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NORMAN, Okla. -- Penn State might call itself “Linebacker U.” But Oklahoma has a linebacking tradition that takes a backseat to no one.

The Sooners claim almost as many former first-team All-American linebackers as Penn State. And from Brian Bosworth to Teddy Lehman, Oklahoma boasts more Butkus Award winners than anyone, including the Nittany Lions.

Last Saturday in South Bend, that tradition came back to life. Spearheaded by their linebackers, the Sooners jumped out to a two-touchdown lead, then held off Notre Dame, 35-21.

“That’s how it’s supposed to be here,” senior linebacker Corey Nelson said. “Linebackers taking charge, leading the defense and making plays.

“That’s how it’s always been at Oklahoma.”

Well, not always exactly.

In 2012, linebacker became almost a foreign word.

In his first year back as defensive coordinator, Mike Stoops became so disenchanted with how his linebackers matched up with the fast pace offenses of the Big 12, he yanked them off the field altogether the last month of the season.

The ploy hardly worked.

To West Virginia’s Tavon Austin, Oklahoma surrendered 344 yards on the ground in a narrow November shootout victory in Morgantown.

In the following weeks, Oklahoma State’s Joseph Randle and Texas A&M’s Johnny Manziel ran wild over the Sooners, too, prompting Stoops to shelve the no-linebacker defense and go back to the drawing board during the offseason.

“Last year was a whole lot different,” Nelson said.

Especially for the linebackers.

During the summer, Stoops installed a 3-3-5 defensive scheme that so far has worked wonders, largely because he’s unleashed a corps of speedy linebackers who have proven to have a nose for the football. And opposing quarterbacks.

On the third play from scrimmage in South Bend, Oklahoma outside linebacker Eric Striker came peeling around the edge and slammed into the blindside of quarterback Tommy Rees. The ball popped in the air into the arms of Nelson, who dashed 24 yards for the defensive touchdown.

“They let me free and I had to kill ‘em,” said Striker, with a quote so brash the “Boz” would be proud.

On Notre Dame’s next offensive play, Frank Shannon backpedaled into coverage, intercepted a tipped pass despite wearing a cast on his right wrist and bounded along the sidelines to set up another touchdown.

Less than three minutes into the game, Oklahoma’s linebackers frenetically had propelled the Sooners to a 14-0 lead.

“The coaches are doing a good job of putting us in the right spots,” Shannon said. “Giving us good opportunities and chance to show what we got.”

And they've been doing it all season. Through four games, OU is giving up just 299.5 yards and 12 points per game.

And, so far, these linebackers are quickly showing they can hang with some of the best OU has produced. That’s no small feat.

Dating back to the days of Bud Wilkinson, every Sooners dynasty has included top-flight linebacking corps.

In 1956, Jerry Tubbs nearly won the Heisman Trophy as a linebacker and center. That tradition continued under Barry Switzer, who coached two-time, first-team All-American linebackers Rod Shoate (1972-74), Daryl Hunt (1975-78), George Cumby (1975-79) and Bosworth (1984-86), who also remains the only two-time winner of the Butkus Award, given annually to college football’s top linebacker.

Bob Stoops has coached two Butkus Award winners (Rocky Calmus and Lehman) and a host of slobber-knocking linebacking units. Calmus and Torrance Marshall formed the backbone of Oklahoma’s 2000 national championship defense. Lehman (2003), Rufus Alexander (2006) and Curtis Lofton (2007) earned Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year honors.

“You see linebackers all over the wall in this place,” Striker said. “These guys were for real. Real serious back when.”

But as Oklahoma defenses slipped in recent years, so did the position. The Sooners scavenged the country for linebacker help in their most recent recruiting class, but came up empty. Suddenly, a school with one of college football’s proudest traditions couldn’t sign a linebacker. But the way Nelson, Shannon and Striker are playing, that should no longer be a problem.

Oklahoma is playing some defense again. And one of college football’s Linebacker U’s appears to be on its way back in Norman.

“We’re trying to keep that going,” Striker said. “You want to keep that going.

“We want to keep it great here.”

NORMAN, Okla. -- Oklahoma’s defense has passed test after test this season.

Yet, TCU quarterback Trevone Boykin brings a test the Sooners have not seen in 2013 when TCU visits Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on Saturday. It’s a scary prospect for Sooners’ fans nine months after they watched Johnny Manziel run around, weave through and flat out outrun the Sooners defense in the Cotton Bowl last January.

“He’s a great running quarterback and he has a great arm,” defensive end Geneo Grissom said. “We’re going to have our hands full keeping him in the pocket.”

Quite simply, OU’s defense has been outstanding during the 4-0 start. The defense has been the driving, consistent force while the offense struggled to find its way early. Louisiana-Monroe, West Virginia and Tulsa brought spread attacks to the table, testing the Sooners’ secondary, while Notre Dame brought a physical run game. The 4-0 record makes it clear that OU passed both tests.

Defensive coordinator Mike Stoops’ move to a three-man front to help increase the overall versatility and make the unit faster has paid off thus far but OU hasn’t seen a runner at the quarterback position like the Horned Frogs’ signal-caller. And Stoops didn’t think twice when asked if Boykin presents a test as a running quarterback which his defense hasn’t seen in 2013.

