Crimson And Cream Machine: FanPosts

2013 Sooner Kickoff Will Be Available Next Month - Here's A Sneak Preview

2013-05-16T11:57:00Z

We challenged ourselves to step up our game for this summer's Oklahoma football preview and I believe that you'll be happy with the results. The 2013 Sooner Kickoff features exclusive interviews with media personalities such as Jake Trotter and Jason Kersey, as well contributions on the team previews by those who cover that specific team. We've got a brand new, sleek, look and are proud of what the final product is going to look like. Click the link below to see a sample of the cover, the team previews (Notre Dame) and an article sample. The full preview will be available next month for just $4.99.

2013 Sooner Kickoff Preview by Matt Hofeld

Wikipedia and how I won OU another 16 National Championships

2013-05-05T07:31:03Z

Awhile back I got into a discussion with another Wikipedia editor about National Championships in college football. I edited an article on Notre Dame football which made the preposterous claim that ND had won (at the time), as I recall, something like 23 National Titles in college football. Now the REAL number of national titles they had won, titles awarded in the AP era (starting in 1936), was 8. Granted, a very impressive number. HOWEVER ND itself officially claimed another 3, plus many of their fans claimed another 12 based on "retro" polls done by computers and pundits. Last season ND "won" another national title in football, despite getting raped by Alabama 42-14 in the BCS title game (and the game wasn't as close as the score). Speaking of Alabama....how many titles are they claiming now? Granted, they have a fantastic history of success, but the Bama fans have always claimed many more titles than they have actually earned. But I digress. I argued that it wasn't fair for a school like Oklahoma, which only recognizes the 7 titles they have won under the AP/UPI, to be penalized in their number of titles when compared to other college football powerhouses, such as ND and Alabama, which have far looser standards. I stated that all the schools should utilize the same standards for the number of awarded titles.

Well, today I finally got around to addressing that grievance. I edited two Wikipedia pages to reflect the number of titles OU has under the loose rules of Alabama and Notre Dame. I have to admit that I was a bit shocked to see how many titles OU has won under those rules....twenty-three! And we even have a few titles with 2 loss teams (Yay! We join Alabama and ND in that distincton). Not only that, one of our "champs" finished 8-4 (although 3 of the "losses" were mandatory forfeits by the NCAA after we creamed those opponents). I have to wonder how long it will be until someone, probably an ND fan, or an Alabama fan, revises my edits. The links are below if any of you guys are curious. Oh, and I did make one other edit. In the first article there was a statement about OU being "a dominant team" in all the conferences it's participated in...I changed it to "THE dominant team".

I think I deserve special recognition from the Sooner Nation for addressing a terrible miscarriage of justice, and for singlehandedly winning the Sooners another 16 National Titles.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oklahoma_Sooners_football

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Oklahoma_Sooners_football_championships

I think I deserve special recognition from the Sooner Nation for addressing a terrible miscarriage of justice, and for singlehandedly winning the Sooners another 16 National Titles.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oklahoma_Sooners_football

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Oklahoma_Sooners_football_championships

Landry Jones Will Be a First Round Pick Starter. Its not the Traits its the Numbers.

2013-04-25T19:09:34Z

Landry Jones will shock every one and be a first Round Pick today!!!!!! Here is why... IF being successful in College Football doesn't matter anymore as far as where you are drafted then why even play it? We should just let the talking head Armchair experts pick who will be successful based on what traits they have.. But I say If your traits don't translate to completed passes, yards,first downs , TD's,Scores and wins in college then how are they going do that in the NFL..Inversely if your flaws don't hinder you from being successful then they wont in college as well. This new thinking that traits that best determine success is more important than actual success playing in college has led Landry Jones to be the most under rated QB's ever. Landry has had one of the best 4 year careers in NCAA history averaging 4000 plus yards and 30 TD's a year for 4 years. Landry threw for 16647 yds and 123 TD's with a 39-11 record winning 3-1 bowl game record and two conference championships. Landry set all the passing records at OU, and in the Big12 (who has had 7 1st round QB's in the last 6 years) and Landry is the 3rd all time leading passer in NCAA history in yards completions and attempts. Landry Completed 63.5% of his 2184 attempts, that is one of the strongest completion percentages because of the higher number of throws. Landry played in a BCS conference and against a lot of top 25 teams

So how then is Jones considered to be 3-6th round QB and ranked 4th-10th in a week class?? Analyst say that Landry " folds under pressure, makes mistakes at big moments, lacks pocket presence, cant win the big game, Lacks something in his competitive make up , isn't mobile enough, leveled off early and never developed, had a disappointing Senior year" If hear these statements you must think that they are true, but then you examine them closely and you see that they are over blown subjective opinions that way off.. OU has the most successful football program of all time, with 14 straight years of 10 win plus seasons in a row they have expectations that are higher than most. The Standard for Success at OU and in College football is perfection. Even though Landry Jones was the one of the most successful QB's to ever play at OU he never meet the perfection standard that Bradford did of an Undefeated Season and a shot at the National Championship.. So therefor it was Landry's fault that they lost a few big games and so he sucks.. The national Media picked up on this and ran with it and the knocks on Landry being bad a pressure and not winning the big one stuck even though both are contradicted by the numbers.

