Sooners Preview Top 25 Test at Baylor

NORMAN, Okla. -- Coach Stoops and Oklahoma players met with the media Tuesday in advance of this weekend's top-25 matchup at Baylor. The Sooners and Bears kick off at 7 p.m. (CT) Saturday on ABC.

For complete coverage throughout the week, details on attending the game and broadcast options for following the Sooners from around the world, please visit Sooner Gameday Central.

Head Coach Bob Stoops

Opening comments:
"There is no game to review from a week ago. We did practice Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. We've had good practices. We gave the players the weekend off. We showed back up yesterday. I think it really helped us. Guys had a lot of life to them, a lot of excitement coming out to practice yesterday leading into this Baylor game.

"We are going down to Baylor again this year. A team that is six and three, a thing that is really obvious to us is the three losses are on the road. All their wins are at home. They are averaging 50 points a game. They have really played with a lot of energy and have had great success at home. Like I guess a number of teams throughout the country do. At home they sure have lit it up.

"Everyone knows about their quarterback Robert Griffin III. He has had a great year. He continues to play great. They have a great receiver in Kendall Wright. They have a bunch of other good weapons. Baylor is a very good team. Art Briles has done an awesome job down there. They are continuing to develop their football team and that program. We recognize them as a team that is a major challenge going down there on the road. We are challenging ourselves to have a great practice and do our best when we go down there."

On injuries:
"Tom Wort should practice today. He was running and doing drills yesterday, but we will see. He did not go through our team work, but he looked better and closer to playing. Of course Ryan (Broyles) and Dominique (Whaley), two big offensive presences will be missed. Everyone else should be set to go."

On Baylor's offense averaging 50 points:
"They are very explosive, of course with the athletes they have. It's just the type of offense they are running. Robert's efficiency throwing the football has continued to progress and it has been excellent this year. That is probably the biggest part that I recognize."

On Tress Way and his accuracy:
"It's a big deal. We work almost every day in practice on punting. He has done it well. It's having a good feel of having a good trajectory. He has been working hard on this and his technique. Our guys have also done a nice job of going down the field and covering on punts. It really makes a difference. It changes the offense's mind set, and what they want to do or how careful they are with the ball. If our return team can stop the other team, than it sets you up in good field position."

On Ryan Broyles and who will be returning punts:
"Ryan is still probably close to two weeks away from having his surgery. Kenny Stills will be returning the punts. Roy Finch can also return punts."

On if the BCS standings factor into his gameday decisions:
"Just win is the bottom line. Our players are very aware of what is going on in the BCS with having the off week. It was fair for us to look at the fact that this is our three-game stretch. What does this mean? What are our opportunities? Now that we've discussed that, all that matters is Baylor. We need to be as thorough and as good as we can possibly be to beat Baylor on the road. There is a lot that is still in front of us. The only discussion after practice yesterday was Baylor. You ask for quality wins, and that's better than your loss."

On Kameel Jackson:
"Kameel, we feel has progressed throughout the year. He is showing more and more during practice in consistency. So, hopefully down through these next three games, he will play more and make an impact."

On how Ryan Broyles:
"Ryan has been out at practice. He has been rehabbing or I am sure they will start some strengthening of the leg now that the swelling has gone down. He is walking around in a brace. He comes out to practice and he's visiting with guys. He does his best to be around."

Senior DE Frank Alexander

On Baylor's Robert Griffin and why he is such a talented player:
"His athleticism and his quickness make him a good player. This year, he is completing a high percentage of his passes, so when you can do that, and be a running quarterback, it makes you just as big of a threat. We need to do a good job of getting after him and containing him and not letting him get out of the pocket. We need to do a good job of judging our rushes and not running past the quarterback and letting him out."

On how the off week helped:
"It helped a lot. It gave us a chance to get our bodies right and to get some rest and to have a Saturday to ourselves. It let guys who haven't been home in a while to go home and to visit their families. It is always good to get away from it all for a little bit, because it just makes you that much hungrier when you come back."

On being ready for the stretch run:
"We have three weeks left of the regular season and we just have to do all we can to stay together and to play as a team and to make the best out of every situation and every opportunity."

On Baylor's multiple offense:
"They are a tough offense to handle; they are number one in the league for total offense right now. I feel like our defense is good and I feel like we can handle this. That's the mind set and attitude that we need to have; that we can play with anyone in the country. That is what I feel, and I am confident to say that our defense can play with anybody. We just need to go out there and make it happen."

On if the defense has to step up more now that members of the offense are injured:
"I don't feel like we have to put any more pressure on ourselves. As a defense, we always want to go out there and play well. With Dominique (Whaley) and Ryan (Broyles) going down it is a big loss to the offense, but I feel like they have other guys that are on the offense that are capable of making plays as well."

On the defense getting recognition in an offensive league:
"Being part of the defense you always want to hear good things. We just take pride in being a good defense. Sometimes you might have a miss alignment, or miss judge a play or something that causes us to make a big play, but overall I feel like we have been doing good as a defense, and it is always good to hear good talk about yourself and your team."

On evaluating his season and how it is to be healthy this year:
"I feel like my season has been going good. I am just blessed to come back after last year when I had a lot on my shoulders. I just feel like I need to make the most of this opportunity and I feel like I have been doing a good job of that. I'm going to try my best to play these last few weeks just like the start of the season. You never want to leave anywhere without leaving a legacy, or leaving your name out there. That is a really big thing for me this year, to come out and to show everybody, but mostly to show myself, that it is possible. The hard work and everything that you have been through is coming to show when you play."

Senior TE Trent Ratterree

On his experience helping in the final stretch of the season:
"I think it's going to help us a lot. If you look at the last couple of seasons we've had with this group, coming from 2009 and into 2010, those two seasons we finished strong. We've learned from those experiences and know what we need to do going forward."

On offensive differences without Ryan Broyles:
"That's a huge gap to fill. You can't replace a guy like Ryan Broyles. It's kind of like you can't replace guys like Sam Bradford or Jermaine Gresham. We've had amazing players here, so missing a guy like Ryan is tough and we have big shoes to fill. Really, what it comes down to is for others to step up collectively and help fill that gap. It's not going to be just one person; it has to be a ton of people by committing."

On fan support during games in Waco:
"This will be my third time going to Baylor. We have a lot of fans in attendance, but their entire student section is right behind our bench. Those are usually my favorite places to play on the road, when their student section is right behind our bench. You can hear them yelling and talking trash to you."

On team's success on the road:
"It's something we've emphasized over the last few years, being good on the road. I guess it's just a product of the work we put in over the last couple of years. It takes time for stuff like that to get better. It's not like those things improve after two practices, it's over time. I think that's really what it's a result of."

Junior P Tress Way

On his progression this season:
"I always feel people just look at the average, and obviously I'd love for my average to be up near the top of the nation like it has been. But, it's really funny how Coach Stoops works, because all summer he was really harping on me to really get push punts down so they could be consistently inside the 10 and 15-yard line. So, I worked that all summer long and didn't think anything of it. Now, it seems like every time we're punting from the other side of the 50-yard line, trying to put them deep. I like cranking them deep, but as far as the role of a punter goes, I might be having my best year."

On being the "big cheerleader" on big plays:
"Some of the coaches come up to me and say, 'Tress, we know you're into it, but you have to stay behind that line.' I always get in trouble for passing that line because on big plays I always get really into it. When Frank (Alexander) has his interceptions, I'm always like two or three yards onto the field throwing fist pumps."

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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