Sooner Report: OU Still Working on Bye Week

OU Heads into Bye Week

While there will be no OU football on your television this Saturday as it is a bye week, that doesn't mean the Sooners aren't working hard. OU's initial open date comes at a valuable time in the Sooners' schedule and gives them an opportunity to improve on various aspects of their game.

Throughout the early part of this week, the Sooners have followed their normal practice schedule and will do so through Wednesday. On Thursday, OU will practice in the early morning before classes so the coaches can do some recruiting, catch up with their families and likely watch plenty of college football on Saturday. The team will resume its normal practice slate on Monday.

The Sooners next travel to Fort Worth, Texas, to take on TCU on Oct. 4 before facing Texas in Dallas for the Red River Showdown on Oct. 11. OU returns home on Oct. 18 to play Kansas State before having another bye week.

“I think this off week comes at a great time,” head coach Stoops said. “We can really focus on some areas that we want to improve on, some things that have happened to us in the first four games that we can look at, and try to adjust from them; then get some extra work on TCU. We can get a little breather here as we go into that stretch.”

Wide receiver Sterling Shepard echoed Stoops' thoughts, saying the bye week provides a chance to correct and prepare.

“We'll correct some of the things from last week,” Shepard said. “We have a good team coming up (TCU), and we have to go there. We just faced a tough crowd and it's going to be another week of tough crowds, so the bye week will help us out with that.”

Perine the Pizza Provider

All the buzz following Oklahoma's 45-33 win in the Big 12 opener over West Virginia centered around freshman running back Samaje Perine, who rushed for 242 yards and four touchdowns on 34 carries.

The true freshman received numerous accolades from media outlets all over the country and drew comparisons to OU legends of old. So how did Perine celebrate? He delivered pizza to the offensive line's film session on Sunday to thank the big guys up front for the great blocking they did on Saturday evening.

It is safe to say that the complimentary gesture was not lost on the offensive linemen, as a number raved about Perine's pizza delivery.

“What can I say about that guy?” said left guard Adam Shead. “What can I not say about that guy? He brought us pizza Sunday so he is good in our books. He runs hard which makes us want to block harder.”

Center Ty Darlington and quarterback Trevor Knight each added that the act speaks to the type of character and humility that Perine exudes.

“We were watching film and he just walked in right over there and set the boxes of pizza down and walked out,” said Darlington. “That's who he is. He's just been so grateful to us, even though he did a lot of it himself. He's a humble dude and that's refreshing.”

“For a true freshman to come in and do something like that, it speaks volumes,” said Knight.

Samaje Perine

Perine's Performance Draws Comparisons Nationwide

Naturally after watching a display of greatness, as many people across the country did on Saturday evening with Perine's breakout game, fans and analysts like to make comparisons to all-time greats who played the same position.

There were no shortage of comparisons for Perine on Sunday while the aftermath of his 242-yard, four touchdown performance resonated throughout the nation.

Some likened the true freshman to Adrian Peterson, drawing from the facts that both rushed for over 200 yards during their first season as a Sooner.

Head coach Bob Stoops mentioned both Peterson and Quinten Griffin during Monday's media luncheon in regards to comparisons for Perine's sensational night.

“I've been here a long time,” said Stoops. “I remember Quinten Griffin giving us a huge boost once we took the redshirt off of him. He made a strong impact. Also, Adrian Peterson his freshman year really blew it up with a huge year. Samaje's performance the other night is as good as any of those, in one game.”

In an interview with ESPN Big 12 reporter Jake Trotter, Oklahoma legend Billy Sims likened Perine to Earl Campbell after watching him play and practice.

“The strength, the power, the way he ran over people, it kept reminding me of Earl Campbell back in the day,” said Sims.

NFL.com's Bryan Fischer was reminded of a big, bruising running back currently in the NFL after watching Saturday night's game.

“In many respects, the 5-foot-11, 243-pound back appeared to be a bigger version of Marshawn Lynch on the field as he ran over defenders and made life miserable for Mountaineers fans after a wild first half,” said Fischer.

But perhaps one of the best compliments for Perine came from one of his defensive teammates who took solace in seeing West Virginia's defenders trying to tackle OU's phenomenal freshman. “It was like watching Jerome Bettis back in the day,” chuckled defensive end Charles Tapper.

OU's Defense Stingy in Second Half

Much has been made about the tenacity and strengths of the OU defense this season, one of which is its endurance and ability to wear the opponent out as the game goes on. The Sooners have outscored opponents 73-32 in the second half through the first four games of the season, an average margin of 10.25 points per game.

The number becomes even more impressive when you consider that 19 of the 32 points allowed came in situations when the game was out of reach for the opponent and the touchdowns served as consolation.

