It’s been interesting to see the Shanahan offense enjoy a resurgence in the NFL game. It’s never really gone away, receiving various tweaks and updates over the years, and the last two NFC champions in the NFL employed modern takes on the original Mike Shanahan offense. First the Sean McVay LA Rams and then the … [Read more…]
That’s a hot topic of conversation these days, especially in light of Bill Connelly recently identifying the run defense and small size of the Oklahoma defensive line as a primary concern for 2020. From Connelly: If … the run defense finds some oomph. After crumbling to 84th in defensive SP+ in 2018, OU’s defense rebounded to … [Read more…]
If you’ve read this blog regularly, you’ll notice that I have an uneven relationship with the service rankings of players and teams. In one post I’ll come strongly against the idea that the class rankings are predictive or should be taken particularly seriously, in the next I’ll use 247’s data even to the point of … [Read more…]
Recently I was talking Oklahoma defensive back recruiting and schematic future under Alex Grinch with Sooners Wire’s Kegan Reneau. It was sparked by this post I did on what Oklahoma and Texas will be attempting to do philosophically to stop all the potent passing attacks the Big 12 will feature in 2020. Reneau asked me … [Read more…]
In my last post, I was breaking down the challenges confronting Big 12 defenses for the upcoming 2020 season. The return of several quarterbacks combined with the growth or addition of big time weapons outside at receiver makes for a pretty frightening scenario for defenses trying to cover it all up. Within that post, I … [Read more…]
The 2019 season in the Big 12 was really one of the weakest in a while in terms of offensive skill outside the hash marks. Quarterback play was down a little bit, with Jalen Hurts, Sam Ehlinger, and Brock “pump fake” Purdy really highlighting the league’s signal-callers. Wide receiver play took a commensurate dip, which … [Read more…]
The two best defenses in the Big 12 in 2019 shared a common trait. For years Big 12 defenses have been tortured by the conflicts and challenges that spread offenses can create for their linebackers that have to align in space across from a slot. Iowa State and Baylor both played 3-down, broken stack defenses … [Read more…]
Kenneth Murray is currently the second highest ranked, draftable Big 12 prospect on ESPN.com’s big board. No. 1 is his teammate CeeDee Lamb, who’s a pretty non-controversial option due to solid athleticism (for his position) combined with obvious skill and completely dominant film. No. 3 is apparently Ross Blacklock, which I think is pretty questionable … [Read more…]
My man Eric Nahlin over at Inside Texas has an annual tradition where he ranks the top 100 high school players in the state of Texas every year. His choice for no. 1 in 2020 was one of the most fascinating prospects I’ve seen from the state in recent years, as much for his unique … [Read more…]
If you don’t know Quigley, a regular commenter on this site since the beginning, he’s an Oklahoma guy that I’ve been talking college football with since about 2012. I started breaking down some of the non-Texas Big 12 teams in games over at Barking Carnival that year and wrote a few pieces on the Sooners … [Read more…]