OU Coach & Player Quotes on Texas

NORMAN, Okla. -- OU head coach Bob Stoops and players met with the press corps on Tuesday afternoon at the weekly media luncheon in the Stadium Club at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.

The Sooners head to Dallas to battle the Texas Longhorns on Saturday at 11 a.m. in the Cotton Bowl. ABC will televise the game.

Read quotes from Stoops, senior quarterback Jason White, senior linebacker Lance Mitchell, senior offensive tackle Jammal Brown and senior cornerback Antonio Perkins.

Oklahoma Head Coach Bob Stoops
"Going back to Texas Tech, I believe we played a very solid game. I think that the guys that played well and deserved to be pointed out are Jammal Brown, Vince Carter, Wes Sims, Jason White, Travis Wilson and Adrian Peterson on offense. I really liked the way we played on offense -- other than not taking advantage of the Texas Tech turnovers deep in their own territory.

Photos | UT Coach & Player Quotes | Sooner Gameday Central

Defensively, to hold them to 13 points, you have to go back the last two or three years with them -- I don't know of many people who have held them to 13 or less. Overall, the defense played solid. We gave up some yards but the points are what matter the most and we came up with some big turnovers. Some guys that played well on defense were Jonathan Jackson, Brodney Pool and Brandon Shelby -- all really having strong days.

The kicking game was solid again. It was a good, strong win and puts us in a great position coming into the Texas game."

On Texas:
"Everyone understands what a great rivalry this is and what a great venue to play in the Cotton Bowl. It is great competition every year and we're always excited about the challenge. We're looking forward to the competition down there and playing a very good Texas team.

Anyone ranked in the top five is awfully good with talented players. They have played well and have an excellent running game highlighted with Cedric Benson and complemented by Vince Young's ability to pull it down and run as well. That could be the stronger part of our concentration on defense. We have to be physical up front, be where have to be in our gaps and tackling well.

Offensively, we have to maintain balance between running and throwing. We have to keep them off balance and execute. Our kicking game has to be a factor. We have been excellent in our kicking game so hopefully we can keep that up. We're looking forward to the challenge of it and hopefully it will be an exciting event."

On Texas' Running Game Compared to Last Year:
"I think they have a stronger emphasis on it and they are executing in a very good way through four games. I felt the last couple of years coming into our game that their running game had looked well and was strong. It has been the focal point of our defense the past several years. It has been our goal to make sure that we stop their run game. I believe it gets down to a team effort in being in our positions and being disciplined in our run support."

On OU's Defensive Tackles:
"I've been happy with them. I think they have been making progress and doing a good job. I've liked the way they have played and progressed so far."

On Texas' Defensive Changes:
"Structurally they are different than a year ago. They have more zones than compared to more man from a year ago. They are different from a year ago, but not unlike a lot of teams that you see with the coverages and zones that they play."

On OU's Running Game:
"We've worked hard to make sure to establish the running game. The situation dictates your play calling and how the defense is playing you. We're in the situation to mix it up and throw it when we need to. I feel that we've developed our running game enough that we can do both."

On Who Starts At Running Back:
"We'll work that out through the week. It won't matter on who it is, because regardless of who it is the other will get a good amount of playing time. We'll see as we go through the week of the right way to approach it."

Oklahoma QB Jason White
On Texas' Defensive Changes:
"This year they tend to run a little more zone than they have in the past. They still run quite a bit of man to man, but I think the biggest thing is how athletic they are on defense. They have a lot of veteran players and a new coordinator so they have a lot more schemes. Their coordinator does a great job of disguising coverages and mixing it up to try to confuse the offense."

On OU's Running Backs:
"With the emergence of our running game, you see a lot more people in the box and the defense tends to bite on the play action more and you can get the passes over the top."

On OU's Offensive Gameplan:
"The first thing we have to do is establish our plan. We have to be physical through all four quarters and execute all four quarters."

On UT's Derrick Johnson:
"Derrick is a great player and you have to account for where he is at each time you come to the line. He does a great job in his pass coverage."

Oklahoma OT Jammal Brown
On the Texas Game:
"It is a big game, but it's still just another game in the Big 12 South. The history and tradition make it a very big game and it is a huge rivalry."

On going undefeated against Texas as a player:
"That is something that I would like to accomplish, but right now we just want to focus on getting prepared for the game."

On offensive play calling:
"We're just going to go out there and get the job done. Plays will be called for whatever situation we're in. We're not going to be hiding any plays -- we will just do what we have to in order to win."

On the improvement of the offense:
"I don't know if it's so much that we're better, rather than we're a year older, a year stronger, a year faster, and just more mature."

On the grudge against Texas:
"Texas is Texas. We're going to go into the game as if they were any other team. They're just another Big 12 South team standing in the way of our goals.

On the running game:
"We want to go out there and make our running backs look good and give them the chance to gain a lot of yards."

Oklahoma LB Lance Mitchell
On the improvement of the OU defense:
"I feel like we're getting better as a whole every week."

The key to stopping Cedric Benson:
"We're prepared and we have watched a lot of film. We just have to play physical and play downhill. Everybody has to do their job."

On watching OU-TX from the sideline last season:
"It was one of the worst feelings in the world. You see your teammates out there having fun so it was hard not being able to join them. I remember how tough it was just to be watching from the sidelines, so now I am able to appreciate playing against Texas."

Oklahoma CB/RS Antonio Perkins
Big 12 championship and national championship implications:
"That's the thing about the Big 12 -- every game is a big game. Texas is a great team and we hope to have a good game against them."

On Texas offense:
"We hope to contain them and hopefully they won't get too many big plays."

On Chijioke Onynegecha:
"He's a great athlete and a great player. He takes great pride in special teams and that's what has earned his playing time."

On OU's success against Texas:
"It has everything to do with the way we practice and prepare and watch film. We know how to react to them and we feel confident and are ready to the same again this year."

On containing Vince Young:
"He's a great athlete and he can pull the ball down when he needs to and run and make big plays. Hopefully we can limit his big plays.

On OU-Texas:
"This game brings out the best in both teams. It's a great feeling driving through the fair into the Cotton Bowl on the bus. Only two teams get to have that feeling every season. It's a great experience."

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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