Collier11
11/26/2010, 01:38 AM
GAME OF THE WEEK
Oklahoma (9-2) at Oklahoma State (10-1) Nov. 27, 8:00, ABC
Here’s The Deal … Alright, Oklahoma State, this is your dream shot. This is the moment you, as a program, have been dreaming of for decades. It’s one game, the puck is on your stick, and you’ve got to put it away, because this perfect storm might not come around again for a while. Texas isn’t going to stay this bad, Oklahoma isn’t going away, and starting next year, it’s going to take a win over nine other teams, and not just the five in the South, to win the Big 12 title. The offense has been phenomenal in one of the shocking surprises of the year as the Cowboys were completely rebuilt in a day to crank out the nations’ most devastatingly balanced attack. Now, all it will take is one win over an arch-rival, who also has its shot at a championship, to win the South. Oh yeah, and do it in the state of Oklahoma, where OU hasn’t lost (including games against OSU and Tulsa) since the beginning of the 2005 season.
There’s a bit of a perception out there that Oklahoma State has come strong in the Bedlam game, mostly because memories of the Cowboys screwing up the Sooners in 2001 and 2002 are still fresh. However, OU has owned this series over the last seven years with just two of the games competitive. The Sooners haven’t been consistent, but they have as much firepower and as much talent as anyone in the country, as Texas Tech and Baylor found out over the last two weeks getting outscored by a total of 98 to 31. Maddening in squeakers early in the season, and frustrating in road losses to Missouri and Texas A&M the Sooners have a habit of brain-cramping at the wrong time … on the road. There were some close calls against Utah State and Air Force, but this is one of the nation’s most dominant programs at home, and it doesn’t lose games like this under Bob Stoops.
If Texas A&M loses to Texas, then this game is for the South title no matter what. An A&M win, and a OU victory this week would throw it to a tie-breaker, the BCS rankings, and the Sooners would most likely get the nod. In any event, this should be a fun, wild shootout, and a perfect way to close out the regular-season portion of the Big 12 Conference as we know it.
Why Oklahoma State Might Win: Everyone knows about the amazing Oklahoma State offense that’s blasting away with the No. 1 attack in the nation, but the defensive front is holding its own. This might not be a great group at getting to the quarterback – Mike Gundy’s teams never seem to generate sacks – but the run defense has been surprisingly solid. Now, part of the reason is that teams have to panic and start bombing away with the passing game to keep up the pace with the Cowboy offense, but for the most part, teams haven’t been able to run wild with only Nebraska cracking the 200-yard barrier. Okay, so Tulsa ran for 199 and Baylor 197, but OSU is 10-0 when holding teams to under 200 yards rushing. Oklahoma can win this game through the air against a porous OSU pass defense, but the offense only rocks when the ground game is effective. The ground game was held to under 100 yards four times. One time was the blowout win over Florida State, one time was in the 31-29 close call against Cincinnati, and the other two times were the two losses against Missouri and Texas A&M. If OSU can stop DeMarco Murray and the ground attack, it should win the shootout.
Why Oklahoma Might Win: Oklahoma State, welcome to a pass rush. Texas A&M only came up with one sack against the Cowboys, but the defensive front was able to generate consistent pressure throughout in the loss, holding Brandon Weeden to just 284 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions on 42 attempts. Meanwhile, the Aggie defense stuffed the OSU ground game, allowing just 67 net yards. A&M lost because Jerrod Johnson was having a fun time finding ways to put the ball in the hands of the Cowboy defenders, but the Aggie offense rocked. Nebraska kept Weeden to 283 yards, and like the Aggie game, OSU didn’t give up a slew of sacks but was under pressure the entire time. Meanwhile, Taylor Martinez, yeah, that Taylor Martinez, threw for 323 yards and five scores. Jeremy Beal and the Oklahoma pass rush should be camped out in the Cowboy backfield all game long, and if Beal can tell Stoops what flavor of gum Weeden is chewing, it’s going to be a long day for the OSU attack. Meanwhile, just assume Landry Jones will throw for 350 yards. Consider it a mortal lock.
What To Watch Out For: As case could be made that this is the greatest one-game matchup of wide receivers in college football history. While Oklahoma State’s Justin Blackmon and Oklahoma’s Ryan Broyles haven’t exactly captured the nation’s imagination like a Michael Crabtree or Larry Fitzgerald were able to, these two, at least as collegians, are every bit as good, and the winner of the matchup this week will likely walk away with the Biletnikoff. The two, along with South Carolina’s Alshon Jeffery, are finalists, and there’s no case to be made against either won. Broyles leads the nation in receptions and is the first Sooner ever to catch 100 passes in a season with 106 grabs, 1,309 yards, and 12 touchdowns. He lit up OSU last year for 103 yards on nine catches, and he cranked out 209 yards with a score as a punt returner. Blackmon has burst on to the scene this year and has caught 100 yards worth of passes and scores at least once in every game he has played in. With 94 catches for 1,560 yards and 17 scores, his numbers are even better than Broyles’ and he has been a stronger home-run hitter. However, if Broyles has the better game, he’ll likely be honored as the nation’s top target.
What Will Happen: It’ll be a fun and wild shootout with lots of home runs and a few major momentum swings, but in the end, the Oklahoma defense will come through with enough of a pass rush to slow down the Cowboy attack, while Landry Jones will go wild as he leads the Sooners to the Big 12 title game.
