Heading into Saturday’s game vs. Baylor, it was unclear whether Sam Bradford would be able to play. Then, when we found out he’d play, it was unclear as to how effective he’d be. Even Bradford, himself, had questions.

From the Associated Press:

“I think that’s something that we were all curious around here is how I would react to 3 1/2 -4 hours in my pads, on and off, not throwing the whole time, kind of sitting on the bench, coming back and making some throws,” Bradford said. “I felt like my arm responded great, and I felt good out there.”

Bradford threw for 389 yards and a touchdown after missing the last month with a sprained AC joint in his right, throwing shoulder. It was the 14th 300-yard passing game of his career, matching the school record set by 2000 Heisman runner-up Josh Heupel. […]

There had been concern that Bradford’s shoulder wouldn’t have the stamina to hold up to a full game, but he ended up matching the second-most passes he’d thrown in his career with a 27-for-49 performance. The only time he had attempted more passes was when he threw 53 against Kansas last season. He had never had more than 19 incomplete passes in a game.

So, yeah: Sam Bradford may have missed a few weeks, but to anyone wondering whether he’ll be ready for next week’s showdown against Texas, I’d say the answer was pretty resounding this afternoon. And while Oklahoma may have fallen out of the title race, their hopes in the Big 12 are still very much alive, and riding on the shoulder(s) of Sam Bradford. And as we found out today, that’s not such a bad position for Sooners fans, after all.

From the Oklahoman:

Sam Bradford will start for Oklahoma on Saturday when the Sooners take on Baylor at Owen Field, team officials announced via Twitter, the social networking site.
Bradford hasn’t played since spraining the AC joint in his throwing shoulder in Oklahoma’s opening-game loss to BYU on Sept. 5.

Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops met with the quarterback Friday morning and determined he was ready to return to the field.

“Sam has had a great week of practice and is ready to play,” Stoops said. “We’re obviously excited to have him back.”

For more on Bradford's return, and the Sooners' game against Baylor, check out SB Nation's Crimson and Cream Machine.

From CBS Sports:

Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops is waiting another day to make a decision on whether Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford will play against Baylor on Saturday.

Stoops had said at the start of the week that he didn’t plan to announce whether Bradford would play until Thursday. But Sooners spokesman Kenny Mossman said Thursday that Stoops had put off the decision until Friday.

Sam Bradford continues to recover at his own pace, a pace somewhere between “I’ll play next week” and “I’ll play in the final game of the season.”

“I do feel like right now, yes, I will be back at some point,” Bradford said, speaking to reporters for the first time in nearly a month. “It’s still a process of seeing how it will react to a full game week, preparation and the amount it throws it takes to prepare for a game.”

Nothing terribly new or shocking there except for the news that surgery remains an option for the Heisman winner, something first hinted at with a visit to Dr. James Andrews, reconstructive surgeon and specialist in sports injuries, two weeks ago. He might be fine, he still might be surgery: all options are still open for Bradford save actually playing football for Oklahoma.

One thing is for sure now. If Sam Bradford planned on repeating as a Heisman Trophy winner, he can pretty much forget about that now:

Now, however, with today’s decision to start Landry Jones against Miami, Bradford’s Heisman campaign is most likely officially over. It would take a performance now, after missing three and a half games, that would be unbelievable for the rest of the season to even get into the race, and winning it may be impossible.

[…]

Bradford can further cement himself as a college football legend on Oct. 17, but it seems that his Heisman campaign is all but over for 2009.

Oklahoma QB and 2008 Heisman winner Sam Bradford will not start against Miami.

Landry Jones and his outstanding mustache will start in Bradford's place, according to OU coach Bob Stoops, who said that Bradford needs more rest and recuperation before he resumes blowing out scoreboards at the controls of the Sooner offense.

"Sam has made daily progress, but we don't feel like he's quite where he needs to be yet," Stoops said in a release.

As prominent as a matchup with Miami on national television may be, getting Bradford healthy may be a project Oklahoma can afford to be cautious with. After the Hurricanes, a team OU may be able to beat even with their backup QB, they face Baylor before hitting the crux of their season in two weeks, the Red River Shootout with Texas in Dallas. Saving Bradford may be the medically cautious thing to do, but with conference play looming, keeping him on the shelf in the name of long-term performance makes strategic sense for the Sooners as well.