Saturday Spotlight
(19) Texas Longhorns at (7) Oklahoma Sooners
Texas: Are they back? Or are we just waiting for an epic collapse once again? It really seems as if each year they come in with such high expectations for each season and they end up disappointing people so I can say it’s understandable as to why people don’t take them seriously. So far, they are off to a nice 4-1 start including a record of 2-0 in conference play. They’ve finally got some good quarterback play from their sophomore quarterback, Sam Ehlinger and he’s another guy I’ll be looking forward to seeing play (seems like I’m saying that about a lot of guys in the game). He’s good when it comes to spreading the ball around to the open receivers and he can escape pressure by using his mobility to get extra, hard-fought yards. So far, they can score points as they’re averaging 28 points per game and they can play defense too. Coming into the year, I thought the Big-12 would come down to only a few teams and that was the Oklahoma Sooners and West Virginia Mountaineers who I stated were the biggest threat to the Sooners in the conference. This morning, they will battle in the Red River showdown against a team they’ve become all too familiar with for many years.
Oklahoma: They are rolling once again and the offense hasn’t missed a beat at all. That was the million dollar question for the Sooners heading into the season and that was how would Kyler Murray do replacing a star and Heisman trophy winner in Baker Mayfield? All he had to do was be himself and that’s exactly what he’s done is play his own game and it’s translated into success. After Rodney Anderson went down, I was concerned about the running game and didn’t know what to expect, but when you have a guy of Kyler’s caliber under center, it’s almost as if he makes up for the lack of a running game. This is still one of the best offenses in college football. They can score points at any time no matter where they’re lined up on the field. For a while, I was thinking the defense was actually improved, but nothing has changed. They still struggle to get off the field, they give up big plays and they struggle to tackle in open space. Despite that, this is still the team to beat in the Big-12 and I don’t see anyone dethroning them at all this year. It’s Red River Time in a few.
Texas Player To Watch: Tre Watson– What’s the only way to keep a high-powered offense on the sideline? You run the football and he will be counted on to control the clock and win the time of possession battle. Establish him on the ground and make the Sooners offense wait for the chance to get on the field.
Oklahoma Player To Watch: Lee Morris– Every quarterback has that safety valve and he’s become Kyler’s. Their connection goes back to their days back in high school. It’s always important to have chemistry with your receivers. He’s one of the many weapons that can make a catch and take it to the house for six.
Final Analysis: This is my first time ever having the opportunity to preview the Red River showdown and it’s another thing to cross of my list. This may have the most excitement surrounding the matchup that it’s had in years because both teams are off to strong starts. It was a close battle last year and it came down to the fourth quarter. For Texas to win, they have to control the clock and defensively, get into Kyler’s face. Don’t allow him to buy time to throw the football. Oklahoma’s defense needs to step it up in this one.
Prediction: Oklahoma 41 Texas 27
