Tulsa World: OU hopes to dodge big upset

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OU hopes to dodge big upset
No. 1 Sooners are a target for unranked Baylor.

Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin (right), shown against Connecticut on Sept. 19, will be a challenge for OU's defense. "We need to contain him and try to get the ball out of his hands as much as possible," Sooner defensive end Jeremy Beal said. Bob Child/Associated Press

By JOHN E. HOOVER World Sports Writer
Published: 10/4/2008 2:03 AM
Last Modified: 10/4/2008 2:56 AM

No. 1 Sooners are a target for unranked Baylor.

WACO, Texas — The last time the Oklahoma Sooners took over college football's No. 1 ranking in midseason and played a game deep in the heart of Texas, things didn't go quite as planned.

It was 2002, and OU was shocked 30-26 by an unranked Texas A&M team. That was also the last time a team stepped into the Associated Press poll's No. 1 spot and didn't even make it through one week of the regular season.

And, it is the only time a No. 1-ranked Oklahoma team suffered defeat at the hands of an unranked opponent.

"I've seen the No. 1 team go down so many times because they've gotten complacent," warned OU defensive end Auston English.

The Sooners had been ranked No. 2 that year before usurping the top spot from Miami. That group of Aggies pulled off the upset thanks to the heady playmaking of a dynamic and athletic freshman quarterback, Reggie McNeal.

OU this season was ranked No. 2 before taking over for USC. And the Sooners' trip to the Lone Star State this time comes against an unranked Baylor team that is led by a dynamic and athletic freshman quarterback, Robert Griffin.

The Sooners (4-0) and Bears (2-2) open Big 12 Conference play Saturday at Floyd Casey Stadium at 11:30 a.m. in a game televised by FSN (Cox-27). OU is a 27 1/2-point favorite.

The Bears have never beaten Oklahoma (0-17) and have never defeated a No. 1-ranked team (0-10-1). But the Sooners go into this game with their guard up.

"I don't think Baylor is the old Baylor any more," OU receiver Manuel Johnson said.

"I don't think we're really looking at it as being No. 1," linebacker Ryan Reynolds said. "We're just four games into the season. There's still a lot that can happen, and there's a long way to go."

Griffin doesn't make Baylor a one-man team, but he is good enough to defeat any defender on any given play.

"I kind of compare him to Vince Young," OU defensive end Jeremy Beal said. "We need to contain him and try to get the ball out of his hands as much as possible. . . . He's probably the fastest dude I've seen at quarterback. He can make some moves, make you miss, use his feet and scramble, and then he can throw the ball out."

OU defensive coordinator Brent Venables said comparisons of Griffin to Young are "fair."

Offensively, Oklahoma is searching for answers to its running-game problems last week against TCU. OU netted 25 yards on the ground. That includes 36 yards lost on quarterback sacks, but even the pre-sack total of 73 yards on 30 rushing attempts is a failing grade.

"It'll be interesting this week to see if we can be cleaner and more balanced," offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson said.

"When we do both in the same game, we're a much more difficult offense to deal with. We had to play a little one-handed. Hopefully in the weeks to come we won't have to play that way all the time. We'll struggle if we do. (Against) any team."

The OU passing game last week was in fine form, with quarterback Sam Bradford throwing for a career-high 411 yards and four touchdowns. Baylor, though, allows just 186 passing yards per game, and the Bears' defense ranks fourth overall in the conference at 314 yards per game. First-year Baylor coach Art Briles said he likes the matchup. His players do, too, it seems.

"I don't think anybody's unstoppable," defensive end Jason Lamb told Waco media this week. "If we can just bring it to them up front, create pressure, create havoc in the backfield, I think we can shut down anybody."

Said Bears defensive tackle Vincent Rhodes, "They're kind of held up on a little pedestal, but it's our job to bring that pedestal down."

That is the kind of talk that should scare Sooner fans. Johnson recalled previous No. 1 USC's loss on the road to conference underdog Oregon State last week. The Trojans also were 41-point favorites but lost at Stanford last year. OU in '07 was favored by 22 before losing in the Big 12 opener at Colorado.

"We talk a lot about that — people in our league aren't impressed with us," Wilson said. "They're going to come after us."

John E. Hoover 581-8384
john.hoover@tulsaworld.com By JOHN E. HOOVER World Sports Writer

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Sooner Alum 04, (10/4/2008 10:46:29 AM)

BOOmER SOOneR!! This team is different from any before with the way they work and prepare and they have fight to them which is what was lacking in years past. Go get em Sooners destiny is in your hands just take care of business.

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