Broyles could return for OU-TX

With disastrous news hitting Oklahoma in waves throughout the early part of the 2009 season, Sam Bradford's return Saturday sparked a bit of a resurgence in the morale of the Sooners' faithful.

Could the OU program be struck with more good news this week concerning the return of Ryan Broyles?

That will undoubtedly be the major focus this week in practice as Bob Stoops said during the Monday morning Big 12 conference call that Broyles "has not been ruled out" for the OU-Texas game this weekend.

Broyles suffered a fractured shoulder blade early in the Miami game less than two weeks ago, but Sooners coaches plan to keep a watchful eye on OU's top receiver this week in practice to see if he can make a return to the field.

Offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson said several factors will determine if Broyles is able to make it back for Texas.

"I'm sure some of it will definitely be the combination of range of motion, mobility, probably a combination of pain tolerance and more than that, the combination of the (re-injury) risk," said Wilson. "You put a guy out there that has a chance to have a more severe injury because it's not completely healed yet. You're not gonna put any young man in that situation."

Broyles' return would help bolster a receiving corps that was shaky during OU's 33-7 victory over Baylor. The unit accounted for double-digit drops against the Bears.

Against Miami, Cameron Kenney led the Sooners with six catches for 72 yards and a touchdown. But on Saturday, Kenney spent most of the second half on the bench after key drops early in the game.

Brandon Caleb had a career day last week, catching seven passes for 139 yards. But Broyles had been the one consistent threat for Oklahoma after Jermaine Gresham was lost for the season following preseason knee surgery.

Even though Broyles missed the majority of snaps during the Sooners last two games, he still leads the team with 23 catches for 346 yards. His seven touchdown receptions are more than three times as many as any other receiver on the roster.