SB Nation - James Hanna

Since OU Doesn’t Throw To Him Can Brody Eldridge Just Stay On The Line?

ccmachine — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 05:34:59 -0000

Brody Eldridge started at center for Oklahoma when they played BYU to open the season. In that game he recorded more knockdown blocks than any other OU lineman while delivering a performance that resulted in Oklahoma coaches calling him a star. Saturday against the Longhorns Eldridge once again returned to the offensive line by filling in for injured left guard Brian Simmons. Against the Longhorns the coaches said that he didn't miss a single assignment. Basically Oklahoma's two best performances on the offensive line have come from a converted fullback/tight end.

In between the season opener and last week's game against Texas Brody Eldridge started four games at tight end. As Oklahoma's starting tight end he's caught two passes for 19 yards. That's the same number of catches as Jermie Calhoun and James Hanna. I don't know, where do you think he's more useful?

Oklahoma's offensive line has been pathetic this season. They've given up seven quarterback sacks; they can't create holes for running backs to go up the middle. Inside the 10 yardline they get overpowered and instead of tough and physical they would probably be better described as finesse. Brody Eldridge seems to be able to bring the attitude and deliver the type of performance that's been missing from Oklahoma's offensive linemen. So why not just keep him there? Especially if he's only going to catch two passes!

Yes, I do understand that there is more to playing the tight end position than just catching the ball. As with all offensive positions blocking is essential. DeMarco Murray even commented about how much difference it makes having Eldridge out on the edge when he's running but in a spread attack like Oklahoma is prone to run you literally could run anyone out there and they could give the type of production that that Oklahoma's tight ends have. The same can't be said of Eldridge's contributions to the offensive line. If someone else could do it better then they would be by now.

Tulsa Game Position Grades

ccmachine — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 05:28:19 -0000

More photos » by ALONZO ADAMS - AP

Browse more photos »

I have to admit, I expected a much tighter game against Tulsa last Saturday. I didn't think it would be the kind of game to be won by a field goal or anything but I did expect the Golden Hurricane to at least score. To say that the Sooners played good is an understatement and to say that Tulsa was a Top 25 caliber opponent is an overstatement. However, TU should have been a stronger test for the Sooners and their inability to impress had a lot more to do with OU than it did with us touting an opponent too highly. Good Grades are in abundance this week!

Quarterback A

Let's hear it for the Big 12's Offensive Player of the Week! Landry Jones completed 25 of 37 passes for 336 yards and a school record 6 touchdowns. He did throw two interceptions on two really bad passes and he still seems to occasionally lock in on a receiver without reading through his progressions so there is room for improvement but we must applaud the effort.

Running Backs A+

DeMarco Murray averaged 6 yards per carry and Chris Brown 4.6. Neither back scored on the ground but Murray made and amazing touchdown catch in which he spun around twice and flipped into the end zone. Murray had two catches for 38 yards and a score. In mop up time Jonathan Miller, for the second week in a row, looked stronger and faster than Jermie Calhoun. As a team the Sooners rushed for 193 yards.

Receiver/Tight End A

Adron Tennell's dropped touchdown pass was surprisingly not shocking based on his on field productivity so far this season. Trent Ratterree also joined Tennell in dropping a touchdown pass and while this has been a recurring theme for Oklahoma this season it was only a subplot on Saturday while Brandon Caleb having his breakout game was the main story. Caleb hauled in 5 passes for 104 and two touchdowns to become the perfect complement to Ryan Broyles who added 128 and three touchdowns on 11 catches. Landry Jones also found his tight ends on his record day as a Sooner. Jones completed passes to James Hanna and Eric Mensik.

Offensive Line A

No one is ready to anoint this group as championship ready but they've come a long way since opening night. The line gave up no sacks on Saturday afternoon and helped Oklahoma to an average of 6.5 yards per play on offense. This line looks more mentally focused than they've been all season which is good because they are about to face a stretch in which the level of their success will define the rest of Oklahoma's season.

Defensive Line A

Oklahoma's defensive line had Tulsa quarterback G.J. Kinne running for his life all day long. Jeremy Beal had three sacks and a forced fumble, Adrian Taylor recovered a fumble and Oklahoma ran a plethora of players through the line.

