Sooners Host Bears for Homecoming

2005 Homecoming
Oklahoma celebrates homecoming when Baylor visits Owen Field on Saturday. The game is scheduled to kick shortly after 6 p.m. and will be televised by Fox Sports Net.

The broadcast will mark the 36th consecutive game that Oklahoma has played on TV. The streak will extend to 37 straight after ABC announced that the network will show the Nebraska game on Oct. 29 in Lincoln.

The Sooners, playing at home for the first time since Oct. 1, hope to string together their first back-to-back victories of the season after last week's 19-3 triumph over Kansas at Kansas City.

Sooner Gameday Central - Baylor | Season Stats | Notes (PDF)

Baylor will be trying to avoid a second straight setback after dropping a 23-14 decision to Nebraska last Saturday in Waco.

The weekend also is highlighted by reunions of the 1955 and 1956 Oklahoma football teams, both of which earned undefeated national championships, and were instrumental in building OU's NCAA record 47-game winning streak.

The Series
Overall: Oklahoma leads, 14-0; At Norman: Oklahoma leads, 7-0; At Waco: Oklahoma leads, 7-0; OU's Widest Margin of Victory: 56-7 in 2000; Baylor's Widest Margin of Victory: na. Oklahoma's Highest Point Total: 56 in 2000; Baylor's Highest Point Total: 24 in 1996. Shutouts by Oklahoma: 1; Shutouts by Baylor: na; Oklahoma's Longest Series Winning Streak: 14 games, 1901-present; Baylor's Longest Series Winning Streak: na.

The Coaches
Oklahoma: Bob Stoops (Iowa 83), now in his seventh season with the Sooners, is 70-15 overall. He is 3-3 in bowls, 3-2 in January bowls, 2-2 in BCS games, 46-9 vs. the Big 12, 25-6 vs. the Big 12 South, 21-3 vs. the Big 12 North, 3-1 in the Big 12 title game, 25-6 vs. non-conference opponents, 38-2 at home, 20-7 on the road, 12-6 on neutral fields, 21-6 vs. ranked opponents and 6-0 vs. Baylor.

Baylor: Guy Morriss (TCU 73) is 10-19 in his third season at Baylor, 19-33 in five years as a head coach. He is 0-2 against Oklahoma.

The Festivities
Game Sponsor: GlaxoSmithKline. Pre-game: Alumni band and homecoming court. Halftime: Recognition of the 1955 and 1956 Oklahoma football teams, and the 2004-05 Oklahoma Men's Basketball team that won the Big 12 Conference's regular season championship. Pride of Oklahoma also performing. Other: The homecoming parade is scheduled for 3 p.m., Saturday.

Sooner FanFest also begins at 3 p.m., on the Brooks Mall immediately north of Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Here is the schedule for the FanFest Autograph tent ... women's basketball team from 3-3:30 p.m., men's basketball team from 3:30-4 p.m., 1955 and 1956 OU football teams from 4-5 p.m.

The Program
Oklahoma owns one of the most storied and accomplished traditions in all of college football ...
OU's all-time record is 752-288-53. n Seven national championships (1950, 1955, 1956, 1974, 1975, 1985, 2000).
Thirty-eight bowl appearances (No. 7 nationally) with 23 victories (No. 3 nationally).
Since WWII, Oklahoma is the most successful college football program with 507 victories.
OU's all-time winning percentage of .711 ranks No. 4 among Division I-A members.
From 2000 forward, OU leads the nation in victories with 63.

This Week's Opponent
Baylor, at 4-2, has its highest victory total since 1996 when the Bears were 4-7. BU won its first three games and has since lost two of three, including a 16-13 overtime setback at Texas A&M.

QB Shawn Bell has completed 117-of-191 passes (61.3%) for 1,131 yards with six touchdowns and four interceptions.

Three BU receivers have 21 or more receptions. Shaun Rochon has 26 catchesw for 213 yards, Dominic Zeigler 23 for 273 and Trent Shelton 21 for 270.

Paul Mosley leads the ground game with 107 rushes for 447 yards and four touchdowns. FS Maurice Lane is Baylor's leading tackler with 55.