FIRST THE SUCKS AT PRESSURE CLAIM: Landry threw the ball more than any other QB in this draft by far.. 700 passes more than Geno Smith and 1400 passes more than EJ Manuel.. Landry had way more opportunities to be pressured and make mistakes when pressured.. So then you would expect Landry to have a ton of Interceptions and Sacks and really Suck at 3rd down conversions Landry only threw 52 Interceptions and was sacked only 54 times.. That is one Interception and Sack per 42 passes.. Then only person who has a lower int ratio is Geno Smith, but smith has 79 Sacks.. So are Landry's mistakes outside of the statistical norm for all QB's No.. Landry Has something that is better than dealing well with pressure and that is Avoiding it.. Jones averages 2.44 Sec Snap to release and makes quick decisions and has the arm to drop deep and throw completions with accuracy..

JONES CANT WIN THE BIG ONE: Jones won 39 big ones and only lost 11 games in 4 years.. All games are Big at OU when you expect 13-0.. Wining 3 bowl games and beating Texas three times and OSU twice and Nebraska Jones Beat RG3, Tannehill, Weedon, Geno Smith and Ej Manuel in head to head games... Some of the losses came against some really good teams Like #1 Notre Dam and KSU, and Texas A&M .. and Landry performed well in the Losses.. Landry threw for over 400 yds in two losses and 290-356 in 4 more at higher completion rates..

JONES LEVELED OFF EARLY IN HIS CAREER: Jones sophomore season he thew 619 passes for 4700 yards and 38 TD's at 65% only 13 INTs The Sooners Went 12-2 winning the Fiesta Bowl.. Only the top 10 QB's in the NFL reach this level of over 4k yards and 30 plus touchdowns. How can you do any better than this??.. 2011 Jones dropped to 29 TD's and 4400 yards but on only 561 attempts.. 2012 4267 yards and 30 td's on 555 attempts.. This isn't regressing it's performing at a top level for a long time this is consistency. This is what it means to be the best.. OU defense got worse and was on the field longer and Jones Got Less attempts and a few less yards..

No body is calling Payton Manning a 'crappy" QB because he Lost in the first round of the Playoffs by throwing an INT after winning 13 games and throwing for 4600 yards... NFL teams will see what I see and will have Landry higher on their board and he will end up going in the first round.. Going on about "traits" of players may make you sound like your smart but those traits either translate to success or they don't.. Saying some guy who has a loosing record and never completed over 60% of their passes is better than someone who won all their games and completed 64% of their passes is really stupid.. To those who say Stats don't matter you scout the player.. I say the Numbers are the player.. Stats are a cumulative representation of what you see on film.

Jones is a player of High Character and is very smart and Hard Working. Jones did make aggressive mistakes like not giving up on plays and not checking down enough, but that can be coached and fixed.. He will be one of the best Proving the Lewin Career Forecast right just like Russell Wilson did...

J. Scot Hickerson

Top Ten List: OU's Most Impactful Players For 2013 Football

2013-04-24T23:54:54Z

1. Aaron Colvin- OU has a legitimate Jim Thorpe Award candidate in Colvin. The CBs will have to be stellar in an otherwise lackluster secondary... and I know Colvin will be just that. With his talent, he would likely help the team more at safety. But he will stay at CB, and he will be one of the best in the Big 12 and the nation.

2. Jalen Saunders- In a word... playmaker! No matter who wins the starting QB job, they would be wise to get him the ball very often. Saunders should also play a vital role in the return game. With his speed and shiftiness, he has the chance to explode anytime he gets the ball.

3. Trey Millard- Could this finally be the year Heupel unleashes Millard? Trey is a great runner, receiver, and blocker. Millard could be the short yardage option if Heupel does not use the "Belldozer" as often. That should work out pretty well for OU. If there was a national fullback award, he would be the favorite to win it.

4. Gabe Ikard- He was great before getting injured last year. I think he will be even better this year. He will be the leader for an experienced offensive line as long as he can stay healthy. I would not be surprised to see Ikard in the Remington Trophy conversation.

5. Damien Williams- This young man distinguished himself as the primary back last year. His 95-yard run in the RRR etched his name in the record books. Hopefully he can pick up where he left off last year. If not, there is a platoon of tailbacks ready to step in and steal carries from him.

