Oklahoma Sooners

In this episode of RecruitingNation 411, we focus on the defensive side of the ball in the 2013 recruiting class. Our experts tell you which prospects are primed to be the stars of the class, and which ones have already given a verbal commitment.

The 2012 Oklahoma football schedule is finally complete.

The Sooners will open next season at UTEP in Sun Bowl Stadium on Sept. 1, then come back and play host to Florida A&M on Sept. 8 in the first meeting between the two schools.

OU last played UTEP in 2002, when the Sooners blasted the Miners 68-0. In 2000, the Sooners also beat UTEP 55-14 on their way to the national championship game.

OU last traveled to El Paso in 2009 to take on Stanford in the Sun Bowl.

Florida A&M will be OU’s fourth FCS opponent of the Bob Stoops era. The Sooners defeated Idaho State 64-0 in 2009, Tennessee-Chattanooga 57-2 in 2008 and Indiana State 49-0 in 1999.

Full schedule:

Sept. 1: at UTEP
Sept. 8: vs. Florida A&M
Sept. 15: Bye
Sept. 22: vs. Kansas State
Sept. 29: Bye
Oct. 6: at Texas Tech
Oct. 13: vs. Texas (Dallas)
Oct. 20: vs. Kansas
Oct. 27: vs. Notre Dame
Nov. 3: at Iowa State
Nov. 10: vs. Baylor
Nov. 17: at West Virginia
Nov. 24: vs. Oklahoma State
Dec. 1: at TCU

A strong second half from Texas sparked the Longhorns' 69-58 win over Oklahoma on Tuesday night at the Lloyd Noble Center. UT outscored the Sooners 41-25 in the final 20 minutes.

Early turnovers by the Sooners and back-to-back three-pointers from J’Covan Brown, followed by another trey from Myck Kabongo sparked a 15-6 run in the first seven minutes of the second half.

Texas improved to 17-9 overall and 7-6 in the Big 12 with the win, while OU dropped to 13-12 and 3-10 in conference play.

Texas Player of the Game: J’Covan Brown. After he didn’t shoot the ball well in the first half, Brown was brutally efficient in the second half. He scoring 15 points on 3 of 6 shooting from the field and added two steals in the final 20 minutes.

OU Player of the Game: Cameron Clark. The sophomore quietly had one of his best games of the season. He had 13 points on 6 of 9 shooting and added seven rebounds.

Texas Unsung Hero: Myck Kabongo. Despite three turnovers, the freshman point guard was solid in the second half with 11 points on 3 of 4 shooting and three assists. He finished with 13 points, 7 assists and 5 turnovers.

OU Unsung Hero: Tyler Neal. The sophomore forward has been searching for confidence throughout Big 12 play so his effort against the Longhorns could spark a strong finish to the season. Neal had eight points on 2 of 4 shooting and added four rebounds.

Key Stat: 17. The Longhorns scored 17 of their 41 points in the second half from the free throw line. Brown and Kabongo combined to go 10 of 10 as UT shot 17 of 18 from the line.

Key Stat, Part II: 19. The Longhorns had 19 points off turnovers in the second half as they created eight steals to help take OU out of its rhythm. The Sooners had 3 turnovers at halftime then turned the ball over 10 times as they watched their five-point halftime lead slip disappear in the second half.

Quotable: “I just had to be more aggressive and take the shots that were there.” -- Texas guard J’Covan Brown on his second half scoring.

“If you look at the points off of turnovers, that was huge for us in the second half. Turning those deflections into points was really big.” -- Texas head coach Rick Barnes

“Early in the second half it seemed like there was a possession or two that kind of deflated us a little bit. We just couldn’t get back on top. As a result of that, we played with a little bit less energy the rest of the way. We need to figure out a way to work through that.” -- OU head coach Lon Kruger

“I don’t think it was them. I think it was us being careless with the basketball and not making strong plays, trying to do things we shouldn’t be doing.” -- guard Sam Grooms on OU’s 10 second-half turnovers.

Oklahoma’s surprising 65-47 loss to Texas Tech on Feb. 11 left Sooners forward Romero Osby with a bad taste in his mouth. He has one word to describe the blowout loss to the lone winless team in Big 12 play:

“Embarrassing.”

But it wasn’t just the final score that embarrassed Osby.

“Not just because they were 0-11 but because they competed harder than us,” Osby said. “I felt like we just laid down and accepted it. That’s what really hurts when you look back on it.”

After a decent effort in the first half, the Sooners were outscored 40-25 in the final 20 minutes of the game and looked lifeless for much of the second half.

“To lose like that is embarrassing to me,” Osby said. “And I hope my teammates feel the same way... I’m pretty sure they do.”

First meeting of season

In a strange twist to the Big 12 Conference schedule, Oklahoma faces Texas for the first time with just six conference games remaining. OU has faced Kansas State, Kansas, Missouri and Texas Tech twice in its first 12 conference contests.

It makes preparing for the Longhorns a little bit different for an Sooners squad who has become accustomed to playing teams they are already familiar with.

“It’s kind of like the NCAA Tournament or NIT,” Osby said. “You’ve seen a team on TV all year but you haven’t seen them in person.”

The Sooners have had the chance to see the Longhorns while preparing for other Big 12 teams but they don’t have the familiarity of having been on the same court.

“It’s a little different,” point guard Sam Grooms said. “We’ve seen a lot of film on them but other than that you don’t know a lot about them. You just have to get out there and hope you understand what you saw on film.”

The Sooners travel to Austin, Texas, on Feb. 29 for the second meeting between the two teams.

