Oklahoma is scoring an average of 49.6 points per game on their opponents but before you throw your arms up in victory know that the Texas Longhorns aren’t too far behind at 47.2 points per game. With 540 yards of offense against 471.8 and just a slight edge in points scored you would think that the Sooners have a slight advantage but let’s first see how the two teams stack up position by position.
Quarterbacks
Quarterback | Rating | Attempts | Completions | Yards | Y/G | TDs | INTs |
Sam Bradford | 205 | 146 | 106 | 1,665 | 333 | 18 | 3 |
Colt McCoy | 197.9 | 130 | 103 | 1,280 | 256 | 16 | 3 |
At the end of the day Bradford has thrown for more yards and touchdowns but McCoy has a higher completion percentage 79.2% to 72.6%. Both of these guys are Heisman candidates for a reason. McCoy adds the extra dimension of running which we’ll discuss in the next section.
Advantage: Even
Running Backs
Running Back | Attempts | Yards | Y/G | Average | TDs |
DeMarco Murray | 85 | 431 | 86.2 | 5.1 | 5 |
Chris Brown | 67 | 313 | 62.6 | 4.7 | 6 |
Cody Johnson | 50 | 193 | 38.6 | 3.9 | 6 |
Vondrell McGee | 50 | 187 | 37.4 | 3.7 | 1 |
The Longhorns are 3rd in the conference in rushing yards with 990 and the Sooners are 5th with 895. However, that could be a little deceiving because Texas doesn’t have a running back that averages more than 39 yards per game. Texas’ biggest threat on the ground is quarterback Colt McCoy. He leads the team in rushing yards (317), rushing yards per game (63.4) and yards per carry (7).
You have to believe that isn’t the way that Texas drew it up this summer. It isn’t like Texas is the only team to have a dual-threat quarterback leading the way in rushing though. Looking within our own conference we find a handful of quarterbacks who can hurt you with their legs as well as their arms. Robert Griffin leads the Baylor Bears in rushing and Todd Reesing (KU), Austen Arnaud (ISU) and Zac Robinson (OSU) all have the tendency to tuck the ball and run. The difference between them and Texas is that they all have at least one workhorse back who averages at least 4 yards per carry. Texas doesn’t have that.
Advantage: OU
Receivers/Tight Ends
Receiver | Receptions | Yards | Yards/G | Average | TDs |
Manny Johnson | 26 | 468 | 93.6 | 18 | 5 |
Juaquin Iglesias | 23 | 401 | 80.2 | 17.4 | 5 |
Quan Cosby | 32 | 416 | 83.2 | 13 | 3 |
Jordan Shipley | 24 | 368 | 73.6 | 15.3 | 7 |
The numbers between the team’s top two receivers appear to be even but the difference in the passing game will come on the third and fourth options (sometimes in Oklahoma’s case even a 5th option) OU has them Texas doesn’t. Tight end Jermaine Gresham (278 yards, 17.4 average, 4 touchdowns) and slot receiver Ryan Broyles (256 yards, 19.7 average, 3 touchdowns) give Bradford extra options and will provide a mismatch somewhere in the Texas secondary. On the other side, with the loss of Blaine Irby, Texas is far more limited in options. Running back Chris Ogbonnaya (244 yards, 16.3 average, 3 touchdowns) could be McCoy’s third option but beyond him the Longhorns don’t have another receiver with more than 6 receptions.
Advantage: OU
Offensive Line
This game will be won in the trenches and both sides have outstanding offensive lines.
Unit | Sacks Allowed | Yards Per Game | Yards/Rush | Yards/Pass Attempt |
Oklahoma | 5* | 540 | 3.9 | 10.7 |
Texas | 7** | 471.8 | 4.6 | 9.7 |
* 3 sacks on Bradford | ||||
** 5 sacks on McCoy |
While these stats don’t rest solely on the offensive line the men upfront play a pivotal part in it. No offensive stat would be possible without them and even though we find numbers that are once again close in comparison we find that a slight edge goes to Oklahoma.
Advantage: OU