Scouting the opponents' Press - November 2007 Newspaper Clippings:

Texas A&M pre-game:

Franchione regrets jab at Oklahoma: If Dennis Franchione had to do it all over again, he'd probably still go for it on fourth-and-1 from the Kansas 9. And he'd probably still give the ball to Jorvorskie Lane. Those are coaching decisions he can logically justify....full story from The Bryan-College Station Eagle

Fran, Stoops play nice: Don't expect a war of words between Texas A&M coach Dennis Franchione and Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops this week after a spirited back-and-forth between the two last summer.

Both coaches downplayed the perceived bad blood during Monday's Big 12 conference call that stemmed from a light-hearted comment Franchione made in August about the recent NCAA troubles of the Sooners.

During a booster luncheon in Houston in August, Franchione addressed the Sooners' then uncertain quarterback situation by saying, "That may be the only question mark they have other than what jobs they are going to work this year....full story from the Houston Chronicle

Oklahoma's Stoops impressed with Aggies' McGee: Coach Bob Stoops said that when it comes to defending Texas A&M's running game, everything starts with slowing Aggies quarterback Stephen McGee.

McGee leads A&M with 130 carries for 722 yards. He has four rushing touchdowns and six passing. OU hosts Texas A&M at 7 p.m. Saturday....full story from The Dallas Morning News

Texas A&M's Franchione defends OU joke: Texas A&M coach Dennis Franchione's off-the-cuff August joke about Oklahoma's NCAA problems resurfaced Monday on the Big 12 conference call.

Franchione defended himself about the remark he made while speaking to the Houston Touchdown Club. While dissecting the Big 12 South race, Franchione said he wasn't sure who would be OU's quarterback....full story from The Dallas Morning News

Aggies running out of opportunities and time: Texas A&M controls its destiny, but that fate looks dim after Saturday night's 19-11 loss to Kansas.

A&M (6-3 overall, 3-2 Big 12) will play for the Big 12 championship in San Antonio if it wins the next three games. The Aggies just need to sweep No. 5 Oklahoma, No. 9 Missouri and No. 14 Texas to reach the title game on Dec. 1, where a rematch with No. 8 Kansas would be possible....full story from The Bryan-College Station Eagle

There's no need to sugarcoat it anymore: Franchione must go: COLLEGE STATION - It wouldn't matter if the Texas A&M Aggies had knocked the rock-chalk out of the Kansas Jayhawks.

It wouldn't matter if the Aggies hadn't spent the better part of Saturday night laying goose eggs all over Kyle Field.K

Coach VIP Connection has to go....full story from the Houston Chronicle

Kansas convinces Texas A&M, 19-11: COLLEGE STATION, Texas - Texas A&M ran Nebraska out of Lincoln last week with the zone-read option. The Aggies learned Saturday night what happens when somebody can stop the best play in your thin playbook.

Kansas' defense simply overloaded A&M quarterback Stephen McGee and forced him to make bad decisions....full story from The Dallas Morning News

Off-week Sooner news:

Small-town guys: Curtis Lofton, Auston English and Brody Eldridge all grew up hundreds of miles apart. But the trio shares something in common besides being teammates at Oklahoma.

All three are from small towns. But all three have found enormous success at college football's highest level....full story from The Norman Transcript

OU Notebook: Good strategy: Coach Bob Stoops challenged Iowa State receiver Marquis Hamilton's fourth-quarter catch because replay official Terry Turlington wasn't going to have time to buzz referee Jon Bible to review it himself. The reason? ISU coach Gene Chizik realized the 14-yard pickup was a close call and might be reviewed, so he sent in a fire-drill signal for the offense to hurry to the line and execute the next snap, eliminating the chance of a replay overturning the call....full story from the Tulsa World

Seeking a turnover turnaround: Oklahoma offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson sounded a bit like the character Howard Beale in "Network" when talking about the offense's penchant for turnovers this week.

He never said, "I'm mad as hell," but he made it clear he's not going to take it anymore....full story from The Norman Transcript

Sooners still not worried: NORMAN - Wide receiver Malcolm Kelly provided Oklahoma's voice of reason this week.

"If you come out on fire the first few games, and then all of a sudden you have a little dropoff, everybody gets worried and wonders what happened to Sam," Kelly said of Sooner quarterback Sam Bradford. "But nobody's Superman....full story from the Tulsa World

He'll be an All-American and a folk hero, too: There was a story going around.

The moment LSU's loss to Kentucky flashed and the Owen Field crowd responded with a spontaneous eruption completely incongruent with anything happening on the field, Sam Bradford mentioned it in the huddle.

Turns out, it's kind of not true....full story from The Norman Transcript

Sooners taking time: Oklahoma doesn't play again until Nov. 3 against Texas A&M. The time off should provide some time to heal some aches as well as get some extra work for the stretch drive of the season.

"There's no question it's a good time," OU coach Bob Stoops said Monday. "We've had some minor nicks that should heal up in two weeks....full story from The Norman Transcript

Sooners can use an off week: Bob Stoops loves the off week. Of course, the Oklahoma coach's reasoning is always something along the lines of, "it's here , so I love it." Kind of like his personal contribution to not worrying about what one can"t control....full story from The Norman Transcript

ISU escape costs Sooners in BCS: AMES, Iowa - Oklahoma won't play again until Nov. 3. What happens over those 12 days before it faces Texas A&M at Owen Field will define the season.

After eight straight weeks of football the Sooners (7-1, 3-1 Big 12) have hit a crossroads. They've proven they're a quality team, but haven't shown they can play at a championship level for an extended period....full story from The Norman Transcript