Linebackers A+

Ryan Reynolds let the team in tackles with 13 and was followed by Keenan Clayton who had 11. Travis Lewis added 7 tackles to the linebackers totals giving the starters 31 total tackles. Reynolds also had two sacks and Lewis had one.

Secondary A+

This was a physical game for Oklahoma's secondary and it needed to be. As we stated in our pregame coverage, Oklahoma's secondary making sure tackles and big plays would be the key to shutting down the Tulsa offense. Brian Jackson and Quinton Carter responded with 9 tackles and an interception each. Sam Proctor also added 5 tackles.

Special Teams A

The chief criticism with this unit was the missed field goal but as a whole they had a very solid game. I guess we could also call out the partially blocked punt. However, OU averaged 42 yards per punt and held Tulsa without a return. They also held Tulsa to just 21 yards per kickoff return while taking their lone kickoff return 32 yards.

Game Preview: BYU Defense

sroufe — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 07:21:27 -0000

View full size photo »

BYU’s offense matching up against the Sooner defense has already been discussed at length, whether it be over at Crimson and Cream Machine, or elsewhere. Maybe it's because Oklahoma's offense is considered (arguably) to be the best in the nation and BYU's defense (arguably) among the worst - but with the Gresham injury the Cougars without a doubt caught a break. Of course, while replacing an All-American isn't easily, Bob Stoops' program should be expected to fill in for Gresham nicely. For starters, Brody Eldridge could fill Greshams' spot and is an outstanding blocker (OU Offensive Coordinator Kevin Wilson called Eldridge the Sooner's "most consistent" offensive lineman - which includes standout LT Trent Williams). However, expect Gresham to be replaced by sophomore James Hanna or walk-on TE Trent Ratterree. The question remains then, what (else) has to happen for the BYU defense to keep the Sooner offense from exploding?

Mendenhall told Greg Wrubell this week that two coaching relationships aided in the preparation for Saturday's contest: 1 - Gary Patterson; and 2 - Urban Meyer. In their 2005 season opener, Patterson's TCU upset Oklahoma - in Norman. Last season the Frogs lost to OU in Norman, but held the Sooners to 35 points without forcing any turnovers. Obviously, Meyer's Gators were able to beat OU in last season's National Championship. Florida picked off Bradford twice and stuffed the Sooners at the goal-line on two separate possessions (once on a 4th and goal from the 1, the other with Bradford being intercepted at the 3 yard line).

Friends, that's some fine networking skills. Under Mendenhall the Cougars have traditionally run a 3-4, whereas the Gators normally run a 4-3 (sometimes using a nickel back however). Patterson's team in Ft. Worth has run an extremely successful 4-2-5. Still, don't expect Mendenhall and Hill to change their system. They may throw some tricky formations at the Sooners a bit, but BYU's 1) seemingly lack of depth on the defensive line and 2) lack of experience at linebacker will prohibit some of this. Certainly, Bronco and his staff have been able to take some things from Meyer, Patterson and some other recent OU game tape that they can use to their advantage. Because of the game being first on the schedule - and such a marquee contest for the Cougars - the BYU staff is assumingly well prepared in terms of defensive stratagems.

Here's the projected defensive depth chart for Saturday's game:

LE: Brett Denney, Matt Putnam
NT: Russell Tialavea, Romney Fuga, Tevita Hola
RE: Jan Jorgensen, Vic So'oto

Jorgensen is BYU’s most notable defensive player and the only Preseason All-MWC selection. He has lost some weight in an effort to improve his agility and subsequently increase his sack totals in 2009. He will be solid. Denney and Tialavea are also veterans though without the stats or name recognition of Jorgensen. Both are good in terms of the MWC, but neither would be even close to starting for the Sooners. Depending on which side Denney and Jorgensen match-up, one of them will be going against Trent Williams – and that will be a very tough task. Tialavea will likely go head-to-head with Eldridge. It will be interesting to see So’oto’s transformation from TE to LB and finally to DE. He has the athleticism to perform well, but I’m not counting on him to come up big against the Sooners. Putnam is a real stud and should see plenty of action against OU.

