K-State

We're 11 games into the schedule now and, as of this writing (3 hours to kick), there's no official word as to who the Oklahoma Sooners starting quarterback will be. The presumptive starter is Trevor Knight and why not? He was at the reigns as the ground game stampeded over the loins of Iowa State last week.

Regrettably, the Sooners cannot play Iowa State every week. The purple windbreaker and white mock turtleneck of the legendary Bill Snyder awaits and there's trouble ahead. The Sooners can run the ball well. Trevor Knight especially has struggled mixing the forward pass into the gameplan. The Wildcats are the best in the league at stopping the run.

I'm not sure our offense will be on the field much anyway. Anyone who's watched 2 quarters of the Sooners this year realizes their defense has a knack for keeping themselves on the field what with offsides penalties and being fairly terrible on 3rd down.

In short, I'm expecting the worst and hoping for the best.

OFFENSE

Based on what you've just read, let's just say the odds of this being Lacoltan Bester's breakout game are not good.

Obviously the Sooners need to go meat and potatoes here. Pound the ball and don't get cute for chrissakes. Just once this year I'd like to see them establish the power run game before it's too late and, God forbid, establish their identity early.

It's just unfortunate that K-State is best at stopping the run and their weakness appears to be covering the pass.

So, who to pick? For old times sake I'll go DD Williams (kiss of death). He's been coming on the last couple weeks. In other news will there be a Keith Ford sighting? Did you know that Nate and I both picked Sterling Shepherd last week and he didn't play due to concussion? We're pretty good prognosticators here.

DEFENSE

There's a lot to like here. This unit is coming on and against a team like K-State I expect some big hits and guys flying around.

Here are some bright spots from what's left of this unit after injury: Charles Ass Tapper, Geneo Grissom on occasion, All the Linebackers, Eric "Ted" Striker, Quinton Hayes, Zach Sanchez (sometimes).

From this unit today I'll go Dominique Alexander. He's been steady but he's due to have a key positive impact. I actually feel pretty good about this pick.

THE SCORE

On paper, this seems like a low scoring affair. But, I'm going to steal a page from Navin's playbook and say this will be a little higher scoring than people think.

I'll go OU 34 K-State 31

Boomer to the motherfuckin Sooner

Oklahoma vs. West Virginny

Dana Holgerson looks like the guy who rings my doorbell once a year asking for ten bucks to paint my house number on my curb. He's not a number stenciler though. He's the coach of the most disappointing team in all of football this year. These Mountaineers are not who we thought they were. This game is not for the Big 12 title after all.

The reason is simple.

The weekend of OU-Texas, I thought I watched the worst defense in the country play that morning (Texas). Then I saw the worst defense in the country play that afternoon (West Virginia). The Sooners should be licking their chops for this one.

OFFENSE

West Virginia cant't stop a wet fart which is good because nothing makes me more nervous than Landry playing in a hostile environment. It's going to be difficult for him to beat himself. But, if anyone can do it, it's him.

You could really pick anyone for today's OPOG. It's not looking through crimson-colored glasses to think that the Sooners could have three 100-yard receivers today. Landry will throw for 400 without breaking a sweat.

I think the key though is the run game. Stopping it is West Virginia's "strength" if such a thing exists on a squad that ranks 117th out of 120 teams. How much success can the Sooners have running? If it isn't working, how quickly will they abandon it?

Ever the optimist, I think the Sooners do have success and I think DD Williams gets back on track today. The last few weeks have been the Brennan Clay show. I don't care who carries the load but my gut says to pick DD. I think the Sooners really commit to running as well, if for no other reason than to keep Geno Smith off the field.

DEFENSE

The Sooners got a bit exposed last week. The good news is the D held Baylor to their fewest yards of the season. The bad news: They gave up a metric ton of rushing yards.

Dana Holgerson is the type of guy who will key in on these weaknesses and pick them like a scab if you let him. OU's Kryptonite on D is the run game. WVU does not have much of a rushing attack but will they be effective enough to open up their vaunted passing game?

At the end of the day this is going to be strength versus strength. The strength of the OU D is pass defense. The strength of WVU's offense is its passing attack. I'm cautiously optimistic about the Sooners chances. I'm optimistic because of Frank Shannon. He's my darkhorse for DPOG. A pass heavy offense means less Tommy Wort. Frank needs to be as active as he's been all season. I see no reason for him not to be.