Stoops was complimentary of the team's defensive performance in the last 30 minutes at West Virginia, the unit's biggest test of the season to date.

“Defensively, we had some troubles early with deep balls, but again settled down in the second half and really played a great second half to help the offense as a team,” said Stoops. “I thought we played really well and were able to take control of the game in the second half.

“We really controlled the run game and changed up a couple coverages in the second half that helped us and again, forced big plays. We got three turnovers, three sacks and created some field position in those situations. We had some big plays defensively, as well.”

Two of the three turnovers in Saturday's game came in the second half. The Sooners have now forced six turnovers in the second half through four games, more than Florida State, Alabama and Auburn have forced all season.

Zack Sanchez

Sanchez Plays Through Shoulder Injury

Against Tulsa on Sept. 6, Sooner Nation held its breath as cornerback Zack Sanchez suffered a right shoulder injury. While the shoulder still bothers him, Sanchez has not missed any game time and has elected to play through the pain.

OU head coach Bob Stoops said the issue is related to the muscle, and it is an injury that will not get any worse.

“It's a muscle issue, so it isn't like there's joint damage or something,” Stoops explained. “It's tough and you have to keep checking with him and make sure he's OK. He wants to keep playing. He did the best he can (against West Virginia). I'm sure in his heart he knows he can be better than that and as he moves forward I'm sure he will. He's had a lot of great games for us.”

This resembles another Sooner in Aaron Colvin, who last season as a senior suffered an injury but continued to compete on the field. While Sanchez's and Colvin's injuries are completely different, both were to the shoulders.

Colvin went on to have successful outings despite the injury, and Sanchez has been no different. Against the Mountaineers, Sanchez recorded an interception for the fifth straight game and now has one in six of the last seven contests.

Having Sanchez on the field, even with a bum shoulder, is valuable for the Sooners because of the skill set he brings, especially when it comes to grabbing interceptions.

“He does have a knack for seeing the ball. He does have great hands,” Stoops said. “When he gets his opportunity he makes sure he takes advantage of it and doesn't drop it, and he does have a knack for finding the ball. It's hard to deny that. I don't know how many people have five (interceptions) in a row like that, but probably not many.”

Weekly Awards Pile Up for Perine, Ross

After a 45-33 win at West Virginia on Saturday night, the weekly awards started to roll in for the Sooners, both from the Big 12 Conference and national entities.

Running backs Samaje Perine and Alex Ross were recognized on Monday as the Big 12 Conference Offensive Player of the Week and Special Teams Player of the Week, respectively. They are the first Sooners to receive Big 12 Player of the Week honors this season.

Additionally, Perine was named the National Freshman of the Week by Athlon Sports and The Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Player of the Week. Ross was also named to the Week Four Paul Hornung Award Honor Roll, along with Nebraska running back Ameer Abdullah.

Perine, a true freshman, recorded career highs in carries (34), yards (242) and touchdowns (four) at West Virginia. He also posted a career-long rush of 38 yards. Perine became the first Sooner to record four rushing touchdowns since Blake Bell versus Texas (10/13/12).

His 242 yards mark the first time an OU player has surpassed the 200-yard mark since DeMarco Murray ran for 208 yards vs. Utah State (9/4/10). Perine's 242 yards were the fourth-best single-game rushing performance by a freshman in OU history, a total that also ranked 13th overall on the Sooners' single-game rushing chart. Perine prepped at Hendrickson High School in Pflugerville, Texas. He currently leads the Big 12 in rushing, averaging 104.8 yards per game.

Sophomore Ross recorded a 100-yard kickoff return touchdown late in the second quarter, the first of his career and OU's first since Roy Finch against Kansas (10/20/12). He became the sixth player in OU history to record a 100-yard play, four of which have come on kickoff returns.

Ross' 131 kick return yards rank seventh all-time for a single game in OU history. The touchdown was the fourth (three rushing, one return) of his career. Ross also had 56 rushing yards on eight carries and caught three passes for 19 yards in the Sooners' win. He leads the Big 12 with a 45.0-yard kickoff return average. Ross prepped at Jenks High School in Tulsa, Okla.

In Gus We Trust!

OU's Saturday, Oct. 4, matchup with TCU will kick off at 2:30 p.m. CT and be broadcast nationally by FOX. Gus Johnson (play-by-play), Charles Davis (analyst) and Molly McGrath (sideline reporter) are scheduled to call the action.

SoonerSports.tv will supplement the broadcast with a quad screen simulcast with alternate camera angles, a feature that debuted on Sept. 20 for the game at West Virginia. Watch the second screen broadcast from the West Virginia game here and sign up for the live experience vs. TCU here. All games the rest of the season that air on FOX will have this feature available.