SLB: Jordan Pendleton, Grant Nelson
MLB: Matt Bauman, Brandon Ogletree
BLB: Shawn Doman, Terrance Hooks
WLB: Coleby Clawson, Jordan Atkinson

Hooks was projected to be the starter at BLB, but an injury caused him to miss most of Fall Camp. He should see significant field time in Dallas nonetheless. Pendleton is only a sophomore and is very highly regarded. Expect him to have a significant impact on Saturday – his first game as a starter. Of course, Bauman is the leader of the core, coming off of junior season in which he led the Cougars in tackles (108). Bauman isn’t a Muirbrook, Morris or even Cameron Jensen but he’s a hard-worker and a banger. Clawson was a JC transfer last season and ended up starting 11 games – look for him to improve with the added experience. As a whole this LB group isn’t as strong as previous years. They’ll have they’re work cut out for them with all of OU’s athletes, especially at the skill positions.

FC: Brian Logan, Robbie Buckner, Corby Eason
BC: Brandon Bradley, Lee Aguirre
Kat: Andrew Rich, Shiloah Te'o
Free: Scott Johnson, Craig Bills

As I've said before, expect BYU's defense as a whole to be improved. They won't be even close to the same realm as those teams mentioned above (Florida, TCU) but they should be respectable in the MWC. The defensive line is experienced and the linebackers decent. The secondary was atrocious in latter 2008 – but expect them to be improved as well. JC transfers – Logan, Eason and Aguirre – have added depth and athleticism, while Bills is a big-time play maker. Eason barely made the trip after the NCAA declared him eligible academically. The switch to FS for Johnson should help as well. As long as they can stay healthy they should be able to create more turnovers than 2008 and compete with OU and the teams that follow.

With Gresham out Bradford will likely look more toward a pair of outstanding WR’s. Ryan Broyles and Adron Tennell are each spectacular athletes and could provide serious problems for the Cougar secondary. Tennell is an experienced senior while Broyles, just a sophomore, is lightening fast – and returns punts as well. RB DeMarco Murray was an All-Big 12 selection last year, ran for over 1,000 yards in 2008, and is considered one of the best backs in the nation. So, even without Gresham, Bradford has plenty of weapons.

While BYU’s defense overall should be improved from 2008, it is highly unlikely they’ll be able to keep the Sooners below 35 or even 40. If BYU is going to be successful they must create turnovers like Florida did in the National Championship picking of Bradford twice. Last season’s Cougars wouldn’t have kept OU under 50. This season however BYU fans should be optimistic that that can be accomplished and that Hall and the offense can put up the numbers necessary to be competitive.

With A Injury To Gresham James Hanna Must Step Up

ccmachine — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 04:43:13 -0000

With Jermaine Gresham being out for an undetermined time Oklahoma will be in major need of another playmaker to step up and take his place. Offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson stated on Thursday that Brody Eldridge would remain as the team’s center which leaves Trent Ratterree and James Hanna as the tight ends on the two deep.

Ratterree joined the Sooners as a walk-on while Hanna was a highly touted recruit and yet it was Ratterree who was listed behind Gresham on the depth chart. While all the kudos in the world should be given to Ratterree for working hard to make it as far as he has you have to think that at some point it’ll be Hanna that becomes the more productive of the two.

We should see both players on the field against BYU and more than likely there will be times whew we see them on the field at the same time because OU has a few multi tight end sets. It may be easier to dig up information on Jason Bourne than Trent Ratterree. After searching several internet sites he’s what we know. He’s a sophomore, is listed at 6-3/225, wears jersey #47 and is from Weatherford, Oklahoma. He has no stats at Oklahoma and no bio is found on his profile.

Meanwhile, Hanna came to Oklahoma as a four-star recruit. He was ranked as the nation’s 11^th tight end by Rivals, 13^th by ESPN, 20^th by Scout and was the 32^nd overall player in the state of Texas by Rivals. He’s currently listed at 6-4/243. That’s only giving up two inches and fifteen pounds to Gresham. I’m not in any way suggesting that Hanna is a Gresham replica and match Gresham’s athleticism but he’s a long way from being a slouch. His senior year of High School he averaged 29 yards per punt return. In Oklahoma’s spring conditioning tests he bench pressed 355 lbs (the highest among the tight ends), ran a 4.56 forty (equal to Gresham) and has a 37.5 inch vertical (tied Brian Jackson for 3^rd highest on the team).

