OU Players & Coaches on Cornhuskers

NORMAN | Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops, senior quarterback Paul Thompson, junior fullback Dane Zaslaw, junior linebacker Demarrio Pleasant and sophomore safety Reggie Smith met with the media at OU's weekly football press conference on Tuesday at Memorial Stadium.

The No. 8 Sooners (10-2 overall, 7-1 Big 12) travel to Kansas City to meet an old rival for the Big 12 Championship. OU will meet the Nebraska Cornhuskers on Saturday at 7 p.m. ABC will broadcast Oklahoma's 56th consecutive TV game to the nation.

HEAD COACH BOB STOOPS
Opening statement:
“I'm excited to be here this week an extra week, playing in the championship game. I appreciate the way our players played last week, giving ourselves an opportunity to earn our way in. We played an exciting and good football game at Oklahoma State. I'm pleased with the way we're able to play as a team.

Stoops Press Conference Video | Paul Thompson Video

“In a lot of areas of that game, I thought we didn't play maybe as well as we had been in some areas and we were still able to win. Defensively, for sure, that was the case. We were out of position, busted one coverage and gave up one big play. There were some areas like that where we have been a little more consistent that hopefully we can get back to here this week.

“Offensively, I am really pleased with the way we were able to run the football but feel we are able to be more balanced than we were. That has happened, of course, a time or two this year but not overall. We've got to make sure that we're good and efficient throwing the football like we have been in many other football games.

“Special teams-wise was kind of the same way in that so many parts coverages and punting were great, and then we missed one extra point and Garrett (Hartley) has been perfect the entire year. We feel we can be better. We've got to improve in some of those areas here this week.

“We're excited to be playing in the championship game this week against a long rival, a storied Big Eight rival and still a rival in Nebraska. Everyone understands the history there. We even have a current history since the Big 12 has been formed. It's exciting. They're a good football team. Coach Callahan and his staff have done an excellent job with their team being 9-3.

“(This year) they're running the football very effectively and much more often. They've been very successful running it. Zac Taylor is an excellent quarterback. I believe he's one of the better players in the league, the way he's played through the entire year.

"They have a lot of skilled guys. They're defensively very physical and strong up front in defending the run. They're very sound in their schemes. It's a solid football team. We're excited to go up to Arrowhead Stadium and play in that great atmosphere.”

On seeing competing for the title as a possibility just three weeks ago:
“If I say yes, it sounds arrogant and I'm not that way. But why wouldn't we? We've been playing in a good way. You've seen some of (Texas') early games were pretty close. Nebraska played the heck out of em. They turned the ball over when they have a first down otherwise they have a chance to run the clock out. You always feel that the door is open, you don't ever shut it. We always felt there was a chance and fortunately it worked out for us.”

On receiving Big 12 Coach of the Year and Rufus Alexander being awarded Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year:
“I'm pretty sensitive about it in that I appreciate it anyone that recognizes individuals on our team but you preach year-round that team accomplishments are what really matter. The sum of all our parts is what really matters, not any one individual.

"The University of Oklahoma, our team and this program are much bigger than any one person. I look at it and I'll make a point that they do, too, that it's just an example of a team award. I'm the head coach and Rufus is the defensive player of the league but it's because of how they've played. How our assistant coaches have worked and put them in position. They deserve the credit.

"The players, the way they've played, they deserve the credit. I'm sure Rufus would say that. The guys around him have played in a really good way. Usually, these awards are given to teams that have won a lot of games. We're number one or two in almost all defensive categories. It's a reflection on the team overall. We appreciate it and are thankful for it.”

On the status of Adrian Peterson and Darien Williams:
“Adrian is not going to play. He's close. He could be cleared to play, but each week that passes, the likelihood of it reoccurring is less and less. There's enough healing that, yes, he could possibly play, but if he fell on it wrong or took a severe hit, they're not totally sure it would hold up. We're not going to take that chance.

“(Adrian playing) in a bowl game is a very likely possibility. Talking to Adrian, he absolutely wants to play. And by that time, that is another four weeks of healing and by that time he should be fine. Darien Williams has practiced all week and will play."

On overcoming this season's adversity:
“I think we were maybe underappreciated with the strength of our team and the overall depth of the team and the strength of the youth on the team and how good they are. All of that was maybe a little undervalued.and everyone wanted to focus on just Adrian. I love the guy and he's something special but there's more to it than that. I think our team has showed that. Guys in all instances have stepped up and have been very good in how they have played. It's a very selfless team. No one it sitting there self-centered about who is getting what. The attitude has been incredible to work with.

“It's a special group because of how they come to practice everyday, show up to meetings, the way they travel and the way they get ready for games. We don't have distractions. We don't have those one, two, three individuals who cause all the problems that some people say we still need to have in this program. We don't have any of those guys.

“The guys are all for each other and pulling for each other. It's a great team that way. They have an incredible attitude and they work hard. They like to compete and they get ready to compete. When you can do all those things and you're not trying to beg a guy to compete how come you're not going to class, how come you're not showing up to your workouts we don't have any of those issues and you can concentrate on what you have to do and that's play ball. These guys have been great. It's been a fabulous group to work with. There hasn't been any selfishness. They've been taking care of their business in the classroom, in workouts and everything else.

