Football question

[WichitaSooner]

We are hamstrung by the lack of playmakers on offense. I'd look for Kanak more. Carter can get open, as can Sategna. Need to figure out to mask the running game with short passes. Hard to throw deep when max protect may not keep a rush of five out of the backfield. It's a double-edged sword. One thing's for certain: we NEVER need to hurry. Milk that clock. Complementary football from here on out.

And use the IGNORE list, people! It has made my posting experience here much more enjoyable.

I'm a Mets fan, and some of OU's issues on offense remind me of the Mets this season. Their best offensive players were, for the most part, bad defensively. Their best defensive players were bad hitters.

A guy like Kanak can get open more than the other TEs, but his blocking makes it hard for him to play a lot against SEC teams. We have some receivers who can probably block ok, but they can't get open, and vice versa.

Gibson not being what he was said to be hurts. With his size, he could have really helped this offense if he could get open. And it was surprising that Lewis didn't play Saturday since the talk leading up to the game was that he would play a role. He isn't great, but he at least worked the middle of the field well before Hawkins threw the hospital ball.

 

[Boom Soon]

Must’ve missed it. Bump it and I’ll respond.

I called out the crappy defense myself if you saw that

Alrighty I will.

 

[Boom Soon]

The coaches do need to find a way to generate some points and yards from the offense. As we see the first 8 games, turnovers aren’t something you can rely on every week, let alone 17 points scored or directly set up by the D. Our offensive skill talent is subpar, but a good plan and scheme should still be able to get you more than what we are getting. Find a way two or three times a game to get someone wide open like most teams do. And at least make the defense think there is a chance you’ll try to thrown downfield. We obviously can’t put together a long drive, so a big play would be grand!

The fear is, these victories just reinforce BV’s conservative tendencies with the offense.. Teams take on the persona of the head coach and I don’t think he’s telling the offense to go and try and score. This offense is pretty much the same as last year. Maybe marginally better.

This Missouri game is scary, imo. They aren’t passing much even if the starter is back. I doubt they turn the ball over more than once (if that). Their defense may very well completely shut down OU’s offense. I could see Missouri turning this game into a grind and only one of the two teams is really dedicated to running the football. I could see Missouri winning 13-6 or something like that. Hope I’m wrong, but the offense is what it is. They’re not just going to magically turn things around.

 

[opsooner]

The offense produced 6 points, at most, of their own accord. Not sure how anyone can be happy with that. I absolutely agree that we should play to our defense -- we shouldn't play fast and take a ton of crazy chances. But if we think we can win consistently by putting up under 300 yards of offense and never scoring without help from the defense or special teams, that is unrealistic. And remember -- even with that vanilla approach, Mateer threw what should have been an easy pick six Saturday. Luck is part of the sport so I won't complain that Bama dropped it, but my point is, you shouldn't get SO conservative on offense that your entire philosophy is, don't screw up, and hope the defense scores.

I am not a football Xs and Os guy, but it does seem like you could at least run a couple deep routes to at least make the defense respect that.

If X isn't healthy, that is a big concern. Blaylock has tailed off, and behind him, I have no idea who we have. Barnes isn't good, but would he consider giving up his redshirt now that there is a lot on the line? Tatum hasn't played all season and would scare me to death if he has to step on the field now. That position could get scary quickly if X can't go or is severely limited.

We agree they need to do everything they can to get better. I also agree that X is the guy now that fits with our current O line. We would be in further trouble without him. Yes, if we think we can protect well enough to get Sategna deep by all means. But I also think an incompletion is a big step back for this offense. A holding penalty is worse. And turnover is, of course, much worse.

We were 3 of 13 on 3rd down against Bama. Not good but against a good D. But we are in much better shape when we have option of run/pass on 3rd down.

We’ll see how it goes. We play 2 more good defenses. I don’t think we are going to be able to make any amazing changes and need to just study and look for opponent weaknesses more than changing what we are doing. Also, eradicate our stupid penalties. It’s interesting because Texas and us have similar issues.

Yes, play not only to our defense but also to our special teams.

 

[BoulderSooner]

We agree they need to do everything they can to get better. I also agree that X is the guy now that fits with our current O line. We would be in further trouble without him. Yes, if we think we can protect well enough to get Sategna deep by all means. But I also think an incompletion is a big step back for this offense. A holding penalty is worse. And turnover is, of course, much worse.

We were 3 of 13 on 3rd down against Bama. Not good but against a good D. But we are in much better shape when we have option of run/pass on 3rd down.

We’ll see how it goes. We play 2 more good defenses. I don’t think we are going to be able to make any amazing changes and need to just study and look for opponent weaknesses more than changing what we are doing. Also, eradicate our stupid penalties. It’s interesting because Texas and us have similar issues.

Yes, play not only to our defense but also to our special teams.

i think Blaylock is pretty dinged up as well

 

[WichitaSooner]

We agree they need to do everything they can to get better. I also agree that X is the guy now that fits with our current O line. We would be in further trouble without him. Yes, if we think we can protect well enough to get Sategna deep by all means. But I also think an incompletion is a big step back for this offense. A holding penalty is worse. And turnover is, of course, much worse.

We were 3 of 13 on 3rd down against Bama. Not good but against a good D. But we are in much better shape when we have option of run/pass on 3rd down.

We’ll see how it goes. We play 2 more good defenses. I don’t think we are going to be able to make any amazing changes and need to just study and look for opponent weaknesses more than changing what we are doing. Also, eradicate our stupid penalties. It’s interesting because Texas and us have similar issues.

Yes, play not only to our defense but also to our special teams.

