College Football Notebook: PAC 10 Playing Some Defense?

By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season

The PAC 10 has long been an offensive league with video-game scores every Saturday.

Through three weeks, three teams are among the top seven nationally in scoring offense, and four are ranked in the top 13.

But in addition to leading the country with 63 points per game, Oregon also leads the nation in fewest points allowed — 4.33 per outing. Arizona is seventh and Stanford is ranked 15th.

Surely none of these teams will maintain this type of defensive dominance once league play heats up, but it's worth mentioning that a pinball league can get some stops for a change. The PAC 10 race could be the most interesting one to watch this season.

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Big 12 Preview: Nebraska, Texas Will Play Twice

By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season

Even without Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska's defense will again be outstanding enough to win the Big 12 North in 2010, and the South will again come down to Texas-Oklahoma.

Just in case the Longhorns and Sooners feel like phoning things in, however, Texas A&M will play the role of the third wheel this season and is quite capable of surprising one of those teams.

But that's just it; Oklahoma is pretty darned hungry after last year's injury-plagued 8-5 debacle, so it's hard to see the Sooners take even one play off in 2010.

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No. 9: Oklahoma Sooners

The One Great Season College Football Countdown continues Tuesday. We'll be counting down the preseason Top 25 teams in 2010. Today's No. 9 is Oklahoma.

By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season

Not only did Oklahoma suffer tremendous injuries last year, but many of them happened early in the season, forcing untested players into key, season-long roles for which they might not have been ready. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, right?

One of those players was quarterback Landry Jones. He and several others took some lumps during a five-loss campaign last year, but now that 2009 is long behind them and eyes are turned toward a new season, there's renewed optimism with all that experienced gained.

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Weekend Preview: OU-Texas

By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season

ATLANTA -- Ever just do away with the Xs and Os and maybe even abandon rational thinking entirely in favor of a feeling you have deep down in your gut?

I do it a few times each football season, and that's how I feel heading into Saturday's Oklahoma-Texas game.

You'd think the Longhorns are the obvious choice, but, are they really? Don't let records and rankings fool you. Sure Oklahoma has two losses and is on the outer edge of the Top 25. But remember, each of those losses was by one point, and Bob Stoops' Sooners were without Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford for six of the eight quarters in those games.

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Bradford is back, and while he might not be 100 percent, he enjoyed some tuneup action in a 33-7 defeat of Baylor in his return last week.

As he rounds back into form, he also has two stud running backs to hand the ball to in Chris Brown and DeMarco Murray. Texas is without its top two running backs.

Also, Oklahoma boasts a strong and stubborn defense, allowing opponents just eight points per game in five outings. Texas allows 15 points per game, which isn't bad, but the Longhorns haven't really been tested the way Oklahoma has.

Lastly, I think with the pressure of a national championship run not bothering OU players, the Sooners should be going into this game focused just on this game, whereas Texas players still suffer the burden of trying to remain perfect in the big picture.

I do like Colt McCoy, and he was a hair away from a Heisman Trophy and a berth in the BCS National Championship game last year. And I do like that he and his OU counterpart are friendly, but I think Bradford and the Sooners will be the only ones smiling in Texas Saturday afternoon.

USC at Notre Dame: USC already suffered its one hiccup of the season when it lost to Washington last month. The Trojans are in their own class when they want to be, and I think they'll want to be on Saturday in South Bend.

Jimmy Clausen's Heisman bid will end as USC will show Irish fans what a real defense looks like. The Trojans aren't too shabby on offense either, and against a Notre Dame defense that can give up big plays, look for Pete Carroll's group to score frequently.

Losing to USC, however, does not mean Charlies Weis should be fired. That talk is so tiresome. With four of their six remaining games at home after this one, the Irish still have a chance to reach 10 wins.

Virginia Tech at Georgia Tech: Both teams run the ball very well, particularly the Yellow Jackets. But the difference will be on defense, where Virginia Tech looks like a typical Frank Beamer unit. The Hokies are strong and fast and physical.

Beamer's bunch is also capable of making a big special teams play every single week, and that could be the X factor as the home team will certainly keep it close.