CFN Prediction: Oklahoma 48 … Oklahoma State 34
Oklahoma (9-2) at Oklahoma State (10-1) Nov. 27, 8:00, ABC
Here’s The Deal … Alright, Oklahoma State, this is your dream shot. This is the moment you, as a program, have been dreaming of for decades. It’s one game, the puck is on your stick, and you’ve got to put it away, because this perfect storm might not come around again for a while. Texas isn’t going to stay this bad, Oklahoma isn’t going away, and starting next year, it’s going to take a win over nine other teams, and not just the five in the South, to win the Big 12 title. The offense has been phenomenal in one of the shocking surprises of the year as the Cowboys were completely rebuilt in a day to crank out the nations’ most devastatingly balanced attack. Now, all it will take is one win over an arch-rival, who also has its shot at a championship, to win the South. Oh yeah, and do it in the state of Oklahoma, where OU hasn’t lost (including games against OSU and Tulsa) since the beginning of the 2005 season.
There’s a bit of a perception out there that Oklahoma State has come strong in the Bedlam game, mostly because memories of the Cowboys screwing up the Sooners in 2001 and 2002 are still fresh. However, OU has owned this series over the last seven years with just two of the games competitive. The Sooners haven’t been consistent, but they have as much firepower and as much talent as anyone in the country, as Texas Tech and Baylor found out over the last two weeks getting outscored by a total of 98 to 31. Maddening in squeakers early in the season, and frustrating in road losses to Missouri and Texas A&M the Sooners have a habit of brain-cramping at the wrong time … on the road. There were some close calls against Utah State and Air Force, but this is one of the nation’s most dominant programs at home, and it doesn’t lose games like this under Bob Stoops.
If Texas A&M loses to Texas, then this game is for the South title no matter what. An A&M win, and a OU victory this week would throw it to a tie-breaker, the BCS rankings, and the Sooners would most likely get the nod. In any event, this should be a fun, wild shootout, and a perfect way to close out the regular-season portion of the Big 12 Conference as we know it.
Why Oklahoma State Might Win: Everyone knows about the amazing Oklahoma State offense that’s blasting away with the No. 1 attack in the nation, but the defensive front is holding its own. This might not be a great group at getting to the quarterback – Mike Gundy’s teams never seem to generate sacks – but the run defense has been surprisingly solid. Now, part of the reason is that teams have to panic and start bombing away with the passing game to keep up the pace with the Cowboy offense, but for the most part, teams haven’t been able to run wild with only Nebraska cracking the 200-yard barrier. Okay, so Tulsa ran for 199 and Baylor 197, but OSU is 10-0 when holding teams to under 200 yards rushing. Oklahoma can win this game through the air against a porous OSU pass defense, but the offense only rocks when the ground game is effective. The ground game was held to under 100 yards four times. One time was the blowout win over Florida State, one time was in the 31-29 close call against Cincinnati, and the other two times were the two losses against Missouri and Texas A&M. If OSU can stop DeMarco Murray and the ground attack, it should win the shootout.
Why Oklahoma Might Win: Oklahoma State, welcome to a pass rush. Texas A&M only came up with one sack against the Cowboys, but the defensive front was able to generate consistent pressure throughout in the loss, holding Brandon Weeden to just 284 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions on 42 attempts. Meanwhile, the Aggie defense stuffed the OSU ground game, allowing just 67 net yards. A&M lost because Jerrod Johnson was having a fun time finding ways to put the ball in the hands of the Cowboy defenders, but the Aggie offense rocked. Nebraska kept Weeden to 283 yards, and like the Aggie game, OSU didn’t give up a slew of sacks but was under pressure the entire time. Meanwhile, Taylor Martinez, yeah, that Taylor Martinez, threw for 323 yards and five scores. Jeremy Beal and the Oklahoma pass rush should be camped out in the Cowboy backfield all game long, and if Beal can tell Stoops what flavor of gum Weeden is chewing, it’s going to be a long day for the OSU attack. Meanwhile, just assume Landry Jones will throw for 350 yards. Consider it a mortal lock.
What To Watch Out For: As case could be made that this is the greatest one-game matchup of wide receivers in college football history. While Oklahoma State’s Justin Blackmon and Oklahoma’s Ryan Broyles haven’t exactly captured the nation’s imagination like a Michael Crabtree or Larry Fitzgerald were able to, these two, at least as collegians, are every bit as good, and the winner of the matchup this week will likely walk away with the Biletnikoff. The two, along with South Carolina’s Alshon Jeffery, are finalists, and there’s no case to be made against either won. Broyles leads the nation in receptions and is the first Sooner ever to catch 100 passes in a season with 106 grabs, 1,309 yards, and 12 touchdowns. He lit up OSU last year for 103 yards on nine catches, and he cranked out 209 yards with a score as a punt returner. Blackmon has burst on to the scene this year and has caught 100 yards worth of passes and scores at least once in every game he has played in. With 94 catches for 1,560 yards and 17 scores, his numbers are even better than Broyles’ and he has been a stronger home-run hitter. However, if Broyles has the better game, he’ll likely be honored as the nation’s top target.
What Will Happen: It’ll be a fun and wild shootout with lots of home runs and a few major momentum swings, but in the end, the Oklahoma defense will come through with enough of a pass rush to slow down the Cowboy attack, while Landry Jones will go wild as he leads the Sooners to the Big 12 title game.
CFN Prediction: Oklahoma 48 … Oklahoma State 34