Jones or Bradford, does it matter?

I asked Oklahoma offensive tackle Trent Williams earlier in the week how much quarterback Sam Bradford had been involved in team drills during Monday afternoon’s practice.

He replied that from play to play, he wasn’t aware whether Bradford or Landry Jones was taking snaps.

“I’m looking the other way,” he said.

Therein may lie a clue as to how OU’s players reacted to Thursday afternoon’s announcement that Jones will start Saturday night’s game at Miami. I’m not sure other than hoping their friend and one of the team leaders gets back out on the field soon, they care who’s playing quarterback.

Likely, Bradford won't even suit up at Land Shark Stadium.

But based on what we saw against Tulsa when Landry’s on-target passes resulted in six touchdowns in the 45-0 wipeout, I’m not sure that it does matter; though Saturday may prove me wrong.

OK. I concede Jones may be lacking the seasoning and savvy that Bradford does after 28 starts. But the redshirt freshman has done little that I can recall to give Sooner fans cause for undue concern. He has the same Cool Hand Luke look that Bradford did when he stepped into the job two years ago. He’s not flubbed a handoff. His thrown balls seem to get from A to B with increasing timing and accuracy.

Which recalls something Jones’ high school coach pointed out to me in an interview a few weeks ago, “You know at Oklahoma, they don’t have to settle for people who can’t get the job done.”

Jones’ performance so far certainly leads one to believe that in this case, they haven’t.

And as I have previously stated, it looks to me like who wins this very important game for OU from a national perspective is going to be more determined by how those around Jones perform. Whether receivers catch, whether the line blocks to spring the running game and how it protects its quarterback, whoever it is. Even more telling, whether the defense continues to meet its own early-season standard.

Bob Stoops’ statement in the school-issued announcement that, “Sam has made daily progress, but we don't feel like he's quite where he needs to be yet,” is also not surprising. My guess all along was that Bradford would not return until the Baylor game, if then. That based on several factors--mostly that it would take more than a week’s worth of real throwing to work the shoulder up to make both the different kinds of throws necessary and to handle the sheer volume required to get on the field at Miami.

The bottom line is that based on what we’ve seen so far, one-hundred percent of Landry is better than anything less from Bradford.--Mike Jones. 

Comments

[harold horne]

Jones Bradford or Bosworth IT DOES NOT MATTER! The U does not lose OU at home.

[SoonerCal80]

Sooners win ...and win big. Miami is a shell of its former self. Sooners may have some injury issues, but so does Miami. The difference is the Sooners have the depth and Miami doesn't.
Prediction:
Sooners: 28
the "U": 14