The Last Meeting
Oklahoma won last year's game, the regular season finale, by a 35-0 count in Waco ...
OU's defense pitched shutout on the strength of a season-high seven sacks. Larry Birdine starred with three sacks and a forced fumble.
Adrian Peterson spearheaded the offense by rushing 32 times for 240 yards and three TD. The Sooners piled up 302 rushing yards on 47 attempts.
Jason White hit on 21-of-34 passes for 199 yards and two touchdowns. He was not sacked or intercepted. The Sooners finished with 501 total yards.
K Garrett Hartley saw his first action as a Sooner. The true freshman came off the bench to make all four of his point after touchdown kicks. He started the following game, the Big 12 Championship tilt against Colorado, and has been the Sooners' placekicker since that time.

Ties With This Week's Opponent
Oklahoma CB Marcus Walker is a native of Waco. This marks the fifth consecutive season that OU has had a player from Waco. Before Walker it was C Vince Carter.
Baylor special teams coach Mark Nelson played college football at East Central Oklahoma State and then got his coaching start at Choctaw HS.
BU's roster includes two Oklahomans, LB Marcus Mead from Alva and RB Brandon Whitaker from Edmond.

Oklahoma's Most Recent Game
Oklahoma, playing in Kansas City's Arrowhead Stadium for a third consecutive season, vanquished Kansas, 19-3 ...
On the game's third play D.J. Wolfe picked off Kansas' Brian Luke and returned the interception 65 yards for a touchdown and the only points the Sooners would need.
OU's defense was dominant claiming four takeaways (three interceptions and one fumble) and limiting KU to just 97 total yards. The Jayhawks gained only 11 yards on 22 rushing attempts while completing just 11-of-30 passes.
LB Rufus Alexander, who had 10 tackles and a key interception near the OU goal line, was named the Big 12's Defensive Player of the Week.
The Sooner offense didn't get untracked until the fourth quarter when it picked up six of its 16 first downs, 39 of its 96 rushing yards and 100 of its 210 passing yards.
Oklahoma got little from its leading rusher and receiver. RB Adrian Peterson, playing on a sore ankle, carried just five times for a career-low -4 yards and did not see any snaps in the second half. WR Travis Wilson watched the game from the sideline in street clothes with his right foot in a protective boot. OU also was without starting C Chris Chester for a second straight game.

Oklahoma Picks Up Win. No. 750
The win over Tulsa in the second game of this season was the 750th all-time for Oklahoma. The Sooners' all-time record now stands 752-288-53. OU is one of just eight schools with 750 victories. With 1,093 games played, the Sooners are just seven away from 1,100. Nineteen other schools have played 1,100 games.

Sooners Eclipse Three Million in Attendance Under Stoops
Oklahoma has sold out all 40 home games of Bob Stoops' tenure and during the Tulsa game the total number of fans during that period exceeded three million. The total stands at 3,144,409 for an average of 78,610. That figure is misleading because recent expansion moved the capacity to 82,112. That figure has been exceeded in 15 straight games.

Trends Then and Now
Through the first three games of this season, opponents sacked the Oklahoma quarterback eight times while the Sooners returned the favor on just seven occasions. In the three games since then, OU has 12 sacks to just six by the opponents. The Sooners had six against Kansas State and three each against Texas and Kansas.
Oklahoma had nine turnovers and just four takeaways through its first three games for a turnover margin of -5. In the three games since then, the Sooners have five turnovers and eight takeaways for a turnover margin of +3.
Through the first three games. Oklahoma trailed in time of possession by a cumulative total of 18:08. In the three games since then, the Sooners are on the plus side by 16:44.
OU's first three foes piled up 64 first downs. In the three games since then they have 41.
OU trailed its opponents in points off turnovers through the first three games by a 30-7 count. In the three games since then, OU has the advantage in that statistic, 20-14.

Fourth Down Fun
Oklahoma has converted 6-of-9 fourth-down tries this season including their last four in a row. Two of those last four came on faked kicks (a punt vs. Texas and a field goal against Kansas) Sooner opponents are 2-of-7 on fourth down this season.
Since Bob Stoops arrived, Oklahoma is 65-of-112 (58%) on fourth down. Sooner opponents during that time are 49-of-131 (37%).

