Previewing OU-Texas
Texas, pardon the pun, has a lot on the line Wednesday night when the Longhorns host Oklahoma. If the rematch is anything like the first meeting in Norman the difference could be determined at the line.
Considered a NCAA Tournament bubble team by most national analysts, Texas probably needs to sweep the season series. A home loss to the Sooners (14-14 overall, 4-12 in league play) would severely damage the Longhorns’ NCAA hopes.
In the first meeting earlier this month, a 69-58 Texas win, the two most glaring stats were the Longhorns edge in points off a turnovers and an overwhelming 19-point edge at the free throw line.
That’s been the trend for both teams all season.
Texas leads the conference in free throw attempts (729), a staggering 210 more attempts than the Sooners.
“We’re trying to be aggressive,” said Texas coach Rick Barnes. “But I want to see us be better with details, whether that’s screens or other areas we’re not where we need to be.”
In the first meeting Texas was 24-of-29 at the line. The Sooners were 5-of-8.
“We turned the ball over early in the second half and fouled a few times in transition after we turned the ball over,” said OU coach Lon Kruger. “Some of it was a result of (mistakes) on our end which resulted in them having an advantage in transition.
“Texas is a good basketball team. They have a lot of guys that can attack you, good size and experience on the inside. (J’Covan) Brown, of course, can make tough shots, big shots at critical times.”
OU’s defense played well in the first meeting, limiting the Longhorns to 38 percent shooting which will bolstered by 10 fast-break points and a 21-5 edge in points off turnovers.
The Sooners owned an eight-point lead late in the first half but Texas dominated the first 10 minutes of the second half to build a double digit lead.
“(Steven) Pledger can be as explosive as any player in the league,” Barnes said. “Their front-line players (Romero Osby and Andrew Fitzgerald) do some really neat things. They can step away from the basket or score inside. They show you some things you don’t see a lot out of post players.”
Sooners NFL Combine update: Fleming standing out
CAMPUS CORNER — I said I was not quite sure what to expect from former Oklahoma cornerback Jamell Fleming today at the NFL Combine. Suffice it to say that I underestimated him.
I thought Fleming would excel at the ball/hip drills, but I didn’t know about the 40 and the other measureables. But …
Bench: 23 reps
40: 4:43 seconds
Wow. On both. Fleming’s strength is his, well, strength, but I didn’t realize he would be able to elevate the 225-pound bar that many times – second of all defensive backs, behind only Arizona State’s Omar Bolden‘s 24 reps.
Some DBs are still running the 40 right now, but his time is tied for seventh — and that’s excellent considering the kind of speedsters in Indy. (The current top time, for instance, is 4.31.)
Let’s see how Fleming finishes in the shuttles, cones and jumps.
Fleming stood out to scouts during the Senior Bowl practices, as well as the game itself, and what he’s doing today should only help him. Don’t think he’s a first-day guy, but Fleming might be climbing toward early part of the second round.
= Trav
Sooners Combine Update: Ronnell shines, Big Frank missing
CAMPUS CORNER — Three Sooners were scheduled to be in action today at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis: linebackers Ronnell Lewis and Travis Lewis, as well as defensive end Frank Alexander.
Let’s start with Alexander. The Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year curiously tweeted this last night: “Minor setback for a major comeback! Gotta keep my head high and keep on pressing #Godisgood.” He told someone shortly thereafter that he would not be able to participate today.
Alexander played the second half of the 2011 season with a bad shoulder – I believe he said it was a stinger – and it flared toward the end of the season. That could be a culprit, with Alexander and his representation choosing to save any workouts for OU’s March 14 Pro Day. In any case, no Big Frank in Indy.
Like I presumed, Ronnell Lewis started wowing teams Sunday, benching 225 pounds 36 times – more than any linebacker, and second of anyone at the Combine. (Michigan center David Molk currently has the high mark, at 41.)
Lewis followed that up Monday with a 4.68-second 40, solid considering he is one of those end-linebacker hybrid types. I was surprised Lewis did not fare better in the vertical (31 inches). You just about expect him to do anything, jump over the vert keys or something, given how gifted he is.
One of the analysts there, National Football Post’s Dion Caputi said, Lewis “had a very nice overall workout” and “was one of the real winners” Monday. That’s not surprising, based on the type of animal Lewis is. He’s built for stuff like this. How did he do when he spoke with teams? How would he fit as an NFL linebacker? Those are the pressing questions about Lewis, R. exiting this week.
Just saw on NFL Net that Travis Lewis tweaked a hamstring in his first 40 run. NFL.com says his first run was a 4.88 (yeesh!), so we’ll assume the leg surely had something to do with that. Remember that teammate Don Stephenson, an offensive tackle, ran a 4.91 on Saturday.
