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Sooners Offense Looks Predictable in Season Opening Victory over UNC August 26, 2001 by Jason Waganer Executive Editor
Is it the quarterback or is it the system? Was Josh Heupel an irreplaceable innovator in the pocket, or simply a great director of an unstoppable offensive system? The answer is not yet known.
In Saturday night's season opening victory over the North Carolina Tarheels, the OU offense sputtered often. Three and out was a common theme -- a theme that has not been common since Bob Stoops arrival in Norman. The offense seemed almost predictable in the 41-27 victory.
The screens and shovel passes that have been so successful in the Sooner offense throughout the past two seasons under Heupel's leadership, seemed predictable Saturday night. But was it a limited playbook, poor play calling or inexperience at the quarterback position that caused the Sooners predictability?
The answer: it's probably too early to know.
The Sooners jumped out on the Tarheels early, scoring 31 points in the first quarter to blow the game wide open. The game's first score, a field goal, was set up by a fumble recovery by OU All-American linebacker Rocky Calmus.
In all, the defense caused five turnovers in the first half leading to many of the Sooners points. Rocky Calmus also scored a touchdown in the first quarter when he picked up another fumble and stumbled 10 yards into the end zone.
OU special teams also came up big in the the first quarter. Kick returner Antwone Savage had an 88-yard touchdown return following North Carolina's first score.
The Sooners dominated the entire first half, essentially locking up the game with a halftime lead of 41-14. This is one of the reasons it's so difficult to judge whether or not the Sooner offense is as predictable as it appeared.
Was the offense playing things close the the vest? Was there any reason to really expose any new offensive weapons when your team essentially has the game put away in the first quarter? Probably not.
The Sooner offense really just never got into rhythm. The Sooner defense and special teams dominated so much early that the offense looked up three minutes into the game and saw a score of 17-0. The Sooner offense was shell-shocked (and luckily by their own defense).
The one thing this coaching staff has shown during its first two years on the job is that it makes great adjustments. Expect the Sooner offense to come out next week and unveil a few new features. More than likely, you won't see as many screens and shovel passes. You'll probably see a few more tosses down the field which is supposedly the strength of both Hybl and Jason White.
Bottom Line: don't make your decision yet on the quarterback or the offense, there's still a lot of the season left.
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