OKLAHOMA (2-0) AT WASHINGTON (0-2) AT A GLANCE
Published 11:30 pm Friday, September 12, 2008
The coaches
Washington’s Tyrone Willingham is in his fourth year with the Huskies, where his record is 11-27. He is in his 14th season overall and has a career record of 76-78-1.
Oklahoma’s Bob Stoops is in his 10th year as a head coach, all at Oklahoma (99-22).
Huskies to watch
QB Jake Locker: Showed improvement from week one to week two, but passing game has still been inconsistent in part because of Locker’s accuracy, but also because of drops. Locker remains his team’s top running threat.
TB David Freeman: Undersized freshman back had a solid second half replacing an injured Chris Polk, averaging five yards per carry while impressing coaches with his blocking skills.
TE Kavario Middleton: Freshman is becoming Locker’s most sure-handed target, and with eight catches in two games, the Huskies’ most productive tight end in years.
LB Mason Foster: Sophomore leads the team with 19 tackles and has one interception.
DE Daniel Te’o-Nesheim: He and the rest of the D line need to end Washington’s 2008 sack drought.
S Johri Fogerson: At this time two weeks ago, Fogerson was a freshman tailback trying to break into the rotation. Because of the injuries that have hurt the Huskies at safety, Fogerson is expected to see significant playing time, perhaps even as a starter, less than two weeks after changing positions.
Sooners to watch
QB Sam Bradford: Sophomore has thrown seven touchdowns while completing 76.7 percent of his passes this season.
RB DeMarco Murray: Sophomore is averaging seven yards per carry through two games.
WR Ryan Broyles: Redshirt freshman made an impressive debut last week, catching seven passes for 141 yards and a touchdown.
DE Auston English: Totaled 9.5 sacks last season, and is off to a good start again with 2.5 this year.
LB Travis Lewis: Redshirt freshman leads the team with 18 tackles, 12 of which came last week.
DT Gerald McCoy: Freshman All-American had 6.5 tackles for loss and two sacks last year.
Breaking down the game
Washington: The Huskies’ offense improved from week one to week two, and will need to be even better to give the Huskies a chance against Oklahoma. The Sooners will score, so the UW offense needs to answer. As was the case for much of last season, Locker has been a big part, and probably too much, of the Huskies running game. The good news is that tailbacks David Freeman and Willie Griffin found some running room in the second half against BYU that didn’t appear to be there in Washington’s first six quarters of the season. Young or not, Washington’s receivers need to stop dropping the ball this week.
Defensively, the Huskies are facing arguably their toughest test yet, and that’s saying something given the last two opponents. Two games and zero sacks is a stat the defense obviously isn’t happy with, nor was BYU’s 12 for 14 rate on third down last week. The Huskies will have to be mentally tough this week as well to handle Oklahoma’s no-huddle offense that tends to put defenses on their heels.
Oklahoma: Oklahoma has scored 41 points in the first quarter in two games this season, and hopes to start fast again to take the Husky Stadium crowd out of the game. The level of talent on the field Saturday will be as good as any Washington will see with the exception, maybe, of USC. Bradford runs Oklahoma’s no-huddle offense to near perfection, though he has thrown a pair of interceptions, so there may be a chance for the Huskies to make a few plays on defense. If Oklahoma manages to run over 80 plays on offense again like it has in its first two games, it could be a rough day for the UW defense.
While the offense gets most of the attention, Oklahoma’s defense isn’t too bad either. The Sooners will be aggressive, blitzing more than any team the Huskies have seen this year in an attempt to rattle Locker. The best news for Washington is that Oklahoma’s defense was better at home than away in 2007, surrendering its three highest point totals away from Norman.
Bottom line
Washington should play well enough at home to keep it close for a half, but Oklahoma’s no-huddle attack will eventually wear down the UW defense.
Pick
Oklahoma 45, Washington 31
John Boyle, Herald Writer
