Part II
OU vs. TCU
Game Day
Molly and I had reserved a room at the Sooner Legends Hotel on Lindsey and I-35 in Norman. If you have not stayed there, as the name might suggest, it is a Sooners sports theme bases hotel. Each room is a tribute to a former Sooner athlete, complete with pictures and bios. While there is a clear and obvious emphasis on football, with two of the three wings dedicated to its tradition rich past, all Sooner sports and the athletes that excelled at them are included….I know that because Molly and I got a room in the coveted Track & Field wing of the hotel. Seriously, who knew we even had track and field at OU? I thought we bulldozed the track and put in a fifth football practice facility or a parking lot or something.
Anyway…I now know that in 1974 Brad Winter was named All-American in the Pole Vault for the Sooners. Even though we have not met, I feel a bond with Brad since he was a witness to me yacking on back to back nights…
I recommend the hotel. Game day rates are $125. It has a restaurant and bar, the rooms are nice and the decorated halls are worth a 15 to 20 minute stroll.
Sooner Legends Hotel
www.soonerlegends.com (405) 701-8100
At noon, it was time to reconvene with Molly2. I was relieved to find that she was in good spirits and seemingly willing to leave the events of yesterday in the past….that or she was setting me up to let my guard down so she could kill me….either way, it was at least for the moment, drama free.
After a stop at the KKG house so the Mollies could re-live a couple semesters of mid-80’s memories…it was time to hit The Mont for Bloody Marys and Queso. Maybe it’s just me, but the famous Mont Queso seems to have lost a step…don’t get me wrong, I still ate the entire bowl, but it just didn’t seem as good as it once was. Of course, as I get older, I hear myself saying that about almost everything.
The entire day of pre-game was one of the more fun times I have had at a home game in some time. Made a stop at the Coleman/Wheeler tailgate for a while….thanks for the cocktails guys. It was great to see some people I had not seen in a while…David & Tracy Matheson, Dave McDonald, Ryan & Valerie Reynolds just to name a few.
I don’t know who was hosting the TCU-OU Party (Scotty/Pepper/Leslie MacLean and Mr. & Mrs. MacLean?) on the top floor of the campus corner bar 747, but thank you for having it. It was a great set up, and a great time.
Chad Stalcup and his crew were in rare form at his tailgate…as usual. Always good to see Mr. & Mrs. Stalcup…thanks for the beers.
THE GAME
Oh yes, there was a game. On a weekend where 9 of the top 25 teams lost, including #1 USC, #3 Georgia, #4 Florida and #8 Wisconsin…the Sooners take care of business by dominating #17 TCU, 35-10. The victory moved the Sooners back into the #1 ranking for the first time since 2003.
OFFENSE
It was obvious that TCU put an emphasis on stopping the run…and they did. OU had a whopping 25 yards rushing on the night. My knee jerk reaction is to be concerned about why our offensive line was not more physical, especially since they also gave up 4 sacks.
And while I am concerned, it is not a panic, for several reasons:
-TCU has a very good, well coached defense that came into the game ranked #1 in the country. They excel at stopping the run. While 25 rushing yards is unacceptableagainst anyone, the bulk of the attempts came with the Sooners up by a large margin and the defense expecting the Sooners to run.
-The beautiful part about this OU offense…for the opposing defense, it is truly pick your poison. Want to stack the line and hold the Sooners to 25 yards rushing? OK. Then you will get to watch Sam Bradford throw for 199 yards…in the first quarter alone!
-The Sooners have so many weapons. TCU bottled up Gresham and Broyles, two guys who had been the big play receivers for OU in recent weeks…holding them to one catch each. You want to double team Gresham? OK. Then you will get to watch Manuel Johnson catch passes to the tune of 206 yards.
DEFENSE
In my opinion there is still room for improvement, but a much better game than the previous three.
-212 yards passing is still too much to give up to a poor passing team like TCU…but they had to throw a lot after getting behind early, so some of that is fluff.
-Held the frogs to 102 yards rushing, well below their average of 248. A++ in that area
-Even without Granger, the D-line unit is deep and very good, IMO.
-Linebackers have been and still remain my biggest concern…both with the starters and the depth…but they played very well on Saturday. Travis Lewis is obviously playing well, but if Ryan Reynolds goes out (which could happen at any moment) who is going to tell him where to line up on every play?
-This secondary is really starting to come together….I think. Texas will, as usual, be the litmus test that proves where this team really stands. Lendy Holmes had a terrific game…not only on defense, but on special teams as well, running down the TCU kick returner to save a TD.
SPECIAL TEAMS
-Special is not really an appropriate term at this point, unless you mean short bus type special…Seriously, what is wrong with the kickoff coverage team? I mean, other than the fact Moreland is kicking the ball very poorly (about 20 yards shorter than it needs to be), nobody is staying in their lanes, people are getting their asses knocked down…and nobody can make a tackle...this unit is playing well.
-Kicker… I don’t know, I just don’t get a peaceful easy feeling about this dude…and I am not sure our coaches do either. Look, I don’t want to date him…so I can live with the fact his shoes don’t match, his helmet doesn’t appear to fit right, and that he looks like he might be all of 12… but he is struggling with extra points. Not good…literally. I can make 9 out of 10 PAT’s and not spill my cocktail while doing it. What ifwe need a 30 yarder to beat Texas at the State Fair in 11 days? Is he up for it? How confident are the coaches with him? Do they feel he can make a game winning field goal inside the Cotton Bowl when he isn’t even tall enough to ride the rides outside of it?
-Punter…Gonna give Knall a break here. Not a good night for him either…but he has been consistent if not above average up to here. At least his shoes match.
On to Waco for the much improved Baylor Bears.
** Would like to say thank you to all the people who have been encouraging me to start writing The OAS again. I have been busy…but was also feeling rather uninspired. Hearing that people out there really do read this…is well, kinda sad…but also very inspiring. I forgot how much I enjoyed writing this thing…thanks for the pep talk…
Just the Opinion of One Mildly Interested Guy
The Overweight Armchair Sooner
Buddy Putty.
