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Fans Hope Hybl Gained Confidence With Win Over Tulsa by Justin Waganer Senior Sports Writer November 4, 2001
He played Tulsa. Seriously, aside from the fact he was playing one of the worst teams in college football, Nate Hybl made plays on Saturday and the Oklahoma offense put up the most points in a game since hanging 63 on Texas last season. The Sooners routed Tulsa 58-0 in a game that meant possibly less than nothing in the BCS scheme of things, but may make a difference in the confidence of Nate Hybl and the effectiveness of the Oklahoma offense for the upcoming weeks.
Hybl spoke of the offensive success after the game, "We were able to move the ball really well and it was just a great feeling. I'm lucky to be around the guys I am. The offensive line played a wonderful game today and the wide receivers kept making plays. It's fun to be part of an offense that's clicking like this. I believe we got ourselves back on track." Hybl completed 36 of 48 passes for 347 yards and two touchdowns on Saturday as OU improved to 8-1 on the season.
Excluding a drive that ended the first half the Sooners scored on seven consecutive possessions, including five straight touchdowns after Tim Duncan's 25 and 42 yard field goals opened the scoring. The seven scoring possessions included drives of 63, 77, and 78 yards while only one was started by a turnover. Oklahoma put up 541 yards of total offense with 175 coming on the ground, 90 of those rushing yards were from Quentin Griffin, who also had four touchdowns consecutive touchdowns.
One of the bigger changes of the day that also contributed in Oklahoma's offensive output was freshman wide receiver Brandon Jones returning 7 punts for 150 yards on the day, including a 56 yard return in the fourth quarter. Bob Stoops talked about the change after the game, "Brandon is becoming a force for us on special teams. He needs more experience, but he's got the explosiveness to make things happen."
The constant dominant area of the squad, the defense, thrived again holding the Hurricanes to just 138 yards on 66 plays (2.1 per play) and recording the first shutout since a 37-0 win over Missouri in Bob Stoops first year. Tulsa crossed midfield just twice on the day, the OU defense impressed yet another opposing coach.
"They're the best defense I have seen in a long, long time. I think they believe they are good, and that's where it starts. They pursue and they fly around. I have a great deal of respect for how hard they play," said Head Coach Keith Burns after the 58-0 shellacking.
Hybl and the offense were playing against Tulsa, which is obviously not the most dominant team in the world, but the offense got a bit of a rhythm that they hadn't felt for most of the year. The offense didn't look this smooth against Baylor or North Texas, which are the only comparable schools to these Hurricanes on the OU schedule. Hybl appeared as comfortable in the pocket as he had all year and looked to be as motivated to make a play as he has been yet, though he keeps it all in perspective.
"This game was an exciting one, but as far as I'm concerned it's over with. Tulsa came to play and I commend them on their effort. We can look at the tapes and learn from what we did, but we need to get ready for Texas A&M now," said Hybl. Will Hybl be the man against A&M? The only people that know that are the guys calling the plays, but maybe it doesn't matter. Maybe this is how Hybl gets his groove back.
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