6. Sterling Shepard- If not for the uncertainty at QB, he would be much higher on my list. He has tremendous passion for sooner football and the talent to go with it. When it is all said and done, I believe Shepard will be in the same category as Broyles, Iglesias, and Clayton.

7. Brennan Clay- Mr. Reliable! He does not possess the same big play ability as Damien Williams, but he will move the chains. I have always been a fan of Clay. He showed some flashes of greatest last season, particularly the bedlam game. Clay and Williams are going to be a good 1-2 punch.

8. Corey Nelson- Remember him? Whether you like Brent Venables or not, you cannot deny the fact that he produced some great LBs during his tenure. Many OU fans thought Corey Nelson was the next great LB a couple of seasons ago... then last year happened. I think he will rebound this season and return to his freshman/sophomore form.

9. Blake Bell- And so it begins. The question is... how soon will the honeymoon end? Though Bell hasn't "officially" been named the starter, it's a foregone conclusion. Bell likely does not have the huge arm that his predecessor has. However, he should make up for that with his ability to make plays with his legs. OU fans are also looking for Bell to step up in pressure situations, which is something Landry was often criticized for not being able to do.

10. Cortez Johnson- This is my wildcard pick because I don't know how he will respond to the bright lights of an actual game. Mike Stoops must be impressed since has pushed him towards the front of the CB line. Cortez will probably get picked on a lot because QBs will want to stay away from Colvin. If he emerges, he should have plenty of chances to make some big plays.

This is my list. I'm interested in knowing you all's lists.

OU Gymnastics | Both Men's & Women's Teams Competing For National Championships

2013-04-20T18:13:46Z

Both the men's and women's Oklahoma gymnastics teams advanced in their respective NCAA qualifiers Friday and will now have a chance to compete for a national championship Saturday evening.

The men advanced to their 14th straight NCAA Finals finishing tied with Michigan in their qualifier with a final team score of 443.850. Saturday night in State College, Pa. the Sooners will look to bring home their ninth team national title.

You can read more about Friday night's performance here courtesy of Sooner Sports and you can watch Saturday night's finals here courtesy of NCAA.com.

The OU women also advanced to the finals and the program's third Super Six appearance. The Sooners will be looking for their first national title Saturday night against some stiff competition including Alabama, UCLA, Florida, LSU, and Georgia.

You can read more about Friday night's performance here courtesy of Sooner Sports and you can watch Saturday night's finals here courtesy of NCAA.com.

Best of luck to both squads and hopefully they'll each be bringing home some NCAA hardware!

Both the men's and women's Oklahoma gymnastics teams advanced in their respective NCAA qualifiers Friday and will now have a chance to compete for a national championship Saturday evening.

You can read more about Friday night's performance here courtesy of Sooner Sports and you can watch Saturday night's finals here courtesy of NCAA.com.

Best of luck to both squads and hopefully they'll each be bringing home some NCAA hardware!

Editable & Collapsible Comments Now LIVE On All SB Nation Platforms

2013-04-16T15:36:56Z

UPDATE: The editable and collapsible are now LIVE on all SB Nation platforms. Feel free to hit us up with any questions and/or issues. Otherwise, play around with them and enjoy!

The folks over at the mothership are very excited about this latest round of upgrades and based on a number of things we've read here, you should be excited as well.

Editable AND collapsible comments are coming soon and you can read more about both here, but we'll give you the Cliff's Notes version here for now.

Once this update is released later this week, when you post a comment you will then have 90 seconds to edit that comment. You'll see a countdown timer and a progress bar that scrolls from right to left indicating how much time you have left on the edit. Editing the comment does not reset the timer, but you can edit multiple times in the 90 second window. This behavior has been live on both of Vox Media's other verticals, The Verge and Polygon for the past few months and it's been very successful and users have embraced it.

In addition to adding comment editing, this release would also enable a new system for collapsing comments. Collapsing a top level comment collapses all of its replies (something that is currently happening now), but the collapsed replies will no longer be shown as titles only. They will now be completely hidden beneath the parent comment (which will show as collapsed comments do today). This allows users to hide sub-threads they're not interested in and skip further down the page without scrolling. Additionally, comments will no longer need titles to be collapsed. Any comment can be collapsed. This cuts down on folks having trouble collapsing large images or GIFs because the poster forgot a title. Users will also have the option to set how they want comments to load by default.

Both of these new functions will work on mobile as well when we go live. In addition to the previously released mobile touch controls for comment navigation, this makes mobile functionality really robust on SB Nation.

