NORMAN - Blake Bell's picture has been plastered on numerous magazine covers. He's been appointed the heir apparent to the Oklahoma quarterback position by fans and media.
But each day during fall camp, the junior did not assume anything. He's been forced to go out and claim a starting job that everyone else thinks is automatically his new role.
How has he handled things? Each time he has stepped onto the field for August practices, he's acted like the starter. It's the same mindset he carried last year while Landry Jones was rewriting the OU record book.
"As a quarterback and a competitor, you have to approach every day and think that you're the guy," Bell said during the Sooners' media day. "I even thought that sometimes when Landry was here. That wasn't anything against him, that's just how I think every quarterback brings himself along each and every day.
"You think you're the guy because you don't know when you become the guy... You don't know when you're going to be the guy."
There's a competitive tone in Bell's voice. It's in his nature and has been since he was a youngster growing up in Wichita.
"He didn't want to lose at anything that he did," said his father Mark Bell, who played six NFL seasons. "Blake has been athletic since as long as we can remember and always stood out. But he's never been a boastful guy.
"We saw his competitive juices flowing since he was in Little League and then basketball in Wichita ... he was awarded 'Mr Biddy' for being the best biddy basketball player in the league."
Bell will be one of the largest quarterbacks in the nation at 6-foot-6 and 263 pounds.
It's a role he's familiar with. When he was finally allowed to play football in the third grade by his father, his size forced him to jump to play with fifth-graders.
His first season was with more experienced players and he excelled.
Size has always been an issue with Bell. His mother always had to carry a birth certificate to baseball tournaments to prove his age.
How did he handle that?
"Blake didn't think about that and just brushed it off," Mark Bell said. "He never thought about himself being the biggest kid.
"He was just Blake being Blake ... he took it all in stride. Nothing shakes him."
There is likely to soon be times when Bell will be scrutinized for a poor decision.
It comes with the territory when you are an Oklahoma quarterback.
In fact, there has already been one instance where one of his mistakes was a back-breaker in a loss. In last year's Kansas State game - against a team from his home state - he had his first fumble inside the 5-yard line. The lost ball was a momentum-changer in a 24-19 loss.
"That was hard ... it really bothered us (as parents)," Sherry Bell said. "I thought this is going to be horrible. But the thing is he has a way of putting things behind him.
"That's what you have to do as a quarterback at OU. He learned that from Landry."
Added Mark Bell: "Blake understands that it's not always going to be good times. I've taught Blake over the years about having a short memory. You can't dwell on one bad thing. You have to move onto the next play ... that's part of playing quarterback. Not everything is going to be perfect. Just shake it off and go on to the next play."
Bell's fumble came in the "Belldozer" package, which has taken advantage of his size and running ability.
He still hasn't completely introduced his talents in the typical OU offensive package.
The quarterback understands there are some doubters out there.
There's mystery surrounding his passing ability after only throwing 20 passes in his first two seasons.
"You're always going to have people that think that, which is normal," Bell said. "I didn't throw last year and I just basically ran it until we were up a lot in some games and I came in and actually got to run the offense a bit.
"Other than that, this is a good time to just work on what I need to work on. It's whatever I can do to help the team."
There are no guarantees that he'll be the next quarterback. But he will be prepared.
"The only thing I can do each and every day is show them what I can do on the field," Bell said.
"I feel like I've done that, and I've just got to continue to do that."
Blake Bell
Year: Redshirt junior
Games played in 2012: 13
Games started in 2012: 0
Career record as a starter: 0
2012 stats: 9-of-16 passing, 107 yards, 0 TDs, 0 INTs; 60 rushes, 201 yards, 11 TDs
Kendal Thompson
Year: Redshirt sophomore
Games played in 2012: 0
Games started in 2012: 0
Career record as a starter: 0
2012 stats: Did not compile any statistics.
Trevor Knight
Year: Redshirt freshman
Games played in 2012: 0
Games started in 2012: 0
Career record as a starter: 0
2012 stats: Did not compile any statistics.
Cody Thomas
Year: Freshman
Games played in 2012: 0
Games started in 2012: 0
Career record as a starter: 0
2012 stats: Did not compile any statistics.
Eric Bailey 918-581-8391
eric.bailey@tulsaworld.com