While we're here, the Sooners have to tackle today. I'm looking at Javon Harris. If Landry leaves 150 passing yards on the field every week, Javon leaves about 6 tackles. He and Gabe Lynn cannot be doing their spark and gasoline routine today.

THE SCORE

Today the best defense is going to have to be our offense. Long, sustained drives with scores. Limited appearances by Lonnie. There is absolutely no excuse for not scoring 50. The Sooner D has to deny any rushing attack so it can focus on limiting the passing attack.

The state of Oklahoma doesn't get to look down its nose at many other states. West Virginia is one of them.

I'm very bullish on our Sooners today. Way more than I was a few months ago. No surprise, I like the Sooners big.

Oklahoma 56 West Virginia 28

Boomer to the motherfuckin' Sooner!

OU - KState Preview

Iconic Turtlenecks

This Saturday the season begins in earnest. It's Bob Vader v. Bill Kinobi. Give Bobby some truth serum and he wants this game as bad or worse than he wants texas or OSU. This bodes well as the Student is coming off two full weeks of preparation for the Master. Let's break it down.

DEFENSE

The Sooner defense is famous (in my mind) for shutting down Heisman hopefuls. Last year that reputation took a major hit when Robert Griffin III all but thanked "The Sharks" when he accepted his Heisman Trophy.

This week the boys have a chance to cleanse their sullied reputations. But they'll have to hustle. This Collin Klein (Or Kellen Klein or Collin Quinn as I'll inevitably start calling him by late Saturday) is built like a brick shithouse and he's starting to show up on Heisman short lists. He's no RGIII but he is the cornerstone of the K-State attack. For the first time in Steamroller history I had to check two sites (read: work overtime) to confirm a stat. This sumbuck rushed the ball 327 times last year (!) and scored 27 TD's on the ground.

He's also a soulless Ginger which makes him extra dangerous. ZING!

But fear not, for I do bring glad tidings this day. He doesn't value the football. Here's hoping an aggressive and opportunistic defense can capitalize on his carelessness. I've had visions this week of a defensive touchdown. Dear Jehovah let me be right!

I study lots of film so I believe the Linebackers are key to stopping this Klein attack. They must "mind their gaps" and "not break contain". So, my choice for Defensive Player of the Game (dba D-POG) must come from the duo of Tom Wort or Corey Nelson. I have more confidence in Tommy Wort not making me look like a bigger doofus than I already am so I pick him.

OFFENSE

Lonnie really loves playing K-State. He put up PlayStation numbers against the Wildcats last year. We don't need that to happen again to win (but I'll take it!). The offensive line simply needs to give him time to "look left" or "look right" (I think these are the two plays on his wristband play sheet) and get rid of the ball. Anything to get K-State defenders out of the box is what we're after.

Then the Sooners can hammer the run game. Again, the O-Line doesn't have to set the world on fire. We are learning all they have to do is give DD enough time to get to that 2nd level. Then it's "on". The K-State secondary is crap. Their defensive line is where it's at. It must be neutralized.

Some semblance of a balanced attack and this football game is over. Through two games (and especially against Florida A&M) the balance has been pleasantly awesome. Balance against K-State would mean something else entirely and would establish it as the Sooner offensive identity going forward. That would make me giddy as a schoolgirl.

For my Offensive Player of the Game (O-POG) I shall not disembark the DD Williams train until someone makes me. Another strong performance will have him moving up some Heisman watch lists in his own right. To paraphrase the incomparable Clark Griswold I couldn't be more surprised if I woke up tomorrow with my head sewn to the carpet.

SCORE

I have good feelings about this football game. I am looking through crimson-colored glasses this week and I received a text from Nate saying he had bad feelings.

All is right in Sooner Nation.

In addition, the Sooners are coming off a bye, Bobby wants to take the old man behind the woodshed again and it's another night home game. Let's do this.

Sooners 38 Wildcats 21

Boomer to the motherfuckin Sooner. Crack them PBR tallboys!

OU - Florida A&M Recap - TCB

Not a lot to say about this one. The Sooners needed to get crisp in some areas and they needed to build some confidence heading into the Big 12 opener vs. Kansas State. They needed to stay healthy. For the most part they did all three.

