Lebby/Roof: OU knows what awaits

Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables said Saturday night that it didn’t matter what had occurred with Nebraska in the first three games of the Huskers’ season because this weekend’s game was just going to be different.

He said that even before Nebraska lost to Georgia Southern, and obviously, before head coach Scott Frost was fired Sunday afternoon.

The mentality, though, is the same. You could even argue it’s going to amplified because of interim coach Mickey Joseph and the thought about new wrinkles being sprinkled in and the players fighting hard for each other.

It was something echoed by offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby and defensive coordinator Ted Roof during their Monday press conferences.

“It’s us understanding that we’re going to Lincoln and we’re going to get their best,” Lebby said. “Regardless of what has gone on, what will go on Saturday at 11 a.m. is those guys playing their best football. That’s our expectation.

“That’s going to be the reality of it, regardless of what has happened. I truly believe what is going to happen is those guys are going to play their butt off on Saturday.”

It’s hard to know if there will be anything different with the Nebraska defense because Frost never really had his hands in that. But Frost has been a key part of Huskers’ offensive game plan for years, even if he had toned it down this season.

So if something might change, it would be with Joseph and the offense. Roof, though, said there’s a little bit of guesswork that goes into every game. This one is no different.

“Our approach is that we expect everyone’s best. We expect to get their best,” Roof said. “I know this — they’ve had a great season offensively, they’re scoring points, moving the ball. Mark Whipple’s had a lot of success wherever he’s been calling plays.”

Effort not a problem for OL

It’s hard to imagine OU only have seven rushing yards in a first half ever again, but Lebby wasn’t discouraged by what he saw.

A lot of fingers start going toward the offensive line. After rewatching everything, Lebby says he knows it’s not the effort that’s the problem.

“The thing that saw Sunday morning, watching the tape, was we played incredibly hard upfront,” Lebby said. “We strained, we striked, we finished. We did a really good job. The stats don’t tell that story. But after watching the tape, man, proud of how much improvement we made in just finishing and how hard we played up front.”

The Sooners were able to get things going a bit more in the second half but failed to rush for more than four yards per carry against Kent State.

Farooq still dialed in

Through the first two games, not sure anybody thought wide receiver Jalil Farooq would only have one catch, but here we are.

It’s not just that it’s a single catch, but he hasn’t been targeted often by quarterback Dillon Gabriel, either.

Still, no cause for concern, said Lebby, especially with the way Farooq is handling it.

“I think the biggest thing is, the ball just hasn’t found him. That’s part of playing this game,” Lebby said. “I’m proud of him for just being incredibly steady and playing as hard as he’s played. That’s a conversation we had yesterday, man. Just keep doing exactly what you’re doing. The ball’s going to find you. Good things are going to happen.

“He’s been an unbelievable teammate. He’s worked really hard. He’s dialed into the detail right now. There’s going to be a moment in time, where he’s going to have a breakout day and it’s going to be a lot of fun for everybody.”

Parker fitting in

The very first play for tight end Daniel Parker was him coming in for a fourth-and-one in the first half that was picked up by Marcus Major.

Very appropriate, though, knowing how much Parker loves to hit people. He finished his first OU game with a couple of catches and now everybody has a better idea of how he can be used.

“He brings great physicality, great toughness, great edge,” Lebby said. “A guy that's played a bunch of football so a bunch of experience. Did like what we got from DP. We'll continue to see more of him. Obviously going to see a ton of B-Will. But like where he was at for week one for him.”

Coe making strides

It was said from the beginning that the first depth chart and first-game starters didn’t mean that’s how it was going to be the rest of the way.

Defensive tackle Isaiah Coe was another example of that, getting the nod vs. Kent State instead of Jordan Kelley.

Coe set the tone early and played very well in his first-career start.

“He’s getting better. He had a great summer and then has worked extremely hard,” Roof said. “And he’s seen some of the fruits of his labor pay off. And he’s getting better and pleased with him because you know, you can’t have enough of those guys that play in the trenches and are disruptive. It’s impossible. You cannot have enough of that.”

Morris will be a boost

It is expected for offensive tackle Wanya Morris to be available to play for the Sooners this weekend. After missing the first two games, everyone feels confident he’s going to make his season debut in Lincoln.

“He's another guy that brings experience,” Lebby said. “He's played in a bunch of games. He's incredibly athletic. He has great understanding of the game and the schemes. Looking forward to possibly having him back and ready to roll.”

Quotable

“I certainly have. I was at Penn State in 2012, and I rolled in there. I'd never been there. I got on the field in pregame and a big gust of wind happens. My game plan flies out of my hands and goes up into the stadium. I'm thinking 'Oh my gosh' because I had just come from the SEC where if that was the case... So anyway, yeah. A fan, this guy, is like 'Coach. Coach.' He's got my game plan. He walks down to the fence, a Nebraska guy, and hands me my game plan back. I would've never envisioned that. Maybe that'd be the only stadium where that would've happened.” – Roof on his only experience at Nebraska