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OU's First Two Scrimmages Showcase Different Strengths, Weaknesses August 12, 2001 by Jason Waganer Executive Editor
Norman, Okla. -- In the first full-contact scrimmage of the fall practices, the Sooner defense dominated last Wednesday night in front of about 3,500 fans. Only allowing one touchdown during the exhibition, the defense made it difficult for Jason White and Nate Hybl, the two quarterbacks battling for the Sooners starting position, to get much done.
Hybl had slightly better statistics in the first scrimmage, going 21 for 35 for 151 yards. White was 13 for 19 with 61 yards in the air.
The only real highlights for the offense came from the running back position. Quentin Griffin scored the only touchdown of the day and rushed for 29 yards on seven carries. True freshman sensation Kejuan Jones thrilled the crowd as he rushed for 76 yards on seven carries (mostly against the second and third team defenses).
"Quentin was really exceptional," said OU Head Coach Bob Stoops. "Kejuan Jones is explosive and he really hustles. He always has a smile on his face and he's fun to watch."
The defense totally dominated the first scrimmage with seven quarterback sacks, showcasing a potential weakness on the Sooners' partially inexperienced offensive line
The second scrimmage of the season came early Saturday evening, wrapping up a full day of fan appreciation day events. This scrimmage, unlike the first one, was pretty much dominated by the offense.
Hybl and White both had a nice scrimmage. White went 17-26 for 232 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions (both interceptions came on tipped passes). Hybl, playing the scrimmage with a fever and cold symptoms, went 20-28 for 220 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
Redshirt Freshman Hunter Wall and true freshman Brent Rawls both got a series each. Rawls was impressive in his series, going 2-3 for 14 yards (with an amazing 50 yarder called back due to a penalty). Wall was 1-3 for 10 yards and was obviously the weakest of the four.
Just like in the first scrimmage, the Sooner running backs appear to be much improved from a season ago. Jerad Estus led the OU backs with 46 yards on five impressive carries. Renaldo Works had 22 yards on six carries. Both Works and Estus had long runs called back during the exhibition. Griffin, OU's starting running back, had three carries for four yards and sat out the majority of the day to prevent injuries.
Four touchdowns were scored by the offense in the second Saturday's scrimmage. Damien Mackey led the receivers with six catches for 109 yards and a touchdown.
The defense, playing without Rocky Calmus, Tommy Harris, Jimmy Wilkerson and Brandon Everage, was probably quite a bit weaker than it will appear in two weeks for OU's opener against North Carolina. The players sat out either to heal minor injuries or to prevent injuries. All four are expected to play when the season starts.
OU Head Coach Bob Stoops was happy with the overall performance of Saturday's play.
"The guys all went at it pretty well," said Stoops. "Some guys looked really good and it was a solid workout overall. There was solid tackling from the defense and I thought all of our running backs were very impressive. We've got a couple more weeks to get them ready to play."
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