Yellow Brick Wall
Oklahoma assistant head coach and defensive coordinator Brent Venables is a native of Salina, Kan., and a graduate of Kansas State, but the welcome mat may not out in his home state. Venables' defense limited the two Sunflower State schools on OU's schedule, Kansas State and Kansas, to 33 yards on 54 rushing attempts this season.
It wasn't a whole lot better for K-State and KU last season when the two combined for 73 yards on 59 attempts. Kansas was responsible 72 of those after the Wildcats gained one yard on 25 tries.

Sooners Taking a Different Position
Paul Thompson's move from QB (he's still the No. 2) to WR and Allen Patrick's change from DB to RB continues a venture that has been successful for Oklahoma under Bob Stoops -- players changing positions.

OU Brand Among the Nation's Most Popular
The Collegiate Licensing Company has announced its top-selling entities for the most recent fiscal year and the OU brand ranks No. 5, the highest ranking ever for the Sooners. North Carolina topped the list followed by Michigan, Texas, Georgia and Oklahoma. A portion of the proceeds from the Sooner marks benefit an endowment for Bizzell Library on the OU campus.

Early Games Illustrate Changing of the Guard
A game-by-game look at the youth and change on this year's team ...

The TCU Game
Seven defensive players made their first career start.
Thirteen freshmen (eight true, five redshirt) played.
The starting offensive players in last season's finale had a combined 301 starts. The offensive starters in the 05 opener had a combined 130. The offensive line that started in the Orange Bowl last season at 188 career starts compared to just 68 for the group that started this year's opener.

The Tulsa Game
Eighteen first-year players saw action. Of those, 16 were freshmen, including 10 true.
Four of the five starting offensive linemen were in their first game at that particular position. Only Chris Bush, who had two previous starts at right guard (one in 03 and another in 04) was in a spot he had previously held. The offensive line that started against TU had a combined 41 career starts, down some 27 from the opener.
Three freshmen linemen played, including RT Branndon Braxton in his first career start.
CB D.J. Wolfe led OU with 12 tackles. At the same time last year he was a reserve RB.
OU's leading rusher and receiver was a sophomore (Adrian Peterson), the QB was a redshirt freshman (Rhett Bomar), the P was a sophomore (Cody Freeby), the K was a sophomore (Garrett Hartley), the leading tackle was a sophomore (D.J. Wolfe) and three of the four sacks were made by players who either weren't here last season or were playing offense in 2004.

The UCLA Game
Three true freshmen started in the game in RT Branndon Braxton, WR Malcolm Kelly and SS Reggie Smith. To put that in perspective, only four true freshmen even played for OU all of 2004.
Of the 15 players who had statistics on offense or in returns, 10 have at least two years of eligibility remaining, as did the leading tacklers Demarrio Pleasant and Darien Williams (both had 10), both of whom are sophomores.

The Kansas State Game
Four true freshmen started, including both safeties -- Reggie Smith (FS) and Nic Harris (SS). Harris responded with seven tackles and one sack in his first career start. Smith had an interception and a 14-yard return.
In the third quarter, the Sooners faced a third-and-seven at their own 19. The offense came out in a three-receiver set and all three were true freshmen -- Malcolm Kelly, Manuel Johnson and Juaquin Iglesias. Rhett Bomar, a redshirt freshman himself, hit Iglesias for 18 yards.

The Texas Game
For the second straight game five freshmen were in the starting line-up, including three true frosh. RG J.D. Quinn, a redshirt freshman, made his first career start after Chris Bush moved over to the center spot to spell ailing Chris Chester, a senior.
Quinn was one of three offensive players making a first career start, sort of. Paul Thompson, a junior, started this year's opener at quarterback, but made his first-ever start at WR against Texas. Sophomore RB Jacob Gutierrez lined up in the slot on the first play to earn his first start.

The Kansas Game
OU's lone offensive touchdown was scored by true freshman Malcolm Kelly on a 25-yard pass from RS freshman Rhett Bomar. The Sooners' other TD was scored by sophomore CB D.J. Wolfe, who played RB last season. WR Juaquin Iglesias became the eight freshman to start a game this season, the fifth true freshman to do so.

