{"id":62,"date":"2015-08-27T00:13:04","date_gmt":"2015-08-27T00:13:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fredsportsextra.com\/?p=62"},"modified":"2015-09-18T21:28:04","modified_gmt":"2015-09-19T02:28:04","slug":"sooners-have-high-expectations-big-12-beware-of-a-dangerous-team","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fredsportsextra.com\/?p=62","title":{"rendered":"Sooners Have High Expectations; Big 12 Beware of a Dangerous Team"},"content":{"rendered":"
After a disastrous 40-6 drubbing by Clemson in the Bowl game last year, the Oklahoma Sooners didn’t stay pat for the upcoming 2015 season. Head Coach Bob Stoops fired offensive coordinator Josh Heupel and hired East Carolina’s Offensive Coordinator Lincoln Riley to revamp an offensive that at times sputtered with inopportune turnovers that cost the team wins. Other coaches were let go and new blood has been incorporated into the Sooner staff. An 8-5 record following\u00a0 #6 ranking the year before with a win over Alabama didn’t bring the expected results hoped for. Two things\u00a0are brought to the\u00a0stadium in 2015. OU has quality first line players at many positions and with a lack of some respect from the prognosticators, the Sooners are a dangerous team that has a schedule that could bring them back to a high ranking in the National polls. A Final Four birth would be hard to achieve, but the last time OU was rated pre-season so low, 19th, they won the National Championship. OU could surprise this year.<\/strong><\/h6>\n

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\"551245c07a6a0.image\"<\/a>
Oklahoma offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley (left) gives instruction to Dimitri Flowers (No. 36), Samaje Perine and Joe Mixon at practice. NICK OXFORD\/for the Tulsa World<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Lincoln Riley, a former quarterback at Texas Tech under Mike Leach, who was the\u00a0offensive coordinator at OU\u00a0when\u00a0Coach Stoops came to Norman in 1999,\u00a0hopes to bring the Leach offense back to Norman with Baker Mayfield as the starting quarterback.\u00a0 Mayfield has played in the Leach offensive at Lake Travis High School in the Austin area where he won a State Title. He also was the freshman player of the year in\u00a0the Big 12 in 2013, playing in\u00a0that same passing\u00a0system for\u00a0Coach Kliff Kingsbury at\u00a0Tech, (the one Kingsbury played for under\u00a0Leach on the South\u00a0Plains in Lubbock.)\u00a0It is clear that OU’s new look will take us back to the one that OU used\u00a0to win their last National Championship in 2000.\u00a0\u00a0Riley\u00a0has the intent to\u00a0develop an offense that will consume the\u00a0Sooner’s opponent defenses in a way that Tech did in the past and the way Baylor does today.<\/strong><\/h6>\n
\u00a0 <\/strong><\/h6>\n
Mayfield will start with Trevor Knight and Cody Thomas in backup roles. They will have some excellent talent to throw to. Sterling\u00a0Shepard and DeDe Westbrook\u00a0will start with reserves\u00a0Duron Neal, KJ Young, Jeffery Mead and John Humphery all expected to see action. With Samaje Perine, Alex Ross, and Joe Mixon, the Sooner’s running backs rank with the best in the country.\u00a0 <\/strong><\/h6>\n

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\"Stoops\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said Joe Mixon learned his lesson after a yearlong suspension for punching a female student. Brandon Wade Star-Telegram Read more here: http:\/\/www.star-telegram.com\/sports\/college\/big-12\/article28059442.html#storylink=cpy<\/p>\n

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Some notes:\u00a0 Shepard, an all Big 12 and possible All-American; DeDe Westbrook, a JC transfer that has opened eyes since he stepped foot on campus; Jeffery Mead, at\u00a0 6’6 who\u00a0 has excelled in pre-season camp; Durron Neal, starter from last year; and K.J Young and John Humphery as added depth. Dimitri Flowers as a blocking fullback and a revamped o-line, give\u00a0the Sooners\u00a0 a potent running game. Mixon might be the best of the group as he has shined in pre-season practice.\u00a0 Another big back, like Perine, Mixon is more elusive and is an outstanding pass receiver.\u00a0 Riley will play Mixon (6’2 220) and\u00a0Perine (5’ll 240) together, giving Mayfield a great duo of all-American type backs.\u00a0 Ross and Flowers will see significant time.<\/h6>\n

