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Still Can't Run:
It's pretty amazing how inept the running game has been all season for Oklahoma State. There have been a couple of instances that they looked like they might turn the corner (metaphorically and literally) and then they fall right back to mediocrity. Enter the Sooner defense consisting of Charles Tapper, Dominique Alexander and Eric Striker. Pardon my slang, but it AINT GETTING ANY BETTER. I don't know what people expect at this point from Carson, Childs and Taylor at this point. Especially Carson. Think about it this way, because this gets lost in the discussion. Childs and Taylor are built to be runners that move off-tackle and outside. Carson is meant to run in the A and B-gaps inside. You wanna know why Carson is doing worse than the other two? It is because he's running straight into the arms of defensive tackles whereas Childs and Taylor are running away from them. If this line was worth a dang, Chris Carson would easily be the best running back on this roster, but now we're displacing blame for some reason so here's the call back to reality. The running backs are fine, the line still is awful. Water is wet. The game will also BE wet Saturday, which means the double-digit tackles for loss numbers for Striker (15.5), Tapper (10), and Charles Walker (10) will likely go up. Get ready.
Better than Baylor:
I'm not breaking any news here. This Sooner defense is immensely better than the Baylor defense that at times looked dominant against Oklahoma State's offense this last week. As previously mentioned, there are three players that have accumulated 10 TFL's but as a team, the Sooners have tackled the ball carrier in the backfield 80 DIFFERENT TIMES. That is more than seven per game. There's nothing you can really do about that. Oh, and lest we forget, if Mason Rudolph lets passes sail on him, there will interceptions abound with Zack Sanchez and the Sooner secondary picking off passes left and right all year. Sanchez alone has six. That all may not matter about Rudolph though, and here's why.....
Flat Tire:
The ole boy may have a bum foot. Nothing confirmed but some reputable people are beginning to murmur about it and I'm starting to listen.
If this situation prevails, you may as well come to grips with this game going the way of the Sooners. Sad but true.
Coffelt's Picks:
It will be cold, it will be wet, and likely be miserable. These games have had crazy finishes the last two times, favoring the visitor so anything is possible, but I've got the unfavorable Final Score: Sooners 31-21 over the Pokes. Sometimes you just have to know what's coming.