Oklahoma's bumpy start may have whipped Sooner Nation into a tizzy, but few in Norman have given players a hard time about losing a game in September for the first time in the Bob Stoops era. At least not face to face.
Quarterback Rhett Bomar, a lightning rod for criticism on radio talk shows, has a pretty good idea why.
"I don't think anybody is going to say much to football players," Bomar said in a telephone interview. "These guys are big."
But it won't be surprising if a few voices are raised now that Adrian Peterson, the Sooners' All-American running back, has jeopardized his status as a starter by missing class. Peterson was suspended from practice Monday and Tuesday but is expected to play Saturday afternoon when No. 21 Oklahoma (1-1) takes on UCLA (2-0) at the Rose Bowl.
The Sooners will need the 2004 Heisman Trophy runner-up for a full complement of carries considering the shoddy play of their quarterbacks.
Bomar last Saturday made his first career start against Tulsa after Paul Thompson had a pass intercepted and fumbled three times during the Sooners' season-opening loss to Texas Christian.
But Bomar, a redshirt freshman, fared only slightly better. After two of his passes were intercepted in the first half, Bomar did not throw at all thereafter.
Peterson ran for 180 of his 220 yards in the second half to carry Oklahoma to a 31-15 victory that wasn't secure until the final minutes.
"We were just thinking about winning the game," Bomar said of the Sooners' reliance on their running game. "We just wanted to establish a physical presence. All that matters is that we won."
The Sooners won, all right, but everything is far from OK with an Oklahoma offense that has been one-dimensional. Including his 24 yards receiving, Peterson has accounted for 348 of the Sooners' 494 yards -- 70%.
So you stop Peterson and you pretty much stifle the Sooners, right?
"Everyone is going to try to shut A.P. down, and me and the receivers are going to have to step up," said Bomar, who has been tabbed for his second consecutive start. "We're not worried about that."
Stoops might feel otherwise. Asked to assess the play of his quarterback against Tulsa, the coach called it "pretty average."
"It's pretty obvious we need to continue to develop and improve our passing game," Stoops said during his weekly conference call. "[But] it isn't just [Bomar]. It's the quarterback, the receivers and the protection and where we're going with it."
