Oklahoma-Kansas: Three Keys to the Game

Stop the Run

Quarterback play is at the forefront for both teams. Will Dillon Gabriel play, or is OU back to the wildcat package with a little Davis Beville/General Booty/Nick Evers thrown in? And will Jalon Daniels be available for KU, or is it the Jason Bean show? It’s all on the table.

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But assuming all things are equal at QB, the biggest key for Oklahoma is stopping the run.

The Kansas offense ranks 18th nationally in rushing yards per game (214), and the OU defense ranks 122nd in rushing yards allowed per game (214.5). That’s strength on weakness, and it’s a potential disaster for the Sooners.

OU has employed a variety of defenses — four down linemen and three down linemen — and neither has been good. But the four-man front is more effective at stopping the run, and certainly has been for the Sooners.

In three games OU primarily deployed four down linemen (UTEP, Kent State and Kansas State), the opponent is averaging 159 yards per game and 3.6 yards per carry. In the three games the Sooners lined up mainly with three down linemen, the opponent is getting 273 yards per game and 6.0 yards per carry.

Other factors, such as quality of opponent (UTEP and Kent State skew the early numbers, TCU and Texas skew things in the other direction) and health of the team (the offense can’t stay on the field with no Gabriel, and safety Billy Bowman has missed the last two games) play into those numbers as well.

But the product on the field should be evaluated for what’s obvious. Oklahoma’s three-man alignment isn’t getting penetration and has been soft on the edges. TCU and Texas repeatedly exposed OU on the ground, running the football at will, and if Kansas gets the opportunity, they’ll do the same thing.

Get to the Passer

A hidden truth on OU’s run defense early in the season was that the Sooner defensive front was getting to the quarterback. In college football, sacks count against a team’s rushing numbers, so QB sacks help a run defense look good statistically.

But through six games, the Sooners rank just 39th nationally at 2.3 sacks per game.

Now, the vast majority of that work was done early. In the three-game losing streak to K-State, TCU and Texas, the OU defense has just one quarterback sack.

Assuming the KU offense is directed this week by Jason Bean, Oklahoma will be hard-pressed to get to Bean.

Bean might be the fastest quarterback playing college football right now — or any level of football, for that matter. In the 2018 Texas high school state track championships, Bean ran the 100 in 10.46 seconds. His personal best time came in the district meet, when he ran 10.36, and he followed that up in areas with a 10.37. He also ran a 10.40 during the 2018 outdoor season, and he anchored Mansfield’s 4x100 and 4x200 teams and finished that season with gold medals in 10 races.

Bean doesn’t have Adrian Martinez’ pocket presence or Max Duggan’s experience, but he is faster and more explosive.

If the Sooner pash rush can get a glove on him, it’s imperative they get him to the ground — or the guy who threw for 262 yards and four TDs on just 14 completions against TCU last week will beat them with his legs.

Of course, that will be easier said than done. Kansas has given up just three sacks all year, which ranks fourth in the nation for fewest sacks allowed. The KU front consists of a super senior, a fifth-year senior, a fourth-year junior and two third-year sophomores, plus a fifth-year senior tight end.

Own the LOS

Kansas is 0-10 under Lance Leipold when the opposition runs the football for more than 200 yards.

Guess what Oklahoma really ought to strive for on Saturday?

Reestablishing a toughness mindset and abandoning the up-tempo, pass-first scheme would be a great place for Sooners offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby to start.

First, a lot of rushing attempts — 55, say — would take the football out of Dillon Gabriel’s hands. For a quarterback who may already have been suffering from a lack of confidence and now also is returning from a concussion, minimizing the need for him to throw the football would only be a good thing. Nothing wrong with easing him back into action safely and smartly.

But in the big picture, Lebby calling run plays that chew up chunks of yardage and keep the struggling OU defense on the sideline can lead to great things for the Sooner offense.

The Kansas run defense ranks 39th in the nation by giving up just 120.3 yards per game. KU allows 275 yards per game through the air, so Lebby will be tempted to take advantage of the Jayhawks there. But being patient and moving the chains and grinding out consistent gains on the ground with Eric Gray and Marcus Major and Jovantae Barnes will pay bigger dividends in the fourth quarter Saturday as well as throughout the second half of the season.

Sooner running backs have posted four 100-yard games already this year. Saturday would be the ideal time to post a fifth (and maybe sixth).