Tony MF Jefferson "went out with an ankle" but he'll be good to go on the 22nd. Hopefully.

As far as being crisp it was an exhibition for the offense. The Sooners piled up nearly 700 yards of offense, 350 of which came on the ground. DD Williams was a beast again. He has that coveted breakaway speed. I am not making a comparison here but OU hasn't had a threat like this since DeMarco.

Quick Story: I'll argue with anyone who will listen that as time goes on DeMarco will go down as the most underrated running back in Sooner history. I nearly mentioned OU hasn't had a threat like DD since AD. See what I mean?

Landry did take his obligatory stab at "World's Worst Pass" in the 1st quarter when he hit a Florida A&M DB right in the chest. The next drive ended with a fumble but then the Sooners reeled off 8 straight touchdowns.

Justin Brown is also proving to be more than capable returning punts. A very nice development indeed.

Defensively there was one major breakdown by Tony's replacement, Jesse Paulsen (From here on he shall be called, "His Name Was Jesse Paulsen" - Shoutout to Nick Pointer for coming up with it).

Stats, stats, yada yada. The day was more about getting back into the swing of tailgating, seeing old friends and enjoying absolutely perfect weather (which rarely happens to start the season).  I took full advantage and the late start gave me plenty of time to, "pull the cork".

My goal for the day was to snap some pics. I pride myself on making terrible photo essays. I feel like I succeeded.

Self Contained

Clearly ready to accept more tailgaters, particularly lady-folk

The Schooner grill, Amurrican flag, Firefighters, guitars, beer, multiple coolers.
The proprietor of this tailgate has an eye patch.
You could not cram more America or Sooner Nation in a tailgate.

Amurrica

Ribs

The official vehicle of our tailgate

There's only one
Pictured: Crimson-colored glasses wearing Father-in-law

Obligatory art shot

At left: Sooner Steamroller Co-Author
At right: A Steamroller fan asking to pose for a picture
Note: I always have time for fans, don't be shy

Action photo

The student section has packed it in.

OU vs Florida A&M Preview

Florida A&M is getting a check made out to them for $650,000.00 in exchange for satisfying the blood-thirst of the Sooner faithful (or for filling a slot on the schedule). Everyone knows this. But in their locker room you can bet their coach is giving his best Any Given Sunday speech and his team will be fired up to play. The Sooners can sleepwalk their way to victory but can they match or exceed Florida A&M's enthusiasm?

Two factors should inspire the Sooners to get jacked and deliver the beat-down all God and Man (including everyone on the Florida A&M sidelines) expect.

First, it's the home opener (oh, you already knew that?). If running out of the tunnel for the first time in 10 months doesn't get these guys ready to knock someone's dick in the dirt I don't know what will. I want to see some pep, attitude, vim, vigor, swagger, hustle, umpto etc. Excellent teams bring it no matter who they play.

Sooner fans better bring it also. Again, it's the home opener. There are 6 home games a year. Everyone will have all day to tailgate and the weather will be perfect. I hope my gut is wrong about the student section being half empty at kickoff.

Second, last week proved hype and headlines don't make tackles or score touchdowns.There are many phases of the game the Sooners can "execute" better as Bobby would say. There is zero excuse for not doing so on Saturday. This should be a glorified practice except everyone can play through the whistle. Everyone should have ample opportunity to earn their accolades. Anyone who doesn't needs to take a hard look at themselves (The eye of Sauron is focused on the O-Line).

OFFENSE

I'd like to see Josh Heupel get Landry into the "flow" of the game by letting him fire some passes that require less finesse than a swing pass. Anyone who has ever thrown a ball knows you make it harder on yourself when you try to guide it. Let Lonnie stretch his wing out a bit, step into a throw and let the receivers run to it. Worst case it's 3rd and long like usual. Best case you pick yards up in chunks. Of course this depends heavily on the O-Lines interest/ability in not pulling this, "Ole' bullshit!" on defenders.

I'd also like to see more Roy Finch than Belldozer. I apologize in advance for beating this dying horse but until I see Finch perform terribly I'm going to continue to do it. There's something more than poor pass blocking keeping him off the field and it sucks for everyone.