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Last year the young defensive secondary was not bad, it was pitiful.\u00a0 And that was even with the\u00a0talent in the name of \u00a0Zach Sanchez.\u00a0 Sanchez is a big play\u00a0corner that will have a chance to play on Sunday’s.\u00a0 He\u00a0has taken 3 of 8 lifetime oskies back for scores. Coach Mike Stoops\u00a0has indicated the two most important players on defense will be the other\u00a0starting corner Jordan Thomas and free safety Stephen Parker. It if is true that significant improvement has been made by these two sophomores who started as freshmen, the Sooner defense will stiffen up.\u00a0 OU recruited some excellent talent for the defensive secondary and are pushing the starters for playing time.\u00a0 Look for improvement in that area. OU will field a stronger defense with the improvement of the secondary and a veteran and\u00a0excellent\u00a0front seven at\u00a0important positions.\u00a0\u00a0The\u00a0pass rush and run stoppers are not the problem, with Eric Striker leading the way at linebacker in a revampted 4-3 line up, different from the 3-4 in 2014.\u00a0 Returning backers Dominique Alexander, a\u00a0junior that\u00a0started as a freshman, Jordan Evans, another junior starter, and returning backer Frank Shannon, off a one year suspension for female abuse, gives the Sooners quality and depth.\u00a0 These three are of\u00a0Big 12 all-conference quality with Shannon the key.\u00a0 Coming in overweight, he should be in fine shape by the Texas game.\u00a0 Striker will be a first team All-American at best, and a 2nd team at worse.\u00a0\u00a0 Charles Tapper will anchor the defensive line, and he is a superior run stopper.\u00a0 The other defense\u00a0line starters\u00a0will be good and OU will stop the run “in a good way.”\u00a0 The pass rush, with Striker and Tapper will be a strength.<\/h6>\n

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\"Defense\"<\/a>
Eric Striker, OU linebacker. Image via Nola.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Alex Ross\u00a0has made some pre-season all-American teams as a\u00a0kickoff returner.\u00a0 Kickoff specialist Nick\u00a0Hodgson continually puts the ball in the end zone and is making a strong case to be the placement kicker.\u00a0\u00a0The punter\u00a0will be Jack Steed or Austin Seibert, a freshman. Seibert could be the field goal\/extra point man if Stoops decided to go that way and Hodgson’s way.\u00a0 <\/strong><\/h6>\n

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\"5411e720bc9f8.image<\/a>
OU’s Samaje Perine looks for space as TU’s Will Barrow tackles him during the first half of the OU v Tulsa football game on Sept 6, 2014. TOM GILBERT\/Tulsa World<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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OU can win a lot of games this year if Baker Mayfield can play effectively and the Sooners don’t make the big mistake on offensive. That basically cost Trevor Knight his job. No team in the league will match the lineup of Perine, Shepard, Westbrook, Flowers, Ross and Mixon.\u00a0 Especially Mixon.\u00a0 Remember the freshman year of Perine last year?\u00a0 The freshman year of Adrian (All Day) Peterson?\u00a0 Mixon could be as productive.\u00a0Look for OU\u00a0to challenge for the Big 12 championship in 2015.\u00a0 Baylor and TCU does not own the league yet<\/strong>.<\/h6>\n

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\"Oklahoma<\/a>
Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) throws a pass during their annual spring NCAA college football game in Norman, Okla., Saturday, April 12, 2014. (AP Photo\/Alonzo Adams)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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After a disastrous 40-6 drubbing by Clemson in the Bowl game last year, the Oklahoma…<\/p>\n

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