This upcoming season could come down to....

[IronHorseSooner]

The Sooners' ability to stop a mobile/dual threat QB. The following games highlight these:

U-Dub (Locker), KU (Reesing), KSU (Freeman), Aggie (McGee), Aggie Lite (Robinson), and likely Mizzou ('Roid Rage) in the title game.

Not all of these QBs are the same, some use it to run (McGee), some use it to pass ('Roid Rage). Outside of KU, the rest of those game are on the road, to boot.:(

[JLEW1818]

It's just something we are going to have to do. McGee does not scare me anymore. That Goodson character does.

[Breadburner]

one play.....

[illinisooner]

Good point, however we've played teams with mobile/dual threat QB's every year, so I don't think it's something new and crazy we can't handle. It seemed like we had a mobile QB every week in 06 (Stanback and Dixon in the non conference, along with UAB's Wing T-esque offense).

[sooner59]

Miami

[NYC Poke]

Handled us pretty well last year.

Re: McGee, I read somewhere that Sherman has installed more of a pro-type offense, and McGee won't be running nearly as much.

[snp]

Freeman is about as mobile as Jason White.

[illinisooner]

Handled us pretty well last year.

Re: McGee, I read somewhere that Sherman has installed more of a pro-type offense, and McGee won't be running nearly as much.

Yeah, supposedly he scrapped the triple option completely from the playbook. It will be very interesting to see how the transition goes from run first to pass first. Worth noting that the last Big 12 coach to come in and go with a pro style offense after doing away with the option was...good ol Bill C at Nebraska.

[soonerfan28]

Locker might scare me if they had some other talent on that team.

[IronHorseSooner]

Locker might scare me if they had some other talent on that team.

True, I agree. The thing that scares me about U-Dub is that last year, when they stunk, they beat Boise, hung with the Dennis Dixon Oregon team, and had Hawaii down by 3 touchdowns at one point. In those games, it was ALL Jake Locker. On the other hand, tOSU went up there last year to Lake Washington and beat them by 30. U-Dub's problem is that their defense stinks. Their offense is a poor man's version of Mack's with VY- just drop back, run around, and you'll think of something.

[RedstickSooner]

Mobile quarterbacks used to worry me a bit -- the Mike Stoops attacking defenses often left big holes for a scrambler.

Our current, more conservative defense doesn't seem to have as much of a problem with 'em.

[southern sooner]

Mobile quarterbacks used to worry me a bit -- the Mike Stoops attacking defenses often left big holes for a scrambler.

Our current, more conservative defense doesn't seem to have as much of a problem with 'em.


Really??? Please remind me when a mobile QB beat us under Mike Stoops? Was it Brad Smith, no we made him look like a pee wee qb. Please help me remember becasue I dont remember any mobile qp hurting us under mike stoops...

[illinisooner]

True, I agree. The thing that scares me about U-Dub is that last year, when they stunk, they beat Boise, hung with the Dennis Dixon Oregon team, and had Hawaii down by 3 touchdowns at one point. In those games, it was ALL Jake Locker. On the other hand, tOSU went up there last year to Lake Washington and beat them by 30. U-Dub's problem is that their defense stinks. Their offense is a poor man's version of Mack's with VY- just drop back, run around, and you'll think of something.

That OSU/Washington game was alot closer than 30 points, U Dub held em for a while and OSU blew it open late after some Husky mistakes. They're going to be a good team, but if we're a national title contender, it should be a relatively easy victory.

[Salt City Sooner]

Really??? Please remind me when a mobile QB beat us under Mike Stoops? Was it Brad Smith, no we made him look like a pee wee qb. Please help me remember becasue I dont remember any mobile qp hurting us under mike stoops...
I can think of a half dozen times that mobile QB's either beat OU or ripped the OU D in a losing effort while Mike Stoops was in Norman:

'99 vs. Notre Dame (Jackson had 276 yards passing, 105 rushing & 3 total TD's) & Colorado (Moschetti had 382 passing & 4 TD's, & was CU's leading rusher w/ 64 yards)

'01 vs. KSU (Roberson- 257 yards passing, 115 rushing, 3 total TD's) & NU (to be fair, I chalk this one up to offensive ineffectiveness more than defensive lapses, but it still remains that OU lost to a team w/ a mobile QB)

'02 vs. A&M (McNeal- 191 yards passing, 89 yards rushing, 4 TD's in basically 2 1/2 quarters) & Mizzou ( Brad Smith had 178 yards passing, 213 rushing & 3 TD's, not bad for a pee-wee, eh? ;) )

'03 vs. KSU. Have to give the devil his due, Roberson played OU twice (this game- 227 passing, 62 rushing, & 4 TD's), & he ripped the OU D twice.

The thing that scared me when OU faced a mobile QB back then was that either OU flat shut them down (see Seneca Wallace in '02, Smith in '03), or they went berzerk on us. Very little middle ground.

[goingoneight]

2003 Vince Young "scrambles" for 80 yards.

The famed "Mike Stoops era" had a lot better teams as a whole, FWIW.

[Collier11]

The Sooners' ability to stop a mobile/dual threat QB. The following games highlight these:

U-Dub (Locker), KU (Reesing), KSU (Freeman), Aggie (McGee), Aggie Lite (Robinson), and likely Mizzou ('Roid Rage) in the title game.

