pphilfran

Tne Sooner offense is going to be significantly different. The general concensus (right or wrong) is that we will see short, quick timing passes, which should help the green o line. Downfield passss once the d gets sucked in and spread out. Negates the blitz. Not surprising if that plays out. Running game will be less power oriented which will hurt Perine but play into Mixons hand. I know I am gushing all over the Mixon kid and he hasn't seen the field in 2 years. Word is the kid is going to be spectacular. Hope they are right. Those close to him say he can't wait to see the field. Everybody outside of Bama offered him. 7 y/carry in highschool. 20 yards/reception.

"I figure we are going to get out butts kicked in Norman. But we will be ready for Pitt whe they come to town."

The biggsst issue is him forcing passes. His starts, for the most part, were against the dregs of college football. He got hurt and never got back as startrer. They were not going to give him a scholly so he walked off after walking on. He never officially notified the OU staff that he was going to walk on. According to Stoops the day he showed up for the first team meeting/ practice was the first time Stoops had ever met or talked to him.

I think Perine will ne hurt with the new offense and new line. Mixon should excel. Z Mixon is going to be special. With Perine and Mixon the Sooners have the best two back tandem in the Stoops era. Neither is the quality of Peterson or Murray currently but the two are a better combo than what they had during the Peterson/Murray days. And that says a lot.

It is the school paper. Sorry rag.

I believe he was the #1 kicker coming out of highschool. Though a big difference between hs and college. Pressure will be on the kid.

http://www.tulsaworld.com/sportsextra/ousportsextra/blog/ou-sports-you-ve-been-warned----construction/article_70a7157d-c915-5652-911c-b33f6a41a3c1.htmlNORMAN – Seriously, this might be the most important thing you read all week relating to Oklahoma’s football opener against Akron Saturday night. It’s a traffic advisory from the university, and it's hairy. As I understand it, they’re doing preliminary construction work on Lindsey Street in Norman to get it ready for a major redesign. I believe that starts next spring. The stuff they’re doing now might be a warm-up to the rebuild, but it’s still a major inconvenience. It has been for weeks (trust me, I live just a few blocks south of Lindsey). The worst part is it’s going to continue. Here’s the OU press release on what to expect this coming football season: “With construction taking place in Norman on I-35, Lindsey Street and Highway 9, University of Oklahoma officials want to give fans alternate travel options to get to Gaylord Family-Memorial Stadium on game days. “All I-35 exits will remain open, but construction will continue on the Lindsey and Highway 9 exits throughout the football season, causing possible heavy congestion in those areas.” OK. Read that again, substituting “definite” for the word “possible.” Good gracious what a mess. Back to the release: “Alternate/secondary routes coming from the north include Exit 112 (south on Highway 77/Flood Street) or Exit 113 (east or west on Tecumseh Road, then south into Norman via 36th Avenue from the west or Highway 77/Flood or Sooner Road from the east). “Although Highway 9 will remain open, fans traveling to Norman from the south can also exit south of town in Noble and head east to Sooner Road, then travel north.” My advice, especially to my friends headed into town from Tulsa Saturday: leave about an hour earlier than you normally would. Also, pay close attention to travel/stadium updates on SoonerSports.com or via the @OU_Gameday Twitter feed. We’ll do our best to keep you advised here on the blog, but you might as well get the latest info from the source. You’re going to need it this season, I’m afraid.

Can do.

You are getting lucky on weather. High of 90. Light south wind. Toasty but not unbearable.

Sonners lost three o line starters from last year. The revamped line is a concern. The big backs should still find some room to run. Perine has great vision and see small openings and he isn't going to be arm tackled. Mixon is going to be special. This is his coming out party. He could have played last year but he was involved in an altercation with a drunk and he ended up punching HER out. Charges were dropped but the school took away his football privileges. Ther is video but has never been shown public. Leaks say she was drunk and giving him crap and spit in him. Still no excuse to deck a woman. He has been quite and not said or texted a peep about anything.

