Tulsa World: Cowboys to face another ace arm

TULSA WORLD HOMEPAGE | Tuesday, February 09, 2010 | WIRELESS

OU | OSU | TU | ORU | HIGH SCHOOLS | COLLEGE FOOTBALL | COLLEGE BASKETBALL | NFL | FANTASY | OUTDOORS | GOLF | PROS | ALL

HOMEPAGES

SPORTS EXTRA BLOGS

		Sports Editor Mike Strain
		Sports Columnist Dave Sittler
		The Picker Entertaining & Infuriating

LOCAL PROS

ALL SPORTS

PHOTOS & VIDEOS

OUTDOORS

FIND A STORY

Search the World's archives

EMAIL ALERTS

SOCIAL MEDIA

RSS FEEDS

CONTACT US

BUY PHOTOS & PAGES

Buy a published photo by clicking the "Order this Picture" link on the photo. For a full-color page reprint, call 732-8198 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday or order online.

TULSA WORLD

ADVERTISE ON SPORTS EXTRA

Learn more about the site.

Newspaper View Print this story

Bookmark

Cowboys to face another ace arm
OSU must contain another Heisman hopeful in Colt McCoy.

Colt McCoy Texas quarterback. JAMES GIBBARD/Tulsa World

By MATT DOYLE World Sports Writer
Published: 10/23/2008 2:15 AM
Last Modified: 10/23/2008 3:07 AM

OSU must contain another Heisman hopeful in Colt McCoy.

Another week facing another top-flight quarterback equals another challenge.

Oklahoma State's defense just went down this path two weeks ago in facing Missouri's Chase Daniel. Its challenge this week is just as daunting, if not more so.

How does OSU stop, or at least slow down, Texas quarterback Colt McCoy?

"I don't think anyone has stopped him this year," said OSU defensive coordinator Tim Beckman. "We're facing another excellent Big 12 quarterback that has Heisman written next to his name."

Excellent is an apt description of McCoy, who is the leading candidate for the Heisman Trophy.

McCoy has been brilliant in leading Texas to a 7-0 record this year. Completing 81 percent of his passes for the season is eye-popping. The 29-for-32 passing effort last week against Missouri was as close to perfect as a quarterback can be.

Texas coach Mack Brown is not surprised by McCoy's efficiency because he has seen it for three years now.

OSU defenders are not surprised, either. They have seen it up close and personal the past two years in facing the Longhorns.

McCoy was 23-of-29 for 346 yards and three touchdowns in his team's 36-10 home victory over OSU two years ago. Despite getting intercepted by OSU cornerback Jacob Lacey three times last year, McCoy was still 20-of-27 throwing for 282 yards and added 106 yards rushing in Texas' 38-35 comeback win at Stillwater.

So, how do you get McCoy off rhythm?

"With any quarterback, you need to have those big guys up front get their hands in his face, get him to where he is not as comfortable in the pocket and make him throw when his feet are not set," Lacey said. "The bottom line is when you have a chance to make a play against him, you need to make it."

OSU did that against Missouri's Daniel two weeks ago.

Beckman's defense picked its spots to bring pressure against the Missouri quarterback. OSU was able to sack Daniel twice and intercept him three times.

McCoy has been sacked 10 times, but he has thrown only three interceptions in 197 attempts this season.

Despite his success the past two years, the Texas quarterback is not discounting the Cowboys' defense.

"The Missouri game was a huge one for them," McCoy said. "They are very aggressive and not afraid to come after you."

The Cowboys on Saturday will focus on containing McCoy and not allowing him to scramble to make plays.

That haunted OSU as McCoy led Texas back from 21 points down in the fourth quarter last year. It's a replay the Cowboys do not want to experience this year.

"It goes back to the players and I know I say that a lot, but they are the ones out there playing," Beckman said. "We are doing a good job of studying our opponents and we are playing with great and outstanding effort and those are the things that we preach."

Matt Doyle 581-8316
matt.doyle@tulsaworld.com

Up next

At Texas 2:30 p.m. Saturday

TV: KTUL-8

Radio: KFAQ am1170

By MATT DOYLE World Sports Writer

Newspaper View Print this story

Bookmark

COMMENTS

Add your comment

Show: Most Recent Comment First

0 comments have been made for this team so far. Tell us what you think below!

Reporting Comments

If you see a comment that violates our terms and conditions, please help us by clicking the "Report this Comment" link next to a comment. That will alert the web staff to review the comment. Thank you. -- Web Editor Jason Collington

Add Your Comment
In order to post a comment on this article, you must sign in to Tulsaworld.com. If you do not have a site account, you can create an account for free.