Two straight dominant performances have moved Oklahoma to the short list of national championship contenders. But few teams play to their potential every game. At some point there has to be a letdown, right?
If ever there was a game it could happen it’s at 2:30 p.m. today when the third-ranked Sooners (2-0) face Utah State (0-2).
Most good teams always have a game or two where the focus isn’t there or the intensity never arrives. Will this be the day it happens to OU?
There’s certainly a case for it. The Sooners are coming off a 51-13 victory over Miami. It was a game where virtually everything went right and the coaching staff said the week of practice leading up to the game might have been the best they’ve seen.
But they were saying the same things throughout training camp.
“I think more than anything, there’s just a pride factor,” OU coach Bob Stoops said. “We’ve developed some really positive habits of going through the week, of how we compete and how we get ready.”
There’s a reason players and coaches aren’t concerned with an impending dip.
Loafing a couple plays might not cost a game, but it can cost somebody a job. There’s a very real sense of always looking over the shoulder amongst the Sooners. If you’re not getting better, you better believe someone else is.
“If you go out there during the week and lolly-gag around, you might not be starting that week and it doesn’t matter if you’ve been starting for the last three years,” wide receiver Malcolm Kelly said. “If you don’t get it done in practice, there’s guys in the two deep and even three deep that can make plays on Saturday. If you don’t get it done during the week, you won’t be out there.”
Kelly is entering his third season as a starter and he thinks about it every day. Imagine the thoughts racing through a first-year player’s mind.
The coaches don’t mind the paranoia.
“If a player isn’t kind of buying in and playing with the effort and the intensity, there’s someone else who will,” offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson said.
Perhaps that wasn’t the case the last two seasons.
Youth and a lack of depth was something OU had battled in the seasons leading up to this one. When players are immature or unchallenged, problems arise.
If there was one thing the Sooners wanted to recapture this season, it was that sense of urgency. OU wanted to be a team that didn’t suffer letdowns. The great teams don’t let it happen.
Players have heard it like a steady drum beat for six months.
“It’s been a process which started back in the spring during two-a-days and everything like that and we have gotten used to it,” defensive end John Williams said. “We feel really good right now.”
And they’re playing that way.
Winning the first two games in blowouts was proof.
At some point, the blowouts will cease and the Sooners will be challenged for four quarters. That probably won’t be the case today. OU is a 45-point favorite for a reason.
But try bringing that about around the Switzer Center and all you’ll hear in return is that each game brings a different challenge.
Wilson said it best.
“I think they realize that you work real hard in our sport and those days are few and they’re priceless out here on this field,” he said. “These kids really work hard, and there’s a significant investment for very few opportunities. I think they’ve seen some opportunities slip out of their grasp, and I think this team seems to be well-grounded.”
If he’s right, there won’t be a letdown.
John Shinn
366-3536
jshinn@normantranscript.com
OU Sports
Letdown?
Sooners believe they'll bring it again
- OU Sports
-
-
Sooners make winning look easy
As Oklahoma’s players locked arms around the pitching circle, coming together for what passed as a celebration following Saturday’s 7-1 NCAA Super Regional-clinching victory over Arizona, three gloves remained near second base....
-
There are no easy outs in the lineup
Looking for a gameplan to stop Oklahoma? Well, one may or may not be available, but walking two of the first three Sooners you face certainly isn’t part of it. Just ask Arizona’s Kenzie Fowler....
-
Sooners will play for Big 12 championship
OKLAHOMA CITY, — It’s been 16 years since Oklahoma won the Big 12 tournament. It’s closer now than its ever been to ending the streak. The Sooners rolled through Baylor, 7-2, on Saturday at Bricktown Ballpark to advance to the tournament’s ...
-
Sooners send five more to nationals
AUSTIN, Texas — Oklahoma track and field teams had five more individuals qualify for the NCAA Championship on Saturday evening at the NCAA West Preliminary. The men’s 4x100-meter relay team also advanced to the national semifinals....
-
OU sophomore Jao-Javanil wins NCAA golf title
FRANKLIN, Tenn. — Oklahoma’s Chirapat Jao-Javanil made Oklahoma golf history Friday, becoming the first Sooner, man or woman, to win an individual NCAA national championship....
-
Pitching staff is exactly where Golloway wants it to be
When the Big 12 tournament began, Oklahoma felt like it had the pitching staff to make a deep run. Dillon Overton, Jordan John, Jonathan Gray and Damien Magnifico gave them four quality starters and a closer — Steven Okert — capable of ...
-
Sooners shut out Wildcats, need one more win for WCWS entry
Oklahoma might have scored more runs, not committed an error and starting pitcher Keilani Ricketts could have been just a little more efficient along the way....
-
Sooners send 4 more to NCAAs
AUSTIN, Texas – Oklahoma’s track and field teams added four individuals to the list of Sooners advancing to the NCAA championship Friday at the NCAA West Preliminary. In addition to the four new qualifiers, Brittany Borman advanced to the ...
-
Big 12, SEC deal breaks the mold
It is unclear what the on-the-field product of the game-for-which-there-is-not-yet-a-name will be. Indeed, all we really know is the Big 12 and SEC plan to play a game on Jan. 1, 2015 (and on every Jan. 1, thereafter) that will include ...
-
Rivalry helped shape program
For coach Patty Gasso, it goes all the way back to 1995, her first year at Oklahoma. That was when her Sooners played Arizona six times throughout the season. Those Sooners were “annihilated” in all six of those contests....
- More OU Sports Headlines
-
Sooners make winning look easy
