The Football Brainiacs

Image via Tulsa World

We are one day away from the start of the college football season!

– Team Note | Offense: Was told the OU offense had an excellent day of practice on Tuesday. Apparently they were able to complete a number of passes down the field, winning the majority of their 3rd-and-longs against the first team defense.

– Team Note | Linebackers: After watching a little bit of film on Houston myself, I noted immediately that they use an H-back quite frequently. Which made me wonder if we will see more true OLBs on Saturday, or if OU will stay in their nickel package. Also, with the option game and the way Houston uses their back as a receiver out of the option, Jordan & Tay Evans are going to get a lot of work.

After watching that film, I had a chance to speak with a source regarding both the issues I referenced above. This person said Will Johnson is still getting the bulk of the work in practice, so based on that I would expect you see OU in nickel quite a bit.

However, I was also told that both Kapri Doucet and Caleb Kelly have been taking reps with the 1’s as well. One source said it seemed like Doucet is currently getting a few more reps than Kelly, so if they do go with a true SAM it may be Doucet that gets the nod to start out. Which shouldn’t necessarily be a surprise, asking a freshman to play that role against a team that options a lot with a ton of shifts and motions could simply be too much at this point. Kelly is exactly the athlete OU needs at that position, but I suspect the Sooners want to ease him into that role.

I was also told the defense is really working to make sure that both Evans LBs are ready for what they can expect to see on Saturday. Not only will they be needed to help stop the interior run game of Houston, but as previously mentioned the Cougars flare guys out of the backfield in the pass game a lot. Getting sideline-to-sideline or even picking up a wheel route are things the Oklahoma LBs will have to anticipate and be prepared to defend. – (Super K)

– Team Note | Offensive Line: Jonathan Alvarez was obviously listed as the starting center on the depth chart Oklahoma released earlier this week, but Bob Stoops was pretty open with the fact Alvarez’s backup, Erick Wren, would play on Saturday. As such, Wren has continued to receive a number of reps with the first team offense this week. And according to what TFB has been told, it has been another solid week of practice for Wren. – (Super K)