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Break it down – OU offense v. BSU defense
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The Oklahoma offense is a juggernaut. It is big, strong, fast and absolutely loaded with stud and stellar offensive players.
The Sooners welcome the return of Adrian Peterson this week for the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. Peterson was touted in the preseason as the lead Heisman Trophy contender, but suffered a broken collar bone and missed the final six games of the regular season.
Peterson is back and he carries with him 3,968 career rushing yards at Oklahoma. He is 150 yards shy of tying Billy Sims’ school record of 4,118.
That’s a graet accomplishment for him; it shows how great he is,” BSU linebacker Colt Brooks said. “It’s definitely a goal of our to make him fall a little bit short of that. Nothing against him, but we want to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
Although this game is highlighted by Peterson his team did very well without him. Junior Allen Patrick picked up the slack when Peterson went down. Patrick picked up 700 yards on 158 carries He also scored four touchdowns.
“(Peterson)’s a real rare player,” BSU Defensive Coordinator Justin Wilcox said. “What they do thematically is not different, but him, the things that he can do obviously can change the game. This ’so-called backup’ they have in there, he’s an NFL back.”
Peterson rushed for 935 yards this year on 168 carries. He scored 10 touchdowns and averaged 5.5 yards per carry. He will be greatly assisted by red-shirt freshman Brody Eldridge, who stands 6-5 and weighs 248 pounds at the fullback position. The Sooners will also run some 3-tight-end sets.
Many have said recently that the Oklahoma offensive line is just too big and too strong for the Broncos to defend. No one can argue the talent of the Sooner offensive line, but to say that the Broncos are going to be dominated is pure speculation. Check out that Sooner front.
LT – Chris Messner 6-6, 280
LG – George Robinson 6-5, 330
C – Jon Cooper 6-2, 285
RG – Brandon Walker 6-3, 306
RT – Trent Williams 6-5, 321
The Sooner line is tall and large. They are great run blockers, with incredible reach, paving the way for Oklahoma backs who totaled 2,306 rushing yards. The unit only gave up 14 sacks all season.
The undersized Bronco defensive line will certainly have its hands full.
“They definitely are a lot bigger than us,” Brooks said. “The main thing I think it will come down to is just filling in our gaps. They have a lot of power. Their offense line is great. They’re agile and strong, so I think being gap sound in the running game is going to help.”
It is vital for the Broncos to work as a team to handle the Sooner attack. No one player is stronger than a team. Although Adrian Peterson is a stud, no doubt, the Broncos play team defense. They rally to the ball and must maintain their gap responsibilities.
“It’s 11-on-11, the same game they have been playing and that’s the way we talk to them and the way you have to approach it,” Wilcox said. “Don’t go out there and be superman. You don’t have to play the best game of your life, you just have to do your job and we gotta make plays when we have a chance to make them.”
Most folks around the country see the Sooners as a running team, but since Peterson went down OU quarterback Paul Thompson really came into his own. The senior QB was a starting wide receiver going into the team’s final week of the preseason. Thompson replaced Rhett Bomar, who was cut from the team after receiving funds from a booster over the summer break.
Thompson’s favorite target is sophomore Malcolm Kelly. Kelly led the team in 2006 with 62 receptions for 993 yards and 10 touchdowns. IN total, Thompson threw 20 scores in the 2006 campaign with a pass efficiency of 144.78.
“They’ll be the best receivers we’ve seen,” Wilcox said. “It’s going to come down to fundamentals, not gutsing. But playing their keys and understanding where their help’s at and there going to be some times where we’re going to be one-on-one, where we’re going to have to compete and go to make the play not be scared to make a play.”
The Bronco corners will often be placed in vulnerable situations in the secondary, while the front seven or eight try to stop the running game. This could open the play-action passing game and set the 6-4, 217 Kelly free.
To stop the Sooners, well, the Broncos aren’t telling. They have kept their gameplan secret all week. They will surely throw in some new formations and try to confuse the Oklahoma offense, bit for the most part they will do what has put them in this game.
“We’re going to do what we do well and what we think will work,” Wilcox said. “We’re not going to re-invent the wheel in three weeks and put in some defense we haven’t run before.”
One thing the Broncos can do is remain focused, plod along and keep the Sooners from breaking any huge plays. The Sooners will score in this game. They will pick up first downs and they will put pressure on BSU. If the Broncos can limit big plays (like they have all year) and put the pressure on OU, they have much greater a chance at success.
“Teams that play good defense don’t play perfect every snap,” Wilcox said. “What they do is run to the ball and cover up for each other, so that if somebody does make a mistake it’s not so blaring.”
Limiting the mistakes is what is key. No team has ever played a perfect football game, but the Broncos are going to have to come close.
Dustin Lapray
