More than 62,000 people were going crazy last Saturday at Faurot Field, but Oklahoma cornerback Lendy Holmes wasn’t one of them. He felt like he could see into the future and something was about to happen to quiet all but the small portion of Sooner fans.
Missouri was facing a fourth-and-1 from the OU 1-yard line. The Tigers were a touchdown away from getting back in the game. Just about everything rode on the play.
Then he saw Missouri’s Chase Coffman jog out wide. Holmes knew what was coming next. He’d seen the play all week in practice.
“When I saw No. 45 was lined up on my side I knew it was going to be a fade,” Holmes said. “As soon as I saw where he lined up, I knew they were going to try a fade route on me.”
Sure enough, Coffman sprinted to the corner of the end zone and quarterback Chase Daniel lofted the ball to him.
Holmes was there waiting, breaking up the pass and effectively eliminating the Tigers’ hopes of turning back the Sooners. It was one of four pass breakups he had on the day. He also added an interception and a fumble recovery.
“That’s a pretty special day out there at corner,” OU coach Bob Stoops said.
Those are the kinds of plays great cornerbacks make. They’re also the ones that don’t come naturally.
Holmes knows that better than most.
He’s received a crash course over the last year. Only now have the lessons started to sink in.
Sooner coaches saw a player that could help them win when they recruited him out of Dallas’ South Oak Cliff High School in 2004.
They just weren’t sure where.
Holmes played eight different positions during his prep career. He went 8-1 as a starting quarterback, but also caught 10 touchdown passes.
“I was basically recruited as an athlete,” he said. “I didn’t know where I was going to play.”
Initially, he settled in as a wide receiver. At 6-1 and close to 200 pounds, he had the size to do it and his speed was never questioned.
He redshirted as OU marched to a Big 12 title his first season. He managed to play in 10 games last season and even caught two passes.
But he saw freshmen like Malcolm Kelly, Juaquin Iglesias and Manuel Johnson ahead of him on the depth chart.
Last spring he made the move to defensive back. He turned some heads with a solid spring and had moved his way into the starting lineup by the time OU traveled to Oregon earlier this season.
He struggled that day, blowing an assignment on the game’s second play that led to the Ducks’ first touchdown.
But three games later, he was stuffing Iowa State running backs for losses and shutting down wide receivers.
If you’re looking for a day all the lights came on that was it.
“During that game I started playing more comfortable,” he said. “If it’s like this, I got this.”
It’s no surprise the Sooner defense has been rolling since. They’ve allowed 10 points or less in the last three games.
Defensive coordinator Brent Venables believes Holmes is big reason for the unit’s turnaround.
“Lendy’s move helped a great deal in stabilizing the secondary and the defense as a whole, because that position is such a playmaking position for us,” he said.
He’ll try to make more when the 18th-ranked Sooners (6-2, 3-1 Big 12) face No. 20 Texas A&M; at 7 p.m. Saturday at Kyle Field.
Holmes has experienced the lows of football, but he’s experiencing the highs and he knows why.
“It’s my comfort zone because I’m seeing it and reacting to it,” Holmes said. “When game time comes I’m comfortable and just waiting for it to happen.”
John Shinn366-3536jshinn@normantranscript.com
OU Sports
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Holmes getting better every game
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