The offense Oklahoma will put on the field against Texas is a shell of the one we expected to see coming into the season. The Sooners are running out of wide receivers thanks to injury, the offensive line is a mess, and QB Sam Bradford seems as comfortable throwing to his starting receivers as he would be throwing to the frat guys playing intramurals in Norman on Wednesday nights.
Offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson has his hands full game-planning against a Longhorns defense that ranks fourth in the nation in total defense. There are, however, a couple of under-the-radar personnel points that give the Sooners' offense some hope on Saturday. Here's a look:
Murray in the slot
Now that Oklahoma RB DeMarco Murray is fully healthy after last season's knee injury, Wilson is taking full advantage of his star back's versatility. Take last week's win at Baylor, for example. Murray carried the ball 24 times for 107 yards and caught three passes for another 36 yards. Those 27 touches are the most Murray has had in a single game during his career. While three catches don't jump off the stat sheet, Murray's increased role at wide receiver certainly grabbed my attention.
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Putting Murray in the slot makes a lot of sense. Bradford returned from a shoulder injury last week to a lineup that is missing his top five targets from last season. WRs Juaquin Iglesias, Manuel Johnson and Quentin Chaney have moved on, TE Jermaine Gresham suffered a season-ending injury in the season opener, and WR Ryan Broyles is questionable for Saturday's game after sitting out last week with a shoulder-blade injury. Murray is clearly the most potent weapon the team has on offense right now, and Bradford has some familiarity with him.
Murray spent an entire series working from the slot position when the Sooners went no-huddle in the second quarter against Baylor. On second-and-5 with 11:35 remaining in the quarter, Murray caught a 20-yard pass on a well-executed seam route to pick up the first down. Two plays later, he cleared an area for WR Cameron Kinney, who caught an 18-yard pass on a drive route. Even if Broyles is cleared to play on Saturday, expect the Sooners to continue to use Murray as a slot receiver on some series.
Murray and fellow RB Chris Brown split carries, so when Murray is fresh it makes sense to put him in the slot when Brown is in the backfield. Murray has proven to be more than capable as a route-runner and his presence opens up room for other receivers to operate. If Texas is caught in the wrong personnel grouping when Murray and Brown are in the game at the same time, look for the Sooners to exploit the situation by going to their no-huddle, hurry-up attack.
Also look for Murray to be motioned from the slot into the backfield prior to the snap on more than one occasion. It will give Oklahoma all sorts of option-game, play-action and Wildcat opportunities with Bradford, Brown and Murray all in the backfield.
Kindle can be tamed
The best way to attack Texas' run defense is to run directly at DE/OLB Sergio Kindle. Make no mistake, Kindle is one of the nation's premier defensive players, with his outstanding initial burst off the line and ability to be a disruptive force in the backfield as a pass-rusher and in backside pursuit versus the run. However, despite his strong hands and toughness, Kindle's undersized frame can be a liability when teams are able to get blockers into his body and run right at him.
Colorado proved that theory last week when it successfully attacked Kindle's side of the field early in the game:
12:50 remaining, first quarter -- Colorado H-back Ryan Deehan does not sustain a block on Kindle but gets into his pads long enough to spring RB Demetrius Sumler for a 16-yard gain on second-and-11 from the Texas 30-yard line.
14:07 remaining, second quarter -- The Buffaloes run to Kindle's side again, and this time the H-back sustains the block. RB Rodney Stewart nearly takes this first-and-10 carry to the house, but he trips up 9 yards down field.
Murray and Brown combined for just 35 yards on 14 carries (seven each) versus Texas last season. The Sooners couldn't beat Texas last year with that type of run/pass imbalance, and the 2009 version of their offense is far less likely to do so. Oklahoma needs to be more dedicated to the rushing game and target Kindle more often this time around.
In addition to success on the ground, there are two reasons for Oklahoma to pound away at Kindle's side of the defensive line. First, the more OU runs at Kindle, the less effective he will become as a pass-rusher because he will wear down quickly. Secondly, if Oklahoma can get Kindle to think run first on most normal down-and-distance situations, the Sooners eventually will have an opportunity to burn the Longhorns with the play-action pass.
For instance, check out Colorado QB Cody Hawkins' 11-yard touchdown pass to TE Riar Geer with 2:51 remaining in the second quarter last week. The Buffs anticipate Kindle's preoccupation with holding his ground versus the run and then exploit it by sneaking Geer off the line and down the seam for a quick-hitting score. Kindle kicks himself for getting burned on the play-action but that doesn't mean he's immune to making the same mistake again this week.
Oklahoma has struggled to finish the deal in the red zone, but this could be just the type of play it needs to get back on track.
Todd McShay is the director of college football scouting for Scouts Inc. He has been evaluating prospects for the NFL draft since 1998. Scouts Inc.'s Steve Muench and Kevin Weidl also contributed to this report.