Sooners' O-Line Still Competent

[The VIIIth]

Stoops says dimissal of J.D. Quinn won't hurt prospects for the offense.

By GUERIN EMIG
World Sports Writer

NORMAN -- Bob Stoops bristles at the notion that the roof is collapsing over his Oklahoma football team. The same goes for the general perception of the program and for the quarterback position, which was broadsided by last week's dismissal of starter Rhett Bomar.

And the same also goes for the Sooners' offensive line, which is composed of mostly freshmen and sophomores. Now, it must deal with the replacement of guard J.D. Quinn, who was dismissed last week as well.

"Everybody loves to paint this terrible picture," Stoops said of his short-circuited O-line. "It's not that."

Part of that belief has to do with the guy who's gone.

"J.D. Quinn was going to have a 50-50 chance to start," offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson said. "He didn't go through spring (after undergoing offseason shoulder surgery), but he did start (four) games as a freshman."

It's a little presumptuous, then, to say the Sooners lost a real cog in their line last week.

Stoops remains optimistic about the youngsters on the depth chart.

"Branndon Braxton looks fantastic," Stoops said of the 318-pound sophomore expected to start at right tackle. "He was a leader out there in the huddle (at OU's first preseason practice). He has great ability."

Stoops says left tackle Chris Messner, who started eight games on the right side last year, has improved. And he reports that center Jon Cooper looks strong.

"If you have five seniors out there, guys that have played, it's certainly going to make a difference," offensive line coach James Patton said. "But eagerness and effort and attitude sometimes will make up for lack of experience. The best thing about young guys is they're eager to learn, they're eager to work."

Sophomores Duke Robinson and Brandon Walker, the guards on OU's first-week-of-practice first-team O-line and junior college transfer Sherrone Moore and freshman Curtis Bailey, the second-team guards are working well, as are true freshmen Cory Brandon and Trent Williams, OU's backup tackles. Freshmen Ben Barresi and Chase Beeler are snapping behind Cooper.

Robinson is the only one of the group to have seen any Div. I action -- he served spot duty last year. But they have potential.

Walker was a junior college All-American. Brandon was a national top-10 tackle in high school. Bailey was top-15. Barresi was top-20. Beeler, a top-25 guard at Jenks, has already wowed his coach.

"Strength-wise, he showed immediately he's ready for (Div. I)," Stoops said.

As Cooper said: "A lot of of the young guys are physically ready. We're going to find out in two-a-days if they're mentally ready."

"Want-to isn't a problem," Patton said. "But it's attitude and effort on a consistent basis that will make us a pretty good line."

"There are a lot of things we have to sharpen up on, but we still have a month until our first game," Braxton said.

The first 7-10 days of camp will be used to settle both personnel and blocking-scheme issues. By the first preseason scrimmage Aug. 12, the line should begin to take shape.

"I think we'll be fine," Messner said. "We've got smart guys. We've got big, physical guys. We have this respect for each other.

"We're working for something bigger than just individual glory. We want to go on and succeed for the team."

Projected OU starting offensive line

Left tackle: Chris Messner, 6-6, 280, Sr: Started the Sooners' final eight games of 2005 at right tackle. One start prior to that was in 2003, when he started the season opener at left tackle.

Left guard: Duke Robinson, 6-5, 332, So: Appeared in 10 games, mostly at left guard, while working to both learn OU's system and reshape his body.

Center: Jon Cooper, 6-2, 278, So: Broke his right ankle at Texas Tech on Nov. 19, the second start of his career. Sat out last spring but has recovered enough to regain his starting position.

Right guard: Brandon Walker, 6-3, 315, So: Rated the No. 2 junior college offensive lineman in the nation last year by CollegeFootballNews.com at Coffeyville (Kan.) Community College.

Right tackle: Branndon Braxton, 6-6, 318, So: Started three of the Sooners' first four games at right tackle last year before Davin Joseph moved over from left guard.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

i'm cool with everything except that last sentence...

[SCOUT]

Great read, thanks for posting it VIIth.

jkm, I love your insight but I rarely get it on your first post. Would you mind elaborating?

[Blue]

i'm cool with everything except that last sentence...

We need your pre-season analysis jkm, no matter how doom and gloom it may be.

[okievol]

So in light of the losses of recent offensive personnel does Oklahoma go 2 TE's on every play and run Petersen off tackle out of the I...doing a play action bootleg to a TE...and occasional draw play?...How much does this constrict the play selection, and will defenses just put 8 in the box on you?

