Now that THAT is out of the way...!

Now that THAT is out of the way...I can watch pressure free college football for awhile. Papaclinchsaint...I'm a give credit where credit is due type of guy...and I'm giving credit to your BYU football team. Very nice victory. The heavens lined up for your boys and they took advantage of it. While 14-13 is not a route...the magnitude is extremely significant...for both programs.

For BYU:

BYU is trying to gain National attention for their program and for their conference.
Max Hall was not spectacular but he was effective.
They played with injuries and played well.
Their offensive line, much maligned, was effective, if not great.
Their defense was inspired and made almost as many plays as OU's vaunted offense didn't make.
Their coaching staff was prepared and believed in their game plan and that showed in the way their kids played.
This team is pretty freakin' good.
For OU:

They are trying to maintain a high ranking and compete for a National Championship.
Sam Bradford was very effective before he got hurt...in spite of his Offensive Coordinator, Kevin Wilson, last years Assistant Coach of the Year in CFB.
OU played with injuries and didn't play well.
The offensive line is...well...for lack of a better term...offensive!
OU's Defensive Line is very, very good...but the safeties and linebackers need lots of work.
The coaching staff was ill prepared and didn't believe in either their game plan...or their players...and it showed in the way they played.
This team...is currently...not a top 10 team...and maybe not a top 15 team.
I really don't want to take anything away from BYU because they played hard and fought a tough battle and ultimately...deserved to win. But...I am a Sooner guy all the way and the way they play these neutral site games is just plain annoying to me.

Bradford was 10 of 14 for 96 yards and a touchdown in the first half. A Heisman Trophy winner only put the ball in the air 14 times in the first half. WHAT? This is...in my humble opinion...the second game in a row where Kevin Wilson has effectively taken the ball out of Sam Bradford's hands. The other one was...obviously...the NC game against Florida last year. When Bradford threw the ball tonight...he was effective. He didn't throw it nearly enough. Why? Only Wilson knows...but my guess is it wasn't to get his two 1,000 runners involved in the game. Chris Brown had 14 carries on the day and DeMarco Murray had 10. When these guys don't get the touches they need...this offense dies! And some of that was probably due to BYU and their game plan. At least it looked like they had one.

With this high powered offense that OU has...why do they constantly stand up and change plays? It slows down the momentum (of which they never really had any today, anyway) and throws off rhythm. The players look confused and lost...and they played like it. Same kind of crap they did in the NC game last January. Knock it off and let your players PLAY!!! There were TWO (2) glaring things that OU was concerned with in the off-season. Rebuilding an offensive that was decimated by graduation and replacing their two WR's. Guess what BOY'S...mission ain't anywhere near...accomplished.

Kevin Wilson was quoted in an article in my local paper today as saying that if there was anything he knew better than being an Offensive Coordinator it was...offensive lines. And the one he has this year is...according to his comments in this article...is very, very good and he has complete confidence in them. Yep...an offensive line that has a "jack of all trades" as its center and only one returning lineman with any real experience to talk about...is very, very good and has his complete confidence. I'm guessing Ol' Kevy lost that complete confidence on...the...third play from scrimmage!!! This offensive line is NOT very, very good and the number of penalties and the number of 3rd and more than 15's or 25's this team played through tonight ARE AN INDICATION that this line is not very good but it is...OFFENSIVE!!!

Of course...there are a ton of things that went wrong for OU but it boils down to OU got outcoached...again...they didn't protect the ball or play very disciplined football...and they are not deep. I posted earlier that OU had to stay healthy if they were going to have a shot! Well...they aren't...and right now...they don't. And don't let ANYONE kid you...Jermaine Gresham is the best TE in CFB. I have to believe that OU wins this one in the first half with Bradford and Gresham hooking up. Of course I have to think that...because the WR's are ineffective...at best. Two of the incomplete Bradford passes were dropped balls. Adron Tennell is supposed to be having a breakout year. If he doesn't start catching some of the balls thrown his way the only thing he is going to breakout of...is...maybe a...bad case of the rash he caused me tonight!

So...back to the drawing board. Landry Jones will be the guy taking snaps from the TE converted to center for the next couple of weeks. And then Miami is on the schedule. Either this team improves quickly...or they could be 1 and 3...before they play Texas. Next week has to be considered a lock...but Tulsa and Miami are not given. Of course...if the O-Line and WR's don't improve...and the approach doesn't get better...it will be an extremely loooong season in Norman, OK...and my house in Minnesota. I still believe that OU's starting talent on D and their two backs are high quality. But they now have their backs against the wall. The last time this happened they responded well. I sincerely hope they do that again.

As for me...I ain't a fair weather fan...just one who speaks what it is. I'm playin' ball tomorrow...and the dirty, dingy OU baseball cap will still be sitting proudly upon my dome. It just would have been a better day than having to face my buddies and explain what a true fan is. Alas...it is what it is!

And that's the bottom line...

BOOMER SOONER!!!