Oklahoma Sooners

Big 12
Originally Published: November 21, 2012

OSU vs. OU: Sooners must stop run

Brandon Chatmon
Oklahoma defensive end David King sums up the Sooners' Bedlam battle against Oklahoma State with a simple declaration.

"If you can't stop the run game, you won't win the game," King said.


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Interview: Kenny Stills

SOONERNATION PREDICTIONS

Brandon Chatmon: OU 45, OSU 42
Bob Przybylo: OU 29, OSU 27

Jake Trotter: OU 31, OSU 30

KEY STAT FOR THE SOONERS

By Brandon Chatmon

15.1. That's the yards-per-touch for OU freshman receiver Sterling Shepard, which leads all Sooners with 20 touches or more. The freshman could be a impact playmaker on Saturday with Oklahoma State focusing on Kenny Stills, Justin Brown and Jalen Saunders.

Storylines to watch

By Brandon Chatmon

Which backup quarterback will have the bigger impact?

OU's Blake Bell and OSU's J.W. Walsh each have made significant impacts on their teams this season. The Sooners use Bell in their "Belldozer" package, which can be a nightmare for defenses to try to defend. Not to mention, it was that package that provided the Sooners lone touchdown in last season's 44-10 defeat.

OSU has created a package of its own for Walsh, who has shown he can be more of a threat with his arm than Bell has during their time on the field. Walsh leads the Cowboys with 1,469 passing yards and 11 touchdowns with three interceptions in seven games. Nonetheless, he didn't start last week against Texas Tech and probably won't start in Bedlam. But he should play and he could create problems for the Sooners defense with his versatility, particularly in short-yardage and goal-line situations.

It's quite possible that one of the two backup signal callers makes a game-changing play on Saturday.

Read more storylines here. Insider

Big 12 BCS Projections

OU PLAYER TO WATCH

By Jake Trotter

Tony Jefferson
Tony Jefferson

Free safety Tony Jefferson was the first to apologize for last week's abysmal defensive performance against West Virginia. Jefferson, the Sooners' leading tackler, sets the tone for this OU defense. What kind of tone he sets early against Oklahoma State will be telling.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"There's still a sour taste in our mouth, the way we went down there and just laid an egg last year. A lot of guys on this defense were a part of that, and we're going to use that game last year as a motivator."

-- OU defensive end David King

Breaking down the BCS

2013 Oklahoma schedule

• Aug. 31: vs. UL-Monroe
• Sept. 7: vs. West Virginia
• Sept. 14: vs. Tulsa
• Sept. 21: Bye
• Sept. 28: at Notre Dame
• Oct. 5: vs. TCU
• Oct. 12: vs. Texas
• Oct. 19: at Kansas
• Oct. 26: vs. Texas Tech
• Nov. 2: Bye
• Nov. 9: at Baylor
• Nov. 16: vs. Iowa State
• Nov. 23: at Kansas State
• Nov. 30: Bye
• Dec. 7: at Oklahoma State

Read Jake Trotter's analysis here.

STORIES OF THE WEEK

SoonerNation

Some of the top OU stories from SoonerNation in case you missed them:

• Oklahoma State slowly closing gap on Sooners

• With Bedlam looming, OU must fix run defense

• Oklahoma tackle Williams out with knee sprain

• Top 10 Bedlam moments of Bob Stoops era

• Oklahoma 10: Week 12 power rankings

For more discussion, check out our forum Insider.

The Recruiting Trail

RN Sooners recruiting tidbits:

• Sooners still own in-state recruiting over OSU Insider

• Clark, Parker among 2014 Bedlam battles Insider

• Sooners lead for 3-star DE Dimarya Mixon Insider

• OSU commit Okoronkwo surprised by OU trip Insider

• In-state star Jordan Evans has huge game Insider

• ESPN 150 safety Marcell Harris talks finalists Insider

• Sooner Snapshot: DE Matt Dimon Insider

• Where will Stanvon Taylor play for Sooners? Insider

For more, check out RecruitingNation