It's not everyday that we get to see a redshirt freshman make is debut as the Oklahoma Sooners starting quarterback. Then again its not everyday you get to see a Sooner quarterback break the record for most passing yards in a half which is exactly what Sam Bradford delivered to Oklahoma fans who were more than anxious to see the 07 football team in live action.
Bradford threw for 363 yards and 3 touchdowns but 350 of his passing yards came in the first half breaking Josh Heupel's record for a half set in 2000 against Baylor. He also completed his only pass of the second half to make 18 completions in a row tying Jason White's record in route to a 79-10 victory.
Bradford wasn't the only record setter in Norman Saturday night. DeMarco Murray, another redshirt freshman, crossed the goal line more times than any Sooner making before in their first game, five times.
Going into the game I thought that the Sooners would move the ball consistently on the ground and that the Sooner defense would be very solid but would yield a touchdown. The reality was that Oklahoma moved the ball at will against North Texas both on the ground (265 yards) and through the air (403) yards.
Receivers Malcolm Kelly and Juaquin Iglesias were just as effective as Bradford and Murray on offense hauling in 118 and 128 yards respectively. Also lost in the shuffle was Mossis Madu's 91 yards on 9 carries. Of course all of this was made possible by a great performance by the offensive line!
Defensively the Sooners delivered as well by holding North Texas to less than 100 yards total offense in the first half and not yielding any points until after the first team was taken off the field.
The defensive line pressured the North Texas quarterbacks all night registering 6 sacks. The linebackers (led by Curtis Lofton's 11 tackles, 5 solo) stuffed the run and the defensive backs locked down the Mean Green spread attack. The highlight for the secondary was Nic Harris' 25 yard interception return for a touchdown.
What does all of this mean for next week? Nothing really when you consider the speed and athleticism that Miami will be bringing to Norman. The Sooners proved that offensively they should be able to match up against the hurricane defense speed for speed but they also showed the need to have Allen Patrick and Chris Brown available for tough runs up the middle.
Defensively I like Oklahoma's match up against Miami's offense. The Hurricanes struggled with their passing attack and had to rely on their running game to beat Marshall. They won't be able to do that Saturday against the Sooners!