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

Great read, thanks for posting it VIIth.

jkm, I love your insight but I rarely get it on your first post. Would you mind elaborating?

the only game where joseph played guard was tulsa. he was at tackle the other 3 games...

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

We need your pre-season analysis jkm, no matter how doom and gloom it may be.

:bsmf:

[Blue]

:bsmf:

Seriously, I'm tired of reading Sonrfano8. or whatever his name is posts.

And frankly I'm tired of re-reading my own posts. They offer little insight.

Not to mention the noobs.

So get to it. I want 3 paragraphs on the state of the program by morning. :pop:

[okievol]

So in light of the losses of recent offensive personnel does Oklahoma go 2 TE's on every play and run Petersen off tackle out of the I...doing a play action bootleg to a TE...and occasional draw play?...How much does this constrict the play selection, and will defenses just put 8 in the box on you?
Yep......:texan: pass the hotsauce Mack!

[Blue]

Yep......:texan: pass the hotsauce Mack!

Kevin Wilson doesn't post here, dude.

At this point, your guess is as good as ours.

[okievol]

Yeah I think initally thats what teams will do to the sooners, basically run a 6 man d line on you. I hope the OU OC can work some magic...because while Petersen is an outstanding back OU now is a 1 trick pony and only balanced offenses move the chains. Dont get me wrong Im all for the Sooners as Im a Tennessean Vol fan but locally I like the Sooners.

[Blue]

Yeah I think initally thats what teams will do to the sooners, basically run a 6 man d line on you. I hope the OU OC can work some magic...because while Petersen is an outstanding back OU now is a 1 trick pony and only balanced offenses move the chains. Dont get me wrong Im all for the Sooners as Im a Tennessean Vol fan but locally I like the Sooners.

great.

[SCOUT]

the only game where joseph played guard was tulsa. he was at tackle the other 3 games...
Ah. I was reading about 3 or 4 (as it turns out imaginary) levels in to your comment, so that is actually good news.

Thanks for the clarification.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

Seriously, I'm tired of reading Sonrfano8. or whatever his name is posts.

And frankly I'm tired of re-reading my own posts. They offer little insight.

Not to mention the noobs.

So get to it. I want 3 paragraphs on the state of the program by morning. :pop:

i don't have a whole lot to add. i thought we were a solid 8-4 team before bomar got kicked off. he just wasn't the kind of QB that had the will to waltz out of places like kyle field with a win.

now, i think we are more of a +/- team (meaning 6-6 to 10-2) depending upon which way the kids go. if they quit, then we get anal raped by the horns in dallas an go 6-6 putting stoops on the hot seat. if they rally, we go on a miracle run that solidifies his legend. i'd still be more than marginally surprised if wilson can get this offense to score more than 25 a game, although i bet leach with the same personnel could coax 40+ out of it.

[RUSH LIMBAUGH is my clone!]

OUCH. Quick, hire Leach back as OC.

[SCOUT]

i don't have a whole lot to add. i thought we were a solid 8-4 team before bomar got kicked off. he just wasn't the kind of QB that had the will to waltz out of places like kyle field with a win.

now, i think we are more of a +/- team (meaning 6-6 to 10-2) depending upon which way the kids go. if they quit, then we get anal raped by the horns in dallas an go 6-6 putting stoops on the hot seat. if they rally, we go on a miracle run that solidifies his legend. i'd still be more than marginally surprised if wilson can get this offense to score more than 25 a game, although i bet leach with the same personnel could coax 40+ out of it.

I apologize for asking for clarification yet again. I am an idiot you see. Is your concern Wilson's coaching style? Given what he accomplished at Northwestern I would think there would be optimism about his ability to get offensive output. I have always thought of Wilson as a 'get the most out of his players' kind of coach. What am I missing?

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

first of all, for the lords of anger around here, this is my opinion.

i just don't think you can compare what someone did at NW to what they can do at OU. the athletes are so different that the style may not apply. as an example, i give you urban's stats from florida last year. this with a junior QB that was "all world" out of high school.


