what you think of ND?

[OU_Sooners75]

After watching them today with little to no interruptions, I would say if OU comes to play, OU will win.

The ND defense looked decent on short yardage, but they secondary looked about as good as WVUs did.

Their offense looked blah! They scored 3 times were the refs decided to call pass interference penalties to keep the drives alive.

IF, it's a big if, OU shows up with an attitude and plays their game, OU will win and it may not even be close.

[Soonerwake]

I said that last year, and look where it got us. So, this year I am picking a close loss by our boys.. :grumpy:

[Breadburner]

No turnovers.....!!!..And I hope we don't get jobbed by the officials like MSU did......

[En_Fuego]

Baylor would kick their azz

[badger]

I think I can fool people into thinking I am a girl online, if u all think that type of thing could mess with domer

[S.PadreIsl.Sooner]

No turnovers.....!!!..And I hope we don't get jobbed by the officials like MSU did......

We will get screwed at least 3 times. But, if we keep from turning it over, we win anyway.

[MyT Oklahoma]

I like our chances but it depends upon which OU team shows up.

If we play to the best of our abilities, or even close (i.e., no turnovers), I like our chances.

[BoulderSooner79]

They'll be the toughest opponent so far (not saying much). We'll see what were made of.

[5noubus]

I wonder how this years team will travel ?
Lots of young players and a big crowd and stadium for OUr first away game.

[8timechamps]

Notre Dame looked the same today that they've looked the entire season. There has definitely been a drop off from last year.

That said, the one thing I've noticed about ND (minus the Alabama, and Michigan games), they seem to win ugly. They never look great on either side of the ball, but somehow they win.

That said, I still believe OU should win by 10+. An aggressive defense will give Rees fits.

[MichiganSooner]

Where will the refs be from?

[8timechamps]

Where will the refs be from?

Excellent question.

Weren't they a Big East crew last year? They were horrible.

[S.PadreIsl.Sooner]

Excellent question.

Weren't they a Big East crew last year? They were horrible.

Then it should be a Big 12 crew for this one.

[PLaw]

Then it should be a Big 12 crew for this one.

But, they will all have Irish surnames.

Bummer

[BoulderSooner79]

That said, I still believe OU should win by 10+. An aggressive defense will give Rees fits.

The MSU defense was more aggressive than ours will be. Our best chance of pressing ND is to be ahead on the scoreboard and get them our of a conservative game plan.

[thecrimsoncrusader]

I have to do the "Captain Obvious" thing here: OU ran it 24 times for 15 yards, which is a 0.6 yard average against Notre Dame last season. That can't happen again.

I'm hoping to see at least 30 carries in this game with a 4 yard or greater average. Get around 120 or more yards without most of that coming on an 80 yard run and I have 99% certainty OU wins this game. If however, OU's run game gets stuffed and OU ends up throwing for about 400 yards, I see OU being in the exact same position as last season against Notre Dame. Moving the ball between the 20s with easy, but choking in the red-zone.

With that said, I think Blake Bell is the leader that Landry Jones was not and Tommy Rees doesn't have the mobility that Everett Golsen had, nor does ND have anything close to Theo Riddick or Cierre Wood in the backfield this season and their defense is missing the leadership that Manti Teo provided. With Bell now at QB and the defense being improved over last season, I think Oklahoma is a better team than they were than in the 2012 season while Notre Dame so far hasn't been a better team than they were in the 2012 season.

Despite Notre Dame being routed in the BCS title game against Alabama last season, they very much played like a team of destiny last season in terms of making the big plays when they need them in the regular season. They haven't really came across being that way so far this season.

[thecrimsoncrusader]

The MSU defense was more aggressive than ours will be.

I wouldn't be so sure of that.

[BoulderSooner79]

I wouldn't be so sure of that.

Ok, I'll just say ND will not be intimidated by our D as they have already faced a tough one. And they are comfortable in close, low scoring games where they can stay conservative. We'll need to force them to play from behind.

[OUmillenium]

I have to do the "Captain Obvious" thing here: OU ran it 24 times for 15 yards, which is a 0.6 yard average against Notre Dame last season. That can't happen again.