“Without question," Stoops said. "When you look at his speed, athleticism, ability to run and cut and then throw the football, he’s a very dynamic player.”

Fortunately for OU, it won’t be the first time it had to deal with Boykin’s unique running ability. One game before the Sooners’ defense was embarrassed by Manziel, they handled Boykin well in a 24-17 win on Dec. 1, 2012. He was held to 36 yards on 11 carries while completing 17 of 31 passes for 231 yards and one touchdown.

Yet, the majority of the Sooners’ defense didn’t make major contributions on that day, watching from the sidelines as their teammates slowed down the Horned Frogs offense. Seven new starters will line up against Boykin on Saturday with the hope of being as prepared as possible to keep a TCU offense, which has struggled this season, under wraps.

“A lot of guys don’t necessarily know what kind of athlete he is,” said cornerback Aaron Colvin, one of the few Sooners’ defenders who was on the field in Fort Worth that afternoon. “But when you watch him on film or TV, you can see he’s elusive with the ball. You can tell them all you want but when you see a guy on the field, it’s a different feel than what you’ve seen on film.”

OU’s scheme changes were made, in part, for games like this and quarterbacks like Boykin. Their 3-3-5 system gets more speed and athleticism on the field to help deal with athletic quarterbacks who can make defenses pay with their legs and arm.

One of the key players on Saturday could be linebacker Eric Striker, the main player who has seen increased playing time in the 3-3-5 system. The sophomore spends most of his time as a rush linebacker-- his hit on quarterback Tommy Rees caused Corey Nelson’s interception against Notre Dame last Saturday-- and he will be asked to help corral Boykin on Saturday.

“He’s very shifty and fast,” Striker said. “Our scheme will help [contain him) and our athletic ability [will help contain him].”

While Boykin is far from a Manziel-like test for the Sooners, the sophomore is a different test than they've faced this season. It’s a test the Sooners feel better prepared for this season than they may have been in the past.

“We’re faster and being more aggressive,” Stoops said of his defense. “We’ll, hopefully, use that aggressiveness to contain him, but you still have to be able to control their run game as well.”

Taking stock of Week 5 in the Big 12:

Team of the week: Oklahoma. With their victory over Oklahoma State, the Mountaineers deserved strong consideration here. But by winning in South Bend, the Sooners delivered the Big 12 its best win of the year while vanquishing past demons. OU, which fell to 1-9 all-time against Notre Dame last season, controlled this game wire-to-wire in a 35-21 win. QB Blake Bell operated the Sooners' offense like a veteran in just his second career start. And the OU defense took it to QB Tommy Rees to force three first-half interceptions that allowed the Sooners to pad their lead. OU might have been one of the most overlooked teams during the preseason. After Saturday, the Sooners won’t be overlooked anymore.

Disappointment of the week: Oklahoma State. The Cowboys fell in Morgantown 31-21, despite being 18-point favorites. OSU sputtered all day offensively across the board. J.W. Walsh had a QBR of just 38.1 (scale of 0 to 100) and the Cowboys averaged just 2.8 yards per carry. The defense didn’t fare much better, allowing a West Virginia offense that had been completely inept to rack up 21 first downs. Dating to last year, the Cowboys have now lost three consecutive Big 12 games.

Big (offensive) men on campus: Sterling Shepard and Aaron Wimberly. Both the Oklahoma receiver and Iowa State running back sparked their offenses to big wins on the road. Shepard had five catches for 83 yards, and delivered the nail in the coffin to Notre Dame with a 54-yard touchdown reception to put OU back up by two scores in the fourth quarter.

In a 38-21 win at Tulsa, Wimberly produced Iowa State’s first 100-yard rushing game in more than a year with 137 yards on 19 carries. He added a 31-yard reception as the Cyclones came alive in their first win of the season.

Big (defensive) men on campus: The Oklahoma linebackers, and Sam Carter. Corey Nelson, Frank Shannon and Eric Striker came up with huge plays in the first quarter to set the tone for the OU defense the rest of the way against the Irish. On Notre Dame’s first series, Striker blindsided Rees from behind, popping the ball loose into the arms of Nelson, who returned it 24 yards for a TD. On Notre Dame's next play from scrimmage, Shannon caught a tipped pass and returned the interception 17 yards to the Notre Dame 32. The Sooners scored again four plays later on an 11-yard run by Damien Williams. OU rode the defensive flurry all the way to the win.

Carter, TCU’s junior safety, had a huge day against SMU. Carter had two interceptions, forced a fumble and recorded a sack in the Horned Frogs’ 48-17 victory over the Mustangs. For his efforts, Carter was named the Walter Camp national defensive player of the week. With cornerback Jason Verrett ailing with a shoulder injury, Carter might have to take an even bigger leadership role in the TCU secondary moving forward.