While we and SB Nation are certainly not perfect, we/they do take pride in listening to those of you who continue to visit our and all the other sites within the SB Nation family. This is proof that the people in charge do listen and are willing to do something about it.

They are currently targeting a release later this week, but as updates are available we'll be sure to pass them along.

We're looking forward to sharing these very cool new features with you and hopefully it will only further increase your enjoyment of the site. As always, thank you for reading!

UPDATE: The editable and collapsible are now LIVE on all SB Nation platforms. Feel free to hit us up with any questions and/or issues. Otherwise, play around with them and enjoy!

The folks over at the mothership are very excited about this latest round of upgrades and based on a number of things we've read here, you should be excited as well.

Editable AND collapsible comments are coming soon and you can read more about both here, but we'll give you the Cliff's Notes version here for now.

Once this update is released later this week, when you post a comment you will then have 90 seconds to edit that comment. You'll see a countdown timer and a progress bar that scrolls from right to left indicating how much time you have left on the edit. Editing the comment does not reset the timer, but you can edit multiple times in the 90 second window. This behavior has been live on both of Vox Media's other verticals, The Verge and Polygon for the past few months and it's been very successful and users have embraced it.

In addition to adding comment editing, this release would also enable a new system for collapsing comments. Collapsing a top level comment collapses all of its replies (something that is currently happening now), but the collapsed replies will no longer be shown as titles only. They will now be completely hidden beneath the parent comment (which will show as collapsed comments do today). This allows users to hide sub-threads they're not interested in and skip further down the page without scrolling. Additionally, comments will no longer need titles to be collapsed. Any comment can be collapsed. This cuts down on folks having trouble collapsing large images or GIFs because the poster forgot a title. Users will also have the option to set how they want comments to load by default.

Both of these new functions will work on mobile as well when we go live. In addition to the previously released mobile touch controls for comment navigation, this makes mobile functionality really robust on SB Nation.

They are currently targeting a release later this week, but as updates are available we'll be sure to pass them along.

We're looking forward to sharing these very cool new features with you and hopefully it will only further increase your enjoyment of the site. As always, thank you for reading!

Stoops' All Stars: Ball-For-A-Cause

2013-04-10T15:30:27Z

Stoops’ All-Stars: Ball-For-A-Cause

Friday, April 12, 2013

Who: Bob Stoops Champions Foundation and Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation

What: Stoops’ All-Stars: Ball-For-A-Cause - The event is a partnership with the Bob Stoops Champions Foundation and the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation to raise money for spinal cord research. Former players under Coach Stoops have agreed to compete in a basketball game, in honor of fellow teammate Corey Wilson, who sustained a spinal cord injury. Football players will take it from the gridiron to the hardwood.

When: Friday, April 12, 2013

7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Where: Norman North High School Gymnasium and Commons Area

1809 Stubbeman Ave.

Norman, OK 73069

Info: The event will also host a silent auction of exclusive Superman and Sooner memorabilia, free giveaways for the first 800 guests, concession, half-time entertainment and more. Confirmed players include Frank Alexander, Mossis Madu, Keenan Clayton, Trent Williams, Jonathan Nelson, Clint Ingram, Rufus Alexander, and guest appearances by Jermaine Gresham, Ryan Broyles, Roy Williams and others. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased online at ChristopherReeve.org/BallCause

https://twitter.com/Ball4ACause/status/316329670083751936/photo/1

Stoops’ All-Stars: Ball-For-A-Cause

Friday, April 12, 2013

Who: Bob Stoops Champions Foundation and Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation

When: Friday, April 12, 2013

7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Where: Norman North High School Gymnasium and Commons Area

1809 Stubbeman Ave.

Norman, OK 73069

https://twitter.com/Ball4ACause/status/316329670083751936/photo/1

The Failure Of The Big 12

2013-04-09T19:00:35Z

What if?

I couldn't help thinking of those two words as Louisville capped a stellar year in the two main revenue sports.. I would just like to put into words why I view the Big 12 Conference as a failure in the realignment picture

The Big 12 (Texas, OU and A&M) decided in 2010 the basic purpose of the league's existences was money and convenience. Each member school pocketed a nice chunk of change per year while splitting the Big 12 pie with two fewer mouths. The threat of implosion of the league was truthfully gone albeit for a few months. We fast forward a few months to 2011 and the league announces a new TV deal which promised even more money and the allure of possibly more through Tier 3 rights. Eventually, as we all know, a series of events occurred (the Longhorn Network, rebellion against Dan Beebe, SEC deciding to branch into Texas) Those details truly aren't that important to the story, we all know them. The Big 12 found itself once again in early 2012 looking to find new stability after the departure of A&M and Missouri and the eight remaining schools signed a grant of rights.