I'm hoping to see at least 30 carries in this game with a 4 yard or greater average. Get around 120 or more yards without most of that coming on an 80 yard run and I have 99% certainty OU wins this game. If however, OU's run game gets stuffed and OU ends up throwing for about 400 yards, I see OU being in the exact same position as last season against Notre Dame. Moving the ball between the 20s with easy, but choking in the red-zone.

With that said, I think Blake Bell is the leader that Landry Jones was not and Tommy Rees doesn't have the mobility that Everett Golsen had, nor does ND have anything close to Theo Riddick or Cierre Wood in the backfield this season and their defense is missing the leadership that Manti Teo provided. With Bell now at QB and the defense being improved over last season, I think Oklahoma is a better team than they were than in the 2012 season while Notre Dame so far hasn't been a better team than they were in the 2012 season.

Despite Notre Dame being routed in the BCS title game against Alabama last season, they very much played like a team of destiny last season in terms of making the big plays when they need them in the regular season. They haven't really came across being that way so far this season.

Bingo (Eddie)

[ouwasp]

ND looked about like I expected. I did think Rees showed good decision-making. I hope OU can force a couple of turnovers from him next week. Unforced ones will be okay as well!

I predict OU will once again have a difficult time running between the tackles. Perhaps the QB run game may loosen things up, but I don't know.

I was pleasantly surprised with the NBC announcers. They recognized that ND was benefiting from multiple marginal penalties called against Mich St.

Of course, the ND coach was a brazen dork at the end, saying Sparty should have been called for more.

[OkieThunderLion]

With that said, I think Blake Bell is the leader that Landry Jones was not and Tommy Rees doesn't have the mobility that Everett Golsen had, nor does ND have anything close to Theo Riddick or Cierre Wood in the backfield this season and their defense is missing the leadership that Manti Teo provided.

If your hanging all your hopes on perception of "leadership", I'm a little scared.

[soonergirlNeugene]

We get Big 12 refs for this one don't we? Was reading through SI's article dubbing the Domers "Flag-bearers" for benefitting from 115 yards of penalties to beat MSU by 3. Notre Dame has a long history of home cooking that would make any Pac-12 school blush. More than anything else, this is what worries me about next weekend.

[BoulderSooner79]

We get Big 12 refs for this one don't we? Was reading through SI's article dubbing the Domers "Flag-bearers" for benefitting from 115 yards of penalties to beat MSU by 3. Notre Dame has a long history of home cooking that would make any Pac-12 school blush. More than anything else, this is what worries me about next weekend.

We don't always benefit from big12 officials - especially the ones with an Austin home address. And we'll have Jesus looking over the field as well (the Catholic version). Better just plan to out play 'em.

[Flagstaffsooner]

We don't always benefit from big12 officials - especially the ones with an Austin home address. And we'll have Jesus looking over the field as well (the Catholic version). Better just plan to out play 'em.

You must be speaking of Jon 'A-hole' Bible.

[Soonerjeepman]

Kelly was complaining to the sideline lady reporter after the game saying they should have gotten MORE calls, receivers being held all night..what an a$$...

the refs really worry me. Don't care what anyone says, they CAN change a game.

[BigTip]

What do I think of ND?

I think they are pompous asses that are always ranked about five spots higher than they deserve. They always have to be beaten twice to get knocked down in the polls where they deserve to be.
I think they get an inordinate amount of media attention. Especially aggravating since they have sucked so badly lately.
They screwed up TV for the rest of the country by making their independent deals with networks.
I hate that they usually get credit for the "Play like a champion" when we used it first.
I hate that they have a winning record against us. I hate them and would like their football program to implode and go to purgatory forever.
That's what I think of ND.


Oh, wait, you probably mean the current ND team in relation to our chances with them.





never mind.

[C&CDean]

I respect the tradition of their program. My stance on Catholics has mellowed a lot over the years (so much so that I'm kind of looking into the religion myself) so there's that. I hate the fact that they've pretty much pwned us over history, and that they're the ones who started/stopped the 47-game streak.

All that aside, it wouldn't hurt my feelings one bit if we went into South Bend like we owned the ****ing place and beat them like a nun on a miscreant.

[Whet]

Although, I did get admonished by an Irish fan in '99 for asking "where's Rudy" when the ND team was walking to the stadium, I plan to do the same on Saturday.

