Q & A: Season opener between No. 3 Oklahoma vs. No. 20 BYU

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BYU Examiner Kelly Martinez and I played a little pitch and catch yesterday with 5 questions and answers about tonight's season opener between No. 3 Oklahoma and No. 20 BYU at 6 p.m. in the new Dallas Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, TX.

Here are my answers to Kelly's five questions.

1.  Oklahoma is returning nine starters on defense. How are the Sooners, who allowed 251 yards through the air per game in 2008, going to stop BYU QB Max Hall, who averaged 304 passing yards an outing last year?

Don't let last year's yardage take you down the wrong field. Oklahoma was the most prolific scoring team in college history. That made the Sooners the catch-me-if-you-can team. Consequently, opposing offenses played let's-try-to-catch-you. That's the primary reason OU surrendered passing yardage last season.  This season, some talent hawkers exclaim OU has the best front 7 in the nation.  No, the back 4 aren't being given those kudos.  Hall might find a few holes in the Sooner secondary--when he has time.  (BYU's offensive line is shakier than a dinghy in a hurricane.)  With Hall at the helm, this OU-BYU matchup might be one of a handful this season when two legitimate Heisman hopefuls adorn the field at the same time.  

2.  The perception is that even though the game will be played at The House That Jerry Built, this is pretty much a home game for OU.  Will the "home" crowd be as much of a factor as the ones in Norman?

Not if they're sitting on their hands watching video on the HDTV scoreboard or standing in line for a $9 draft beer or $5 bottle of H2o.  Whether Sooner fans are fattening Jerry Jones' cash-lined pockets at the concession stands, you are right: This neutral contest is clearly a home field advantage for Oklahoma.  Head Coach Bob Stoops acknowledged as much in his press conference Tuesday.  He compared it to the advantage Florida had in the BCS title game last season.  

The last time Oklahoma opened on a neutral field was a 1948 loss to Santa Clara in San Francisco, which might have been Santa Clara's home field, anyway. Before then, OU got the best of Oklahoma State, 29-27, in 1940 in Oklahoma City.

3. How will the departures of Juaquin Iglesias, Manuel Johnson and Quentin Chaney impact the Sooners passing game?  

In this game, not as much as TE Jermaine Gresham sitting on the sidelines with a knee injury.  The trio of Iglesias, Johnson and Chaney captured, among them, 21 of QB Sam Bradford's 50 TD passes last campaign.  All three were seniors.  The Sooners have talent in the wings, some of which, namely Ryan Broyles, is solidly established.  Against BYU, some foresee Oklahoma establishing the running game.

4. OU is expected to win and win big.  What are the chances the Sooners are looking past BYU and further down the schedule? (The Cougars have pulled this type of upset before.  Remember 1990 when Ty Detmer led the Cougars to a 28-21 upset of defending champ and No. 1 Miami?)

If the Sooners were a man, this would be one way to describe them going into this season.  

His nose is an angry hook.  His eyes, bulged out, are the color of asphalt.  They hold in their vision both a scary serenity and a frightening emptiness.  Twin jets of steam shoot out of his ears.  He speaks in a voice hot with promises of strangulation.  Even his hair is tense with muscles.

BYU is OU's first obstacle in the path toward a national championship.  There is no way the Sooners are looking past the Cougars. 

5.  OU allowed 367 yards of total offense per game last year.  That seems like a lot of yards for such a highly-ranked team.  What have the Sooners done to improve on that number?

See answer to first question above.  If Oklahoma tilts the scoreboard again this season, their numbers may not improve. This week, Stoops and players have extolled chemistry, depth, and tenacity as stalwarts of the defense.  Ryan Reynolds' return stabilizes what is already secure.

Statistically, here is how two of OU's 2008 defensive numbers (yards per game and points allowed per game) compare to the same 2008 numbers of the preseason Top 5:

Florida (285, 12.9) / Texas (342, 18.8) / Oklahoma (367, 24.5) / USC (221, 9.0) / Alabama (263, 14.3)

It's a false comparison because of Oklahoma's offensive output last season.  An opponent taking OU's defense too lightly this season will feel like they're clutching a steering wheel that has come off in their hands.

 For more info:

Injury alert: TE Gresham out against BYU

Big year ahead for Oklahoma, Big 12