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It all started seven days ago on the bus ride back across the Red River after Oklahoma’s loss to Texas.
OU coach Bob Stoops sat in the front seat with defensive coordinator Brent Venables behind him. For three and a half hours, their discussion centered on what the Sooners would do without middle linebacker Ryan Reynolds.
“We needed a guy with experience that could help us from a mental side as well as a physical side,” Venables said.
Six days later the decision was unveiled in Saturday’s 45-31 victory over No. 16 Kansas at Owen Field, and it was equal parts practical and conspiritorial.
The obvious choice was to move backup Austin Box to middle linebacker. But moving the redshirt freshman into a starting role had drawbacks. Box had never played there before, but he was also one of the few linebackers who had shown the ability to make plays in a meaningful situation.
The other choice was to move safety Nic Harris down to linebacker. It was a tough sell because Harris had never played the position and it also meant moving Quinton Carter into a starting role at safety.
The conspiracy was the final piece of the puzzle. Texas had attacked the vulnerable spot Reynolds vacated last week. Why not let Kansas think it could do the same thing?
“We wanted KU to think there would be some opportunities there (in the middle),” Venables said.
It all came to fruition when Harris lined up at middle linebacker and stayed there for the entire game. His presence filled the void Texas exploited and paved the way for the victory.
“It takes a lot of guts on his part for him to step in there and be willing to do it,” Stoops said of Harris. “He handled it really well for the most part.”
Harris is the most proven commodity on OU’s defense. He was an All-Big 12 selection at safety the last two seasons.
But he said Saturday’s challenge was the biggest one he’s faced at OU.
“You know they say talent is about 10 percent ability and 90 percent mental. Well, today it was about 99 percent mental,” Harris said after making five tackles at his new spot. “There is a lot you have to know and a lot that is going on, and right now I have a headache, but I was just happy we came out with the win.”
It’s hard to say defense was the difference in a game where two teams combined over 1,100 yards of total offense and the winner gave up a season high 491 yards.
But it was.
OU’s defense made the plays in the second half to turn the offensive shootout into a comfortable victory. It was able to sack Kansas quarterback Todd Reesing five times. It was able to get two huge interceptions from safety Lendy Holmes and it was able to hold the Jayhawks to 2 of 12 on third-down conversions.
“There were parts when we really gelled in the second half,” Stoops said. “(Kansas) executed well and they are a good team. These guys have put up a ton of points and yards on everybody.”
The Jayhawks (5-2, 2-1 Big 12) did again Saturday. But it wasn’t enough to match a Sooner offense that set several offensive records and put up an incredible 674 yards and didn’t turn the ball over either.
In the end, it came down to which defense could come up with stops. The Sooners (6-1, 2-1) shuffled the deck to get themselves a chance to do it. In the end, their gambles paid off.
John Shinn
366-3536
jshinn@normantranscript.com
OU Sports
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