| Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops. (US Presswire) |
Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops was on the defensive when reporters asked some pointed questions Monday in the wake of the team's closer-than-expected 24-7 win at UTEP on opening weekend.
Queries about a pair of players on his roster -- Roy Finch and Trey Millard -- and their limited roles in the offense (Finch, a running back, did not play; Millard, a fullback, got only four touches after reporters had been told the plan was to get him more involved) seemed to agitate the longtime Oklahoma head coach.
Jason Kersey of The Oklahoman detailed the exchange, including another moment when Stoops was asked for his take on in-state rival Oklahoma State's 84-0 win over Savannah State and what his personal take was on the proper way to handle a game when it becomes clear the score could get out of hand.
One of those asking the questions, columnist John E. Hoover of the Tulsa World, writes that Stoops' responses, especially on Finch, made little sense. It's apparent that even with a No. 5 national ranking, there is a bit of discontent in Sooner country after a sluggish season-opener.
- At least one job unsettled at Texas: Most of the Longhorns' roster looked relatively impressive in Saturday's game, a 37-17 win over Wyoming that saw the defense lock down its opposition for a long stretch. UT's running backs were as good as advertised, with Malcolm Brown and Joe Bergeron each tallying more than 100 yards. Even quarterback, the team's biggest position of worry this offseason, was handled well enough by starter David Ash to earn a "solid winnable" grade, Mike Finger of the Houston Chronicle reported. But there is one job still to be settled: that of starting placekicker, as freshman Nick Jordan missed two of his three field-goal attempts and had an extra point try blocked in the win. Penn State transfer Anthony Fera has not yet recovered from a groin injury, so Jordan and fellow freshman Nick Rose (who handled kickoffs) will vie for the job heading into this week's game vs. New Mexico.
- Oklahoma State going to school on Arizona (again): Oklahoma State has faced Arizona twice in its last 15 games (once during the regular season last year; before that, in the Alamo Bowl at the end of the 2010 campaign). There is plenty of familiarity with the Wildcats personnel. But things are much different in Tucson this year. New head coach Rich Rodriguez brought with him most of his former staff members from either Michigan or West Virginia (or both). That means much of what OSU knew about Arizona is now meaningless, according to John Helsley and Gina Mizell of The Oklahoman. "We have to watch some of the old Rich Rodriguez tapes to see some of the similarities and some of the stuff that's rolled over," Cowboys linebacker Caleb Lavey said.
- Snyder looking for more from K-State's defense: An examination of most of the key defensive statistics shows Kansas State turned in a respectable performance in its season-opening 51-9 win vs. FCS foe Missouri State on Saturday. As Ken Corbitt of the Topeka Capital-Journal noted, Missouri State converted only 4 of 17 third downs and did not score a touchdown in four trips to the red zone. But K-State coach Bill Snyder felt his defense allowed too many drives to continue for long stretches. "Defensively, we have to be a better three-and-out football team," Snyder said. "Those are hard to come by and don't happen frequently, but if you get three or four of those in a ball game, you change the field-position dynamics. That's one thing we have to be better at, which constitutes not giving up drives. We were sufficient in the red zone defensively and forcing field-goal attempts. That's a positive, but if they don't get down there, you don't put yourself in position to give up the three points."