SoonerNation writer Jake Trotter chatted with readers Monday. Here's the full transcript. If you didn't get your question answered, send it to Jake's mailbag to be published on Friday.

Here are a few highlights from the chat:

Junior (Oklahoma City): If Landry Jones get injured who do the sooners go with Allen, Bell or Thompson? Why?

Jake Trotter: If Landry got hurt tomorrow, Drew Allen would be the QB. If Landry got hurt in August, who knows? Could be Blake Bell if his passing continues to improve. Kendal Thompson has some potential, but he has a ways to go in terms of learning the offense to catch up with Allen or Bell.

Deeann (Dallas): How will team compensate without Ryan Broyles?

Jake Trotter: You can't replace a Ryan Broyles with one player. OU will try to do it with several, including a host of talented newcomers. There's enough talent on this offense to score 40-plus a game next season.

Josh (Lizard Lick): With the hiring of Mike Stoops, will there be any difference in the defense this upcoming year (i.e. blitz more/less, press coverage/zone)

Jake Trotter: I expect Mike Stoops to simplify the secondary coverages significantly next season. There's no question OU's DBs at times looked like they had no idea what they were supposed to be doing at times. Guys like Derrick Strait have told me that Mike preaches simplicity back there so guys can focus more on playing instead of thinking. The rest of the defense should be fairly similar.

Joshua (Houston): Do you think Daniel Brooks ends up as a DB or does he make headway at RB? Based on his film he looks like he has Trey Franks speed with Roy Finch elusiveness...

Jake Trotter: I think the Sooners will give him a look in the slot initially, but it's very possible he gets moved to corner ultimately. Brooks has world class speed... I could see him becoming a return specialist as well. The Sooners could really use somebody like that.

Derrin (Plano, TX): Will the offensive line improve this year and be able to consistently open holes for the running game? The unit has been average at best since the Loadholt and Joseph line a few years back?

Jake Trotter: I believe this group has the chance to be OU's best since the '08 line. Four starters are back, including three multi-year starters. Adam Shead is a rising star, and brings physicality to the run game. The key will be the tackles. Can Lane Johnson make a seamless switch to LT? Can somebody like Daryl Williams emerge at RT?

Oklahoma hosts Texas (16-9, 6-6) in the first Red River Rivalry matchup of the season at the Lloyd Noble Center at 7:05 p.m. CT on Tuesday. The Sooners (13-11, 3-9) will be looking to rebound after one of the most disappointing performances of the season in their 65-47 loss to Texas Tech on Feb 11.

Either the Sooners will prove their loss to the Red Raiders was a fluke or they will let the bad momentum carry over into Tuesday’s game. OU has won one game since Jan. 17, losing 6 of 7 contests. The players are looking to get the taste of losing out of their mouths.

Key to OU win: Playing like they were embarrassed with their performance against Texas Tech. Execution and game plans don’t matter if the effort and intensity is not there. The Sooners will also need to get Steven Pledger more involved against the Longhorns than he was against Texas Tech.

Key to UT win: Getting to the free throw line. The Longhorns average 25.3 free throw attempts per game and get 25 percent of their total points from the line. UT guards J'Covan Brown and Myck Kabongo consistently get into the lane and have attempted at least 125 free throws this year.

Stat line that will tell the tale: Steals. Both teams average over six steals per game so whoever wins the steals battle is likely winning the battle of the guards, giving them a better chance to win the game.

Sooners X factor: Cameron Clark. There has been plenty of talk about Clark on the offensive end but if the sophomore plays well on the defensive end against UT, it will help the Sooners contain the Longhorns guards.

Longhorns X factor: Julien Lewis. A solid rebounder and defender, Lewis could provide a spark for the Longhorns with his athleticism. And he will make UT extremely dangerous if he provides a scoring punch as well.

Here is Okahoma's conference schedule for 2012:

Sept. 22: vs. Kansas State

Oct. 6: at Texas Tech

Oct 13: vs. Texas

Oct. 20: vs. Kansas

Nov. 3: at Iowa State

Nov. 10: vs. Baylor

Nov. 17: at West Virginia

Nov. 24: vs. Oklahoma State

Dec. 1: at TCU

Last week, Mark Schlabach placed the Sooners at No. 4 in his "way-too-early" top-25 rankings for 2012.

This week, Brian Fremeau from Football Outsiders looks at question marks for each school in Schlabach's top five. He says each team has the ingredients of a potential champion -- historical pedigree, roster loaded with talent, and strong recent success. Here's part of what he had to say about Oklahoma's weakness next season:

Oklahoma's overall defensive efficiency was strong (6th best at forcing three-and-outs), but the Sooners gave up explosive drives on 13 percent of opponent possessions. The departures of Big 12 playmakers at Oklahoma State and Baylor will be helpful, but Oklahoma will need to limit explosive plays to truly be a contender.

Read the rest of Fremeau's piece here.

So, what'd you do Sunday?

Bob Stoops played one of the nation's finest golf courses and finished fourth in the biggest pro-am event in golf.

The Sooners coach teamed up with Hunter Haas and finished fourth in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am after firing off a 62 on Sunday.

Not too shabby, guys.

One group ahead of Stoops? New England Patriots' coach Bill Belichick, who teamed with Ricky Barnes for a third-place finish.

Stoops and Haas shot a 255 (68-65-60-62) and finished four shots back of the winners, Brian Harman and Gregg Ontiveros.

No, I don't know which one of those is the pro and which one is the amateur.

Either way, Stoops made quite the impression with a strong outing at Pebble. His team finished eight shots ahead of 17th-place Tiger Woods and Tony Romo.