“You have character. You have guys that are about the right things and trust in one another. They realize Hey, there's a bunch of us here, we can overcome this.' This team has definitely been that way.”

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SENIOR QUARTERBACK PAUL THOMPSON
On Nebraska's growth from last season:
"Obviously their quarterback has done a great job for them this year, as he has in the past. But it's just another year for him getting a feel for the offense and he's become a leader not only for this team, but a top quarterback in the Big 12.

"They definitely have more experience. There's good guys up front defensively and some physical, aggressive people on the secondary. All in all they have definitely improved from last year, and I feel we have as well. It'll be a good matchup."

On cold weather:
"If it's cold for them, it's cold for us too. We're not really too worried about that, because we've played in cold games before. We're going to go at it with the same game plans as we've had in the past. I heard it was going to be a little cold, so we're going to adjust if we need to. We're just going to stick to the same game plans."

On development of running game without Adrian Peterson:
"That's big. That's guys stepping up as they've done all year. It's been well documented that we've had people step up and perform. Allen Patrick, Chris Brown and Jacob (Gutierrez), when he gets in there as well, they've all been guys that we've known from the summer that they can step in and get the job done. So when they were faced with opportunity, they took advantage of it and it has paid tremendously for the team."

On the OU-Nebraska rivalry:
"I'm definitely expecting another close game. We would definitely like to get out ahead quickly and not make it a close game, but with how games in the past have been each team is going to continue to fight the entire game. One team is not going to get down if the other team scores first or vice versa. I'm expecting a good, hard fought and physical game with whatever the weather is, so I'm excited about it.

"We've definitely watched films of the old rivalries. When you get here, Coach Stoops does a great job at showing the traditions with all of the teams. Nebraska is definitely one of those teams. It kind of maybe died a little bit lately because we don't play them every year, but if you look back on the Big 8 it was pretty much Nebraska and Oklahoma every year. We're definitely real aware of the tradition between the two schools and hopefully we can keep it going."

On what a Big 12 Championship would mean:
"Both programs are back at the top right now, and the drive to get a Big 12 Championship is one of the biggest drives you can have in a season. I've been a part of Big 12 Championships here with Jason White and Mark Clayton, in that era, but it's kind of like a new era with not as many recognizable guys maybe from the outside. It's kind of a new era of players and a young team, so I'm looking to get a championship for them.

"I have been a part of successful teams here when I redshirted my sophomore or junior year. To actually have a bigger part in winning a Big 12 championship would mean a lot to me and also for a lot of these guys that weren't a part of it those past years. It's a good experience for them to have that driving factor for them to have that type of experience, and so they'll be able to lead good teams for the next two or three years."

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JUNIOR FULLBACK DANE ZASLAW
On having more opportunities to play this season:
“It's been exciting to help our team get into the situation we're in. It means a lot. It has been a lot of hard work to get where I am at and I'm just glad that I have been able to make a couple of plays to help our team play in the Big 12 Championship.”

On traveling to his third Big 12 title game:
“It's different for me. Being in the other Big 12 Championships, I wasn't able to play. Now, actually being a player that helps, it means a lot. I understand the hard work it takes to get to where we are. It's exciting. I can't imagine how it's going to feel to play in the Big 12 Championship in Kansas City.”

On being given the chance to compete in the Big 12 Championship:
“It's strange. You'd like to think sometimes that life isn't fair. It is kind of nice that we got to this situation after all the hard work and the situations we've gone through. All the hard work finally paid off. It's great to have the opportunity we have now.”

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JUNIOR LINEBACKER DEMARRIO PLEASANT
On the rivalry and the Big 12 Championship:
"Being my fourth year here, every time we play them it's a big game. We always know it's going to be a tough path to play them."

On being in this position:
"We just kind of taught ourselves to take it one day at a time, and focus on one game as the week progresses."

On Nebraska's offense:
":They have a big running game and they have a really good quarterback that can do a lot of things. We have a lot of things to prepare for to take on their running game. We focus on stopping the run first, and once we do that we'll be able try to stop the pass."

On the cold weather:
"It's going to be cold, but to me and any other guy on the team, weather doesn't matter. This is a big game and everybody's going to be ready to play regardless of the weather. Probably the Big 12 Championship against Kansas State was the coldest game I've played in. I'd rather it be 70 degrees, but I mean if it has to be cold, it has to be cold."

On the defense stepping up:
"I think that it all begins at practice every week. Every week it just seems like we're getting better at practice and the guys are just getting better. We have a lot of young guys playing also, so they're getting a lot of experience too.

"We just have to go to practice each week and each day and really focus on the fundamentals instead of just going out and trying to shut everybody down. We try to focus on the small things, then that way we can make progress."

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SOPHOMORE SAFETY REGGIE SMITH
On thoughts of going to the Big 12 Championship earlier in the season:
“We definitely thought about it, but it was real far off. You just keep winning and you never know what will happen.”

On making it to the championship despite misfortunes this year:
“I think it comes with us doing good, staying together as a team, being tight and winning games. That's what we've been doing since the very beginning of the year.”

On the atmosphere of the Big 12 Championship game:
“It's very exciting. I think it's going to be very upbeat. We're just all ready to go there and ready to play this game.”

On the forecasted cold weather this weekend:
“We've played in cold game before. The only thing that you can do is block it out and just play the game.”

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