Oklahoma Sooners

Big 12
Originally Published: October 12, 2012

Texas vs. OU: Sooners' show stoppers

By Jake Trotter
NORMAN, Okla. -- The Oklahoma-Texas game has helped turned several great players into iconic ones. Roy Williams turned into Superman in 2001. Brian Bosworth backed up his talk in the 1980s. Rod Shoate flew from sideline to sideline making tackles in the '70s, and Jerry Tubbs did the same in the '50s.

Will another Sooner provide an indelible moment or single-game performance this weekend? Here are three of many that could:


To continue reading this article you must be an Insider

ESPN Conversations


You must be signed in to post a comment

Already have an account?

You are fully responsible for the content you post. Content that includes profanity, personal attacks or antisocial behavior (such as "spamming" or "trolling"), or other inappropriate content or material will be removed. We reserve the right to block any user who violates our terms of use, including removing all content posted by that user.

CFB Live: OU's keys

Ash deadly on short throws

By Brandon Chatmon

Even though Oklahoma's defense is preparing to stop Texas' running attack in the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, the Longhorns' short-passing game could be the difference.

David Ash
David Ash
Texas quarterback David Ash has been outstanding with his short yardage throws in 2012. According to ESPN Stats & Info, he has completed 82.2 of his passes behind the line or five yards or less. Clearly those are easier throws but the Longhorns have made them productive with 570 of Ash's 1,276 yards coming on those throws. His throws behind the line have been particularly lethal averaging 7.8. By comparison, OU quarterback Landry Jones averages 5.2 yards per attempt behind the line.

Those numbers mean OU will have to be very aware of an underrated trait of the Longhorns' offense: Their running backs' big play ability out of the backfield. Jeremy Hills, Daje Johnson and Joe Bergeron have each gained a least 88.9 percent of their receiving yardage after the catch this season. Johnson is a hybrid running back/receiver who is used in various sets designed to get him the ball in the open field to utilize his speed.

Bergeron and Johnathan Gray get a lot of the attention for their prowess in the running game but Hills has made a major impact as the Longhorns' third-down back. He's caught 12 of the 13 passes thrown his way for 118 yards with 117 of those coming after the catch. He's a overlooked threat to the Sooners defensive success as seven of his 12 receptions resulted in first downs.

OU will need to stop the Longhorns running backs on the ground if they have any hope of winning the Red River Shootout, yet if the Sooners overlook the receiving threats they present, they could pay for it.

KEY STAT: 77

By Jake Trotter

In 2011, Texas quarterback David Ash completed just 56 percent of his passes. This season, Ash's completion percentage is better than 77 percent, a big reason why the Longhorns rank sixth in the country in scoring. Texas ranked 55th last season.

OU PLAYER TO WATCH

By Jake Trotter

Landry Jones
Landry Jones
All eyes will be on senior quarterback Landry Jones, who has a chance to become just the fourth OU QB to go 3-0 as a starter in the Red River Rivalry. If Jones takes care of the ball and gets into the hands of the Sooners' playmakers like he did at Texas Tech, OU stands a good chance to come away with its third straight victory over the Longhorns.

SOONERNATION PREDICTIONS

Brandon Chatmon: OU 35, Texas 28
Bob Przybylo: Texas 30, Oklahoma 26

Jake Trotter: Oklahoma 31, Texas 30

Read the staff's full predictions here. Insider

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"There's a lot of special feelings that go into the game. I think it's one of -- if not the -- best games in college football. You come to Oklahoma to play in this game."

-- OU defensive coordinator Mike Stoops

Interview: DE R.J. Washington

STORIES OF THE WEEK

SoonerNation

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

• McFarland has one last shot at Texas

• Saunders cleared to play vs. Texas

• Former OU quarterbacks know Jones' situation

• Jones settling into groove?

• MLB Shannon turns heads for OU

• OU offense finding its stride

• Five storylines: Texas vs. OU

• Barry Switzer talks Red River Rivalry

• Heupel adapting in Year 2 as playcaller

• Williams is OU's showstopper

• Roundtable: Five questions on Texas-OU

For more discussion, check out our forum Insider.

The Recruiting Trail

RN Sooners recruiting tidbits:

• This week's Sooner Intel Insider

• Does the Red River Rivalry game matter to recruits? Insider

• List of visitors for Texas-OU Insider

• Q&A: 2014 Wagoner RB Lawrence Evitt Insider

• Dallas skyline players to attend Texas-OU Insider

• ESPN 150 star will be at Texas-OU Insider

For more, check out RecruitingNation