Being the second most athletic tight end on the roster doesn’t amount for anything if you can’t work your way onto the field. Hanna appeared in all but one of Oklahoma’s games last season as a reserve tight end and a special team’s player but there’s a reason that he’s behind Ratterree on the depth chart. Perhaps it’s a motivational ploy by the coaching staff or possibly Ratterree has legitimately beaten him out thus far. That doesn’t change the fact that Oklahoma needs someone to step up big to replace an injured star and James Hanna is the best candidate to do it.

Sooner Sports Notebook - September 2nd

dishingoutdimes — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 15:05:24 -0000

With college football season starting tomorrow, and plenty of Sooner news headlines from now to the end of the semester, I've decided to renew my quasi-daily "Sooner Sports Notebook". For football season I'll probably have the bulk of the information about the football team, and then a section at the end about other Sooner sports.

Next Game

Oklahoma Sooners vs. BYU Cougars
Dallas Cowboys Stadium - Arlington, Texas
6:00PM CDT, September 5, 2009 (ESPN)
Cougars vs Sooners coverage | Vanquish The Foe (BYU Blog)

Injury Report (source)

For Oklahoma: MLB Tom Wort is Out For Season (Knee/ACL), MLB Mike Balogun is Ineligible (NCAA). For BYU: OL Jason Speredon is Out For Season (Shoulder), OL Houston Reynolds is Out (Knee), CB Brian Logan is Probable (Hand), QB Max Hall is Probable (Finger), RB Harvey Unga is Probable (Hamstring), DB Scott Johnson is Probable (Concussion), DB Andrew Rich is Probable (Groin), DL Vic So'oto is Probable (Ankle), OL Matt Reynolds is Probable (Hand), RB Manase Tonga is Probable (Academics).

Quotable

"He [Brody Eldridge] is as good as the guy that played last year [at center], right now," [Offensive Coordinator Kevin] Wilson said. "He blocks those big guys we got who are as good as anybody we’ll see, right now."

The Pundits

(link) CBS Sports previews the Sooners' first game.
(link) Sports Illustrated power rankings.
(link) The Oklahoman September 1st practice report.
(link) Brody Eldridge will be playing with two numbers, two jerseys and two shoulder pads.
(link) Sooners need not worry.
(link) Not surprisingly, BYU is focused on Sam Bradford.

Today's Thoughts

I'm not surprised that the Sooners are playing Brody Eldridge at center. They have long been raving about his blocking. Plus, with Gresham as more of a receiving threat who has put in hard work this offseason improving his blocking, that position is getting a bit more crowded. James Hanna is another guy who will see the field behind Gresham who is built out of a similar mold. I'm not worried about Brody starting at center.
Everyone will obviously be worried and anxious to see how Sam Bradford opens up the season. However, I see no reason why this won't continue to be a very balanced attack. Offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson usually mixes things up fairly well. I see the first couple of drives being more conservative with lots of bubble screens and runs. The good news is that the Sooners have so many versatile players that they could line up in several different positions. I think we'll also have good pace and keep their defense on the field if we can rack up the first downs.
Broyles is moving back to the slot, which is great news because that's where I thought he was best anyways. I'm excited to see Cam Kenney who is one of the fastest players on the team and he has a 40" vertical. I think he could be one of the better deep threats we've had in awhile. I have heard Dejuan Miller has been improving and obviously Adron Tennell is a veteran, so I think we'll be better than expected at receiver.

That's all for now. It's a brief notebook today with perhaps some more meat and potatoes tomorrow.

More Sooner Football Spring Notes and Thoughts

dishingoutdimes — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 18:27:21 -0000

Can Bob Stoops get the Sooners back to the BCS National Championship Game this season?

View full size photo »

Spring practices continue in Norman. Another one happened yesterday out on the green grass of Owen Field. There should be 6 more practices before the Red and White game on April 11.

There hasn't been a whole lot of news out of Norman regarding spring practices. You probably would be hearing more if Sam Bradford had departed for the NFL draft, but the relative consistency from last year probably has minds at ease.

In fact, if you count Quinton Carter as a starter since he made a few starts last season, the defense will return 10 starters. The offense loses 6 starters, but overall Oklahoma will trot out 15 of the same starters as last year. Not shabby.

