More photos » by Sue Ogrocki - AP

Jermie Calhoun, #23, was impressive in the spring and looks to make his mark as a Sooner running back in 2009.

Browse more photos »

In addition to a Heisman winning quarterback, the nation’s top tight end and at least one game breaker at receiver (tight ends & receivers preview coming next) Oklahoma also returns two 1,000 yard running backs. The significance of this is that the Sooners return 100% of their rushing yards in 2009, along with every significant passing yard, to make up one of the top backfields in the country.

The most intriguing aspect of Oklahoma’s backfield in `09 may be the development of redshirt freshman Jermie Calhoun. He’ll start the season #3 on the depth chart and will most likely remain there all season but the coaching staff will look for as many opportunities as possible to get him on the field.

Continue reading this post »

Oklahoma football officially started in 1895 with a humbling 34-0 loss to Oklahoma City. That season was only one game long but even with the loss the Sooner Monster was born. Two years later the team got its first official head coach, Vernon Lewis Parrington. Over the next four seasons Oklahoma went 9-1-2 before Parrington resigned to pursue a career as an educator and eventually became a Pulitzer Prize winner.

Even with the departure of Parrington the monster continued to grow. In 1904 OU won the first ever Bedlam match 75-0, in 1905 OU beat Texas for the first time and in 1911 the Sooners experienced their first undefeated season, going 8-0. Over the next 29 years Oklahoma football would grow stronger and stronger until the decade of the 1940’s where OU emerged as a perennial college football powerhouse.

Continue reading this post »

The gauntlet has been thrown down for Oklahoma’s offensive line. Who knows what is being said behind closed doors but among the general public and most media outlets the `09 Sooners are only going to be as good as the offensive line allows them to be. Fair or not, that is the challenge set forth for a unit that will feature four new starters. At first glance its logical to be concerned going into the season but taking a closer look at the guys up front should shed new light and confidence in the line.

Continue reading this post »

Dez Bryant Oklahoma State in the Holiday Bowl vs Oregon (via ZTGray)

Like it on not the Oklahoma State Cowboys are on the rise in the Big 12 and much of the credit for their sudden surge of success is Dez Bryant. Last season Bryant finished second nationally with 19 touchdown receptions and third in the country in both yards per game (113.9) and yards per punt return (17.94). He was a first team All-American and first team All Big 12 as well as the Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Year.

Continue reading this post »

I don’t think there has ever been a more explosive (nor more fun) 5 ½ minutes of football than what we saw in last seasons Oklahoma/Nebraska game. Fresh off a drubbing of Kansas State the Sooner were back home for the renewal of the Big Red Rivalry. With many of the participants from "The Game of the Century" on hand, Oklahoma put Nebraska to bed early and then cruised to a 62-28 win.

Continue reading this post »

More photos » by Sue Ogrocki - AP

Sam Bradford’s legacy is set in Norman but a national championship would still be a nice addition to his resume.

Browse more photos »

It’s not so much a rarity for a school to have a Heisman Trophy candidate line up under center to start the college football season but to have a Heisman winner under center to start the season is a bit of an oddity. Florida and Oklahoma both have the luxury of quarterbacks who will be competing to join Archie Griffin in the two-time Heisman winner club.

The greatness of Sam Bradford was possibly lost a little bit in 2008 in the midst of all the records shattered by Oklahoma’s high powered offense. He passed for an eye popping 4,720 with a ratio of 50 touchdowns to just 8 interceptions. When you consider the amount of time Bradford spent on the bench due to blowout wins those numbers become even more staggering.

Continue reading this post »

We’re going to start our conference previews by looking at the teams that are not on Oklahoma’s 2009 football schedule. These teams include Colorado, Iowa State and Missouri – all three of which I’d rather see on the schedule than Kansas, Kansas State and Nebraska.  

Offense

Dreadful doesn’t quite describe Colorado’s attempt to run the no huddle offense last season. The Buffs were last in the in points scored (20.2) and yards (318.5) per game. Part of the problem for Colorado’s offensive woes could have been instability at both the quarterback and running back positions. Cody Hawkins eventually gave way to Tyler Hansen and highly touted running back Darrell Scott didn’t live up to the hype.

Continue reading this post »

Lee Roy Selmon (left) and Tommy McDonald (right) were both stars on the defensive and offensive sides of the ball respectively.

Alright, here’s the big one. I started to save this one for last but why break up the whole alphabetical order thing we’ve got going? There are currently 37 former OU football players on NFL rosters. Among them are the Saints’ Jammal Brown, Baltimore’s Mark Clayton, Chicago’s Tommie Harris, Atlanta’s Curtis Lofton and Minnesota’s Adrian Peterson. Among those players I believe that it is Peterson who will one day be labeled as Oklahoma’s greatest. Barring injury, his career will land him in Canton alongside some other former Sooner greats.

Continue reading this post »