1. Oklahoma
A lot of people made a lot to do about Oklahoma not being that great a team last year, and argued that Boise State's bowl win wasn't anything special, because it was a weak Oklahoma team that was lucky to win the conference.
However, a reverse argument could be made. This Sooner team was a bad officiating call from going 12-1 last year and possibly having a crack at the national title, and that was with Paul Thompson at quarterback.
5 comments Last one added about 1 year ago — Leave a Comment
Bryan Goldberg about 1 year ago
I agree with your perceptive placement of Texas. I also think that they have the potential to really disappoint people this year. I'm thinking they'll go down to 3rd, but 4th is pushing it a little even for these guys.
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Alex Martin 3 months ago
AJ starts at PG, Kemba comes in off the bench and then Price works the two. Stanley Robinson has replaced Dyson more than anyone else I think
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Dave Finocchio about 1 year ago
I'm really looking forward to the Miami v. Oklahoma game on September 8th. Early indications say the Sooners should roll but you never know how the young Hurricanes will respond with Randy Shannon at the helm. Should see two good defenses on the field in that game.
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Ben Gunby about 1 year ago
Let me add the rest of my Baylor write-up, for the nine Bears fans who might care, right here. It wouldn't fit.
With another year under his belt of learning the position, the Bears really hope Smith can be a dependable bookend tackle. Boatner is a redshirt sophomore who spent 2006 as a second stringer and only has taken 30 snaps at the college level. Inside both guards return. Senior Chad Smith, another relatively small lineman will have to fend of JUCO transfer James Barnard for his position, though Smith is probably the Bears best lineman. Dan Gay was a defensive lineman his freshman year before making the switch and starting ten games last year. The Bears hope with Gay, like Smith, that another spring practice and having a year of learning the position will pay off heavily. One big upgrade for the line should come at center where J.D. Walton will take over. Walton is a Big 12 sized lineman who transferred in from Arizona State. He sat out last year, but is clearly the starter this season. There is little by the way of depth on this unit, so the Bears are counting on these guys to remain healthy again this year. More than anything, they are counting on major improvement from the returnees, which is possible considering two of them spent a lot of last year just learning the position. It's hard to imagine the offensive line performing any worse than it did a year ago.
All of the Bears problems can't be blamed on the offensive line, though most could. Their spread offense can make it hard to pick up the blitz if the quarterback isn't making quick, good decisions. This was evidenced by the fact that when Bell went down to close the year and Szymanski started the Bears gave up 13 sacks over the final three games. Further disabling the Bear quarterbacks though was the lack of a threat out of the backfield either running or catching. Paul Mosely, the starter a year ago did catch 23 passes, but he only averaged 5.4 ypc. The Bears have to do a better job of using their backs in the passing game to counter opponents blitzes, and they are hoping the quicker and shiftier Brandon Whitaker makes that possible. Whitaker caught 30 passes last season, and now as the featured back could see that number climb towards 50. Of course, they'd also like to be able to establish some sort of running game. Whitaker has run for 681 yards in his first three years and if he can match that number this season, the Bears will be happy. When Baylor wants to go with a bigger back, Jacoby Jones is the primary option, though SE Missouri St transfer Tony Anderson could fill in that role as well. This is the second year of Lee Hays spread offense attack, so there is reason to expect a bit more improvement out of this bunch as a whole on that premise alone.
The Bears defense was surprisingly respectable in 2005, but with just 4 starters back, it regressed last season, though it didn't regress to the levels it was at from 2002-2004. Despite the regression, Bill Bradley was still given a job with the Chargers. Secondary coach Larry Hoefer becomes the new defensive coordinator, and judging by the improvement of this secondary in his four years here, this could be a smart move by Morriss. His secondary allowed 257 ypg his first year in Waco, but in the three since they've allowed just 216. Only Texas Tech surpassed the 300 yard mark against the Bears a year ago, albeit they put up over 500. Just two starters return in the secondary, though both of them are among the three safeties the Bears employ with their 4-2-5. The competition for those safety spots, despite two returning starters, will still be fierce, which is a good thing, as it's quality players vying for those spots. Dwain Crawford and Brandon Stiggers would seem on the surface to have two of the spots locked down. Crawford led the team with three interceptions a year ago, as well as making 55 tackles at his free safety spot. Stiggers only started eight games a year ago and his strength is at run support defense. He made 47 tackles, but also made a couple behind the line, as well as breaking up a trio of passes. Sophomore Jeremy Williams saw very limited action last season but the coaches like his potential and he seems to have the edge for the third safety spot, though Jordan Lake will likely push him. Lake, slated to be the backup to Crawford at free safety, missed the majority of last season with an injury, but was solid on special teams and when given the chance to play on defense. The Bears do have to find new corners, though experience shouldn't be an issue as both expected starters are seniors. Josh Bell has seen plenty of game action over his first three years in nickel packages, so he should be able to step right in. He's a bit on the frail side but he's used to the system and that give him an edge. On the other side Alton Widemon moves in. He started as a true freshman at Tulane and started five games at safety last year for Baylor. Widemon has outstanding speed and the Bears are hoping he can create some turnovers for them. Depth behind the two though is a big concern. They can ill afford injuries to the top two. Dominque Crisis offers good potential, but he's never taken a snap in a college game, so look for teams to expose him in the nickel. Lake could see some time at corner as a nickel this year.
