Tulsa World: OU Notebook: Dangerous Damaris

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OU Notebook: Dangerous Damaris

By GUERIN EMIG World Sports Writer
Published: 9/19/2009 2:27 AM
Last Modified: 9/19/2009 5:52 AM

The most troublesome player for Oklahoma today could be 5-foot-8, 170-pound Damaris Johnson, Tulsa's wide receiver/kickoff and punt returner who leads the nation in all-purpose yardage. The Sooners, remember, were notoriously bad covering kickoffs last year.

"That's what we harped on in two-a-days. We don't want to be the weak link," said Dominique Franks, who supplements his role as starting cornerback on OU's kick coverage unit. "So we're flying down there more. We're recognizing what we're going to be attacked with. We don't want to give the other offense a start with the short field. We want to pin them inside the 20 and make them drive."

So far, so good. The Sooners are 15th nationally in kickoff coverage, surrendering 16.1 yards per return.

"We're making big plays on kickoffs," said freshman Demontre Hurst, who has been outstanding on special teams through two games, "and everyone's having fun on it."

Wide receivers revisited: Another week, another potential shuffling of OU's inconsistent wide receiving corps.

"Cameron (Kenney) will start," position coach Jay Norvell said. " 'Pooh' (Adron Tennell) will play a lot. (Ryan) Broyles will play a lot. (Brandon) Caleb will play a lot."

What about true freshman Jaz Reynolds?

"I think Jaz is good enough to play this year under the right circumstances," Norvell said. "We kind of wanted to see some things from some people. But I think Jaz is talented enough to play this year, and I'd like to see him play. We're probably going to approach it that way."

Middle school: Freshman middle linebacker Ronnell Lewis was credited with four tackles and a safety in relief of Ryan Reynolds during last week's second half. It will be interesting to see how much playing time he gets today against Tulsa, a major step up from Idaho State.

"He's definitely getting there," Reynolds said of Lewis' grasp of OU's defensive principles. "It's hard coming in as a freshman and picking up on all that stuff. But he's definitely on his way. He's going to be a really good player."

Said coach Bob Stoops: "Everything is predicated on how guys do in practice, and when they get their opportunities, how they play. So far Ryan has played really well. But you continue to bring along the other guys.

"Everyone thinks it's just in games. Those (backups) are going to take 100 snaps in practice every day, too. You're constantly developing them."

Coachable kid: Defensive tackle Jamarkus McFarland, another true freshman the Sooners are high on, made his debut last week against Idaho State, mostly because he has taken to the hard-nosed tutoring of position coach Jackie Shipp.

"It's just mental," McFarland said. "Some people don't know how to take somebody being hard on them. It's out of love. They stop talking to you, that's when you've got to worry most. I kind of take what I need to take out of his coaching and just roll with it."

McFarland, the subject of a fierce recruiting battle with Texas, remains on OU's third string, behind starters Gerald McCoy and Adrian Taylor, as well as backups Cordero Moore and Casey Walker. By GUERIN EMIG World Sports Writer

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