Speaking of the defense, did you know that the OU defense gave up 347 yards per game last season? That ranks as the second highest average in school history. Of course, a lot of that probably has to do with the spread offenses and talented signal callers in the Big 12. But give the D credit, they aren't trying to cop out of all the blame. Strong-side linebacker Keenan Clayton:

"Unacceptable. I didn't know it was that high," said strong-side linebacker Keenan Clayton, another first-year starter who was third on the team with 82 tackles and tied for first nationally with six forced fumbles. [...]

"They [Big 12 offenses] made plays," he said, "but we gave a lot of plays away. It works both ways."

Brent Venables is pretty excited, but who can blame him. The 2009 recruiting class was loaded with defensive talent, and they started spring practice with a ton of experienced players already on the field.

Linebacker, which was seen as a weakness last season, is now probably a position of strength. The biggest question mark is at middle linebacker where injuries riddled Ryan Reynolds and Austin Box. Box recently had elbow surgery, and both him and Reynolds are still recovering so Mike Balogun is getting a lot of the spring reps. In a related note, Balogun could quite possibly be the best third string middle linebacker I've seen! Plus, we brought in new recruits Tom Wort (4-star), Ronnell Lewis (5-star), Gus Jones (3-star), and Jaydan Bird (4-star). Any one of them has the talent to get some playing time. I think the linebackers will have a banner year behind our defensive line, which is probably our deepest and most talented position on defense.

A bit more info after the jump...(click the link below)

I've been trying to dig up anything I can on certain guys who are showing good flashes in spring ball. Pat Jones on the Sports Animal said that he is intrigued by Stephen Good, a new offensive lineman.

Word on James Hanna is that he's pretty fast for his size at tight end. He could step into a Gresham type role once Gresham leaves and could see the field a little more this season. Despite Manuel Johnson and Juaquin Iglesias and Quentin Chaney leaving, OU is still extremely deep at tight end, and we'll have some bigger receivers now - both Jameel Owens (6-3) and DeJuan Miller (6-5) are around or a bit over 200 pounds.

I did manage to find this post on a scout.com message board that gives some practice observations. Take it for what it's worth - someone's opinion - but it offers a little insight. I'll summarize a few points here. Gresham and Bradford are looking great. Travis Lewis and Keenan Clayton have added some bulk. Mike Balogun, who I mentioned earlier was getting more reps, was apparently making some big hits. Landry Jones has a cannon but needs to work on accuracy. The safeties need some work, but it's good that they're playing against the Heisman winner in practice I suppose. According to this Tulsa World article, Proctor and Carter want to be the most physical safety tandem in the country. That's good guys, just don't start headhunting over the middle.

Let's skip over to Gainesville, FL for a moment where apparently the Gators are experimenting with an up-tempo, fast paced offense. Urban must have been impressed by what Kevin Wilson has done at OU. Whatever they want, it makes no difference to me - I just thought that was an interesting story. As a side note about our offense, I think perhaps it could be even a bit better if the offensive linemen get their technique down. We graduated so many huge offensive linemen, I think the new guys might be able to get up and down the field a bit better.

And with that I'll just summarize the remaining points/stories with bullets:

Tulsa World: Jarvis Jones making the most of his second chance.
ESPN.Com: Sam Bradford eager for challenge of another season.
Rivals.com: Ranking the Big 12 Coaches; Stoops #1
NewsOK: The latest on Justin Chaisson
A quarterback recruits for 2010 for you to start hoping for: Blake Bell. He is from just north of the Oklahoma-Kansas border, but he's being recruited by some pretty stellar programs.
5 commitments so far with the 2010 class, including 3 guys that have four stars on the Rivals rating system. You can check them out on the ESPN page too. The same 3 guys are on the ESPNU150 watch list.

And to wrap it all up, challenge yourself by taking the Wonderlic Test!

OU Football Spring Preview Part Two: Offensive Skill Position Players

dishingoutdimes — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 01:35:08 -0000

Can DeMarco Murray have an injury free season? Image via media.lvrj.com

Previous Spring Preview Issues

Part One: Who Is and Isn't Back, Exciting New Players

Of the 6 skill position starters - QB, RB, FB, FL, SE, TE - 4 will be returning for the 2009 football season. Those starters include QB Sam Bradford, RB DeMarco Murray and/or Chris Brown, FB Matt Clapp, and TE Jermaine Gresham. Both Bradford and Gresham could have bolted to the NFL and likely been 1st round draft choices, but instead elected to return to OU. In any case, all of these skill position players will need to step it up to help keep the offense humming like it was last year - breaking the NCAA scoring record and averaging ridiculous scoring.