That’s a blow for Lewis, who obviously had intended to go through the drills. Pressure will be turned up for Pro Day in Norman. Earlier, he did at least turn in a 10-foot, 2-inch broad jump, sixth among linebackers. So he might let that stand.
The only Sooner left to perform tomorrow is cornerback Jamell Fleming. I doubt he’ll set a lot of high/low numbers in the workouts, but I’ll bet scouts like the way he works in the ball/hip drills. He earned a lot of high marks for his Senior Bowl practices. Curious to see what the buzz about him is after Tuesday.
= Trav
Stills humbled after Thunder win
CAMPUS CORNER — I was hoping someone would snap a pic of Cali Trio member Kenny Stills wearing a Thunder jersey today. Stills, being the good sport that he is, took it upon himself.
Stills lost a bet that his Lakers would beat the Thunder on Thursday night. As a result, Stills is wearing this Durant jersey on campus. The junior receiver’s caption with the photo: “Lost a bet … Sticking to my word.”
Good stuff.
Stills channels KD
What a game last night. Thunder took off after that flurry to finish the first half. James Harden, already part owner of this city’s heart, took another chunk with his defense of – and fireside chatting with – Kobe Bryant. I loved it.
And what a first half of the season – 27-7. I’m fully swept up in it, already. Went to my first three games last week. I was already hooked – and then I saw the ultimate, Sunday night’s overtime win against Denver. One of the best regular-season games of any kind that I’ve seen. (Bonus: I wasn’t working.) Looking forward to the second half, though I’ll miss the week that includes the Clips, Wolves and Heat.
Maybe the Heat will be back in June?
= Trav
How will new NCAA kickoff rules affect Sooners, O’Hara?
CAMPUS CORNER — The NCAA just released this statement regarding new rules for the 2012 football season, including some fairly significant adjustments to kickoffs. The rules were proposed a couple of weeks ago, and they were approved Tuesday, according to the release.
A number of Oklahoma fans complained last season, at least that I heard, that not enough kickoffs from Michael Hunnicutt and Patrick O’Hara were reaching the end zone. (Nineteen of 96 did.) Well, the NCAA has brought the end zone closer to those young men.
Kickoffs will now be teed up at the 35-yard line, instead of the 30. To offset that, touchbacks will now come out to the 25-yard line and not the 20. Yeah, that will take some getting used to. Punts and fumbles through the end zone will still come out to the 20, not the 25. That, in and of itself, is a bit strange, to have two different touchback yard lines. Another thing to explain to your kids (or wives?).
Does this mean we’ll see more of the “sky” kicks, pooched inside the 10, to see if coverage teams can stop the return man before the 25? Eh, probably not. The NCAA most likely has it figured that the team’s average starting position previously, when there were fewer touchbacks, was around the 25, anyway. I can’t argue with that reasoning. But I’m wondering why it needs changing.
I know the severe injuries over the years have been awful, but are kickoffs that much more dangerous than any other play in football? Seems as if return men are rarely injured. Unaware blockers are most at risk. I’m just not sure the changes, relatively dramatic, are all that warranted, at least in the name of safety. But the NCAA evidently sees it differently.
Back to the Sooners, here are their kickoff numbers from 2011.
KICKOFFS No. Yds Avg TB OB Retn Net YdLn
-------------------------------------------------------- O'Hara,Patrick 83 5411 65.2 19 2 Hunnicutt,Mike 13 704 54.2 0 0 Total.......... 96 6115 63.7 19 2
As a junior, O’Hara put 19 of 83 kickoffs in the end zone – a 22.9 percent touchback rate. Not horrendous, but certainly not where OU would have liked it. Expect that number to potentially double, or more, this season for O’Hara — whose 65.2 yards per kickoff average in 2011 would have carried him just past the goal line. So it’s reasonable to believe a 50 percent touchback rate is plausible, if not closer to 60 percent.
= Trav
OU among those against multi-year scholarships
CAMPUS CORNER — I intended to produce this blog post yesterday, but we’ve had some technical difficulties with our platform. My apologies for the delay, because I know all your water coolers (do people even have those anymore?) have been buzzing with talk of multi-year scholarships in the NCAA.
First of all, the new rule – introduced in December – has been upheld, but each conference and institution can decide whether it wants to employ the rule. So there’s the skinny, as background.
The Chronicle of Higher Education, which has been closely following this story since the changes were presented in the fall by the NCAA, reported Wednesday that a number of schools – Oklahoma, included – were against the multi-year scholarships for student-athletes. In fact, the entire Big 12 came out against it.
