You can talk about all the different ways in which Oklahoma is a different team compared to the one that lost at Iowa State more than two months ago.

The development of young players, the return of Rhamondre Stevenson and Ronnie Perkins, the list goes on and on heading into Saturday’s Big 12 championship. But there are some things that cannot change. Doesn’t matter when this game is played, some facts cannot be refuted.

That’s the task, the challenge for the OU secondary going up against the size and strength of the Iowa State wide receivers and tight ends.

That group abused the Sooners’ smaller defensive backs in Ames. There have been a world of improvements from the guys in the secondary, but the measurable disadvantages still exist.

“We’re playing with more bodies. I think the guys that were playing have all improved as players,” said head coach Lincoln Riley during Tuesday’s Zoom call. “I think we’ve improved as a unit. We’re being very careful not to tie too much back to that first game positive or negative. It’s a long time ago. Different setting. Teams are different. Personnel is different. Everything is different. This will be its own game.

“We’ve improved across the board. Our secondary has improved. We’ll get a great chance to prove it here against a very good group.”

Make no mistake about it, it’s a good group for Matt Campbell. From quarterback Brock Purdy to running back Breece Hall and others, not some ragtag bunch that lucked its way into this championship game.

“They have good talent. This isn't some Rudy story. I mean, this is not some, well, they're just finding a way with bad players. They have good players,” Riley said.

OU’s lack of rhythm?

Since the final seconds of OU’s 41-13 win against Bedlam rival Oklahoma State on Nov. 21, the Sooners have played one game.

One.

A 27-14 win vs. Baylor where OU was riddled with COVID-19/contact tracing absences is sandwiched in between a postponement at West Virginia and a cancellation of that same WVU game.

To say OU could have lost its rhythm seems obvious, but Riley not looking to make excuses and knows that’s just the way it is in 2020.

“That’s why I get paid. That’s my job,” Riley said. “Just kind of find a way to do it. This team, this staff has made it not just easier but they’ve made it fun. We’ve found a way.”

Riley is never one to get into specifics of how things are getting done, but he did give an idea that it hasn’t been the same old approach during these start-and-stop weeks OU has been faced with.

“We’ve changed up our practice schedule quite a bit,” Riley said. “We’ve done some things to challenge our guys in different ways to kind of freshen it up. Because just going in there and just practicing every single day, I mean, at this point of the season it’s great work but mentally you need a little bit of a refresher.

“We’ve done some different things the last seven or eight days that I think have been good for our football team and have put us in some good situations as far as practice and preparing.”

Championship pride means a lot

It’s easy to lament about 2020 and all that has gone wrong or all that has been different because of COVID-19. But there’s some pride, too, for OU as the Sooners attempt to win their sixth consecutive Big 12 championship and fourth in a row since the championship game was brought back in 2017.

Riley has loved to say the team isn’t defending last year’s title, that it’s more about earning this year’s crown that anything else. But no team wants to be the group that sees the streak come to an end.

“I came in here on the ground floor of that,” Riley said. “I remember at the time coming in not totally knowing the rest of the league and all of that as well as I did. But I remember thinking that it’s going to be a big climb to go get one of these right now. We were able to do it that first year with coach Stoops leading the way and we’ve been able to get on a pretty good run since then.

“I do take pride in it. Certainly, it’s a huge accomplishment. I mean, there’s a reason why it hasn’t happened in major college football very often. It’s just so hard to do and do it that consistently. I guess just consistently putting yourself in those opportunities where you’ve got a chance to be good enough to be in that game and to win those games and have those opportunities for championships and playoff and national championships and all that.

“And then I just think coaching here, you just love being in these games. These games are awesome, man. You don’t even know you’re going to get them and there’s not a guarantee in any year that you’re going to get this game and the opportunity that comes along with it. So I love them. I really relish these kind of games. It certainly means a lot.”

It definitely feels like OU’s run of making the college football playoff will come to an end this season, but earning a sixth straight title after a 1-2 start and beating one of those teams that took you down initially? About as good as it can get for this group.