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Five questions: BYU-Oklahoma
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Game day is finally here. BYU-Oklahoma. The brand-new Cowboys Stadium. National audience. The stage is set, which team will come out on top?
By now, nearly every aspect of training camp and preseason preparations have been reported on, dissected, analyzed and discussed many times over on message boards, radio, television, the Internet and in print media.
The time for preseason talk is over. It’s time to put up or shut up.
My counterpart for this week’s game is Oklahoma Sooners Examiner, Bryan Waters. Bryan and I asked each other five questions regarding each others team and, in turn, addressed those questions.
Bryan's answers to my questions.
Here’s what I had to say in response to Bryan’s questions:
1. BYU's offensive line is considered to be both inexperienced and injury-riddled. Oklahoma is considered to have one of the top front seven in the country. Is this a mismatch that will tilt the game by the end of the first quarter?
BYU’s offensive line, one of the team’s strengths in 2008, is one of the team’s biggest question marks this season. Matt Reynolds, the only returning starter from last year’s group, broke his thumb in practice on Aug. 12, but is expected to start against the Sooners. How effective he’ll be is yet to be seen.
Left guard Jason Speredon and backup guard Houston Reynolds are out of the equation, having each recently sustained season-ending injuries. That leaves the job of protecting quarterback Max Hall and opening holes for running back Harvey Unga to a group of less-experienced linemen.
Facing a Sooner front line that includes defensive ends Auston Enlish and Jeremy Beal, and second team All-American defensive tackle Gerald McKoy is sure to give the Cougar o-line valuable on-the-job training, but I wouldn’t say the mismatch will tilt the game by the end of the first quarter. BYU has a rich legacy of offensive linemen – Bart Oates, John Tait, Mohammed Elewonibi, to name a few – who were each inexperienced at the start of their careers. The Cougar coaching staff knows how to recruit offensive linemen and does a fine job of it.
Don’t be surprised to see this inexperienced group rise to the occasion.
2. BYU has won two season openers in a row. How will they be able to make it three in a row on the offensive side of the ball?
Simple. Pass, pass, pass.
It’s no secret the Cougars like to throw the football. Last season, they averaged 310 passing yards per game and scored 35 touchdowns through the air. Not Sam Bradford numbers, but potent nonetheless.
If the o-line can protect Hall well enough, he will rack up the yards and put the Sooner secondary to the test.
Don’t underestimate BYU’s running game. Running back Harvey Unga ran for 1132 yards and scored 11 touchdowns last year. He’s also a threat for Hall to throw to, having 309 receiving yards and four touchdown receptions in 2008. With the return of running back Manase Tonga, who was academically ineligible in 2008 and scored eight touchdowns in 2007, BYU’s rushing game is expected to be a strong complement to its passing attack.
If the teams get into an offensive shootout, it will be anyone’s game.
3. What about on the defensive side of the ball?
It’s also no secret that BYU’s defense is traditionally not its strong point. Last season, the Cougars defense did do better than usual in one category: they ranked third in the Mountain West Conference in points per game allowed (21.9).
The fact that they’re returning eight defensive starters from last year gives the Cougars a solid base to improve defensively. If there was a situation tailor-made for the Cougar defense to gain valuable experience, it would be to face an explosive Oklahoma offense.
4. What will quarterback Max Hall have to do in this game to be considered a legitimate Heisman candidate?
Put up numbers like Ty Detmer did when BYU upset defending national champion and No. 1 Miami, 28-21, on Sept. 8, 1990.
Detmer passed for 406 yards on 38-of-54 passing and threw three touchdown passes that historical night in Provo. He followed that game up with consistently solid stats and wins on his way to being named the 56th recipient of the Heisman Trophy that same year.
Currently, Hall is not at or near the top of many Heisman Trophy lists for 2009, but that could change with huge numbers and a BYU win over Oklahoma. Of course, he will need to follow that up with continued fat stats and more wins if a Heisman is in his future.
5. Who are the Cougars going rely on to exploit Oklahoma’s secondary – arguably its weakest link – now that Austin Collie has left for the NFL?
Collie’s absence has left a big hole in BYU’s receiving corps. After all, he did lead the nation in receiving yards per game and total receiving yards in 2008. Replacing him won’t be easy.
Receivers Luke Ashworth, O’Neill Chambers, McKay Jacobson and B.J. Peterson are expected to play key roles in the Cougar passing game this season, but only Jacobson (28 catches, 547 yards and three touchdowns in 2006) has put up noteworthy numbers at the collegiate level.
However, a quarterback with Hall’s talent can bring out the best in unproven receivers. Look for any one of these guys to step up and become the next Collie.
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