TEAM STATISTICS UF OPP
--------------------------------------------------------
SCORING....................... 343 226
Points Per Game............. 28.6 18.8
FIRST DOWNS................... 245 198
Rushing..................... 105 67
Passing..................... 124 109
Penalty..................... 16 22
RUSHING YARDAGE............... 1761 1139
Yards gained rushing........ 2167 1495
Yards lost rushing.......... 406 356
Rushing Attempts............ 455 373
Average Per Rush............ 3.9 3.1
Average Per Game............ 146.8 94.9
TDs Rushing................. 19 14
PASSING YARDAGE............... 2720 2459
Att-Comp-Int................ 385-241-7 375-196-16
Average Per Pass............ 7.1 6.6
Average Per Catch........... 11.3 12.5
Average Per Game............ 226.7 204.9
TDs Passing................. 20 16
TOTAL OFFENSE................. 4481 3598
Total Plays................. 840 748
Average Per Play............ 5.3 4.8
Average Per Game............ 373.4 299.8

[Sooner-N-KS]

Here's a report I read about the offensive liine at one of this weekend's practices.


The OL looked really good at times, IMO...I'm a former line player, so I pay a lot of attention to specifics, and honestly, they looked good...the starting five was (from left to right) Messner, Duke, Cooper, Walker, and Braxton...Cooper and Duke created some really large holes up the middle for the running backs...a lot of the passing that I saw was done out of play action, and their pass blocking appeared to be pretty crisp, as well...those guys might actually be a pretty strong point on our team...Patton seems to be doing a very good job getting them fired up, and they seem to be enjoying everything (Curtis Bailey started out the practice with a dance routine, while others cheered "Go Big Cat" and clapped)....


It's looking positive, and I'm excited. It is also sounding like most of the team is practicing like they have something to prove.

[Egeo]

ok, so the defense is strong than last years...
and the offense is stronger everywhere except qb... (and at qb its no worse than where we started last year)

and we go from 8-4 to possibly 6-6?

[BoogercountySooner]

ok, so the defense is strong than last years...
and the offense is stronger everywhere except qb... (and at qb its no worse than where we started last year)

and we go from 8-4 to possibly 6-6?

I think it will be awhile before we see how the OL is doing. You can't say they are better losing 2 players to the NFL.:)

[Widescreen]

ok, so the defense is strong than last years...
and the offense is stronger everywhere except qb... (and at qb its no worse than where we started last year)

and we go from 8-4 to possibly 6-6?
He didn't say he thought we'd go 6-6. He said if the team quits, we could go 6-6. Big difference.

[jwlynn64]

Yeah I think initally thats what teams will do to the sooners, basically run a 6 man d line on you. I hope the OU OC can work some magic...because while Petersen is an outstanding back OU now is a 1 trick pony and only balanced offenses move the chains. Dont get me wrong Im all for the Sooners as Im a Tennessean Vol fan but locally I like the Sooners.

I guess someone better go get the National Championships back from Nebraska in the 90s and from us in the 80s.

I realize that there is more parity today than there was in the 90s and definetly the 80s but if you have a really good 1-trick pony, you can get it done. Especially if you have a really great defense (which by all accounts we should have this year.)

Don't rule us out just yet. Lets see what type of plays they run in the first couple of games. Maybe we will be pleasantly surprised.

John

[MiccoMacey]

I think it will be awhile before we see how the OL is doing. You can't say they are better losing 2 players to the NFL.:)

I don't know if I agree with this.

While we lost two NFL-type starters, all of our new guys last year that are being touted as starters for this year had no game-experience.

Now we have those people with actual game-playing experience. Maybe we're missing the NFL-type players, but they were playing out of position for most of the year anyway (Davin was picked up by Tampa as a Guard, Chris Chester was drafted by Baltimore as a Center).

So the question is: would you rather have

A) two all-world guys playing out of their natural position surrounded by guys with no experience

OR

B) five guys with good talent and experience now but no all-world players

I'm taking B. Actually B is forced upon me, but still...:D

[Egeo]

He didn't say he thought we'd go 6-6. He said if the team quits, we could go 6-6. Big difference.
hence the word, possibly.

and how many games did chester miss last season? so that pretty much scratches one nfl player
im betting the oline is better than it was last year - i know it is a strong more talented bunch than last years
blitz pickup may be a problem but i guarantee head to head blocking is better

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

hence the word, possibly.

and how many games did chester miss last season? so that pretty much scratches one nfl player
im betting the oline is better than it was last year - i know it is a strong more talented bunch than last years
blitz pickup may be a problem but i guarantee head to head blocking is better

based on a comparison of the last 2 springs, you are backwards. our blitz pickup was superb in the spring, our 1 on 1 blocking is where we were hurting. this year's OL is 100x more cohesive than last year.

