Oklahoma Sooners versus Western Carolina Catamounts

Hello Sooner fans and welcome to week 2 where the Sooners find themselves 1-0. As I write this, Ohio State has lost to Oregon. So, while the win against Tulane was an underwhelming and lackluster performance from the Sooners, I'd still rather be 1-0. Nobody will remember that close contest in three weeks.

Speaking of uninspired, how about that Western Carolina matchup. The Catamounts are 50 point underdogs and so help me if the Sooners don't beat it. 

OFFENSE

The Sooner offense comes into this one needing to find a rhythm and the offensive line has to take a sizeable step forward, double post-haste. Apparently Center Andrew Raym only played a handful of snaps last week and is getting the start today. Hopefully that will help the running game which I would love to see move the ball at will. 

Spencer Rattler needs to put up something gaudy today to keep himself on track. I'd love to see some fire out of him. Sometimes he seems bored or nonchalant and he's the guy who can keep the offense playing with an edge. Gabe Brkic being the Big 12 player of the week is like a Willy Mays Hays basket catch. 

Kennedy Brooks is my OPOG. Keep him healthy today and sit him after he gets his 150 in three quarters. The objective of this one needs to be getting the line some confidence and KB's sea legs fully underneath him. My backup choice for OPOG would be Marvin Mims who could easily go for 200 receiving yards himself. 

DEFENSE

I've attempted to rewatch the Tulane game and the D didn't seem that bad in the first half. It seems like the whole team took the second half off along with Sooner nation. These gentlemen need to play 60 and be able to get off the field on third and medium-long and fourth down. 

Today is a chance to play a shit ton of people and start figuring out who wants to be out there early and often. For my DPOG I'll go Isiah Thomas. He stood out to me last week and I'm riding the hot hand. 

THE SCORE

If the Sooners can feign interest for 60 minutes today they should be able to win 63-10. The worst nightmare would be injuries and/or a rash of penalties. This is nothing more than a tuneup and should be treated as such. I think they can turn last week into a positive because Lord knows they couldn't walk away from that without having plenty to improve upon. Let's see it today. TCB and be crisp.

Boomer to the motherfuckin Sooner.

Big 12 Championship

The Sooners put together arguably their most complete game of the 2019 campaign with a yeaoman-like performance in Stillwater last week. Jalen Hurts did not turn the ball over, the Sooners utilized a punishing running game that didn't exclusively feature Hurts and the defense played very well. I may likely regret saying this but could the Sooners be peaking at just the right time?

The right time, for now, is the Big 12 Championship and a rematch with the Baylor Bears. To recap that first matchup the Sooners played maybe their worst defensive half in the first half before stepping up and playing their best half in the second. Jalen Hurts turned the ball over three times. CeeDee Lamb didn't play. The Sooners imposed their will in all phases of the game in the second half while overcoming a 25-point deficit. They shouldn't have been there in the first place and would be wise to avoid it in this second meeting.

OFFENSE

The Sooners never really had any issues against the Bears en route to a 31-10 halftime deficit. They (nee' Jalen) just shit down the pants legs upon entering the red zone. Two turnovers resulted in 14 quick points for the Bears. That sort of thing really changes the algebra.

Now, as ever, the Sooners need to value the football. I like to pick on Jalen because of his Alabama piss excellence pedigree but he's simply not the qb that Baker or Kyler are. He was first flummoxed then sacked by a three man front. He runs when he should hand off, stays in the pocket when there's nothing but grass in front of him and dances around instead of gettting rid of the ball. He's maddening and yet maddeningly efficient.

I like the idea of both Kennedy Brooks and Rhamondre Stevenson in the backfield. I like this Brayden Willis, a brick shithouse FB, who looks and acts like O.J. Howard catching balls. Riley can keep it simple for Jalen and take some of the decision making out of his hands. Stevenson and Willis can both play like receivers and help get the ball out of Jalen's hands quickly. Jalen just needs to go for broke on deep balls and let CeeDee and Charlston Rambo make plays.

For my OPOG I'm going Kennedy Brooks. He glides and he's been getting the ball a bunch. He needs to keep getting fed.


DEFENSE

I've seen some pretty heady stats come out this week about this unit. They were last in the Big 12 last year in total defense and they are currently 1st. They are 3rd in defensive efficiency. The last five games they've given up 48, 41, 31, 24 and 16 points. That's trending in a positive direction.

The Sooners offense was really their best defense against the Bears in the first meeting. But when the Sooner D was on the field in the second half they shut down the QB run game that had absolutely gashed them in the first half. So they apparently have a pretty good blueprint to work off.