The league turned to TCU and West Virginia both fine choices, though West Virginia's geographical fit was a bit outside the box. This is the moment the Big 12 leadership failed it's fans and donors, not in the addition of these two programs, but the decision based out of greed not to expand further. As fans of Oklahoma, we know that truthfully money isn't a major issue for the university and the same can be said for Texas two times over. When you look at it like that the basis to remain at 10 teams was clear: lets have an easier path to the national championship game.

Someone wasn't thinking about this "easier path" stuff, it's inherently more difficult to reach the championship game if you have to play nine other league teams. Oklahoma State discovered this with Iowa State. Kansas State discovered this with Baylor. It's difficult to play nine other Big 12 teams on consecutive weeks. It takes luck to make the MNC game, luck also includes strategy it's easier to make the game if you happen to miss opponents on occasion.

The true failure of the Big 12 conference was letting the SEC get it's foot in the door in Texas recruiting in a major way, with no plans to expand our own recruiting grounds into their neck of the woods. We listened to DeLoss Dodds and his ideas of waiting for Notre Dame and while doing so we watched as the Big Ten and ACC expanded, taking with them valuable markets and strong athletic programs.

Louisville tried desperately to enter the Big 12 and the league passed them by, listening to the words of DeLoss Dodds. With the idea that Notre Dame could be convinced to become a partial member of the Big 12 and that the money would flow like water down a scenic aspen fall. That did not happen, Notre Dame clownshoe'd Dodds and the Big 12, all the while feigning interest in the Big 12, it was negotiating with the ACC. Maryland bounced to the Big Ten because, as we all know, Jim Delaney is not one to sit on his hands while other conferences better themselves (novel concept for our league) and then John Swofford swooped in and landed Louisville.

The Big 12 as it stands now is nine close teams in a small population market (relative to the other leagues) with one wayward member on the east coast. The voices of the leagues maintain they are happy with status quo, although WVU recently made some noise about the travel and now the Big 12 will be more sensitive to them in scheduling.

Bob Bowlsby came in talking a big game, how he wouldn't be used as puppet. How it's not in his nature. I think it's safe to say, with how things have worked out, that's not the case. DeLoss pulls the strings and occasionally lets Joe C. do the same.

The universities of the league have never been richer but the fans and low money donors, which support the league, have been deprived of new experiences, new rivalries and new locations to enjoy. The league has deprived itself of a national championship in basketball and a football program under Charlie Strong that could have greatly enhanced the league. The league has failed to protect it's recruiting territory and hasn't even attempted to acquire more.

That's the failure of the Big 12.

What if?

That's the failure of the Big 12.

Wheres the Podcast????

2013-04-01T17:54:53Z

Wheres the Podcast???? Over the past few weeks there hasn't been a new podcast posted? What's up with that?
Wheres the Podcast???? Over the past few weeks there hasn't been a new podcast posted? What's up with that?
Wheres the Podcast???? Over the past few weeks there hasn't been a new podcast posted? What's up with that?
Wheres the Podcast???? Over the past few weeks there hasn't been a new podcast posted? What's up with that?

Overanalyzing the Oklahoma Drill Video

2013-03-31T04:33:08Z

I wanted to take the time to break down the video that was recently posted of the Oklahoma drill, and really get down into the nitty gritty of the battles and what it says about the players involved.

http://www.crimsonandcreammachine.com/2013/3/29/4162938/ou-football-2013-spring-practice-oklahoma-drill-sooners-bob-stoops

For those of you who aren't familiar with line technique or the Oklahoma drill in particular, it's really more about the battle between the blocker and tackler. The back might do something special if his blocker loses, but more times than not, Landry Jones would win with Davin Joseph and Adrian Peterson would lose against Tommy Harris.

On the technique side, the blocker's goal is to get under the defender, grab him firmly on both sides, and stand him up straight. Once you're under him and got him locked up, he can't do much but stand there.

The rusher is trying to do a lot of the same stuff. If you can get under the blocker, you won't get pushed off the ball. If you can use your hands to keep him from locking you up, you can just throw him to the side to shed the block. If you can't get under him but can keep him from getting under you, you can essentially sidestep, use his momentum against him, and throw him aside (Montgomery demonstrates this technique P.L. Lindley around the 43 second mark)... and if the offensive lineman gets too low, you can just push him on his face.

All of that out of the way, we'll break down all of the individual battles in the video...

Battle 1 - #80 (DT Jordan Phillips) vs #56 (C Ty Darlington)

You'd expect Phillips to dominate this match-up because he's 30 pounds heavier.

Phillips manages to get under Darlington and stand him up, but he doesn't use his hands well to keep Darlington from locking him up. From there, Darlington goes too low and gets thrown to the ground, but Phillips is off balance and falls to.