That’s not surprising. The multi-year scholarships hamstring teams that, really, need flexibility to maintain roster numbers. I’m not making excuses for the coaches; it’s just the truth. As much as you’d like to offer that sort of security, frankly, there are kids who do not merit such security. That’s just reality. You’d inevitably wind up with freeloaders on your roster, players coasting because they had nothing to drive them to progress. Heck, that happens already, even with the year-to-year scholarship system currently in place. Just imagine if they were entitled with a four-year ride from the get-go. Sometimes that scholarship is what motivates a reserve to become a starter. Sometimes it weeds out the kids who do not need to be there. Without that, that flexibility is gone.
I think roster management (using college football as the prime example) is a lot more difficult than people, including many on the academic side, care to acknowledge or admit. It is a business, and a difficult one to manage. In an ideal world, sure, kids would have that sort of security. But, again, how can you ensure on the front end that all student-athletes are worth that sort of security? You can’t, simply. I’m certainly against coaches who wield their power with scholarships in a vindictive manner, but I have always contended – and I don’t think it’s naive – that, for the most part, coaches make those decisions for the right reasons. That’s my impression of the coaches I’ve been around, anyhow – and I’m including Bob Stoops in that category.
I think he does what he needs to, to manage the numbers, but he’s not yanking anyone around to benefit his program. The student-athletes are all too often turned into victims in this process, when that certainly is not always the case. The grotesque cases should be spotlighted, for sure – the recent LSU signee who enrolled, unpacked and was then told to leave comes to mind – but, c’mon, some of these guys need to pack their bags. Let’s be honest about it. It works both ways.
Scholarships are not arbitrarily pulled. There are always reasons. Even if it is based on athletic performance, shouldn’t that be a sufficient reason? If I receive an academic scholarship – meaning the school has valued, to some degree, my academic prowess and record – and I don’t keep the minimum standard, then shouldn’t I be subject to repeal of that scholarship? Certainly. And that is the way it plays out on campuses across the country. Similarly – and I understand it’s more of a subjective deal – if a player is not pulling his weight to meet the requirements of his or her scholarship (being punctual to events, making grades, earning playing time), then why shouldn’t that scholarship be called into question?
Let’s revisit what Stoops did in December, “cleaning house” with players who had refused to get in line with his level of expectation. They had their scholarships “pulled.” But Stoops laid out plenty of reasons why it happened: failing drug tests, failing or skipping classes, being late or missing meetings, practices or other team functions. All those kinds of things swirl into one larger thing. Or maybe a player is just too lazy or incapable of doing the work to improve. After a couple of years, that becomes evident. And I think it’s OK, as Stoops says, to move on. Those guys are taking up resources and space – and some know that and are taking advantage of it. That might rankle those in academia, but, to me, it’s the reality of the sport and managing, oh, about 100 college-age guys.
Here’s what he said then, around the time of the bowl game:
“I’m not a guy who (says), ‘Oh, you did something wrong, get out of here.’ They’re kids. You try to get them, just like your own, get a hold of it, give them the right instruction. ‘I believe in you.’ Give them confidence.
“But when they continually don’t do it, (you say) ‘all right, enough’s enough. It’s time to cut bait.’ You’ve proven to me over and over, over a period of time …
“And sometimes you’re too good a guy. You hang on too long, trying to help a kid out. Other kids in the program, that’s happened and they did figure it all out. All of a sudden, Coach is right. They start doing things right and they end up having huge careers. Other ones, sometimes they burn you. Other times, maybe they’ve infected two or three other guys and that’s brought them down.”
So that’s a little insight as to how coaches approach kids who aren’t picking it up, on or off the field.
= Trav
Free throws could be key in Bedlam
Oklahoma State senior guard Keiton Page scored 40 points in a win over Texas in the Cowboys’ most recent game. Page got half those points at the line, going 20-for-20 at the charity stripe.
“You have to stay down on Keiton Page,” said OU point guard Carl Blair. “He pump fakes a lot. You have to stay on the floor. Every time we’ve played him he’s gotten to the free throw line a lot. You have to minimize that and make people shoot over you.”
How the Sooners fare at the free throw line could impact the Bedlam outcome Wednesday night at Lloyd Noble Center. In the first meeting, a 72-65 OSU win, the Cowboys outscored OU by 10 points at the line, a recent trend.
In OU’s loss last week against Texas the Longhorns owned an overwhelming 24-5 edge in points off free throws. During a six-game losing streak every opponent has made more free throws than the Sooners. In fact, OU hasn’t outscored an opponent at the line since a win over Texas Tech a month ago.
