithful. That rambling diatribe somehow leads me to my pick, Trey Sermon. I think this game is more of a slugfest, and even though it's a timeshare backfield, I still like Sermon to do most of the heavy lifting in this one.

Defense

While the OU defense has been embarrassingly soft this year, particularly up front, the linebackers have done a pretty respectable job. Both Kenneth Murray and Curtis Bolton have been tackling machines. I think texas hits a few big plays on the secondary, but I think when it comes to crunch time that the LB's step up, and I like Curtis Bolton as my dpg today.

Score

Not to go all Lee Corso on you (I don't know how to type slurring), but I think this one is closer than the experts think. OU is giving 7.5 and I already mentioned that I would take the under. In spite of the Sooners juggernaut offense, I think they struggle to score against a texas team with plenty to prove. While I struggle to stay conscious during this one due to 80% of my blood flow diverted to my O-ring, OU wins a squeaker 19-17.

Boomer to the Motherfuckin' Sooner

Iowa State

The Sooners travel to the bustling burg of Ames, IA, today to take on the Cyclones. If you were unaware that OU lost its only regular season game of last season against Iowa State, simply peek through your blinds, there is likely a bi-plane over your house dragging a banner behind it saying as much. In short, even in Louisiana I've been beaten over the head with this detail. It was a perfect storm of a bench QB being much better than even his own coaches thought, and a (marginal) defense being completely unprepared for him. This season, it sounds like (un)Kempt(beaver) may not even play due to injury. Regardless, I don't think the element of surprise will rear its ugly head again.

Last week was a win, but if there is such a thing, it was the worst kind of win. The kind where your Heisman hopeful (read: dominant) RB goes down for the year "with a knee." The "experts" and even Lincoln Riley seem to have downplayed this injury quite a bit. I was talking with Mitch earlier this week and we both agree that replacing Rod is no easy task. Yes, there are other weapons on the offense and even in the backfield, but he's clearly the best back on the team. That's not a loss that goes unnoticed. The question today is how much will Trey Sermon step up and can Kyler Murray take the next step as a passer to relieve some of the pressure off of the run game. Couple that with the first road test of the year and this is no key party in terms of guaranteed success.

Offense

So far the offense has (shockingly) not missed a beat from last year. It's a different style, and we can credit wunderkind Lincoln Riley for putting his guys in a position to succeed. The ball has been spread around nicely, presumably making it difficult for defenses to take away one particular weapon. As I mentioned before, injury has done those defenses a favor in taking away a big one. But I think Riley will adapt and I'm going to go with Trey Sermon today. I think he's heard the doubters and moreover, I think Riley wants an "I told you so" statement that the running game is still strong. This plays well for Sermon's confidence and for future opponents to know that even without Rod they'd better be ready for a run game. Sermon goes for 100+ and 2 (that's right, 2) TDs today.

Defense

If I were writing this same crap 15 years ago, defense would've been the fun part to pick. This season, albeit against 2 (so far) questionable opponents, the defense has looked...has looked...halfway decent? There, the kiss of death, so far I've dealt it to two players, now why not the whole unit? Today will present a tougher test I think, and the road factor always makes it tough, particularly if they have success early. One guy I've liked so far is Curtis Bolton. He beat out all-world recruit Caleb Kelly and has played well so far. Basically, I just guaranteed that he's out with severe food poisoning or he's spontaneously combusted.

Score

While the Sooners have given plenty of reason for optimism in the first two games, this is on the road against a pretty tough opponent. Iowa State has a good coach and these conference games are always a challenge. I think revenge is on the minds of the players for last season however, and I think Riley learned from last year that every opponent has to be taken very seriously. The Sooners withstand a close first half against a fired-up Cyclone team and pull away late to take this one, 41-24.

Boomer to the Motherfuckin' Sooner