Nothing Average About the New Linemen
By physical stature, this is the biggest group of offensive lineman to join the OU program under Bob Stoops. The average size of the Sooners' first-year o-linemen is 6-5, 305. Ben Baressi is 6-5, 282; Branndon Braxton 6-6, 300; George Robinson 6-6, 330 and Jesse White 6-5, 282. Add defensive interior newcomers DeMarcus Granger (6-2, 320) and Brian Simmons (6-5, 305) and there are five incoming players who tip the scales at better than 300 pounds.

Sooner Extremes
Tallest: Willie Roberts, TE (6-7); Shortest: David Robinson, WR (5-6); Heaviest: George Robinson, OL (330); Lightest: David Robinson, WR (156); Oldest: Willie Roberts, TE (born Feb. 10, 1981); Youngest: Juaquin Iglesias, WR (born Aug. 22, 1987).

About the Sooner Offense
Under Bob Stoops, OU has produced its career leader in passing and receiving, while also turning out the fourth-leading rusher in school history and the school record holder for single season rushing yards.
Oklahoma has scored at least one touchdown in 86 consecutive games dating back to Nov. 7, 1998.
Under Stoops, OU has rushed for 200 yards 24 times, including 19 over the last four seasons.
Also under Stoops, OU has 87 TDs of 25+ yards and 202 scoring drives that lasted less than two minutes.

Peterson Goes Over 2,000 Yards
Soph RB Adrian Peterson crossed over the 2,000 yard mark for his career vs. Tulsa, when be bolted for 220 against the Golden Hurricane. Peterson now has 2,327 yards for his career ...
Peterson has been slowed by bad ankle in the last three games. Three weeks ago against Kansas State he had 51 yards through one quarter and a half when he left the game with an ankle injury. He had a 22-yard TD run before retiring. Two weeks he had just three carries for 10 yards against Texas, the last week he had five totes for -4 yards while playing in the first half only against Kansas.
The Tulsa game was the fourth 200-yard game (his fourth-highest total) and his fourth three-touchdown game. His 32 carries tied for his third-highest total, but with two receptions, the 34 touches ranked second. He had 36 touches (all rushes) against Kansas State last season.
Last season, Peterson carried 339 times for 1,925 yards. His attempts ranked No. 1 in the nation, while his net yards was No. 3.
During the off-season he had surgery on his left shoulder, which precluded his participation in spring practice.
Peterson set a single season rushing record at OU in 2004, surpassing the previous best of 1,896 yards by Billy Sims in 1978.
Peterson eclipsed Ron Dayne's (1,863) NCAA single season mark for a freshman. Peterson set other NCAA freshman standards for consecutive 100-yard games (nine) and 100-yard games (11). He tied (Emmitt Smith, Florida, 1987 and Marshall Faulk, San Diego State, 1991) the record for reaching 1,000 yards the fastest by a frosh by doing so in the seventh game.
Peterson averaged 164.0 yards vs. the four ranked foes in 2004.
He gained 100 yards in 11 of 13 games as a frosh and has done so in 12 of 19 games during his career.
He had the highest finish in the Heisman voting ever by a freshman (second) and was the first freshman to be named a finalist for the Doak Walker Award. He also was a finalist for the Maxwell.

Two X 2,000
With Kejuan Jones (2,199) and Adrian Peterson (2,323) both over 2,000 career rushing yards, it marks the first time since 1987 that OU has two backs over that figure on the same roster. Lydell Carr finished with 2,910 and Jamelle Holieway with 2,713 that year. It also happened in 1986 when Carr and Spencer Tillman both eclipsed 2,000.
It's also interesting to note that both Jones and Peterson figure to continue their respective ascensions up the career rushing touchdown list at OU. Jones is tied at No. 7 with Steve Davis with 34. Peterson has 21. He needs just nine to crack the top 15.

Bomar Sooner
A look at RS QB Rhett Bomar, who came off the bench in the opener, but has since been the starter ...
He had a string of 73 throws without an interception snapped against Texas when one of his tosses bounced off WR Manuel Johnson into the hands of a Longhorn defender.
In a two-game stretch against UCLA and Kansas State, he completed 32-of-51 (.627) for 380 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions.
He has rushed for a touchdown in two games. Prior to leading OU in rushing with 67 yards on eight carries against Kansas State, he rushed 13 times for 28 at UCLA. In those two games, he had 21 totes for 95 yards, an average of 4.5 yards per attempt.
He has eight rushes of more than 10 yards (one vs TCU, one vs. Tulsa, 4 vs. UCLA, one vs. KSU and one vs. Texas) , including a 42-yarder against Kansas State. That eclipsed his previous long rush of 28 yards against TCU.