The Bears only use two linebackers in their defensive scheme, but the two they have are pretty good. In the Bears scheme, the safeties are the ones who have things designed for them to make plays behind the line, the linebackers just need to be steady, make tackles, and flush things outside to the safeties. These two do just that, and then some. Nick Moore, a former Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket had 23 tackles in a reserve role in 2005 and then as a starter last year had 75, including 4 for a loss. The star of this defense though is sophomore Joe Pawelek. As a freshman he was second team all confrence registering 86 tackles and 4.5 for a loss. Pawelek also showed good coverage abilities. He will continue to improve and before he leaves, he might be the best defensive player to ever attend Baylor. At times the Bears will use more than two linebackers, and they have some capable players to fill in when they do. Antonio Jones made 44 tackles as a freshman a year ago. It's possible he spends some time at one of the safety positions, especially in running situations. He's too good of a player to keep off the field, and when you're a team like Baylor, you've got to make sure your best players see the field often. Freshman Earl Patin will also likely push for some playing time. He's built just like Pawelek and was recruited by some of the Big 12 heavyweights. JUCO Leon Freeman is another potential immediate impact newcomer, though the Bears seem to like the notion of putting him at defensive end. All in all, this linebacker corps is good, actually, it's really good. Don't be surprised if Hoefer tinkers a bit with this defense to find a way to get more of them on the field more often. While they only really have 4 quality linebackers, which isn't enough depth to regularly play the 4-3, they can survive injury due to the fact their primary scheme requires only two.
Up front is where the Bears are seeking the most improvement. After allowing 236 yards or more in 4 of their final 5 games, and allowing over 6 ypc in 4 of the last 5 as well (5.8 against Oklahoma), the Bears must find a way to stop the run this season if this defense is going to keep this team in football games. It was a major step back for a defense that allowed 162 in 2005 and just 4.1 ypc. The linebackers should help with the run defense, but it doesn't do a lot of good making tackles 5 yards down the field. Three starters return on the defensive line, but as the case with the offensive line, is that really a good thing? In addition to being gouged by opposing running backs, the Bears only generated 11 sacks, a ridiculously low amount. Senior Geoff Nelson will be expected to improve those numbers. Nelson has good speed and pretty good size, physicaly he has what it takes to be a force on the line, so they expect more than his 2.5 sacks from a year ago. It would help him though if someone else on the line could attract some attention as Nelson faced too many double teams a year ago. Sophomore Jason Lamb made 5.5. tackles for a loss last year, but only had one sack. The former tight end spent much of last year learning technique and the nuances of the defensive end position. The Bears are hoping to reap some rewards this season. The wildcards are Jameon Hardeman, an athletic redshirt freshman, and JUCO Leon Freeman. These two might infuse some blood and atheltic ability into the defensive line and will give the Bears more of a solid rotation of ends than they had a year ago. Freeman in particular could be the surprise of this year's group of newcomers and might wind up starting before all is said and done. Inside Vincent Rhodes and Trey Bryant give the Bears a pair of 300 lb tackles. Bryant didn't play a lot as a freshman, but he has shown good potential and was another player the Bears wooed over some of the bigger named schools in Texas. Rhodes made 8 starts last year and had 5 tackles behind the line of scrimmage. However, not enough tackles were made against the run. True freshman Rex McDougald may force his way onto the field as well. This unit has the potential to be much improved over a year ago. Talent and potential is there, but if the Bears don't get results this year, the talent at linebacker and the secondary will go to waste with another poor performance against the run, and this defense won't be able to keep the Bears in games.
The Bears don't have the talent of the big dogs in this confrence, so they need to get every advantage they can get. The return units weren't setting the woods on fire a year ago, but they were more than adequate. Unfortunately for the Bears, with the offense struggling, they need to be able to rely on those units to make points easier to come by, if not getting them themselves. Queito Teasley was effective returning kicks and punts and the junior will be counted on to do so again this season. They'd like more big plays out of him, and Teasley has the athletic ability to offer them. Star punter Daniel Sepulveda departs and so does kicker Ryan Havens. Havens was an extremely accurate kicker from 40 and in and the Bears will miss that. Freshman Derrick Eperson will likely handle the punting duties. He doesn't have the leg Sepulveda does, but he should do fine. Another freshman, Shea Brewster will likely get first dibs on the kicking job. Brewster proved clutch in high school, and also has the ability to punt. If either falters, Air Force transfer Caleb Allen could fill both spots.
The Bears have quietly added some talent the past couple of years, whether it's enough to keep Morriss is job another year remains to be seen. That will depend on improvement on both of the lines. There is enough talent at wide receiver, especially if Gettis comes through, and in the back seven on defense, for this team to be competitive. The Bears don't neccesarily even need the lines to be good enough to control the lines of scrimmage, they just need to stop getting manhandled on both sides of the ball. If they can do that, an awfuly big if, they will have a shot to be more competitive. A lot of people are writing Baylor off for this season, and judging by the line play a year ago, they probably aren't wrong for doing so. However, there is the possibility of improvement on both fronts. The schedule though doesn't do this team any favors, so even with improvement, a postseason bid seems extremely unlikely. However, a competitive year might buy Morriss another year, and with such a young team, they can realisticaly shoot for a bowl berth next year.
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Anonymous about 1 year ago
Im just wondering if you did any research or talked to anybody about Oklahoma State Football. As it seems you are wrong or mistaken for most of what you wrote. All the defensive players you mentioned as key all-stars have switched positions, due to Beckman and his style of play. The offense has so much faith in Zac Robinson that he will line up in the offense in some shape or form about 20 or so plays. Robinson will line up at QB, WR, RB and some slot.
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Ben Gunby about 1 year ago
Exactly on Zac Robinson, they don't have faith in him to run the offense as the quarterback, thus are moving him around. They know he's a good athlete, but he's not someone they want to turn the whole offense over to him. Since I was wrong with most of what I wrote, I expected to see a lot more corrections here. Just what did I get right?
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