“We have to do a good job of guarding without fouling,” said OU coach Lon Kruger. “(On offense) we have to be aggressive with the ball.”
OSU hasn’t won at Lloyd Noble Center since 2004. To add to its Bedlam home winning streak the Sooners might have to win the free throw battle.
“It’s a physical game and it’s a rivalry game,” said OU forward Romero Osby. “Fouls are probably going to come into play.”
Tweetgate: Recruits receive offers from Norvell’s account
CAMPUS CORNER — Curious case this morning involving Oklahoma receivers coach and co-offensive coordinator Jay Norvell and a handful of 2013 recruits.
The following six high school players — all top-flight receivers with myriad offers — received tweets from Norvell’s Twitter account …
Ahmad Fulwood – WR, Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville, Fla.)
Uriah LeMay – WR, Butler (Matthews, N.C.)
James Quick – WR, Trinity (Louisville, Ky.)
Demarcus Robinson – WR, Peach County (Fort Valley, Ga.)
Rashaad Samples – WR, Dallas Skyline
Ricky Seals-Jones – WR, Sealy (Texas)
Each of the six received this stock message: “This is Coach Jay Norvell from Oklahoma. Cel (405) 431-XXXX Would like to offer you a Full Scholarship to Oklahoma. Call me!”
Seals-Jones was told about a March 4 Junior Day: “(W)e would like you to come and spend the day with us at OU!”
Samples was told “(w)e have to get you a new picture for you (sic) Twitter account. BOOMer!”
Robinson was told “we have the best Offense in the country for a WR Here at OU!” And: “We want you to be a Sooner!”
As I understand it, since it’s a “quiet” period until April, the tweets would be a secondary violation. The DMs would have been, as well, but … well … they’re discrete. These messages are not.
Samples is the only player I’ve seen that has responded. He first wondered if Norvell’s account was hacked, but now that message is gone. He then said the offer was legitimate, but I don’t see that one now, either.
All that’s left is this: “I hope coach Norvell don’t get in trouble man.” And: “Man that’s messed up if he get in trouble over that … Smh.”
All the tweets are things coaches practically would say in the course of recruiting. There’s no reason to believe Norvell’s account was hacked, other than the tweets were public instead of private. (I haven’t made that mistake, personally, but I know a lot of people who have.) I’m assuming Norvell, either way, will be getting a new cell number.
Embarrassing for Norvell, OU, no matter how it’s sliced. The perils of social media, I suppose.
Here are screen caps of the tweets, courtesy SBNation.
Norvell tweets?
= Trav
Open Mike: Big 12 football podcast with Sports Editor Mike Sherman and Columnist Berry Tramel
Berry Tramel and Mike Sherman were in the podcast studio at The Oklahoman this week to talk Big 12 football scheduling, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State’s 2012 schedules, conference realignment, the future of TCU football, and which Big 12 conference games could be moved to a Thursday night.
You can listen to the full podcast here.
Three Sooners earn academic honors
Andrew Fitzgerald, Barry Honoré and Tyler Neal were each named to the 2012 Academic All-Big 12 Team Thursday. They were among nine second-team selections and 20 overall honorees.
First-team members have recorded a 3.20 or better GPA, while second-team honorees are those with a 3.00 to 3.19 GPA.
Fitzgerald, an administrative leadership major from Baltimore, Md., is OU’s second-leading scorer and rebounder this season. The junior forward averages 13.1 points and 4.7 rebounds per game while ranking fifth in the league with his .490 field goal percentage. He has scored in double figures in 18 of the last 20 games.
Honoré, a senior forward who is majoring in multidisciplinary studies, has played in 18 of the team’s 25 games this season and is averaging 0.8 points and 0.9 rebounds in 4.7 minutes per contest. From Garland, Texas, he is in his third year at Oklahoma after transferring from Southern University.
A sophomore forward majoring in sociology, Neal is averaging 4.0 points and 2.5 rebounds in 13.0 minutes per game this year. He is coming off an eight-point performance against Texas on Tuesday, his highest scoring output in Big 12 play this season. Neal is from Oklahoma City.
To qualify for the all-academic team, student-athletes must maintain a 3.00 GPA or higher (either cumulative or over the two previous semesters) and have participated in 60 percent of his team’s scheduled contests. Freshmen and transfers are not eligible in their first year of academic residence. Senior student-athletes who have participated for a minimum of two years and meet all the criteria except percent of participation are also eligible.
The Sooners, riding a five-game losing streak, play on Saturday at Iowa State at 12:45 p.m.
