Sooners to Field Young Defense in 2005

NORMAN, Okla. -- Walking down the ramp to Oklahoma's football field, defensive coordinator Brent Venables could look over one shoulder and see Dan Cody. Over the other was Tommie Harris, and Derrick Strait was close behind.

A gang of future NFL players, the Oklahoma defenders could puff out their chests and give menacing looks to their opponents' sideliens.

"You almost kind of felt bad sometimes," said Venables, who made the unit into one of the most dominant in the nation.

The Sooners will look quite different when they stride into Memorial Stadium on Saturday to play TCU. Cody, Harris and Strait are gone now -- along with NFL draft picks Brodney Pool and Lance Mitchell. This Oklahoma defense will be a much younger bunch.

Sooner Football Gameday Central: TCU

Only two of the players who started in the Orange Bowl are expected to start in the Sooners' season opener, and coach Bob Stoops said at least four freshmen have an opportunity to play on the defensive side. Linebackers Curtis Lofton and Ryan Reynolds are the top backups at their positions, and defensive backs Reggie Smith and Nic Harris are in line to play in the Sooners' nickel package.

"All those guys are coming in ready to play at some point," Stoops said.

In addition to the talent lost to the NFL the past two seasons, injuries are also a factor.

The Sooners lost their top defensive end, Larry Birdine, for the season to a biceps injury suffered in practice. Defensive tackle Dusty Dvoracek is recovering from a similar injury from the spring and is expected to play, but not start.

Birdine's injury left some question marks at the defensive end position, where Cody and Jonathan Jackson started all 13 of the team's games last season before departing. Cody, Jackson and Birdine combined for 25 of Oklahoma's 39 sacks a year ago.

In their places, junior college transfer C.J. Ah You and senior Calvin Thibodeaux, who's returning from a knee injury, are expected to make their first starts at defensive end. Sophomore John Williams and redshirt freshman Alan Davis will also rotate in.

"Everybody wants to call them a bunch of chumps now," Venables said. "It's kind of fun. You feel that for them where they've got a lot to prove, and you're right there with them."

Venables' emotions about the youth of his defense are mixed. On one hand, he'd love to have the experienced, talented players that have made Oklahoma so dominant in recent years. On the other hand, he's excited to see whether the players are ready to play in games and to watch them develop.

He's nervous about the first time his young linebackers get called on to defend an isolation play, but confident that they've prepared mentally and physically to handle the task.

"We're going to be fine," Venables said. "It's a good group. It's not like we're limited in ability. We have ability."

In the secondary, the Sooners will have four different starters than the ones who were on the field when Southern California's Matt Leinart threw for 332 yards and five touchdowns in the Orange Bowl.

With sophomore Marcus Walker rehabbing two injured shoulders, converted running back D.J. Wolfe and senior Chijioke Onyenegecha -- a junior college transfer last season -- will make the start at cornerback. Sophomores Darien Williams and Lewis Baker -- a converted linebacker -- will be the starting safeties.

The group even has a new coach in Bobby Jack Wright, who moved from defensive ends to the secondary in the spring. Stoops said he thought the group had made a lot of progress, in part because Wright had been demanding on them.

"Those guys all have ability ...," Stoops said. "I believe they've got a chance to really be a great group."

Stoops said he would count on outside linebackers Rufus Alexander and Clint Ingram -- the only Orange Bowl starters expected to be in the starting lineup Saturday -- and reserve cornerback Eric Bassey to provide the vocal push on the field that the Sooners lost in Birdine.

But he won't truly know who'll be a leader or how the rest of the team will perform until the game actually starts.

"Every year coming into the season, I'm always the most anxious because you want to see what you are. How competitive are we? How tough are we? What's our attitude?" Stoops said.

"And what's the players' demeanor in the locker room and coming out of the tunnel?"

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Sooners to Field Young Defense in 2005

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