Red River Rivalry Recap

As a long-time Sooner fan and alumnus, I am still stunned by the outcome of Saturday's clash in Dallas. This was a game that Bob Stoops was supposed to win. The highest ranked team had won every meeting since 1996. (The lower ranked Horns were actually favored in 2000 through 2002.) Stoops was 6-0 against Mack Brown with a top ten team. Mack Brown had only beaten one ranked OU team in his tenure. Oklahoma was better on paper (although not by much) but Texas was better on the field. It was a game in which the often criticized Greg Davis was the coach that had the greatest impact on the game with his game plan.

Texas won because they outcoached and outplayed the Sooners. In a game of relative equals, it's about finding weaknesses. Texas won because they exploited all three of the Sooners' main weaknesses. 1) Special teams 2) Lack of a running game and 3) Lack of LB depth

Special Teams
Jordan Shipley's kick return TD may have saved Texas from an early knockout attempt by the Sooners. The TD not only closed the gap from 14-3 to 14-10 but more importantly it was a Texas-sized can of Red Bull momentum. From that point on, the Texas crowd believed and the their team responded to every lead by the Sooners.

The other key special teams play was Bob Stoops rolling the dice with a fake punt still up 28-27. I personally did not like the call given the circumstances of being up one and having the opportunity to nail Texas inside their own 10 with a good punt. Texas was rolling on offense but I still thought back them up and give your defense more opportunities to make a play or two that might result in a stop. Even if they score, you have time and the confidence your offense will retake the lead.

The fake punt call had too much momentum riding on it for Texas and not enough for Oklahoma. If the Sooners make it and score a TD, assuming they kick the extra point to go up 35-27, Texas could still tie the game with one drive. If the Sooners were up 2 or 3 points and the score would have put them up 2 scores on Texas, then I might see the payoff on such a gamble. (Maybe Stoops would have elected to go for 2 to increase the lead to 9 but most coaches would prefer an extra point for an 8 point lead and force the other team to convert a 2-point conversion just to tie).

I had more of a problem with the design of the fake punt. The success of the play was dependent on a punter running for more yards than DeMarco Murray's longest run from scrimmage since the opener against Tenn-Chatt. It was 4th and 6 but you have to account for the yardage the punter has to make up from where he catches the snap. It's about 15 yards or so. He nearly made it but he nearly got tackled twice earlier in his run. Going back to OU's fake punt against Alabama in 2003, that was a better design because the punter simply had to execute a lob over one defender to a capable ball carrier who was expected to be all alone based on film study.

Lack of a Running Game
Something is just not right with Oklahoma's run game both in the guys blocking and the guy carrying the ball. OU's OL can pass block with the best but they are lacking a surge off the ball. DeMarco Murray showed his speed on a catch out of the backfield in the first quarter and on two second half kick returns. The problem is that he needs a lot of run to get going. He doesn't have the acceleration of a year ago and he looks to run into tackles as crazy as it sounds.

Because OU could not run the ball effectively, the play action element was all but gone and short yardage was more based on execution than simple power football. Credit Bradford for an outstanding performance in and out of the pocket but when it came down to it - Texas broke a couple of runs to make the difference even though OU was supposed to have the better line and the better backs.

LB depth
The one player that Oklahoma could not lose on defense was Ryan Reynolds. Reynolds was finally healthy off 2 knee surgeries and playing so well people no longer thought what might have been had Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year Curtis Lofton had stayed for his senior year. The Sooners other two LBs were playing far beyond expectations but Reynolds was the heart and soul of the defense and lined everyone up. The loss of Reynolds was a huge in the second half. Texas was already having success with an offensive gameplan they had not used in 8 years which worked the middle of the field but it was made even more effective with Reynolds out. Credit OC Greg Davis and Colt McCoy for spotting the weakness and taking advantage of it. There is no doubt in my mind that the late big run that sealed the game for Texas with a subsequent TD for Texas doesn't go for more than 5 yards if Reynolds is on the field because his inexperienced replacement was a step away from making the tackle but there were several plays that Texas made to ultimately win the game.

The game was labeled as a classic, which is really was, but it doesn't feel that way for fans of the losing team.