Rushing QB Returns at Oklahoma
Only twice during the last two seasons (2003, 2004) did a starting Sooner quarterback have rushes of 10 or more yards. Jason White picked up 10 yards against Texas in 2003 and then had a 12-yard jaunt against USC last season. White finished in positive rushing numbers just five times over those two seasons (once in 03 and four times in 04). Bomar has had a positive rushing number in four of five games to date. In White's defense, before being slowed by two knee surgeries, he was a dangerous runner. He rushed 12 times for 117 yards at Kansas in the 2001 game. Two weeks later he suffered the first of two knee injuries during a game at Nebraska.
That 2001 Kansas game stood as the most recent time that a Sooner quarterback had led the team in rushing for a game until Bomar's 67 yards topped OU in this year's Kansas State tilt.
Bomar rushed for touchdowns in back-to-back games (UCLA and Kansas State), a first at OU since Nate Hybl did it against Air Force and North Texas in 2001.

Frosh Starter at QB
Not since Jake Sills in 1998 has a freshman started at quarterback for Oklahoma. Like Rhett Bomar, Sills was a redshirt freshman.

Three Touchdown Passes, but ...
While it's true that Oklahoma has just two touchdown passes this season (Rhett Bomar to Joe Jon Finley vs. Kansas State and Texas), the air game has played a significant role in other OU trips to the end zone ...

The UCLA Game
Bomar completed passes of 10 and 18 yards to the Bruin 16 before running to the end zone from there.

The Kansas State Game
Bomar hit Finley on a 17-yard throw that took the ball to the KSU three. Kejuan Jones ran into the end zone on the next play.
Bomar found Travis Wilson on a 24-yard play that took the ball to the Wildcat four. Jones scored on a two-yard rush two plays later.

Young But Catching On
The receiving corps is another place where Oklahoma's youthfulness manifests itself. Seven of the 15 players with a catch this season have at least two years of eligibility remaining after this season.
The three touchdown throws have gone to a sophomore (two) and a true freshman (one).
Seven of those with a reception either weren't on the active roster last year or were playing a different position.

Geez, Mr. Wilson
Travis Wilson is closing in on a number of milestones ... he is just one reception away from 100 for his career, eight receptions away from OU's career top 10 and 107 yards away from OU's career top 10 ...
In the opener, Wilson led OU with five receptions for 52 yards. Seventeen of those yards after the catch.
He had seven catches for 103 yards at UCLA. He also rushed twice for 61 yards, including a 56-yard TD.
Against Kansas State, he caught five passes for 68 yards and returned one kickoff for 34.
Wilson logged 30 receptions for 345 yards and five touchdowns over his first two seasons before erupting in his junior campaign with 50 catches for 660 yards and the 11 scores.

Versatility in the Trenches
The Oklahoma offensive linemen have played a number of positions during the respective careers ...
LG Davin Joseph has 28 starts at right guard, three at left tackle and one at left guard.
RG Chris Bush has five starts at left guard, five at right guard and three at center. Bush has three starts at right guard and two at center this season.
C Chris Chester has one start at right guard and three at center. Incidentally, he's the only offensive lineman on the team with a touchdown. That came on a fake field goal at Missouri in 2002 when he caught a pass from holder Matt McCoy. During that time, Chester was a reserve tight end.
OT Chris Messner started the 2003 Alabama game at left tackle, then got the nod at right tackle in this year's season opener.

Special Teams Stuff
A look at special teams notes from Bob Stoops' era as OU's head coach ...
There have been 22 special teams TDs, including 15 in the last 43 regular season games. Those 15 came via five different kinds of plays -- nine punt returns, two faked field goals, a blocked punt, a kickoff return and a faked punt. The special teams also own one safety.
OU has returned five kickoffs and 13 punts for touchdowns.
The Sooners have blocked 18 kicks.
In this year's opener, OU did not block a kick or return one for a TD, but did get a big play when Jason Carter tackled the TCU punter. The Sooners converted the play into a field goal.
Against Kansas State, Jacob Gutierrez tipped a punt that traveled just eight yards.
Against Texas, OU faked a punt with J.D. Runnels rushing to gain a first down.
Against Kansas, the Sooners faked an extra point with H Cody Freeby completing a pitch pass to Russell Dennison for a first down.