I'm riding the hot hand this week and going with hero-cum-goat-cum-hero Parnell Motley. No one makes more plays when the Sooners have to than him and played his best game last week. Keep it up my dude.

THE SCORE

OU dominates the Big 12 Championship. I think the Bears, though, have more fortitude than some past opponents. This one is closer than many of the past but the Sooners prevail behind offensive balance and a defense that is peaking (or their version of it).

Sooners 49 Bears 28

BONUS PREDICTION

The Sooners make their case for the playoff and get hosed in favor of Utah. College football is still a sport decided by voters and these voters have OU fatigue.

Boomer to the motherfuckin Sooner

Oklahoma Sooners versus Iowa State

Well blurg derp derp double farts. The Sooners had it all out there in front of them. Now it's back to familiar territory where every game is must win and you'll also need some help. In any case it's on to Iowa State.

OFFENSE

Lincoln Riley can say that he's not concerned that Kansas State showed the world the blueprint for slowing down the Sooners and I'll give him the benefit of the doubt that he himself can adjust. But Iowa State boasts a defensive guru head coach who I'm sure was happy for the help.

I hate to have the coolest of takes here but the Sooners are going to need to run the ball better and more. Six rushes last week makes no sense. If there's ever a knock on the offense it would be that sometimes the balance gets away from him in difficult situations.

So, today the Sooners need to stick with their game plan whatever it may be and just be cognizant of what they need to do to get first downs. Maybe work some swing passes into the mix. Those are effectively runs and can get Kennedy Brooks out into some space.

Today I'll pick Brooks for my OPOG.

DEFENSE

I only got to see one half of the game last week. So I'm not entirely sure how things looked. The Iowa State offense is more or less the same level of dynamism. Today we'll learn if last week was an aberration or not. If it is, the playoff is still an option. If today is rough with no turnovers it's eek city.

I've been shitting on Pat Fields all season so today I'll try to reverse jinx him.

THE SCORE

I like the Sooners here 38-21. The defense buttons it up and the offense stays on the field.

Boomer to the motherfuckin Sooner

Oklahoma Sooner versus Kansas State

The undefeated Sooners stroll into the Little Apple this Saturday to face a Wildcats team I know nothing about. It looks like they play a style of football hell bent on setting football back 25 years. I'm assuming they will look and act like a homeless version of Texas.

OFFENSE

If, in fact, this is a take 2 of a homeless man's Texas then the formula is pretty simple. Don't turn the ball over. If K-State's offense wants to hang on to the ball then the Sooners need to maximize their opportunities. Obviously this all depends on Jalen Hurts. Hurts boners against the Longhorns kept the game too close for comfort. K-State doesn't need to be led to believe they can hang.

I look for lots of running from the Sooners. There's been a lot of rumbling/grumbling about Trey Sermon's lack of carries but the simple fact is Kennedy Brooks is the best running back in the Sooners stable right now. The dude glides. Also, Hurts is more than eager to call his own number. Regrettably, what's left is table scraps.

Anywho, I'm going with Charlston Rambo this week because the Sooners will pass and K-State should probably try to make someone besides CeeDee Lamb beat them. We'll see how that goes.

DEFENSE

Supposedly K-State leans heavily on their running attack. This has country music super duo Kenneth Michael Murray and Ronnie Perkins licking their chops. The gang tackling continues this week with the same quality results.

Thus concludes my understanding of the K-State attack. They have a new coach and I have yet to watch them play.

For my DPOG I'll go with another wild card: Delarrin Turner-Yell. He's starting to fly all over the field. I think he helps the cause in a great way.

THE SCORE

Well, I think the Sooners keep from turning the ball over and the ball control offense that K-State hopes to deploy doesn't really work. In short, it's crimson-colored glasses all day, baby!

I like the Sooners 35-14

Boomer to the Motherfuckin Sooner!

Oklahoma Sooners versus West Virginny

Gooood morning, undefeated Sooner fans! Here's to hoping the Sooners, fresh off a signature victory down in Dallas, are less hungover than I am today.  Today, West Virginia comes to Norman with arguably their worst squad since joining the Big 12. The Sooners are in the driver's seat and need to stay there. They can do so by staying engaged in this one. I know it's a lot to ask to match the intensity of a rivalry game week in and week out but that should be the goal.

OFFENSE

Crucial red zone takeaways marred what was otherwise another dominant performance by the offense against texas. The offensive line performed admirably. CeeDee Lamb made the case he is the best wide receiver in college football. Jalen Hurts showed resiliency after the two turnovers.

Today there is nothing to work out or get back on track. The hammer just needs to come down on the Mountaineers and there will be no answer, at least from their defense.

