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Oklahoma-SMU GameDay: X-Factors

Big-time football ... Pass rush ... Limiting big plays ... Tempo ... Communication
John E. Hoover|
Oklahoma-SMU GameDay: X-Factors
Oklahoma-SMU GameDay: X-Factors

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Oklahoma Sooners

John Hoover: Big-time football

In the past dozen seasons, SMU has not fared well against teams from Power 5 conferences. Excluding the cross-town rivalry with TCU and any bowl games, the Mustangs have lost nine straight to the likes of Texas A&M, Baylor, Texas Tech, Michigan and Maryland by an average score of 46-16. That includes six straight on the road. It’s the era of the transfer portal, so this SMU squad is loaded with Power 5 castoffs, meaning they may be more talented than those recent Pony squads. They’re also headed to the ACC next year, so any upgrades will have to happen fast. SMU plays in a 32,000-seat home stadium in Dallas, so OU fans would serve their team well to be loud early and try to overwhelm SMU players with both scale and volume.

Ryan Chapman: Pass rush

Oklahoma dominated virtually every phase of the season opener against Arkansas State, yet only logged one quarterback sack and no official quarterback hurries. While the Red Wolves got rid of the ball quickly and kept plenty of bodies in to block, the Sooners will have to be able to move SMU quarterback Preston Stone out of the pocket on Saturday. The Mustangs have enough weapons at skill positions to hurt OU’s secondary if Stone is given plenty of time to operate. But if Oklahoma can get after Stone, there is the potential to rattle the talented SMU quarterback who lacks experience playing on the road — especially in front of 85,000 people.

Randall Sweet: Limiting big plays

SMU's offense is loaded with talented skill position players; including former 4-star recruit Preston Stone and former OU commits Jaylan Knighton and Jordan Hudson. With the three aforementioned players and former Texas A&M running back L.J. Johnson at their disposal, the Mustangs can strike quickly and score on chunk plays. Against Louisiana Tech in week one, SMU gained more than 25 yards on three plays in the first half alone. If Stone and company have similar success against Oklahoma, Brent Venables' defense could be in for a long day.

Ross Lovelace: Tempo

The Sooners simply dominated the tempo against Arkansas State, playing the game at their own pace and controlling the line of scrimmage. The hurry-up offense was lethal, and Jeff Lebby had things timed perfectly. Oklahoma knew when to speed up, and knew when to slow it down and get things settled. Tempo will be big going into a matchup with SMU, as the Mustangs like to speed things up in a big way. Against Louisiana Tech, SMU racked up 24 first downs and went 3-for-4 on fourth down attempts. The offense is aggressive and up-tempo, which could tire Oklahoma’s defense quickly. If the Sooners can control the line of scrimmage and establish the run early, it’ll go a long way in a matchup of two teams looking to play at a specific pace.

Tim Willert: Communication

In interviews this week, OU players on both sides of the ball said communication was key to the Sooners' success against Arkansas State and will be versus the Mustangs. Safety Reggie Pearson said SMU's up-tempo offense will throw lots of different looks at OU's defense to try to confuse it, and the Sooners must communicate effectively to prevent coverage busts. Same goes for the offensive line, which wants to keep the SMU pass rush off quarterback Dillon Gabriel.

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John E. Hoover
JOHN E. HOOVER

John is an award-winning journalist whose work spans five decades in Oklahoma, with multiple state, regional and national awards as a sportswriter at various newspapers. During his newspaper career, John covered the Dallas Cowboys, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, the Arkansas Razorbacks and much more. In 2016, John changed careers, migrating into radio and launching a YouTube channel, and has built a successful independent media company, DanCam Media. From there, John has written under the banners of Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, Fan Nation and a handful of local and national magazines while hosting daily sports talk radio shows in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and statewide. John has also spoken on Capitol Hill in Oklahoma City in a successful effort to put more certified athletic trainers in Oklahoma public high schools. Among the dozens of awards he has won, John most cherishes his national "Beat Writer of the Year" from the Associated Press Sports Editors, Oklahoma's "Best Sports Column" from the Society of Professional Journalists, and Two "Excellence in Sports Medicine Reporting" Awards from the National Athletic Trainers Association. John holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications from East Central University in Ada, OK. Born and raised in North Pole, Alaska, John played football and wrote for the school paper at Ada High School in Ada, OK. He enjoys books, movies and travel, and lives in Broken Arrow, OK, with his wife and two kids.

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