NORMAN — As good as Oklahoma’s performance was Saturday against Kansas State, it came with a price. Running back Dominique Whaley is expected to miss the rest of the season after breaking his left ankle on the game’s first play.
“I think they’re going to have to do surgery tomorrow and put a pin in it,” OU coach Bob Stoops said. “I’m sure that will be it for Dom for the year. Really sad for Dom. What a great young man. We’ll miss him.”
Whaley was blocking on a sweep and was rolled up from behind by a Kansas State defender. An air cast was put on his left leg and he was taken off the field on a cart. He returned to sidelines later in the game, but was on crutches.
“It was devastating to see him go down,” said Sooner running back Roy Finch. “We all know how hard he’s worked all year. He was a major contributor to our team. He was our workhorse. To see him go down was just so sad. We just prayed, and he’s going to be OK. We had to move on and make plays without him.”
Finch rushed for 73 yards on nine carries Saturday. Freshman Brandon Williams rushed for 22 yards on eight carries. Fullback Trey Millard also got one carry and rumbled for a 61-yard touchdown.
Another record
Ryan Broyles, who had 171 receiving yards, set the Big 12 Conference record for career receiving yards Saturday. The previous mark was 4,414 yards set by Oklahoma State’s Rashaun Woods (2000-03). Broyles finished the day with 4,449. He needs 506 yards in the next five games to reach the NCAA all-time mark set by Nevada’s Trevor Insley (1996-99).
Big day for Jones
OU quarterback Landry Jones set a school record with 505 passing yards. However, the performance also caused another school record to fall.
Jones passed Sam Bradford (2007-09) to become OU’s all-time leader in passing touchdowns. Bradford had 88. Jones now has 90.
Package for Bell
The biggest wrinkle OU came up with Saturday was using redshirt freshman quarterback Blake Bell in goal-line situations. OU’s opening drive ended on a 1-yard touchdown by Bell.
“It’s a little package we have. They called me in there and I did my job,” Bell said.
Offensive coordinator Josh Heupel said they’ve been developing a package for Bell the last several weeks. The hope is that using the 255-pound Bell will help solve OU’s red zone woes. It was 5-for-5 with five touchdowns in red zone scoring chances.
“It’s something we’ll keep evolving with and getting more of,” Stoops said of using Bell in short-yardage situations. “He’s so physical and strong. He’s about 255 pounds. It’s just another guy to defend, and the beauty of it is he can throw the ball.
“We’re going to keep developing that and have some wrinkles from it.”
Wort, Walker return
Middle linebacker Tom Wort and defensive tackle Casey Walker both returned from the injuries that kept them out against Texas Tech. Wort missed the last game with a concussion. Walker had a thumb injury. Wort led OU with six tackles and two sacks. Walker had two tackles.
Cornerback Jamell Fleming suited up and went through pregame warmups, but did not play due to a knee injury.
John Shinn 366-3536 jshinn@normantranscript.com
