Brown turns running game around
Tailback: ‘We just had to stick with the run and it worked'
Brown turns running game around

By Scott Wright

Published: October 14, 2007

NORMAN — Cale Gundy had a simple message for Oklahoma offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson.

"He told me, ‘I'm going with No. 29 and you can run it when you want to,'” Wilson said. "That's all he said.”

No. 29 — also known as third-string tailback Chris Brown — finally took his turn as OU's featured ball-carrier, producing nearly half of Oklahoma's 118 rushing yards on seven fourth-quarter carries.

"Everyone has their opinions on who needs to be playing (at tailback),” OU coach Bob Stoops said. "I think Chris showed why he needs his snaps as well.

"He was sensational in the fourth quarter.”

Brown and the late-developing rushing attack helped the Sooners close the door on Missouri. The sophomore was OU's leading rusher with six carries for 17 yards after three quarters, when the Sooners trailed 24-23.

But it was Brown — not the flashy DeMarco Murray or the reliable Allen Patrick — getting the ball in the fourth quarter.

"We struggled early on,” Brown said of the running game. "In the first half, (Missouri's) running game had more yards than ours and we kind of took that personal.”

While quarterback Sam Bradford was posting career highs for pass attempts and completions, the Sooner run game was stagnant, partly because of Missouri's defensive scheme.

"Early, the committed to stop the run with some blitzing,” Wilson said. "A lot of our runs went to passes. In the second half, they didn't blitz as much and some of the runs stayed runs.”

Because of that, Brown felt the Sooner offensive line was able to wear down the Tigers' defensive front.

"They were getting tired. You could see it in their faces,” Brown said of the Tiger defense. "We just had to stick with the run and it worked.”

Comments