Not all of these QBs are the same, some use it to run (McGee), some use it to pass ('Roid Rage). Outside of KU, the rest of those game are on the road, to boot.:(

Locker is still young and will make mistakes if we can get to him

Reesing is pretty solid but if im not mistaken KU's O-line lost some guys?

Freeman is going to be tough at Kstate and that game really scares me

Mcgee-Been there done that, he is now a passing qb and wont run as much I dont think

Robinson-We have faced him 3 times now, we should be able to defend him by now. Heres hoping cus I really want to go to stilly and beat the hell out of them

Daniel-We have already contained him twice, he can be forced into mistakes with pressure

[mizzOUstu702]

Freeman is going to be tough at Kstate and that game really scares me
\

I agree, it's set up to be a trap game.

But to go along with the thread's theme, Freeman's not a "scrambling" QB at all. He's a straight up pro-style guy--in fact, he had -40 yards rushing last year. Still, he's a good veteran QB that worries me (now do they have anyone else that worries me? Not really...).

[boomrsoonr]

Don't count out McGee just because Sherman is changing up the option. It'll still be McGee's scrambling ability that will hurt us if we shut down the pass options. And, it could be something we're not prepared for since he's not supposed to run.

[Collier11]

But Mcgee has never really hurt us that bad

[stoops the eternal pimp]

Yeah Mcgee scrambling is a lot bigger threat than Mcgee in a designed running play but I m not too concerned about him..Robinson in Stillwater does

[tulsaoilerfan]

Really??? Please remind me when a mobile QB beat us under Mike Stoops? Was it Brad Smith, no we made him look like a pee wee qb. Please help me remember becasue I dont remember any mobile qp hurting us under mike stoops...

Are you kidding about Brad Smith? At Mizzou, he ran for over 200 yards against us and made that game much closer than it should have been; now at Norman was another story. :D

[tulsaoilerfan]

I can think of a half dozen times that mobile QB's either beat OU or ripped the OU D in a losing effort while Mike Stoops was in Norman:

'99 vs. Notre Dame (Jackson had 276 yards passing, 105 rushing & 3 total TD's) & Colorado (Moschetti had 382 passing & 4 TD's, & was CU's leading rusher w/ 64 yards)

'01 vs. KSU (Roberson- 257 yards passing, 115 rushing, 3 total TD's) & NU (to be fair, I chalk this one up to offensive ineffectiveness more than defensive lapses, but it still remains that OU lost to a team w/ a mobile QB)

'02 vs. A&M (McNeal- 191 yards passing, 89 yards rushing, 4 TD's in basically 2 1/2 quarters) & Mizzou ( Brad Smith had 178 yards passing, 213 rushing & 3 TD's, not bad for a pee-wee, eh? ;) )

'03 vs. KSU. Have to give the devil his due, Roberson played OU twice (this game- 227 passing, 62 rushing, & 4 TD's), & he ripped the OU D twice.

The thing that scared me when OU faced a mobile QB back then was that either OU flat shut them down (see Seneca Wallace in '02, Smith in '03), or they went berzerk on us. Very little middle ground.


OU shut down Eric Crouch in 01; they only won because of the trick play and OU's sorry offensive play, otherwise that's easily a two TD Sooner win

[tulsaoilerfan]

I can think of a half dozen times that mobile QB's either beat OU or ripped the OU D in a losing effort while Mike Stoops was in Norman:

'99 vs. Notre Dame (Jackson had 276 yards passing, 105 rushing & 3 total TD's) & Colorado (Moschetti had 382 passing & 4 TD's, & was CU's leading rusher w/ 64 yards)

'01 vs. KSU (Roberson- 257 yards passing, 115 rushing, 3 total TD's) & NU (to be fair, I chalk this one up to offensive ineffectiveness more than defensive lapses, but it still remains that OU lost to a team w/ a mobile QB)

'02 vs. A&M (McNeal- 191 yards passing, 89 yards rushing, 4 TD's in basically 2 1/2 quarters) & Mizzou ( Brad Smith had 178 yards passing, 213 rushing & 3 TD's, not bad for a pee-wee, eh? ;) )

'03 vs. KSU. Have to give the devil his due, Roberson played OU twice (this game- 227 passing, 62 rushing, & 4 TD's), & he ripped the OU D twice.

The thing that scared me when OU faced a mobile QB back then was that either OU flat shut them down (see Seneca Wallace in '02, Smith in '03), or they went berzerk on us. Very little middle ground.


The thing all those games have in common was they were away from Norman; mobile QB's seem to play their best against us on their home turf

[boomrsoonr]

But Mcgee has never really hurt us that bad


That's because we were always ready for him to run. Now, with coverage dropping back for the pass, he could do some damage.

But, like others have said, I think we can handle him. I mean, we handled Vince Young with very little problems until 2005. And I attribute that defeat more to a young, inexperienced defense, and a offense that wasn't really running on all cylinders.

[MojoRisen]

Pat white put it too us pretty good, I think offense for us is going to be key, are we able to play with confidence and speed when or if we get jumped on by 2 TD's but are still the better team.

Can we play from behind if we have too is the question.

We could always spy Keenan Clayton on those guys, he runs a 44-45 flat.

[IronHorseSooner]

We could always spy Keenan Clayton on those guys, he runs a 44-45 flat.

Actually, we have a few options for a spy: Clayton, Lewis (faster than Clayton), Harris, or Bryant. That's what could make a bigger difference.