OU football: Will Bedlam be a Baylor repeat?

Baylor burned the Sooner defensive backs with deep balls. Now OU plays at Oklahoma State, which has a quarterback (Brandon Weeden) who throws a mean deep pass and a flanker (Justin Blackmon) who’s been known to catch a long ball or two.

So why will things be different for the Sooners in Stillwater?

Bob Stoops didn’t say they would be different. But at his press conference Tuesday, he did offer a reason why it could be. Weeden doesn’t run.

“It’s different,” Stoops said. “The dimension of the quarterback run game gives us the ability to change up our coverage quite a bit. Hopefully, that will help us.”

Baylor’s Robert Griffin indeed is a special talent. A constant run threat – his two scrambles on Baylor’s final drive were just as big as the eventual game-winning touchdown pass – puts defensive backs on the cliff. The Sooners can focus completely on pass coverage and not on containment.

“We need to be able to cover people,” Stoops said. “To be in the zones we’re supposed to be in. To do a good job studying and where they like to go. And get pressure, make him move his feet.”

OU pitched a virtual shutout last Saturday against Iowa State, winning 26-6. The Cyclones’ only touchdown came on a 10-yard drive after a botched punt snap.

Safeties Aaron Colvin (moved from strong to free safety), Sam Proctor (moved from free to strong) and Javon Harris (moved to backup status) “did well,” Stoops said. “Everybody played well.”