[Edmond Sooner]

I watched the game, too. I'd say it's obvious they are rebuilding from the departure of last year's talent, but are still a pretty solid football team. I agree with this:

"IF, it's a big if, OU shows up with an attitude and plays their game, OU will win"

Though I'm not so sure how close it will be either way.

[PalmBeachSooner]

Then it should be a Big 12 crew for this one.

It's definitely a Big XII crew. With our luck they will all be Irishmen from Austin.

[PalmBeachSooner]

I'm not impressed with Reese as a QB. He was well under 50% completions. He threw a lot of back shoulder passes that seemed to take forever to get to the receiver. I really think OU could pick off a couple.

I think they will try to get the TE involved heavily.

Cam McDaniel or what ever their white RB scares me. Watching the game yesterday I had flashbacks to 1999 when we couldn't stop the white RB.

I want to say their defense is pretty good, but MSU's offense is the suck. They've struggled to put points on the board in all games. I think their defense scored two of the three touchdowns against South Florida.

As many posters have already said, if OU comes out with attitude and avoid costly mistakes they can win. They definitely need to match ND's physicality if not exceed it.

[Soonerjeepman]

I totally understand the Catholic arrogance, it starts at a very young age....being Catholic and going to Catholic schools. It is the one reputation thing that really gets me. The Catholic church does a ton of good...then we produce these kids that think athletically there is no match. ND is the most pompous...and even though I'm Catholic, I'm SOONER first in this game..hope we knock the crap out of them.

Going with a tight game, but SOONERS come out on top.

[MyT Oklahoma]

What do I think of ND?

I think they are pompous asses that are always ranked about five spots higher than they deserve. They always have to be beaten twice to get knocked down in the polls where they deserve to be.
I think they get an inordinate amount of media attention. Especially aggravating since they have sucked so badly lately.
They screwed up TV for the rest of the country by making their independent deals with networks.
I hate that they usually get credit for the "Play like a champion" when we used it first.
I hate that they have a winning record against us. I hate them and would like their football program to implode and go to purgatory forever.
That's what I think of ND.


Oh, wait, you probably mean the current ND team in relation to our chances with them.





never mind.

Seconded. Duly seconded.

[ObiKaTony]

I'm a catholic and that doesn't mean I har to cheer for nd at anytime. ND is now letting in illegals (undocumented democrats) to their school while screwing over legal citizens whos families have paid taxes and excess entitlements for years! Screw Nd and their pompous outlook, specifically their social justice outlook which they best describe as the federal gubment beig the source of helping the poor. ND always
Has reps in the news stations preaching the gospel and how you should be a better liberal. F nd and more and more Catholics I meet the less I see them wearing nd gear: good!

This doesn't mean I'm not a catholic or don't belive. It is the true church with the FirSt bible and it will forever be the one Christian church uniting us all. Those aren't my words, they are the words of Luther who said on his death bed the reformation was a mistake...


I totally understand the Catholic arrogance, it starts at a very young age....being Catholic and going to Catholic schools. It is the one reputation thing that really gets me. The Catholic church does a ton of good...then we produce these kids that think athletically there is no match. ND is the most pompous...and even though I'm Catholic, I'm SOONER first in this game..hope we knock the crap out of them.

Going with a tight game, but SOONERS come out on top.

[Temujin]

At this time last year, we got beat by a K-State team that was more physical that we were. That had me worried for the ND game and sure enough, we lost. So far (yeah, I know, WVU, Tulsa, ULM) we've clearly been the aggressor on both sides of the football. But I'm at least more encouraged about where we stand than I was last year.

My main concern is the 3-4 or 3-3-5 front against THIS team. We might be more aggressive than we were last year, but does ND STILL wear our defense down with a size/strength advantage? I hope not.

My other concern - offensive play-calling. How can we line up in 10-20 different formations during the game and STILL be predictable? We have the player diversity to do whatever we want on offense. But it rarely shows on gameday unless we dramatically out-athlete the other team (Tulsa).

[8timechamps]

At this time last year, we got beat by a K-State team that was more physical that we were. That had me worried for the ND game and sure enough, we lost. So far (yeah, I know, WVU, Tulsa, ULM) we've clearly been the aggressor on both sides of the football. But I'm at least more encouraged about where we stand than I was last year.

My main concern is the 3-4 or 3-3-5 front against THIS team. We might be more aggressive than we were last year, but does ND STILL wear our defense down with a size/strength advantage? I hope not.