As for the Belldozer, the Sooners simply should never find themselves in need of his services in this one. Let's work on other things in the red zone. You know, in case it could be useful later. Let's see if Landry can pick up a 3rd and 2 on his own. Again, you know, just in case. The Belldozer Package is the only thing the offense does reliably well the last 8ish games. There is room to improve execution elsewhere.

For my Offensive Player of the Game I'm going with the flavor of the day, DD Williams. I'd like to go on record and say how much I like everything about the name DD. But I also want to see more of this scholars game. In the parlance of today's youth, I'm "intrigued" by his skillset.

DEFENSE

Florida A&M will be without the services of their best Wide Receiver. I don't know what best means exactly and it doesn't matter anyhow. Demontre or Aaron Colvin would have shut him down. So let's spend some time shoring up the middle of the football field.

I'm going with David King as my Defensive POG. This should be a nice opportunity for him to settle into his 3-Technique and unleash holy hell.

The Score

I'm not sure I want to live in an America where the Sooners don't score 63 in this one. I'm more pessimistic about this team than any other of the Bob Stoops era but there is no other reasonable expectation.

OU 63 Florida A&M 0

Crack them PBR Tallboys and Boomer to the Motherfuckin Sooner

OU - UTEP Hangover

I've had a few days to marinate and make snap judgments on the Sooners ho-hum 24-7 victory over UTEP.

From the "Polishing a Turd" Department I offer the following. First, 1-0 is better than 0-1. Do not lose sight of the fact that the Sooners are still in the title hunt! Second, as FIL (father-in-law) pointed out, the Sooners learned a lot more about themselves than, say, OSU did in their mockery of a game.

Now back to reality. This game was 10-7 going into the 4th quarter because the offense just looked putrid.

There still hasn't been a time since Ryan Broyles went down where the Sooner offense has had anything resembling rhythm. On this night it would be easy to blame the O-Line, Josh Heupel, dropped passes or Landry (in that order). If the first two do not drastically improve it's going to be a very long and depressing season.

There's no real sugar-coating the lack of depth at O-Line so Josh Heupel has to figure out a way to work around it. The answer in El Paso was a steady, nauseating dose of screens and swing passes. This is done under the guise of trying to get players into the flow of the game but this does not play to Landry's strengths. He does not throw this pass particularly well. What Josh did try that worked was the hurry up offense. It was really effective the three plays it was used.  Fingers crossed that this number goes up by the week. I will not hold my breath.

Now, Landry looked quicker than ever moving around in the pocket. He must have done a lot of cone drills with the QB guru out in California. He also made one hell of a throw to Kenny Fucking Shitbag for the first touchdown (backhanded compliment alert) albeit on a desperate 3rd and long cross-field heave. But it was a beautiful pass. Other than that I almost spewed beer out of my nose when the announcers said Landry was in the Heisman discussion.

Dropped passes are going to correct themselves. This will not be a lingering issue.

In other news, I'm pretty excited about the DD Williams era. It's unfortunate it comes at the expense of  Roy Finch's playing time but he looks to be the real deal. Dom Whaley looked healthy but he did not play particularly well. Trey Millard gobbled up yards as he is wont to do. The Belldozer's role has expanded from the goal line to 3rd and short. It'll be swell if he can prove he can throw the ball in this situation as that could be lethal. Last year his passing was poisonous.

Defensively it was mildly disconcerting to see so many missed tackles at the point of attack. Just as on offense, the line deserves much of the blame. There seemed to be very little push. UTEP got to Landry better than the Sooners got to the UTEP QB's. This is an indictment of both OU lines.

The D got off to a rough start but got settled down. Giving up less than 100 passing yards to anyone is pretty legit. Giving up 200+ rushing yards is not. No points allowed is nice although the UTEP special teams unit gave the game away. Individually, I thought Chuka Ndulue looked great. Tony MF Jefferson played as everyone expects. David King seemed to get his name called a lot as well. Tom Wort and Corey Nelson had a pretty quiet 11 tackles between them. I was surprised to see the ball thrown at Demontre Hurst as much as it was and I hope this speaks to Aaron Colvin's cover corner ability. I'll be interested to see how the D-Line looks when Casey Walker and Stacy McGee get back into the lineup.

Overall, everything fell short of expectations. I will do my best not to worry until the K-State game on September 22nd. The Florida A&M home opener and a bye week (so two bye weeks?) should provide all the time needed to get into game shape. Then, we'll see what we have.