I picked Virginia Tech to be the best team in the ACC this year -- did anyone not? -- and the Hokies will show why on Saturday.

Adrian Taylor is Concerned About Mothers of O-Linemen

By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season

NORMAN, Okla. -- If there's one question mark about the Oklahoma Sooners this year, it's their offensive line. There's a lot of talent and experience they need to fill, and this year one key change is at center.

That's where Brody Eldridge, a former fullback who was such a good blocker that he earned All Big XII honors without registering a single carry in 2007, will be the new starter.

Slightly undersized at 265 pounds, he's spent much of the preseason bumping up against 291-pound Adrian Taylor, a key cog in what will no doubt be one of the nation's finest defensive fronts.

Taylor, referenced previously on OGS for what he expected to be a major throwdown in his father's Dallas kitchen this weekend, described some tricks he's got up his sleeve as he tries to prep Eldridge for his new role.

Adrian Taylor's Dad is "An Undercover Chef"

By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season

NORMAN, Okla. -- I like Adrian Taylor a lot. Oklahoma's junior defensive tackle was pretty fun to listen to when a few of the Sooners defensive players talked to the media on Tuesday.

And then on Wednesday, my last night in Norman, as I drove through campus one last time, I remembered I'd wanted to take a picture of the Barry Switzer Center right near the stadium.

After having parked illegally for about the eighth time in my 36 hours here, I hustled over to snap off a few quick frames. As I turned to head back to the car, I heard, "You the newspaper guy?"

I turned back and at 6-foot-4, 291 pounds, he was one of the larger people who'd started a conversation with me in many years.

We realized we'd met the previous day after practice, and I explained my project to him, telling him it was made possible in large part by me having lost a job over the summer.

After some friendly small talk, he took my card, assured me he'd check out the site and even said, "I hope you get back on your feet." Very nice kid.

Anyway, turns out his dad is somewhat skilled in the kitchen. Taylor is from Mansfield, Texas, not far from Dallas, where the Sooners will take on BYU on Saturday. If you're hungry and not far from their house, I'd suggest you stop by for some barbecue on Friday night.

OU Assistant Makes Reporters Laugh

By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season

NORMAN, Okla. -- The football geniuses over at EDSBS.com prompted an interesting thread about people who go by three names.

Bobby Jack Wright is one of those people, but he's kind of a deluxe edition in that he also has three jobs. He's the assistant head coach, the co-defensive coordinator and the secondary coach at Oklahoma.

And he was asked Wednesday to talk about a man with only three letters in his first name, Nic Harris, who earned all-American honors last year as a safety/linebacker. What he lacks in speed, he makes up for with effort. You know the type.

Anyway, Harris is now a Buffalo Bill, a scout for whom was in Norman recently and told Wright that Harris could earn some key reps at linebacker now that he's bulked up to 250 pounds, from 230 last year at OU.

Wright seemed a talkative guy who was glad to hear his former star is proving himself as an NFL rookie.

Stoops Takes High Road About Weak Texas Schedule

By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season

NORMAN, Okla. -- A reporter tempted Oklahoma's Bob Stoops, but the coach didn't take the bait. He was asked to compare OU's difficult non-league schedule with that of, "say, Texas," just for kicks, of course.

The rival Longhorns count Louisiana-Monroe, Wyoming, UTEP and Central Florida among their out-of-conference opponents. Not a whole lot of BCS points up for grabs there.

Stoops answered politely, then was asked in a follow-up question just what the payoff is for playing tough games outside of league play.

Chris Brown Riffs on Sam Bradford, Dallas' New Crib

By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season

NORMAN, Okla. -- Oklahoma running back Chris Brown said Tuesday that everybody should be getting amped up and added that kickers are just a bunch of followers.

OK, OK, what he really said was that his teammates have been following the lead of a more vocal Sam Bradford in preseason workouts. And it's not just the guys in the offensive huddle. It's everyone, even the kickers.

That's all summed up in the video immediately below, and in the one below that, Brown says the many Dallas players on OU's roster are excited to play in that city's brand-new, trillion-bazillion-dollar stadium Saturday vs. BYU.