My other concern - offensive play-calling. How can we line up in 10-20 different formations during the game and STILL be predictable? We have the player diversity to do whatever we want on offense. But it rarely shows on gameday unless we dramatically out-athlete the other team (Tulsa).

That's the big question.

Mike's revamped scheme is to combat offenses with speed. Since OU isn't going to out-physical the elite teams on defense (at least not now, maybe in time), Mike's plan is to put speed at almost every position. We've upgraded the speed at every defensive position this year (Mike's words, not mine). So, I think this is the ultimate test for this new approach.

I particularly like Eric Striker in this game. ND has huge linemen anchoring their offensive line, and Striker has already proven to be disruptive off of the edge. If he can stay relatively clean, I think he may be the key to OU winning on the defensive side of the ball.

[Scott D]

What you see with ND on defense is that the lack of experience at the LB position in comparison to a year ago. Nix and Tuitt up front still present problems for most teams, especially Nix. PalmBeach is right to be nervous about Cam McDaniel, the kid is a hard nosed football player. He runs downhill for sure. Atkinson while being a speed guy has happy feet, and their receivers outside of the potential that Corey Robinson brings appear to be pretty average to go with their average QB in Rees. Their TE play is definitely two or three steps below what they got out of Eifert last year.

That being said, they're still a dangerous team to play. This game is going to come down to how fast OU can establish an offensive identity. If the line can "control" Nix and Tuitt then there is the potential for a very good day. If those two dominate up front it can be a very long day.

[birddog]

I'm a catholic and that doesn't mean I har to cheer for nd at anytime. ND is now letting in illegals (undocumented democrats) to their school while screwing over legal citizens whos families have paid taxes and excess entitlements for years! Screw Nd and their pompous outlook, specifically their social justice outlook which they best describe as the federal gubment beig the source of helping the poor. ND always
Has reps in the news stations preaching the gospel and how you should be a better liberal. F nd and more and more Catholics I meet the less I see them wearing nd gear: good!

This doesn't mean I'm not a catholic or don't belive. It is the true church with the FirSt bible and it will forever be the one Christian church uniting us all. Those aren't my words, they are the words of Luther who said on his death bed the reformation was a mistake...

dude, you should go pick a fight cause those are fightin words...

[sooneron]

They squeaked past a team that didn't have a qb, if we play up to our abilities, we win by 10-13.

[SoonerForLife92]

While they do have a lot of pieces missing from last year's team, they still played their absolute best game against us; I really hope they don't again. I already feel like the refs will **** us.

[aurorasooner]

what you think of ND? Well their sports channel (NBC Sports) sure sucks during CFB season. I figured they'd have some classic OU/ND CFB games on this week, because Fox (for the most part) and ESPin (definitely) , won't put any teams classic games on their networks when their Saturday game is going to be aired on another network. (I've never understood this--do they think that a certain team's fans aren't going to know and aren't going to watch another network if their team is on it--sheesh).
I just scanned the NBC Sports Channel listings and nothing, zip. About the only thing I ever watch on the NBC Sports channel (which replaced the Speed Channel on the regular tier, not the Sport's tier), is their "Pro Football Talk" and maybe every once in a while, a CFL FB league game when an NFL game or CFB game isn't on. The Dan Patrick show mostly sucks and is not worth DVRing, imo. We've got an "outdoor channel--hunting/fishing/etc on the sport's tier, and I only watch it during football season when there's nothing else on.
Anyway you wouldn't know that OU is playing ND on Saturday if you depended on the NBC Sports Channel for any promo.

[Temujin]

That's the big question.

Mike's revamped scheme is to combat offenses with speed. Since OU isn't going to out-physical the elite teams on defense (at least not now, maybe in time), Mike's plan is to put speed at almost every position. We've upgraded the speed at every defensive position this year (Mike's words, not mine). So, I think this is the ultimate test for this new approach.

I particularly like Eric Striker in this game. ND has huge linemen anchoring their offensive line, and Striker has already proven to be disruptive off of the edge. If he can stay relatively clean, I think he may be the key to OU winning on the defensive side of the ball.

I agree. My hope is that our aggressiveness and speed compensates. We'll have to attack off the edges and hope we hold up in the middle enough to slow/stop the run and create pressure on the QB without bringing 9 in the box.