It's clinical at this point to assume Jalen or CeeDee will be offensive players of the game so it's not real fun to pick them. I guess I'll go with Kennedy Brooks today. I love his running style and he can pile on yards in a hurry.

On another note, I was checking the box score from last week and was surprised to see only five players caught balls for the Sooners. I bet that's the fewest this century but I'm way too lazy to check.

DEFENSE

The kudos, first trickling and now flooding in, are much deserved. This defense can win games and that is so massive and refreshing. Alex Grinch would very much like to create more turnovers but, **flicks on crimson colored glasses CSI Miami style**, that's what punts are.

However, if turnovers are the next evolution towards true saltiness then today presents an opportunity. Former Sooner QB Austin Kendall leads the Mountaineers and he's thrown seven INT's in five games and is sporting an abysmal 45.7 QBR (Jalen Hurts 95).

I think Alex Grinch keeps this group engaged today by keeping the aggressive play calling ratcheted up in an effort to start getting some of those turnovers.

Speaking of refreshing, how about being able to reliably pick a DPOG for the first time in years? Kenneth (dare I saw MF?) Murray is in full on beast mode. So, I've got to stretch the brain cells a smidge (not easy) and ID someone besides him.

I'll go Parnell Motley today in an effort to try to show some faith and support in homepiece. He's close to playing at a high level again. He could make a big step today.

THE SCORE

This one should be over by half time. I'm most interested in seeing what the attitude is like following a huge win and now being in the driver's seat. It's all out there in front of them. This is the time to shore everything up so that control is never taken away.

The Sooners win this one big, 56-14

Boomer to the motherfuckin Sooner

Oklahoma Sooners vs. UCLA Bruins

Hello hello. The Sooners are 2-0 and headed on the road for their first test away from Owen Field. The Sooners play at the Rose Bowl and it could be in front of a ton of Sooner faithful. Hopefully the Sooners are smelling blood and looking to dismantle the hapless Bruins. On the opposite side of that coin you have the Bruins with an opportunity to correct the trajectory of a lackluster Chip Kelly reclamation project.

OFFENSE
The Sooners are looking great as hoped for and expected. Jalen Hurts has been phenomenal and yet I heard from a handful of people who all shared the opinion they felt something was "off" with him. Hopefully these fine people are not sages or mystics. It's hard to find fault with an 85% completion percentage with 7 incompletions to go along with 6 touchdowns, third in the Big 12 in rushing and sporting a rather gaudy 252.3 QB Rating.

Today, the offensive line needs to rebound from a so-so performance last week that included way too many penalties, particularly to start the game. This offense can only stop itself so far this season. I'm also looking for Kennedy Brooks to go bananas today. He's my OPOG pick.

In other news, much is being made of Grant Calcaterra not getting very many balls thrown his way so far. Shut up it's gonna be okay.

DEFENSE
The Sooner D got off the turnover-less schneid by racking up three last week. Importantly, one of these was by Brendan Radley-Hiles who has now strung together two of his best, if not best best, games as Sooner. More of same please. I'm even taking him as my DPOG.

Today, you know UCLA is going to have some razzle-dazzle with "guru" Chip Kelly leading the Bruins. But the Bruins have been dogshit. Barring the Sooners being completely uninterested (reminder: no Sooner has earned this right yet, particularly on D) why wouldn't that continue today? I think the Sooners will make another nice statement on national television while continuing to identify players who can turn this beleaguered unit around.

THE SCORE
The Sooners have won 26 straight true road games (which is a nice way of saying everything except the neutral site games against Texas and in the Playoffs but who gives a shit about those?). Today is no different as the Sooners enjoy what is essentially a home game in front of tons of Sooner faithful in sunny Cali.

I like the Sooners big, 45-17, beating the spread handily.

Boomer to the motherfuckin Sooner

Oklahoma Sooner versus West Virginny

I saw a headline, the day after the LA Rams beat the Kansas City Cheifs 54-51, asking if the world had just witnessed the future of football. The fact the question is being asked is one of the few glimmers of hope remaining for this Oklahoma football team. However, OU fans have been living this supposed "future of football" for three seasons now and I can tell you, we'd love to see some defense. The future of football, devoid of defense, is by turns fun, frustrating, predictable and inexplicable.

Tonight the present and future, as seen through the lens of the Big 12, will be on full display. The two best quarterbacks in the league, the two best offenses in the league, the two best offensive play callers in the league and two below average defenses. The couches will burn one way or another in Morgantown tonight.

OFFENSE

The only question for the Sooners is how best to overcome a lack of depth at running back or, more pointedly, what in the world could they do if Kennedy Brooks goes down. There seem to be no assurances that TJ Pledger is available or Trey Sermon.