Pretty much a tie, but given that Phillips should have won this easily, it's really a win for Darlington. The takeaway here is that Darlington is a absolutely a stud, and Phillips pad level is good, but he needs a lot of work on his hand technique.

Battle 2 - #29 (DE Rashod Favors) vs ??? (Looks like #52, John-Philip Hughes)

About the same size, so this should be a draw.

Hughes lets Favors get under him, push him back, and just barely manages to keep hold of his jersey sleeves. Favors more or less controls Hughes the entire time, but he can't quite shed him.

Hughes needs to work on getting his pad level down, but there's a lot of good fight in him.

Favors wins, pretty handily.

Battle 3 - #49 (DE David Driskill) vs #82 (TE Brannon Greene)

Greene has 20 pounds on Driskill, who I assume is a walk-on, so you'd expect Greene to dominate.

Greene gets under his Driskill, locks him up, drives him back, and turns him away from the play. Absolutely made Driskill look like a tackling dummy on that one.

Greene dominates as he should, shows absolute perfect blocking technique... not sure if you can learn anything given the circumstances, but Greene's technique was absolutely textbook.

Battle 4 - #67 (OG/DT Robert Hollis) vs #73 (OG Dylan Hartsook)

I know Hollis is a walk-on guard, and I assume Hartsook is the same. Hollis has 50 pounds on Hartsook, but he's also a guard, so there's no way to know what to expect here.

Hollis lets Hartsook get under him, but he shows pretty good hand technique to keep Hartsook's hands on the outside of his. Hollis is just so much bigger that giving up leverage to Hartsook doesn't matter, and he just makes the tackle like Hartsook isn't there.

Hollis didn't even seem to try to keep his pad level down, but with a 50-pound advantage on just about every DT in the country, I'm not sure that'll ever matter. Again, the level of competition from Hartsook makes me worry about gleening much from this, but Hollis certainly looked absolutely dominant.

Battle 5 - #94 (DT Torrea Peterson) vs #74 (OG Adam Shead)

Shead has 30 pounds on Peterson, but more importantly, he's Adam Shead so he should absolutely maul anyone who likes up opposite of him.

Peterson keeps the blocker from getting his hands inside of his, and keeps him from locking him up. He does let the blocker drive him back and turn him, effecting getting himself boxed out of making a play. Terrible footwork from Peterson looks to be the blame.

Technique by the Shead is excellent. He can't lock his man up, so he turns him and uses his body to box him out of the play. He didn't really dominate his man, but there's no doubt that Shead won the battle.

Battle 6 - #85 (DE Geneo Grissom) vs ??? (Looks like #71, OT Tyrus Thompson)

Thompson has 60 pounds on Grissom, so you're pretty much going to expect Thompson to physically dominate him if he can get a hold of him. Size vs quickness.

Grissom lets Thompson get under him and lets him get his hands inside of his, but Thompson never locks up, gets off balance, and lets Grissom swim out of the block. Really, this looks like lazy technique from Thompson and poor technique from Grissom, but that swim move by Grissom was legit. It's possible that Grissom was intentionally giving up ground to get Thompson off balance, but, it's hard to tell.

Grissom wins, but I'm not sure if he actually proved anything by doing so. Disappointed in both of them, honestly.

Battle 7 - #84 (DE Mike Onuoha) vs #79 (OT Daryl Williams)

Williams has 80 pounds on Onuoha, so this is clearly quickness vs. power. Depends on the start how this will end.

Williams comes in too low, and it's absolutely over. Onuoha throws him on his face, and then it's a one-on-one match-up with the RB as Williams has taken himself out of the play entirely.

Williams gets dominated because of poor technique, and Onuoha gets a freebie.

Battle 8 - #80 (DT Jordan Phillips) vs #68 (OG Bronson Irwin)

Not really a size advantage here, so this could go either way. Irwin has experience, but Phillips is the superior athlete.

Phillips gets under Irwin and stands him up, keeps Irwin's hands outside, and absolutely drives him back. It looks like Irwin pulls his shoulder pad up to obscure his view of the RB, which seems like a crafty veteran move.

So, Phillips absolutely dominates Irwin while the running back casually walks beside them into the end zone. Irwin "wins" but he has to celebrate while getting blown back 5 yards off the ball. I'll give the point to Phillips, but someone remind him to at least TRY to get the guy with the ball next time...

Battle 9 - #93 (DT Jordan Wade) vs #56 (C Ty Darlington)

Same deal as the previous battle, but with less experience on both sides.

Not sure if Darlington slips or Wade is just that powerful, but Wade manages to meet Darlington at the same level and just absolutely stop him dead in his tracks. He then casually throws him to the ground like a rag doll, sidesteps a cutblock attempt by Darlington, but has also put himself too far out of position to make a tackle. Darlington's dive effectively frees the RB, but it's hard to know if that was intentional or not.