[Egeo]

i saw plenty of interior linemen get shoved into the backfield spring 05 and during that season
not nearly as much this year

[OUstudent4life]

...this year's OL is 100x more cohesive than last year.


Jeez, jkm, that's the nicest thing you've said about the team in ages

:D:D:D:D:D:D

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

Jeez, jkm, that's the nicest thing you've said about the team in ages

:D:D:D:D:D:D

yeah, since i was confident against USC. we all know how that ended up ;)

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

i saw plenty of interior linemen get shoved into the backfield spring 05 and during that season
not nearly as much this year

i think we are saying the same thing, but from different directions. when an OL isn't cohesive they tend to be slow off the ball. when you are slow off the ball you give the DL the advantage and no amount of talent is going to hold up to the physics involved. when the OL started to "gel" at the end of last year, a lot of the interior OL blowup stuff stopped.

what i saw in the spring was an OL that was confident in each other, and more importantly peterson, to get their assignments. and for the most part, they picked up all the blitzes thrown at them. straight up, it was typically a stalemate. the key thing is that it was consistent on every play. as a running back, you can adapt to that. what you can't adapt to is whiffed blocks at different parts of the line from play to play. you start getting antsy into the hole because you are expecting a hit and you aren't sure where its going to come from.

[PDXsooner]

i have a hard time believing that with this defense, and peterson, this team could fall to 6-6. 8-4 could happen. but thompson would have to look like he did in the first half vs. TCU all season long in order to drop 6 games. he's got to improve somewhat.

i think 9-3 is in the cards...

[PDXsooner]

plus, if he becomes trent dilfer, we could go undefeated. just manage the game and minimize mistakes. he doesn't have to be tom brady.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

i have a hard time believing that with this defense, and peterson, this team could fall to 6-6. 8-4 could happen. but thompson would have to look like he did in the first half vs. TCU all season long in order to drop 6 games. he's got to improve somewhat.

i think 9-3 is in the cards...

would you think that an alabama team ranked #3 in preseason would finish 3-8 with shawn alexander?

with bomar, i never felt we would ever be any better than 8-4 until the year before he was planning on declaring for the draft. then i felt he'd pull a carson palmer and we'd go 10-2.

this team in its current state is a different animal. we finish with a ton of road games that could easily be L's if this team quits. if the team rallies, stoops at the top of his game can will us to a 8-4 regular season with an inept offense (< 20 per game). if the offense comes together then there isn't any reason we can't win every game.

[Octavian]

if he becomes trent dilfer, we could go undefeated. just manage the game and minimize mistakes. he doesn't have to be tom brady.


if the offense comes together then there isn't any reason we can't win every game.

I keep telling myself this too.

For every Weinke or Leinart, there's a Krenzel or Mauck....but 9-3 sounds about right to me.

The rumor mill has put members of the coaching staff in Denver last week taking a crash course on the Broncos offensive scheme...(no idea if that's true or not).

With practices closed, we're just gonna have to wait and see but we'll know a lot about this year and this team before we head to Eugene.

[OklahomaTuba]

would you think that an alabama team ranked #3 in preseason would finish 3-8 with shawn alexander?
Yeah but come on, Paul "Bear" Bryant can only do so much from the grave.

[toast]

this team in its current state is a different animal. we finish with a ton of road games that could easily be L's if this team quits. if the team rallies, stoops at the top of his game can will us to a 8-4 regular season with an inept offense (< 20 per game). if the offense comes together then there isn't any reason we can't win every game.


this is where I'm hoping our defense (via turnovers) and special teams can help by creating short fields for the offense.

[OUstudent4life]

yeah, since i was confident against USC. we all know how that ended up ;)


Who are you, and what did you do with the real jkm?


this is where I'm hoping our defense (via turnovers) and special teams can help by creating short fields for the offense.

...don't expect the punter to create short fields...gah.

[The Consumate Showman]

I think our staff might have found a "diamond in the rough" in Cohen. It was reported that he has been averaging about 40-43 yards on his kicks. Now I haven't been to any practices, but if he can keep his punting at a steady 40-45 yard average, we'll be fine there.

I think another wild card in the deck might be our kick/punt return teams. If Reggie can duplicate some of those Santa Fe heroics at Norman....Look OUT!