We did a better job with penalties this week. Would have loved to not get that false start before our final third down but all in all it was a better day. And it was also nice to see a close game where Brent didn't waste timeouts. If memory serves, we had our full allotment of timeouts late in each half. That's a big improvement over the previous couple games.

 

[Eielson]

The offense... Not sure how anyone can be happy with that.

Our offense outplayed theirs.

If X isn't healthy, that is a big concern.

Would be devastating.

Blaylock has tailed off

He hasn't tailed off at all. I caught a lot of flack on here for calling into question how much running past Illinois State players meant, but the fact remains that he's had 3 YPC or less in 6 of his 7 P5 games.

I love his potential, but the only meaningful contributions he's made all year were against SC.

 

[WTSooner]

And it was surprising that Lewis didn't play Saturday since the talk leading up to the game was that he would play a role. He isn't great, but he at least worked the middle of the field well before Hawkins threw the hospital ball.

The site I follow said he was cleared, but was unlikely to play a major role.

We likely won't see G. Williams again this year either.

 

[WTSooner]

i think Blaylock is pretty dinged up as well

I'd say more than dinged up. He's having surgery once the season ends. He's in a lot of pain, but trying to play through it because we have pretty much no RB depth.

 

[Sooner04]

I'd say more than dinged up. He's having surgery once the season ends. He's in a lot of pain, but trying to play through it because we have pretty much no RB depth.

Glad you had a good trip to T-Town. I hate those bastards!
No depth.......does that mean Barnes won't play and the coaches are too spooked to allow Tatum TO play?

 

[WichitaSooner]

The site I follow said he was cleared, but was unlikely to play a major role.

We likely won't see G. Williams again this year either.

What’s the latest injury for Williams?

 

[WTSooner]

Glad you had a good trip to T-Town. I hate those bastards!
No depth.......does that mean Barnes won't play and the coaches are too spooked to allow Tatum TO play?

Thanks! It was a great trip. Already thinking about going when we play them there again in 2029.

I don't know if they'd burn Barnes that way in the last two games or not. I really don't. I would think Ott or maybe even Gabe Sawchuck would get snaps before Tatum. Tatum really hasn't done much of ANYTHING to deserve any playing time from what I've heard.

But I can't say for certain what they'd do if X and Blaylock were both unavailable for a series or a game. Scary to think about.

 

[WichitaSooner]

Thanks! It was a great trip. Already thinking about going when we play them there again in 2029.

I don't know if they'd burn Barnes that way in the last two games or not. I really don't. I would think Ott or maybe even Gabe Sawchuck would get snaps before Tatum. Tatum really hasn't done much of ANYTHING to deserve any playing time from what I've heard.

But I can't say for certain what they'd do if X and Blaylock were both unavailable for a series or a game. Scary to think about.

I’m not quite sure what it says that until you posted this, I had completely forgotten about Ott. I was thinking it was just Barnes and Tatum behind the two guys who have been playing. Ugh.

Does Tatum still not know the playbook or care about blocking? We definitely need to bring in a couple good backs this offseason.

 

[Eielson]

Glad you had a good trip to T-Town. I hate those bastards!
No depth.......does that mean Barnes won't play and the coaches are too spooked to allow Tatum TO play?

Barnes played 4 games and has disappeared, which is starting to feel like a broken record in the 4 game redshirt era. As a senior with no chance at the NFL, my expectation has been that he'll maintain his redshirt year and transfer out, which is still likely the best plan for him if he still believes in himself. I may be wrong, but I BELIEVE he could still play in the CFP and preserve eligibility for one more college season.

There's no doubt that he could help. As I've said before, he will get you 3-4 YPC no matter the competition. We could play a HS or NFL team and I'm still convinced that would be his YPC.

Would love to see Tatum get some run. He has the physical tools. My guess would be that he gets the call if X and Barnes can't, but purely a guess.

Ott has not done anything inspiring in an OU uniform.

 

[Eielson]

We likely won't see G. Williams again this year either.

If we continue winning, I would expect to see him in the CFP.

 

[WTSooner]

If we continue winning, I would expect to see him in the CFP.

It's not a redshirt issue, it's a health issue.

From what I've seen, his health issues won't improve in a matter of a few weeks. It's also not a position we're hurting for depth at, even without Williams.

I'm not saying you're wrong, just saying I don't believe that is the plan currently. Barnes? Sure. Hawkins is now available to be used again as well, while still retaining his redshirt. Probably some others.

 

[Eielson]

It's not a redshirt issue, it's a health issue.

From what I've seen, his health issues won't improve in a matter of a few weeks. It's also not a position we're hurting for depth at, even without Williams.

I'm not saying you're wrong, just saying I don't believe that is the plan currently. Barnes? Sure. Hawkins is now available to be used again as well, while still retaining his redshirt. Probably some others.

The playoffs start in a month and end in two. I don't expect him to return in the regular season but would expect him to be able to return in 1-2 months.

We are incredibly thin at CB. One more injury could spell disaster.

 

[BoulderSooner]

What’s the latest injury for Williams?

opposite shoulder i believe ..

 

[SoonerBounce13]

Our offense outplayed theirs.



Would be devastating.



He hasn't tailed off at all. I caught a lot of flack on here for calling into question how much running past Illinois State players meant, but the fact remains that he's had 3 YPC or less in 6 of his 7 P5 games.

I love his potential, but the only meaningful contributions he's made all year were against SC.

I agree about blaylock...I was never blown away by him. Maybe he will turn into something but we need explosive players in that room

 

[SoonerBounce13]

We definitely need to bring in a couple good backs this offseason.

and a coach