Quarterbacks

Piloting the Sooners for his 3rd season will be reigning Heisman Trophy winner and OU Junior Sam Bradford. Sam has exceeded all expectations and become one of the best quarterbacks to play in the crimson and cream. I say this because he has put up monsterous numbers in comparison to his predecessors, but still has yet to win that always elusive national title.

How good was Sam's 2008 Heisman Trophy campaign? He ranked 1st nationally in passing efficiency, touchdowns thrown, and yards per completion. He broke the OU record for passing yards in a single game with 468 against Kansas. He broke OU records for passing touchdowns in a single season and in a career, both previously held by Jason White. He's thrown 84 touchdown passes as a freshman and sophomore combined, which shattered the previous NCAA record of 55 by Rex Grossman of Florida. His career numbers are 539/783 for 7585 yards, 84 TDs, 14 INT, and a passer efficiency of 182.04.

Of course we all know what Sam brings to the table, but who will provide depth at the QB position? Nobody with any game experience, but the depth chart behind Sam probably shakes out something like this (scholarship players only):

#12 RFR Landry Jones, 6-4 211, Artesia H.S. in Artesia, NM
#15 FR Drew Allen, 6-6 210, Alamo Heights H.S. in San Antonio, TX

There has been a bit of buzz around Jones in spring ball, and the word is that he's been playing pretty well. That shouldn't be a surprise, because when OU recruited him he was rated the #1 player in New Mexico and the #6 QB overall by Rivals, and the #3 QB overall by ESPN. He redshirted last season. Watching him in warmups, he can put quite a bit of zip on the ball and is fairly accurate too. He is an unknown quantity in game situations, so his performance in the spring game should be interesting.

Drew Allen is already 6'6" and 210 lbs coming out of high school. He will probably redshirt this season, but with a year in the Oklahoma weights program he could be a big, strong-armed quarterback that also will have the potential to do great things in Norman. He doesn't have the recruiting service accolades that Jones did coming out of high school, but his statistics in high school were outstanding playing in Texas. He can also apparently run pretty well, with a 4.70 time in the 40.

Running backs, wide receivers and tight ends after the jump (click the link)...

Running Backs

#29 SR Chris Brown, 5-11 210, Alexandria H.S. in Alexandria, LA
#7 JR DeMarco Murray, 6-1 205, Bishop Gorman H.S. in Las Vegas, NV
#23 RFR Jermie Calhoun, 6-0 210, Van H.S. in Ben Wheeler, TX
#25 SO Justin Johnson, 6-1 201, Gilmer H.S. in Gilmer, TX
FR Jonathan Miller, 6-0 187, Naaman Forest H.S. in Garland, TX

Returning for the Sooners in the backfield will be the 1-2 punch of Chris Brown and DeMarco Murray. Both of these running backs were 1000 yard rushers last year. Chris Brown is the "between-the-tackles", workmanlike runner that seems to always be able to fall forward for 3 or 4 yards if there's no running lanes. He is deceptively fast though and has the speed and agility to make people miss and gain big yards once he gets through the first couple levels of defenders.

DeMarco Murray is considered the flashier back who is a threat to take it the distance every time the ball touches his hands. Murray seems at his best outside the tackles, or hitting a lane between a guard and a tackle. In those areas of the field, he can turn on the jets and get around the corner a bit easier than anyone else on OU's roster. Murray is especially dangerous catching the ball out of the backfield on screens or flares. Both Murray and Brown have great hands.

Chris Brown has been durable, but DeMarco has had his fair share of injuries. The biggest question will be whether or not DeMarco can stay healthy this season. If so, I would expect a breakout year that many people have been waiting for. He has the size, speed and agility to be one of the top rushers inthe nation.

With Brown and Murray being so talented and reliable, it's going to be difficult to see any time behind them at the RB position. Mossis Madu proved he can run the ball in the Big 12 Championship game, but he's likely going to be moved to a slot receiver position this season. Otherwise, OU merely has two 5-star recruits from the 2008 class in Justin Johnson and Jermie Calhoun. These two were widely regarded as being the top two RB recruits nationally. Johnson got some playing time in mop-up scenarios last year and he did not redshirt so he will be returning as a sophmore. Calhoun did redshirt. Both have been doing well in spring ball according to all accounts, especially Calhoun. Don't be surprised to see Brown and Murray gone after this season (especially if Murray can stay healthy), but the future looks bright. Given that we have Brown and Murray though, don't expect either to get many carries this season, barring injuries.