Obviously, Kyler Murray can pick up the slack. But I think his effectiveness depends on Brooks being available. Otherwise it's liable to be a highlight reel of Murray running for his life for 60 minutes.

I'm going to go against the grain and pick Mr. Brooks over Kyler for my OPOG. I hope it's not a jinx. He needs to stay healthy, be productive and give the rest of the offense the room it needs to operate.

DEFENSE

It seems like every season the defense plays over its head at least once. I suppose one could argue that the Sooners blew their wad against K-State or TCU. I'm not buying it. They have, at most, four more opportunities to show something this season. But if they don't do it today they'll be down to one opportunity and that will be in some sub-tier bowl.  I don't want to sound like an ungrateful asshole but that might be the mercy killing this group deserves.

But back to today. Will Grier is liable to pick this group apart early and often. OU's best shot is obviously getting the Mountaineers to punt. I just heard on TV that the Kansas Jayhawks defense has 15 interceptions this season. The Sooners have forced 8 total turnovers. Anyone who says it's just impossible to defend dynamic offenses in the Big 12 is full of shit. The Sooners are hard baked at this point and getting turnovers seems to be a pipe dream.

I'll pick Parnell Motley for my DPOG today. Even though I just said the Sooners have a hard time forcing turnovers and even though Parnell Motley has inexplicably been Gasrag McGee this year, he is the guy who seems to come up big when it matters most.

THE SCORE

OU has to be composed from the opening kickoff. Kyler Murray cannot be jittery like he was against Texas Tech. OU cannot get down by more than 10 and hope to have enough defense to catch back up and pull ahead.

I'm certainly not confident. This game could be over in the first quarter. But as I slip on my crimson colored glasses I hold out hope for an outlier defensive performance.

I have to take the Sooners so.. Sooners 56, West Virginny 49

Boomer to the motherfuckin Sooner

Texas Tech

Welcome back to another week of the Steamroller. The Sooners go down to Lubbock for a tilt with Kliff Kingsbury and the Red Raiders. The Sooners D looked halfway decent last week. I'm not sure if this due to the new system paying dividends or a really putrid K State offense, but I'm inclined (read: negatively conditioned) to think the latter. Regardless, it was nice to see the defense get stops and keep the OU offense on the field. Let's remember, with the OU offense, the '85 Bears aren't needed, just something other than paper cutouts of football men. 

This week will certainly provide a tougher test. I read an article on Thursday talking about the 2016 matchup. At the time I was incredibly irritated (hope you were sitting down) by the horrid defense, but it was pretty amazing to watch the offensive exhibition by both teams. I'm grossly paraphrasing but, the article quoted Bob Stoops as telling Riley to keep his foot on the gas because, essentially, he had zero faith that the defense could stop Tech. I think that says a lot about his faith in brother,Mikey's D.

The Tech offense is going to be tough. It's going to score fast against the D and it's going to score more than any Sooner fan would like. Fortunately, I believe the OU offense will score a good bit too. The atmosphere will be intense; Tech is solid and a Saturday night home tilt against a top 10 team will bring out the crowd. There are a slew of huge games this Saturday, OU can't get caught scoreboard watching (as I will be doing), just beat Tech and keep the train rolling.

Offense

Another week, another surprise at RB. After writing off Trey Sermon last week, he came out and put both of his cleats squarely up the collective Wildcat ass. Which is tough because kicking with both feet is physically impossible, but humor me. I temper my excitement again because it was a dreadful K State team, but it looked like the running game may finally be rolling again after a long adjustment of missing Rod Anderson. Kyler Murray is so fun to watch too and CeeDee Lamb is breaking out as a dominant receiver. With all of those weapons, it makes zero sense that I'm picking Kennedy Brooks this week. He runs so hard, and I have visions of him catching a screen or short dump off and taking it all the way to the house.

Defense

I think the defense gets exposed again this week for the first time since that godawful texas game. My hope is that it isn't that bad again. The OU secondary hasn't been good, which does not bode well for this matchup. And while the lack of pressure sans blitz has been demoralizing, I think that's the difference today in that Amani Bledsoe come up with at least one huge sack/forced fumble that turns the momentum to OU for good.

Score

OU was -13.5 last I looked and the O/U is 78, so the pros agree that this will be high scoring. I like the offense to move the ball well and I think the defense does enough in a tough road test. I'm taking the over (barely) and OU to cover (barely), Sooners take it 48-31. 

Boomer to the Motherfuckin' Sooner. 

