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OU hands Nebraska a brutal beating on Saturday
OU’s trip to College Station to take on Texas A&M this weekend will be their fourth road game of the season. In the first three trips, the Sooners had a turnover ratio of plus seven.
It’s no coincidence that those three contests ended in OU victories.
Texas A&M has a turnover ratio of exactly zero. They have forced opponents to fumble 19 times, but the Aggies have recovered only nine of those for turnovers. The A&M secondary has intercepted opponents eight times.
“It’s critical; we always make an effort to be responsible with the football,” head coach Bob Stoops said. “We’ve been very responsible with it and taking care of it and protecting it; it’s a big issue whether you’re on the road or at home, so I hope we continue to do it.”
In their first road game of the season against Washington, OU recovered three fumbles largely because players made a concerted effort to strip the ball while tackling.
“I think we’ve made a bigger effort on forcing turnovers,” senior defensive end Alan Davis said. “We’re wrapping the guy up and trying to strip [the ball] from him. If we just know our keys and know where the ball is going we can go and pick it off.”
Davis said defensive coordinator Brent Venables emphasises forcing turnovers during practice and the defense has responded accordingly.
“Making big turnovers changes games,” Davis said. “We always try to get four or more turnovers in a game. You saw against Nebraska how the crowd was with us from the very beginning. Turnovers do that for us.”
When done properly, stripping the ball from the runner is the most effective way of forcing a fumble.
“Just doing drills, executing, and practicing hard, being more conscientious of where the ball is at; that’s how turnovers happen,” Davis said.
When the Sooners traveled to Waco to face Baylor, they threw an interception without causing any turnovers.
That was the only road game in which OU did not win the turnover battle.
The Sooners responded by playing solid, fundamental defense to secure the win. Baylor was not able to move the ball effectively.
“Some games you have more [turnovers] than others,” Stoops said. “I think we almost lead the league in turnovers forced, so we’ve been doing a fair job of it through nine games to get that many.”
Against Kansas State, the Sooners recovered two fumbles and intercepted quarterback Josh Freeman three times.
“Sometimes you’re playing a little better or they’re helping you out,” Stoops said. “We’re not doing anything different.”
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dbh 3 years, 6 months ago
Boomer Sooner!! Nice article about the importance of the takeaway margin. Key to turnovers is protect the ball with sooner fundamentals. I think OU will be very agressive on defense at A&M and the turnovers will once again benefit the SOONERS.