Wide Receivers and Tight Ends

Wide Receivers

#80 SR Adron Tennell, 6-4 191, Irving H.S. in Irving, TX
#85 SO Ryan Broyles, 5-11 175, Norman H.S. in Norman, OK
#17 JR Mossis Madu, 6-0 196, Norman H.S. in Norman, OK
#8 JR Brandon Caleb, 6-2 196, Fork Union Military Academy in Richmond, VA
JR (JUCO) Cameron Kenney, 6-2 195, Garden City CC in Dacula, GA
#4 SO Jameel Owens, 6-3 200, Muskogee H.S. in Muskogee, OK
#24 SO DeJuan Miller, 6-5 200, Metuchen H.S. in Metuchen, NJ
FR Jaz Reynolds, 6-3 182, Eisenhower H.S. in Aldine, TX

Tight Ends

#18 SR Jermaine Gresham, 6-6 261, Ardmore H.S. in Ardmore, OK
#83 SR Brody Eldridge, 6-5 265, Prairie View H.S. in La Cygne, KS
#82 SO James Hanna, 6-4 215, Flower Mound H.S. in Flower Mound, TX
#47 SO Trent Ratterree, 6-4 232, Weatherford H.S. in Weatherford, OK
#88 JR Eric Mensik, 6-6 260, Terry H.S. in Rosenberg, TX
FR Gabe Ikard, 6-4 240, Bishop McGuiness H.S. in Oklahoma City, OK

The Sooners graduated 3 senior wideouts - Manny Johnson, Juaquin Iglesias, and Quentin Chaney - and will now be looking for people to step up and start at wide receiver. Two guys are almost locks for starters, unless one of the other guys really shows up and impresses in spring ball. The first is sophomore Ryan Broyles who set the record for most yards by a freshman WR and tied the record for most catches. He operated in the slot and may not have the size to move to flanker or split end. One of the wide positions should go to senior Adron Tennell. Tennell has played mostly in garbage time, but he has the size and experience to immediately make an impact, and probably has quite a few reps with Bradford.

Broyles should definitely start. I would be 90% sure Tennell will as well. However, Tennell will be challenged by a lot of younger talent. Juniors Mossis Madu and Brandon Caleb probably stand the best chance of being the third starter. Madu is an experiment, shifting from RB. If that doesn't work he'll be the third string running back again. Mossis Madu is shifty and has deceptive speed. Caleb has a little better size and is used to the wide receiver position.

Cameron Kenney is an intriuging JUCO transfer from a community college in Georgia. I think he has the talent to make an impact immediately, even if it's off the bench. Then Owens and Miller got some reps off the bench last year as freshman in garbage time. They both have excellent size which could help them get some playing time over a few of the smaller receivers. They will be sophomores but should have some good experience and a repertoire with Bradford. Jaz Reynolds would really need to impress to see the field. More than likely he'll redshirt and make an impact next year.

Basically, beyond Broyles and Tennell there is a lot of young talent. 6 guys will challenge for maybe 2 or 3 spots that will see serious playing time. I think the spring ball competition will allow the cream to rise to the top, and give the others valuable experience for a year or two down the road. I honestly can't give a great preview because I haven't heard all that much about how the competition is going and a lot of the guys are unknown quantities.

For the tight end position, everyone returns. Additionally we add top TE recruit Gabe Ikard who will probably redshirt since Gresham and Eldridge will be leaving next year. Jermaine Gresham is the offensive threat of the two seniors. Todd McShay of ESPN analyzed the Oklahoma offense once and said that Jermaine Gresham creates huge matchup problems. He's one of three guys that I think can do this for us: Murray, Madu and Gresham. This is because Gresham can line up on the line or in the slot and be about as equally effective. Murray and Madu are dangerous in the slot too. Eldridge is more of a blocker and role player, but also has good hands. Both have NFL size, but Gresham gets more attention because of his offensive talent and ability to line up in the slot.

If you can offer any insight into any position battles, feel free to post below.