OUTromBoNado
9/5/2009, 09:45 PM
First, does this loss suck? Hell yes it does. However, by no means is our season over. This is Week 1. There's a lot of football left to be played, not just by our Sooners, but by everyone. Remember, it's a hell of a lot better to lose early than late. Last year is a prime example of that.
Second, let's be brutally honest about the O-line. They stunk the joint up initially, but got their feet under them during the second half. Considering the rebuilding job on the O-line, that's a good thing. If they showed no improvement during the game, then I would be worried. However, all the false starts and holding penalties are inexcusable. IIRC, one of our players had 3 false starts. Unacceptable. But, they'll get better.
Third, I'm tired of the vanilla play calling early in the season. Now I know I have no football experience, and this is probably just me ranting. But when you are playing a quality opponent, you've got to go with the full playbook. When our O-line was struggling, we should not have kept trying to run the ball. There is no reason why Sam Bradford should have single-digit pass attempts late in the second quarter.
Fourth, our defense played pretty well. They kept us in it. If we had been able to put points on the board, our D played more than well enough for us to win.
Fifth, Landry did well. I've seen the backup QB come in during similar situations, and play a lot worse. Landry gave us a chance, and that's all you can ask for. Sure, he made some costly mistakes. That delay of game on 4th and Goal from the 1-foot line was major.
Sixth, some will argue that we should not be playing games like that at the beginning of the season. Looking back at history, these are the type of victories, that if won, pay off dividends down the road. This has benefited us time and time again. Sure, it's a big risk, but it's also a big reward. I'm not sure I would play a game like this as an opener, but I'm all for playing at least one ranked team in the non-conference schedule. I'm a lot more proud of our team for playing these tough games than scheduling 3-4 cupcakes.
So, everyone take a huge breath and step away from the keyboards. There's a long way to go. Let's just see what happens now. Hopefully, Bradford and Gresham will be back and ready to go by the Miami game. If not, well, I'm sure our coaches will figure something out. They always do.
Second, let's be brutally honest about the O-line. They stunk the joint up initially, but got their feet under them during the second half. Considering the rebuilding job on the O-line, that's a good thing. If they showed no improvement during the game, then I would be worried. However, all the false starts and holding penalties are inexcusable. IIRC, one of our players had 3 false starts. Unacceptable. But, they'll get better.
Third, I'm tired of the vanilla play calling early in the season. Now I know I have no football experience, and this is probably just me ranting. But when you are playing a quality opponent, you've got to go with the full playbook. When our O-line was struggling, we should not have kept trying to run the ball. There is no reason why Sam Bradford should have single-digit pass attempts late in the second quarter.
Fourth, our defense played pretty well. They kept us in it. If we had been able to put points on the board, our D played more than well enough for us to win.
Fifth, Landry did well. I've seen the backup QB come in during similar situations, and play a lot worse. Landry gave us a chance, and that's all you can ask for. Sure, he made some costly mistakes. That delay of game on 4th and Goal from the 1-foot line was major.
Sixth, some will argue that we should not be playing games like that at the beginning of the season. Looking back at history, these are the type of victories, that if won, pay off dividends down the road. This has benefited us time and time again. Sure, it's a big risk, but it's also a big reward. I'm not sure I would play a game like this as an opener, but I'm all for playing at least one ranked team in the non-conference schedule. I'm a lot more proud of our team for playing these tough games than scheduling 3-4 cupcakes.
So, everyone take a huge breath and step away from the keyboards. There's a long way to go. Let's just see what happens now. Hopefully, Bradford and Gresham will be back and ready to go by the Miami game. If not, well, I'm sure our coaches will figure something out. They always do.