Game Essentials:

What: Texas A&M (5-4, 2-3 Big 12) vs. OU (5-4, 3-2 Big 12)

When: Saturday, 6:00 p.m.

Location: Norman, Okla.

Venue: Oklahoma Memorial Stadium

TV: FSN

Quick Facts

• OU leads the all-time series, 17-10, including an 11-2 advantage in Norman.

• The last time OU entered a game unranked was the 2005 Holiday Bowl, in which the Sooners beat Oregon, 17-14.

• OU has won its last six games against the Aggies, having won the previous two by a combined score of 108-42.

Keys to the Game:

• 1) Von Miller

Nebraska’s highly-touted defense was so dominating last week you’d have thought OU’s offense left the game at halftime to beat traffic.

It isn’t good news then that tomorrow the Sooners will have to protect Landry Jones from junior defensive end/linebacker Von Miller, who has recorded an NCAA-leading 15.5 sacks on the season, as well as 39 tackles, 18.5 tackles for loss and four forced fumbles. No need to elaborate on why this is key. (For more information, see: 10/31/09 loss at Nebraska)

• 2) Open up the playbook. Or find one.

This isn’t so much key to tomorrow’s game as it is key to the rest of the season.

OU’s offense regularly looks as if it’s being replayed on TiVo given the frequency with which the same three or four plays are cycled through the calls. If I can figure out that the offense runs a variation of the same three plays the entire game, it’s a safe bet that opposing teams’ defensive coordinators have caught on by now.

• 3) Keep up the D.

OU’s defense has been outstanding this season, and especially the past few weeks—the defense currently ranks in the top 10 nationally in five defensive categories. But it’s worth noting that the Aggies rank fourth in the country in total offense (477.6 yards per game) and ninth in scoring offense (35.6 ppg).

As long as the defense continues its recent play, there’s no reason to believe Texas A&M will put up those kinds of numbers Saturday.

They said it:

• Bob Stoops on the team’s motivation through the rest of the season: “We need to challenge the other players that regardless of their experience, they are here and need to play well, practice well and embrace the challenge. We need to play well, we are expected to play well and that is what we need to do. We need to invest in the week and get ourselves in a position to play well.”

• Offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson on the offense staying on track: “I wouldn’t say we’re off track, but I don’t think we’re on going as fast or as clean as you want to go. You can talk about all the things that have happened to us, but in every game the key thing for me, offensively, going back to last year, is turnovers.”

• Sophomore defensive end Frank Alexander on helping the younger players: “Just like Saturday, when Auston [English] went down, I had to step in again like the same situation from last year so that’s basically what I try to get them to see. You can’t think about what’s going on right now, you always have to stay positive and you never know what situation you might be in.”

OU will win if:

It can avoid the offensive catastrophe put on display last week in Lincoln.

Texas A&M will win if:

Von Miller and Co. can replicate the stone wall that was the Cornhuskers front seven last week enough to make any points the Aggies can muster against OU matter.