[PDXsooner]

would you think that an alabama team ranked #3 in preseason would finish 3-8 with shawn alexander?



no, but i think there are probably more examples of teams with solid d's and below-average offenses that did pretty well, in the 9-3 range.

if thompson is even an average big-12 quarterback, i can't see them falling below 8-4.

of course, the wild card is if the team were to quit on stoops. but do you really think that's a big possibility? do you think the team quitting was the problem at the end of 2003 and vs USC in 2004?

[MiccoMacey]

The rumor mill has put members of the coaching staff in Denver last week taking a crash course on the Broncos offensive scheme...(no idea if that's true or not)...

It's true. They were on TV at one of their practices. I believe it was before the Bomar incident.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

of course, the wild card is if the team were to quit on stoops. but do you really think that's a big possibility? do you think the team quitting was the problem at the end of 2003 and vs USC in 2004?

2003 was overconfidence, injuries, and failure to adapt

against usc, the coaches quit on the players. they just went into shock after the bradley brain fart. that is when you rally the team, but the sidelines were silent.

[The VIIIth]

I guess someone better go get the National Championships back from Nebraska in the 90s and from us in the 80s.

I realize that there is more parity today than there was in the 90s and definetly the 80s but if you have a really good 1-trick pony, you can get it done. Especially if you have a really great defense (which by all accounts we should have this year.)

Don't rule us out just yet. Lets see what type of plays they run in the first couple of games. Maybe we will be pleasantly surprised.

John

You mean like the 85 OB announcers complaining about OU's vanilla offense? Jack Buck in the 2nd quarter "Why do they keep banging Lydell Carr into the middle of the line?"

Jack Buck in the 4th quarter "Now I know why they keep banging Lydell Carr into the middle of the line"

[The VIIIth]

The rumor mill has put members of the coaching staff in Denver last week taking a crash course on the Broncos offensive scheme...(no idea if that's true or not).
.

the Rocky Mountain News is where I read that Stoops et all were in town. That's a reasonably reliable source.

[Octavian]

It's true. They were on TV at one of their practices. I believe it was before the Bomar incident.

good deal.


the Rocky Mountain News is where I read that Stoops et all were in town. That's a reasonably reliable source.

didn't realize you broke the story.

good job. ;)

[Egeo]

but how realistic does the team quitting sound when you know we have this coaching staff...

you think they would have quit last year

*the way i could see a "quit" would be if we won like our first 8 games and pulled a VT and lost like 3 of the last 4

[Desert Sapper]

Yeah I think initally thats what teams will do to the sooners, basically run a 6 man d line on you.

Dude...who runs a 6 man front in the NCAA? Buddy Ryan's defensive philosophies are no longer commonly accepted outside of highschool. I can see an opponent loading the box, meaning they go to a run stopping 4-4 or possibly a 5-3, especially if they have great athletes in the secondary (right now this only seems like Oregon and Texas), but even that's doubtful. With the receivers we have, it would be pretty stupid to think we will be one-dimensional. Something more likely would be aggressive blitz packages until PT can take advantage of the open gaps in the coverage and not get rattled or AD can prove he's equally effective on a screen play.

[The VIIIth]

good deal.



didn't realize you broke the story.

good job. ;)

I'm sorry if I gave you that impression, Rocky Mtn News reported, I was merely the readee

[Egeo]

Dude...who runs a 6 man front in the NCAA? Buddy Ryan's defensive philosophies are no longer commonly accepted outside of highschool. I can see an opponent loading the box, meaning they go to a run stopping 4-4 or possibly a 5-3, especially if they have great athletes in the secondary (right now this only seems like Oregon and Texas), but even that's doubtful. With the receivers we have, it would be pretty stupid to think we will be one-dimensional. Something more likely would be aggressive blitz packages until PT can take advantage of the open gaps in the coverage and not get rattled or AD can prove he's equally effective on a screen play.
id bet people would run a pro 4-3 (6 man front) before they run a 4-4

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

but how realistic does the team quitting sound when you know we have this coaching staff...

you think they would have quit last year

*the way i could see a "quit" would be if we won like our first 8 games and pulled a VT and lost like 3 of the last 4

more realistic this year than last. last year we had 20+ seniors on the squad, this year we have 7. we end with 3 road games that haven't exactly been nice places for us to play (@aTm, @pokey state, @mizzou). you toss iowa state, oregon and texas in there and it doesn't sound that far fetched...

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

id bet people would run a pro 4-3 (6 man front) before they run a 4-4

these days its more of a 4-2-5 with the WS and SS rolled up...