On the positive side, I LOVE what I've seen from Zack Sanchez and Gabe Lynn so far. Against ND's receivers, if we have to leave Sanchez on an island at times, I'm almost comfortable with that. He's been my favorite Sooner so far this season, and if he bulks up a little, I think he's an NFL corner. I can only think of 2 plays where he's made a mistake, and on one of them he simply hesitated because of traffic over the middle...but still made the play to save the TD. The other, he bit on a double move against ULM, and got lucky because the ball was overthrown. Other than that, he's been awesome in coverage. Besides if we create enough consistent pressure, ND won't have time to execute a double move.

[ObiKaTony]

dude, you should go pick a fight cause those are fightin words...

Who wants to fight? An Nd fan?

[swardboy]

IF, it's a big if, OU shows up with an attitude and plays their game, OU will win and it may not even be close.

I haven't seen "attitude" since Torrence Marshall told Chris Weinke he was going to take his Heisman back for Heupel.

[8timechamps]

I agree. My hope is that our aggressiveness and speed compensates. We'll have to attack off the edges and hope we hold up in the middle enough to slow/stop the run and create pressure on the QB without bringing 9 in the box.

On the positive side, I LOVE what I've seen from Zack Sanchez and Gabe Lynn so far. Against ND's receivers, if we have to leave Sanchez on an island at times, I'm almost comfortable with that. He's been my favorite Sooner so far this season, and if he bulks up a little, I think he's an NFL corner. I can only think of 2 plays where he's made a mistake, and on one of them he simply hesitated because of traffic over the middle...but still made the play to save the TD. The other, he bit on a double move against ULM, and got lucky because the ball was overthrown. Other than that, he's been awesome in coverage. Besides if we create enough consistent pressure, ND won't have time to execute a double move.

Sanchez has definitely played well, and I too think that will continue.

ND is so big along the front, it's going to be interesting to see how we match up. Charles Tapper made an interesting comment yesterday, he mentioned that last year, the D-line had almost no rotation and this year, the D-line has rotated a lot, which has kept guys fresh in to the 4th qtr. I think that could be another big difference from last year.

The game was tied late, then ND strung together a series of really good plays, and we looked gassed (oh, and some questionable calls helped). I don't see that being an issue this year, at least not on the OU side.

There's one thing I hate in the college game (and I see it a lot), it's soft coverage at the line from DBs. I know that in many cases, defensive coordinators are playing safe against deep balls, but in this game, I think our DBs match up exceptionally well with ND's receivers. I hope to see us challenge them at the line (although I don't think we'll try to do what Michigan State did, they played very physical and cost them some penalties).

[sooneron]

They squeaked past a team that didn't have a qb, if we play up to our abilities, we win by 10-13.

Like I said...

:D

[RUSH LIMBAUGH is my clone!]

the bast*rds suck!

[ashley]

They can't recruit enough speed out of the South, it's cold and all the girls look like Margret Thacher. But, they were better than I thought they were.

[jiminy]

They can't recruit enough speed out of the South, it's cold and all the girls look like Margret Thacher. But, they were better than I thought they were.

The girls or the team?

[badger]

I want to play em more. Can big 12 add byu and nd for a religious quadfectra?

[MyT Oklahoma]

Over-rated. :wink:

[SCOUT]

ND will be our usual problem. They are great and a world beater at the beginning of the season. We play them and beat them soundly. We drop in the polls because they were obviously overrated.

We now have a weak schedule and should be ranked lower than the SEC. After all, the SEC scheduled a difficult out of conference slate with teams like Wofford and Southeast Columbus Vocational State.

[BoulderSooner79]

ND was pretty much what I expected. They did out muscle us in the trenches although our O-line held up pretty well. Our DBs were up to the task to match up with all there WRs most the time. We might have been in trouble had we not jumped to the early lead and they had been able to stick to the power run game. They were the best team we have faced (regardless of what WVU did to the pokes). Bottom line is that we had a winning advantage at the skill positions.

[SoonerPride]

Notre Dame is solid. They play tough. They are slow. They are dominant in the trenches.

They are about what I expected.

I thought we would win 31-14.

I was close.

Still, winning on the road in a storied stadium is still tough even with an average-to-good-but-not-great team. See Bama on the road in 03.

I was happy we played well in that environment.