Special-teams player of the week: Jaden Oberkrom. In a complete downpour, TCU’s place-kicker nailed two field goals to help the Horned Frogs pull away from SMU in the second half. As the rain began to fall in droves early in the third quarter, TCU had the ball on the SMU 5-yard line trailing 10-7. Because of the rain, a botched shotgun snap resulted in a loss of 20. But Oberkrom made sure the Frogs came away with points with the 35-yard field goal conversion. Had Oberkrom missed, who knows how the game would have gone for TCU? Instead, buoyed in part by getting points off the drive, the Frogs dominated the rest of the way.

Play of the week: After Josh Stewart took a screen pass 73 yards for the touchdown and Justin Gilbert intercepted Clint Trickett three plays later at midfield, the Cowboys seemed to be on the verge of blowing the game away in the first quarter. Instead, West Virginia cornerback Ishmael Banks read Walsh’s eyes off a rollout, stepped in front of the pass for the pick, then returned it 58 yards for a touchdown. The Cowboys never found their footing again offensively, as West Virginia held them to just two scores the rest of the game.

Stat of the week: Oklahoma State running back Jeremy Smith rushed for just 1 yard on 15 carries at West Virginia. According to ESPN Stats & Info, Smith’s rushing total was the second worst by an FBS running back with that many carries in any game in the past 10 years.

Quote of the week: "No doubt in my mind that we're a national championship-type of team." – OU running back Brennan Clay, after the Notre Dame win

NORMAN, Okla. -- It’s hard to remember now, but just two springs ago, Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops called then-sophomore linebacker Corey Nelson the “best player” on his defense and said “it’s not close.”

Nelson is a senior now. And, finally, it appears the Sooners are going to give him the opportunity to deliver on Stoops’ proclamation.

“I’m really looking forward to playing again,” Nelson said. “(Not playing) has ignited a fire under me.”

Nelson has reason to have fire in his belly this spring.

After a promising freshman campaign followed by that dominating spring, Nelson figured to be on the cusp of stardom two seasons ago.

Sporadic playing time since, though, has stymied Nelson’s development -- to the point he thought of joining fellow linebacker Tom Wort and leaving Oklahoma.

“We had conversations, multiple conversations, just throughout the season, just talking about how frustrated he was, and how frustrated I was at times,” Nelson said.

Those frustrations stemmed from the Sooners’ defensive regime change from Brent Venables to Mike Stoops.

While Venables built his defenses around his linebackers, Mike Stoops consigned Wort and Nelson to plugging gaps and funneling tackles to the safeties.

(Read full post)

NORMAN, Okla. – When Bob Stoops brought his brother back to Norman, he envisioned recapturing the magic that generated some of the best defenses in Oklahoma history.

Instead, Stoops will now have to hire a linebacker coach.

Wednesday night, co-defensive coordinator Brent Venables announced that he has left Oklahoma to become the defensive coordinator at Clemson, leaving the Sooners with another coaching vacancy.

In hiring Mike Stoops last week, Bob Stoops believed he was getting the band back together.

With Mike Stoops calling the defense and Venables co-coordinating, the Sooners ranked third nationally in fewest yards allowed in 2003. In 2001, Oklahoma ranked fourth.

And in the 2000 national championship game, the Stoops brothers and Venables devised a defensive game plan for the ages as the Sooners kept Florida State’s high-powered offense from scoring.

Too much time, however, had passed. And Bob Stoops’ hopes proved to be short-lived. After Venables and Mike Stoops took a recruiting trip together to Florida, Venables and his wife flew to Clemson. And the allure of a new challenge, a massive pay raise and the chance to call his own defense again won out.

Because of the success the Sooners endured while Mike Stoops was the senior partner in the relationship, Venables was never fully appreciated by the Oklahoma fan base. Moreover, the explosion of Big 12 offenses after Mike Stoops left made it virtually impossible to produce top five defenses.

But Venables still coordinated some gems that helped catapult the Sooners to Big 12 championships in ’06, ’08 and ’10.

In 2008, the Sooners wiped out second-ranked Texas Tech by holding one of the nation’s top offenses to a single touchdown in the first half. OU went on to play for a national championship that season.

But perhaps his most memorable coaching job came in the final game of the ’10 regular season against Oklahoma State. Faced with the task of slowing down the high-powered Cowboys, Bob Stoops and Venables elected to revamp the entire defense, going to a 3-4 scheme. The shift stunned the Cowboys, and Oklahoma State managed only three offensive touchdowns as Oklahoma prevailed.

But as much as the Sooners will miss Venables as a coordinator and linebackers coach, they will miss him just as much as an ace recruiter.

Ronnell Lewis, Demontre Hurst, Tom Wort, Corey Nelson, Austin Box, Jamell Fleming and DeMarco Murray are just a few of the standouts Venables had a hand in recruiting to Norman in recent years.

He also was the assistant who secured two of OU’s top verbal commitments in this recruiting class: safety Eric Striker and running back Daniel Brooks. Venables also was the primary assistant recruiting California cornerback Brandon Beaver, who is scheduled to visit OU this weekend.

Bob Stoops tried to get the band back together. With his brother and Venables blazing the recruiting trail as a tandem, then forging those ferocious defenses again on the field.

Instead, the Stoopses will be on their own. Turned out, the band didn’t get back together.