Red Flag? One thing sticks out about the 10-3 loss to Nebraska on Saturday night more than the score or Landry Jones’ performance.  This is not normally how Stoops’s teams operate.  In almost every season since Coach Stoops has been on the sidelines, in general, his teams have gotten better, much better, as the season progresses along.  Following the tough loss to Texas in the Cotton Bowl, it appeared the Sooner offense was on the up-and-up with conference wins over Kansas and Kansas State.  If anything, the defense had the most question marks after the KSU game.  But that all came crashing to a halt in Lincoln.  There has to be major concern about the offense taking a step backwards in a very winnable game.

Take a quick assessment of the Sooner offense.  Erratic QB play.  Poor offensive line performance, including injuries and penalties.  An overrated running game that has yet to find a way to run the ball consistently (see: offensive line).  Wide receivers who show some flash at times, but also lack consistency in running routes and hanging onto the ball.  No question, take away Sam Bradford and Jermaine Gresham, and you have a different team. I give the Sooners some slack for their injury situation, but this was game 9.  If your defense only gives up 10 points, you should win.  Period.   Not to mention – how about mixing in some FG’s from the kicking game? Iowa State went into Lincoln three weeks ago and won 9-7 on three FG’s.  IOWA STATE!  Yet, OU goes with a change at kicker (Tress Way), and ends up 1-4 on FG’s and loses the game by seven.

We are not calling for any coaching changes nor suggesting a switch back to the wishbone.  Frankly, you could make the argument that OU has been the college football program of the 2000’s, with all due respect to USC, LSU, Ohio State and Florida.  Bob Stoops has elevated the program and expectations back to exactly where every fan, player and booster wants it to be – contending for national titles on an almost yearly basis.  Kevin Wilson put together a machine of an offense in 2008, and still does not get enough credit in Sooner land for just how dominant they were last year.  Wilson catches a lot of flack for his play-calling (what offensive coordinator doesn’t), but players play and coaches coach.  The guys on the field have to be held accountable too.  All that being said, though…..

The 10-3 loss to a very, very average Nebraska team might be this current Sooner coaching staff’s worst loss ever. Yes, Nebraska has a good defense, but this was the least talented team that OU lost to in 2009.  The Sooner offense did not even come close to scoring a touchdown.  The offensive production within and near the red zone was simply non-existent, which is not a new problem for this team.  The kicking game had a horrible night.  Everyone expected a defensive struggle, and that’s what we got. But no one expected the Sooners to absolutely shut it down on offense.  Maybe the game plan was too aggressive, maybe this was just a crazy upset in a rivalry game that is normally seen in October in the Cotton Bowl.  Call it a fluke, call it a bad game.  But unless this 5-4 team shows marked improvement against a bad A&M team in Norman on Saturday, 6-6 is a realistic possibility with Tech in Lubbock and Bedlam in Norman against OSU to finish out the regular season.  6-6.  Who saw that as a possiblity for the 2009 Sooners?  Certainly not Bob Stoops.

Weird Sooner Trivia: Name the Sooner QB’s who hold the record for 1.) Most TD’s thrown in one game and 2.) Most INT’s thrown in one game?  (answer below)

Answer:  Landry Jones for both  – 6 TD’s against Tulsa and 5 INT’s against Nebraska, both in 2009.

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Tags: Bob Stoops, Kevin Wilson, Landry Jones, Nebraska, OU Football, Tress Way

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