Darlington seemingly gets manhandled here, but he still manages to dive at Wade to get him out of position. Sort of the same deal with Phillips and Irwin where it's hard to watch that and say Darlington won... so give the props to Wade and remind him it's meaningless if he doesn't make the tackle...

Battle 10 - #40 (DE P.L. Lindley) vs #81 (TE Sam Grant)

DE vs TE is a toss-up, so there's no prediction here.

Lindley keeps Grant from getting under him, but poor technique lets him get his hands inside and poor footwork lets him turn him out of the play.

Textbook blocking by Grant, and bad technique by Lindley (Coach Montgomery immediately shows him the proper technique and doesn't seem to dog the kid... definitely like seeing that). Win clearly goes to Grant.

Battle 11 - #29 (DE Rashod Favors) vs #56 (C Ty Darlington)

Darlington has 20 pounds, so he should hold the point of attack and come out on top.

Darlington gets under Favors, but Favors uses his arms really well to keeping Darlington from locking him up or driving him back. Darlington shows some poor footwork, and that allows Favors to throw him aside and go after the back.

Favors clear wins this round, and Darlington again shows that his footwork causes him to get off balance and thrown to the ground.

Battle 12 - #91(DE Charles Tapper) vs #78 (OG Kyle Marrs)

Marrs has 50 pounds on Tapper, so he should win this fairly easily.

Contact is made with excellent pad level by both Tapper and Mars, but Tapper uses his hands to keep Marrs from locking him out, and uses his arms to disengage and throw down Marrs.

I assume there's some poor footwork by Marrs to blame for making this look so easy for Tapper, who clearly dominated him.

Battle 13 - #67(OG/DT Robert Hollis) vs #73 (Dylan Hartsook)

Disappointed this was against the same over-matched guard.

Hollis again really lets Hartsook get under him and lock him up, but he's so big he grabs the running back and falls down.

Really, I don't see any technique from Hollis. He seems to show decent footwork to keep his balance... Seems like really good technique from Hartsook, but he was just at such a physical disadvantage there was nothing he could do win.

I'd be interested to see Hollis go up against someone who's physically capable of competing with him, like Adam Shead, as I just don't think anyone else is capable of doing much against his size. This isn't to say he'd be particularly effective in a game where there are 40 yards to run around him, but in the Oklahoma drill, he just swallows the entire running lane and probably can't be moved by anyone (except possibly Adam Shead).

Battle 14 - #84 (DE Mike Onuoha) vs #79 (OT Daryl Williams)

Good pad level by both Onuoha and Williams this time. Williams manages to lock up Onuoha this time, and then chop him to the ground after he finally manages to separate.

Seems like Williams was a bit embarrassed by the previous battle, and absolutely gave Onuoha everything he had. Onuoha probably could have used better technique to keep Williams from locking him up, but I'd say this was more about Williams being good than Onuoha being bad.

Battle 15 - #98 (DE/DT Chuka Ndulue) vs #68(OG Bronson Irwin)

Irwin has 50 pounds on Ndulue, so this should be Irwin all the way.

Ndulue tries to use his arms to keep Irwin from getting under him, but Irwin just stands Ndulue up even with his arms fully extended. It's pretty decent technique from Ndulue, but it just shows he's currently too small to be effective at DT. Irwin has no problem knocking him back, even without a leverage advantage.

Ndulue shows good technique to shed the block while giving up ground, but that's the kind of technique you'd expect out of a DE. The DT needs to hold the point of attack, and he clearly isn't physically capable of doing that. If you give up that much ground as a DT, you're giving them 6-12 YPC.

Battle 16 - #93 (DT Jordan Wade) vs $50 (C/OG Austin Woods)

No one has a clear advantage here, so it's hard to expect anything...

What actually happens, though, is pretty impressive. Woods has horrible pad level and lets Wade get under him, so he gets driven back five yards, thrown off like a rag doll, and the running back gets destroyed.

It's impressive to see Wade absolutely dominate someone like that, but it looks like Woods is using pass-blocking technique against a bull rush. Clearly, Woods forte isn't run blocking, but he's primarily the snapper for field goals, so he doesn't need to be.

Battle 17 - #40(DE P.L. Lindley) vs #81 (TE Sam Grant)

No clear advantage here, so no expectation.

Grant lets Lindley get under him, and thus gets driven back. Grant, however, does manage to lock Lindley up, so when the time comes for him to get off his block, he can't.

