Obviously will have more from tonight but did want to pass along Mike Stoops told reporters soph CB Jordan Thomas will start on Saturday vs. West Virginia.
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Couple other items from Mike ...
* Stoops said they are pleased with the play of the big boys up front ... Matt Romar, Charles Walker, Matt Dimon & Jordan Wade are all guys that have played and are making contributions. He was then asked about Diron Reynolds ... to which he heaped praise upon the first year defensive line coach.
"We're developing it as we go along. We're playing three and four man fronts, trying to manuever all of our guys. I always thinks that's a positive element to your team if you can keep guys playing and giving them reps. It keeps the morale and it keeps them interested," said Stoops.
"Diron's been great. The guys have played great. He brings a lot of experience to the table."
* Stoops said anytime you are getting production from the defensive line, and then are able to rotate a number of guys in there ... it is a good thing.
* Stoops echoed the thoughts of others in that West Virginia has been a physical game in recent years -- even getting rather chippy a season ago in Morgantown.
"They're very multiple in what they want to do. They've got great personnel, good speed. They stretch the field in a lot of different ways but want to run the ball too. They are very physical team. Last year was a pretty physical game on both sides of the ball," said Stoops
on Skyler Howard:
"He's matured. He's hitting things on time. He's seeing his read and getting the ball to the guy that is open. When you complete that high of percentage of balls you've got to be seeing things right. He's hot right now and we've got to try and disrupt their tempo and flow of their offense," said Stoops on the Mountaineers quarterback.
Stoops on if West Virginia is running the ball more in 2015 than in previous years:
"It's what we've seen on tape from previous years. There's some formations that may show up more than others, but I think they're just trying to fit their scheme to what their quarterback does well."
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Couple other thoughts:
* Really get the impression OU needs to force some turnovers this weekend. That shouldn't come as a surprise, but it feels like a defense - or team- is playing with fire if they continue to find themselves on the wrong side of the turnover battle.
* Zack Sanchez health will continue to be something we watch until kickoff on Saturday morning. It's not something that will keep him from playing on Saturday, but is an intriguing storyline to follow with so much stress being put on the cornerback position in a game like this.
* Who wins the special teams match-up? There's no doubt West Virginia's Josh Lambert wins the tattoo showdown, but who makes the game changing play a la Alex Ross last season in Morgantown?
* It's hard to not think back over the last three OU-West Virginia games and not see- perhaps- why this game has become so physical between the two schools. They've all three been highly competitive games, along with the staffs being so familiar with one another.
Look for a nice little video feature on Austin Seibert coming in the morning ...
*****************************************************************************************************
Couple other items from Mike ...
* Stoops said they are pleased with the play of the big boys up front ... Matt Romar, Charles Walker, Matt Dimon & Jordan Wade are all guys that have played and are making contributions. He was then asked about Diron Reynolds ... to which he heaped praise upon the first year defensive line coach.
"We're developing it as we go along. We're playing three and four man fronts, trying to manuever all of our guys. I always thinks that's a positive element to your team if you can keep guys playing and giving them reps. It keeps the morale and it keeps them interested," said Stoops.
"Diron's been great. The guys have played great. He brings a lot of experience to the table."
* Stoops said anytime you are getting production from the defensive line, and then are able to rotate a number of guys in there ... it is a good thing.
* Stoops echoed the thoughts of others in that West Virginia has been a physical game in recent years -- even getting rather chippy a season ago in Morgantown.
"They're very multiple in what they want to do. They've got great personnel, good speed. They stretch the field in a lot of different ways but want to run the ball too. They are very physical team. Last year was a pretty physical game on both sides of the ball," said Stoops
on Skyler Howard:
"He's matured. He's hitting things on time. He's seeing his read and getting the ball to the guy that is open. When you complete that high of percentage of balls you've got to be seeing things right. He's hot right now and we've got to try and disrupt their tempo and flow of their offense," said Stoops on the Mountaineers quarterback.
Stoops on if West Virginia is running the ball more in 2015 than in previous years:
"It's what we've seen on tape from previous years. There's some formations that may show up more than others, but I think they're just trying to fit their scheme to what their quarterback does well."
**********************************************************************************************************
Couple other thoughts:
* Really get the impression OU needs to force some turnovers this weekend. That shouldn't come as a surprise, but it feels like a defense - or team- is playing with fire if they continue to find themselves on the wrong side of the turnover battle.
* Zack Sanchez health will continue to be something we watch until kickoff on Saturday morning. It's not something that will keep him from playing on Saturday, but is an intriguing storyline to follow with so much stress being put on the cornerback position in a game like this.
* Who wins the special teams match-up? There's no doubt West Virginia's Josh Lambert wins the tattoo showdown, but who makes the game changing play a la Alex Ross last season in Morgantown?
* It's hard to not think back over the last three OU-West Virginia games and not see- perhaps- why this game has become so physical between the two schools. They've all three been highly competitive games, along with the staffs being so familiar with one another.
Look for a nice little video feature on Austin Seibert coming in the morning ...
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