[Desert Sapper]

id bet people would run a pro 4-3 (6 man front) before they run a 4-4

Okay, okay, so the 6-1 is really a modified 4-3. You got me. And you're probably right. Three DBs is pretty unpopular against anything but a triple option, and it's less common than a 4-3 with the outside backers playing close to the line. I misspoke about Buddy Ryan anyway. I think he ran the 4-6, which evolved into the 3-4 eagle D. My point (although poorly made) was that I can't see anybody actually cheating up that much against us this year.

And isn't a 4-2-5 a nickel? Does anybody run a nickel as a primary defense (when they aren't playing Texas Tech)?

[Egeo]

good points jkm

sapper, if you count the 4-2-5 than you might be correct
texam is switching to the 4-2-5 fulltime
oregon runs it
and the pokes ran it until miles left

im sure theres more, i just dont remember them off the top of my head

and if i was our opponent - i would cheat the hell up
no way id let peterson beat me

[Desert Sapper]

sapper, if you count the 4-2-5 than you might be correct
texam is switching to the 4-2-5 fulltime
oregon runs it
and the pokes ran it until miles left



I guess I don't see the point to staying in the nickel, unless you have hybrid safety/linebackers.


and if i was our opponent - i would cheat the hell up
no way id let peterson beat me

Point taken. Play action, play action, play action...

[GDC]

http://www.tulsaworld.com/images/2006/060816_b1_beeler_b1chase16.jpg


Beeler crams to learn new O-line spot
By GUERIN EMIG World Sports Writer
8/16/2006

View in Print (PDF) Format



The true freshman from Jenks has moved from guard to center at OU.
NORMAN -- Chase Beeler used his mind as much as his body to find his way to Oklahoma.

He aspires to both football and politics, so when it came time to choose a college, he researched OU President David Boren as much as coach Bob Stoops.

Fitting, then, that one week into his Sooner career, Beeler has turned that head of his into a life preserver.

"It's brand new for him," said Jon Cooper, the OU starting center whom Beeler backs up. "It's stressing him out."

Not only must Beeler contend with Division I defensive tackles for the first time, he must also learn a new position. He was Rivals' No. 22-rated high school guard at Jenks, but Sooner coaches took one look at his academic record and wanted him over the ball, where he could think for himself and his four fellow linemen.

So now Beeler's a center. And he's taking all of Ben Barresi's snaps during Barresi's illness-related leave of absence. He's taking some of Cooper's too, as Cooper works back from the ankle he broke at Texas Tech on Nov. 19.

Beeler is also trying to come back from an ankle he sprained this summer. And he has that herd of 300-pound defensive tackles snorting

into his face mask.

"He's got a thousand things running through his head," Cooper said. "He's like, 'What do I do if he crosses my face? What if he slants the other way? What'll I do if this happens, or that?' "

What Beeler will do is take a breath and do what he does best.

He'll think.

"That's what makes Chase a good lineman," offensive line coach James Patton said. "He can assess things. He's smart enough to know where to get to."

If Beeler can just get there -- the trick for any freshman in college football -- he can unleash his 275 pounds to do the required work.

"Strength-wise, he showed immediately he's ready for (Div. I)," Stoops said.

This is a young man who set new Jenks weight-room standards with a 442-pound bench press and 335-pound power clean.

But it's other numbers -- the 4.0 grade-point-average and the 33 ACT score -- that will see Beeler through his first preseason camp.

"Like with the snapping," Cooper said. "At first, he was lifting (the ball). Or he had a guy right up in his face and he short-armed the snap and it kind of rolled back.

"Now he's more relaxed. He's got the technique just right, and it's 100 percent better."

Beeler snapped more than Cooper at Saturday's scrimmage, and there wasn't a fumble in 82 plays.

"He did a great job," Patton said.

Beeler, because of Stoops' policy that Sooners who haven't played don't talk to media, left Owen Field without comment. Which was just as well, considering he'd have plenty to discuss with Cooper in the locker room.

And so it was left for Cooper, who found himself in Beeler's helmet just one year ago when he was a true freshman figuring out Div. I football, to provide a final progress report.

"He's a big, physical guy, and he's so smart," Cooper said. "That puts him a lot farther along than most freshmen."



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Guerin Emig 581-8355
[email protected].

[pgagolfpro77]

the Rocky Mountain News is where I read that Stoops et all were in town. That's a reasonably reliable source.


Link?

I'd like to read that.

Thanks!!