It looks like Lindley uses pretty good technique overall, but Grant just has him by the shoulder pads and won't let go. Grant needs to lower his pad level at the point of attack, but I like the fight to keep a hold of Lindley just by the shoulder pads (the little shove at the end just drives that point home)

Lindley definitely needs to get some smaller shoulder pads, and he needs to have a better feel for how far back he drives his man. He really didn't even try to shed the block until the running back was already past him, and that's probably because he couldn't see him over his shoulder pads.

Battle 18 - #80 (DT Jordan Phillips) vs #56 (C Ty Darlington)

Darlington gets under Phillips a bit, which is essential to keep from getting blown off the ball by the physically superior Phillips. Phillips uses his arms to keep Darlington from locking him up, but he's a bit too slow shedding the block to make the tackle.

Darlington held his own in this one, but Phillips should have made the tackle. Decent technique all around, but I think the win here goes to RB David Smith for the amazing cut and "getting skinny" through a ridiculously small hole.

Battle 19 - #29 (DE Rashod Favors) vs #82 (TE Brannon Greene)

Favors uses his arms really well here to keep Greene from locking him up, but Greene's footwork leaves a bit to be desired in this instance. Favors drives him back, throws him around, and ultimately sheds the block and makes the tackle.

Greene is at a disadvantage almost from the start, but he continues to fight and claw against Favors the whole round. Favors clearly wins, but again, I like the fight in Greene.

Battle 20 - #91 (DE Charles Tapper) vs ??? (I'm guessing #73, Dylan Harstook but I can't tell. Could be #72 Derek Farniok as well)

I'm not sure how the leverage works with the hand placement, but Tapper manages to somehow get leverage under the blocker, stand him up, and then just throw him aside. At that point, the blocker tries to submarine him, fails, and Tapper probably makes the tackle.

I think this is an instance where Tapper's long arms allow him to have leverage in a situation where it doesn't look like he should. More or less decent technique on both sides, but Tapper is superior physically and thus comes away with the clear victory.

Battle 21 - #94 (DT Torrea Peterson) vs #74 (OG Adam Shead)

Shead comes in way, way too low, and Peterson just throws him aside. Pretty sure Roy Finch would have won that battle.

Really impressive looking to watch Peterson dominate Shead in that matter, but, that was Shead being bad more than Peterson being good.

Battle 22 - #98 (DE/DT Chuka Ndulue) vs #68 (OG Bronson Irwin)

Ndulue really gets good positioning on Irwin, but then Irwin just grabs him and throws him around like a ragdoll.

Absolutely another example of Ndule just being too small to be effective as a DT. This experiment needs to end, or Ndulue needs to gain 20-30 pounds. Irwin just drags him across the field by his jersey...

Battle 23 - #40 (DE P.L. Lindley) vs #79 (OT Daryl Williams)

Pad level is equal at the point of attack, and that's always going to be bad for the smaller guy. With equal leverage, Williams stands Lindley up, turns him, and drives him away from the ball.

Really good technique by Williams, but he won because he was physically superior to the rusher.

Battle 24 - #80 (DT Jordan Phillips) vs #56 (C Ty Darlington)

Decent pad level by both, Phillips is physically superior so he manages to drive Darlington back a couple of yards. Uses his arms well to shed Darlington, but Darlington clings to his jersey for a bit after the block is shed.

This is yet another instance where good technique was used on both sides, and thus the physically superior player came out on top.

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Overall, I found our defensive players to be physically superior, and our offensive players to play with better overall technique. The blockers often found a way to win even when they were at a physical disadvantage. They sort of will their way to victory. This should change as our defenders get more time with Coach M, as he's primarily a teacher of technique. The physicality is there, and this could be a special set of defenders when the technique improves.

No one defensive guy stood out to me, but I was pretty encouraged by the pad level that Jordan Phillips was playing with. At his size, it's really important for him to keep offensive linemen from getting under him and neutralizing his advantage. That said, his technique in terms of block shedding leaves a lot to be desired, so I don't think he'll end up with a huge number of tackles or sacks next season. I do think he'll get a good enough push to flatten the pocket, and if he can play with the pad level I saw in the video, he'll certainly command the double-team against most offensive lines.

I have no idea how good Robert Hollis could be as a defensive tackle, but I know he's the definition of a "space eater". He's probably never going to make a ton of tackles, but he could absolutely hold the point of attack against just about anyone.

Jordan Wade looks like he'll probably be our most effective defensive tackle of this group, in terms of actually making tackles.

I realize this is a super long post about a 2 minute video, but there really is quite a bit to glean from the short video if you really take the time to break down what you're seeing and consider what you'd expect to see when those particular players line up against each other.

Please feel free to share comments if you interpret anything in the video differently than I did. I'm certainly no expert on defensive line technique, but I'd hope I understand it well enough to talk about it intelligently. Thanks for reading.