Reaves Park Is excellent. Big area. A little walk to the stadium but it is solid wall of tailgating all the way to the stadium. Prior to getting to Reaves you will pass a large parking area on the left (west) side of the road. You can't park there, it is a donor parking area.

Practices were closed but rumblings had him forcing throws and giving up too many int's

Sooners are replacing 3 o linemen. The probable replacements played significant time last year but they will need time to jell. Should be a good matchup. Qb is a concern. Knignt, last years qb was inconsistent at best. There were times it looked like I was the qb. Hell, he missed the endzone on a hail mary to beat TCU. Mayfield, a walk on won the job. He started at Texas Tech two years ago as a walk on. (Yep, walked on to two schools and won the start at each). He had to sit last year due to transfer rules even though he wasn't on scholly at Tech. He is a really confident cuss and tends to force some throws. Defense lost some interior depth but should be better than last year. Last year they only had one kid that could press cover (sanchez) and teams took advantage of the weakness and toasted the defense later in the year. Some coaching changes and another year under their belt should be a huge benefit. If Mayfield has a solid day it will most likely be a 30 point win. If he looks like me throwing the ball it will be much closer though the run game should be enough for a Sooner win. You should see a lot of Perine and Mixon who might be better than Perine. Watch out for Westbrook on quick passes. He is a CC transfer and could put up some monster numbers. Something like 6' 170 lbs. He can scoot and move.

South side of the stadium is mostly in construction. Tailgating just across the street from the construction zone. East side has the bronze stats of the OU Heisman winners. North side will be set up with a fan fest thst is mostly kid related. There will be a huge screen kr two showing kther games. Food and drink for sale in this area. Like I said, don't be shy, wear your colors, and stop and talk to the folks at the tailgates. You will find free beer and bbq at your fingertips. If you are staying in okc be sure pay a visit to Bricktown in downtown okc. Lot's of bars and great food. Go to this link to get the scoop on food. Easy sign in if you have specific questions. http://www.landthieves.com/board/forumdisplay.php?49-Make-Me-a-Sammich

If you are staying in okc I would go south on I35 to Highway 9 (will be the last exit into Norman). Go east on highway 9 to Jenkins (3 orm4 miles). Turn north on Jenkins (intersection will have Lloyd Nobel arena on the west side of Jenkins anf the National Weather Service main building on the east side. Head north a mile or two and you will see lots of available parking in yards, churches or city parks. $10 or so to park. Mucho tailgating all the way to the stadium. Constrution going on around the stadium so avoid coming down Main to miss massive traffic problems. Avoid is the wrong word, traffic is a disaster any way you come in. Arrive at least two hours before kickoff and you shoukd be good. Don't be shy and you will have a great time and get free food and beer. Any other questions just post em and I will do my best to give you an answer.

Many think Riley will be the offenses savior. A simple to learn offense that any old qb can run effectively. A lot of optimism. Mostly crimson colored glasses.

I am not yet sold on the Sooner offense. Better find a qb. A revamped o line will probably show some growing pains. Last year the receiving corp was a one trick pony, Sheppard). I actually think they will much improved if they can find a qb. With Perine and Mixon the running backs are going to deal some punishment to you d line. New o coord Licoln Riley (East Carolina) will bring changes. Defense should be much improved. If Mayfield is solid it will be a long day for the Zips. Qb play similar to last year and you can make a good showing. Win the turnoved battle and it could be real interesting. Good luck. Any of ya coming down for the game?

http://www.landthieves.com/board/forumdisplay.php?9-Football If any of you want to get into game discussions you should try the message board that I supplied. It is definetly an R rated board but there are a lot of knowledgeble posters. There are the true jerks around but overall a good experience. Following rules apply. Stay on topic in the sports threads. No name calling or personal attacks in the sports threads. There is a great conference realignment thread that has folks from Bama, Tenn, ND, Mizzou, Baylor, okie state, and many others participating. You might like it and actually stick around. I am a vol mod in the Politics forum (STRICT RULES). Hope to see a few of you to make it over to talk some smack. Btw I worked for Goodyear and spent many a day in Akron. Even have 3 credit hours from Akron U! GO ZIPS!