Many Happy Returns
OU special teams under Bob Stoops ...
Kickoff Returns -- There have been 35 returns of 25 yards or more with five TDs.
Punt Returns -- There have been 38 returns of 15 or more yards with 13 TDs.
Interceptions -- There have been 51 returns of 10 or more yards with 13 TDs.
Fumbles -- Three returns of 15 or more yards with three touchdowns.

Got it Covered
Through five games, OU's foes average just 14.1 yards/KOR.
At UCLA this season, Maurice Drew entered the game as the nation's leading returner, but managed just one attempt for five yards. For the season, Sooner opponents have just six returns on 31 punts for an average of 3.8 yards per return.

Sooners Get a Freeby
Sophomore Cody Freeby, is in his first season at Oklahoma's punter.
The left-footer also is the holder for Garrett Hartley's placements.
In his first game, Freeby averaged 38.3 yards on eight punts with three downed inside the 20 and no touchbacks. Only one of his punts was returned and that one went for 10 yards.
Against Tulsa, when he averaged 50.0 yards on five kicks, his 70-yarder was the first by a Sooner to cover that distance since Jeff Ferguson got off 71-yarder at Air Force in 2001.
At UCLA, he averaged 45.6 yards on five punts and allowed the then-nation's leading returner, Maurice Drew, just one attempt for five yards.
Against Kansas State, only two of his six boots were returned for a total of two yards.
In the Texas game, he scooped up a bad snap and unleashed a 55-yard punt. It was one of two 50-yarders he had in the game.

Sooners Have Hart-ley
Garrett Hartley, Oklahoma's kicker, has been especially impressive with his kickoffs ...
Hartley has 22 full kickoffs (does not include squibs) and his average is 64.0 yards with 14 touchbacks. That means the ball lands or is caught at the one yardline. He had five touchbacks against KSU, three more against Texas (on four kicks). Opponents average 14.6 yards/return.
His 52-yard field goal against Texas was the longest ever by a Sooner against the Longhorns and was a career-best for Hartley.

Rice Trumps all the Streaks
Jacob Rice, the long-snapper and a former standout TE and DE at Norman High, trumps all the starts and games played streaks. The senior has been a starter in all 46 career games.

Dennison a Special Teams Stud
Russell Dennison, a senior FB, has 35 career special teams tackles (18 in 2003, seven in 2003, eight in 2004 and one in 2005). Dennison also has played LB during his career at Oklahoma.

Individual Player Notes
DE C.J. Ah You
Logged first career OU sack vs. Tulsa ... fiv tackles, one sack, one fumble forced and two pass break ups, one of which was intercepted, against Kansas..

LB Rufus Alexander
Double digit tackles in four games -- 11 vs. Tulsa, 10 vs. TCU, Texas and Kansas ... four tackles for loss and a sack against Tulsa ... fumble recovery vs. Kansas State ... interception vs. Kansas.

DT Remi Ayodele
Started the first three games of the season.

SS Lewis Baker
Spent his first two seasons trying to gain weight, then converted from linebacker to strong safety last spring ... career-high eight tackles against Tulsa.

CB Eric Bassey
Also played SS during his career ... missed Kansas game with an injury.

QB Rhett Bomar
Worked in a back-up role in the opener, then took over as the starter prior to the second game.

DE Larry Birdine
Lost for the season with a torn left biceps muscle suffered during preseason camp.

C Chris Bush
Started every game -- was the center vs. TCU and Texas and the right guard in all the other games.

OL Kelvin Chaisson
One of the most experienced players on the team, he starts at left guard.

DT Steven Coleman
Working in a back-up role, but is part of a four-man rotation ... three tackles vs. Tulsa.

FB Russell Dennison
Has also played linebacker at OU ... logged 35 special teams tackles during his career ... picked up a first down on a four-yard reception off a faked field goal against Kansas.

DT Dusty Dvoracek
Former All-Big 12 player who figures to be a mainstay in the Sooner defensive front ... has at least on tackle for loss in all but one game this season.