OU vs. KState

Last week the Sooners got just what the doctor ordered in a convincing win on the road against a Big 12 darling. I went back and watched the tape and really it should have been more lopsided. The Sooners dropped two of the easiest interceptions of all time and one TCU player accounted for over 200 yards of TCU's net yardage and most of that happened on special teams.

What I'm saying here is the Sooners got back to work, got back on track and have an opportunity to build some more momentum today as they take on the turtle-neck, wind-breaker poster child Bill Snyder and his Kansas State Wildcats.

Surprise surprise I haven't watched much of K-State but let me take a stab at it. They have a QB who is mediocre but can probably run himself or the option in a pinch. They probably have a decent wide receiver. They'll play ball control. Defensively they'll play hard. It's the same team they've had for 30 years minus the NFL prospects.

OFFENSE

Kyler Murray continues to put up gaudy numbers but his game is improving. He's checking down receivers routinely and distributing the ball better. Look for more of the same today. Lee Morris and Austin Meier are two guys he has started getting in on the action.

Kennedy Brooks has emerged as the 2018 version of Rod Anderson. He's averaging a ludicrous 10+ yards per carry. It's pretty incredible to think that if you hold him to half his average it means you are still probably going to get your ass kicked.

I guess I'll ride the hot hand today and go Kennedy Brooks for OPOG. Trey Sermon is dinged up so Kennedy will likely be the guy.

DEFENSE

The jury is still very much out on this group and like I said last week nobody would have been surprised by a very strong performance. Can they build on it today against a team that frankly should offer every opportunity to get dominated?

Keep an eye out for Nate's favorite statistic, punts. Can the Sooner D get the Wildcats off the field. Ball control will be the 'Cats best defense so the Sooner D will have to make some plays on 3rd down.

I think I'll go with my man Kenneth Michael Murray again today, mostly because I can't think of anyone better. But, hopefully some guys start to stand out.

THE SCORE

This is going to be another slaughter. KState doesn't have near the horsepower on either side of the ball to be competitive and on a glorious sunny afternoon at home in Norman the Sooners are going to fire on all cylinders.

Sooners 63, K-State 14

Boomer to the motherfuckin Sooner

K State

I didn't get to sit down and watch last week's game start to finish, but I did catch a good majority of it in bits and pieces. I'm most likely far from correct, but it looked to me like the defense did a little better. They're certainly far from elite, but with the offense the Sooners possess they don't have to be either. If they can just tackle and not give up 10 home runs every week, they should win. The blitzing looked to be far less frequent and certainly less predictable. In short, it seemed to be an improvement. But I temper my expectation as Mitch made a good point last week in that, we'll really know what's going on in a couple of weeks.

Speaking of tackling and not giving up home runs, the Wildcats of K State come to Norman this fine Saturday. Bill Snyder has carved out a legendary career based almost exclusively on fundamentals and not beating himself. Though his national relevance has certainly waned in correlation with his years of life, the Wildcats are still a sound team. Once a perennial thorn in OU's side, recent years have proven to be less of a test, but OU still needs to come strong today. With a tough road test against high-flying Tech next week, this could be a bit of a trap game. The Sooners still have everything they want in front of them, but not if they lose another game.

Offense

Another week and another significant injury. After losing Rod Anderson for the season earlier this year, RB was already a bit thin. Now Trey Sermon is likely out, though his injury seems to be of a mystery (at least to me) for the most part. The lack of a definite report from Lincoln Riley doesn't scream minor or that he'll be out there this week. Kennedy Brooks looked very good stepping in, but as with Anderson, it's impossible that loss isn't felt. In better news, it appears Hollywood Brown is good to go and that speed on the outside is huge. All of that is a lot of fluff in me getting to CeeDee Lamb as my player of the game. That guy is always making big plays, whether it's a long TD or a clutch 3rd down catch. I like more of it today against K State.

Defense

As I alluded to before, I have cautious optimism around this D now. It's classic addition by subtraction here. K State employs the dreaded running quarterback, long the checkpoint to the Sooners night of partying. texas' own Sam Ehrlinger looked like Jamelle Holieway circa '85, which was a lot of fun to watch for Sooners fans. Hopefully OU can play some disciplined defense today, stay in position, and not give up huge gains. I like Kenneth Murray today to make a bunch of tackles and force at least one turnover.

Score

This does feel a bit like one the Sooners could be looking ahead on. They got back on track against TCU last week, have a tough road test next week, and have nothing K State this week. Against a disciplined football team, that can be dangerous. But I think OU will have too much offense against them, despite them hanging around a little longer than the home faithful would care for. OU TCBs but just misses the cover and hits the over (OU -24.5, o/u 64.5) today 47-24.

Boomer to the Motherfuckin' Sooner