TE Joe Jon Finley
Added 21 pounds in the off-season ... got first career start against Tulsa when OU opened in double TEs ... three receptions for 41 yards at UCLA ... eight catches over the last four games ... four-yard TD grab vs. Kansas State ... 15-yard TD vs. Texas ... only player on the team with a catch in every game this season.

P Cody Freeby
Left-footer is in his first season as OU's punter ... also holds for placements ... averaged 50 yards on five punts vs. Tulsa including the first 70-yarder by a Sooner since 2001 ... only eight of his 37 kicks have been returned.

RB Jacob Gutierrez
Won an award from the United Way and the Junior League of Norman last spring for his community service ... gained 11 yards on this first career rushing attempt (vs. TCU) ... tipped a punt against Kansas State ... nine carries for 32 yards against the Wildcats.

FS Nic Harris
Got his first career start (FS) against KSU and responded with a team-high seven tackles and one sack.

K Garrett Hartley
Shed his redshirt in the 04 regular season finale and made a 29-yard FG in the BCS title game ... has switched from No. 32 to No. 10.

RB Donta Hickson
Speedy reserve averaged 6.1 yards on 10 attempts in 04 ... four rushes for 30 yards vs. Kansas State ... had 10 rushes on the season before getting 18 for 59 yards vs. Kansas in his first career start.

LB Clint Ingram
Three interceptions ties for No. 11 in a season among OU linebackers ... returned pick vs. Tulsa 48 yards for a touchdown ... eight tackles and an interception (23 yards) vs. TCU ... missed UCLA game with injury.

RB Kejuan Jones
Might be the most accomplished back-up back in the country with 2,199 career rushing yards on just 12 starts ... started vs. UCLA, Texas... two rushing touchdowns vs. Kansas State.

OL Davin Joseph
Started the opener at left tackle then moved to left guard for game two and was back at left tackle for game three ... spent the first three years of his career at right guard ... left Kansas game early with stiff neck.

LB Zach Latimer
Had 15 tackles in his first career start (vs. TCU) ... 12 stops against Texas.

TE James Moses
Goes by the nickname “Bubba” ... 13 of his 20 career starts came last season.

DT Carl Pendleton
Started eight games last season as a redshirt freshman then drew his first start this year vs. Kansas State.

RB Adrian Peterson
Used sparingly in the preseason as coaches took time to look at other running backs.

LB Demarrio Pleasant
Started at SLB in place of the injured Clint Ingram at UCLA ... can play multiple spots in the LB corps.

WR Jejuan Rankins
An elusive receiver after the catch, he also is the team's punt returner ... 26-yard return vs. Kansas State. ... season high four receptions vs. Kansas.

LS Jacob Rice
Reliable long snapper now in his fourth season in that role.

TE Willie Roberts
Tallest Sooner at 6-7, he also added nine pounds during the off-season.

FB J.D. Runnels
Devastating blocker ... got second career rush on a faked punt vs. Texas (gained a first down) ... has four receptions on the season.

DB Reggie Smith
SS got his first career start at UCLA and also had four kickoff returns for 97 yards, including a long of 43 ... first career interception came against Kansas State (14 yards) ... also had a 37-yard KO return in that game.

DE Calvin Thibodeaux
Missed most of last season after suffering a knee injury at KSU ... fumble recovery and sack vs. Kansas.

QB Paul Thompson
Redshirted last season ... Jason White's back-up in 2003 ... now splitting time at receiver ... two catches for 21 yards against Kansas State in his first game at WR ... got first start at WR against Texas.

DB Marcus Walker
Had off-season shoulder surgery ... missed spring ball, then dislocated his opposite shoulder (left) in August, which forced him to miss several days.

DB Darien Williams
Excelled in the spring and started first three games at free safety. DE John Williams Had a sack vs. TCU, but then was lost for the season in the same game with a torn left ACL.

WR Travis Wilson
Seven grabs for 103 yards at UCLA ... also in that game, he carried twice for 61 yards including a 56-yard TD ... five catches for 68 yards vs. Kansas State and one KO return for 34 yards ... one of two players (the other is Joe Jon Finley) with a reception in every game this season ... missed Kansas game with injury.

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