Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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GAME PREVIEW: OKLAHOMA ON PAPER BY DAN MURPHY ing more than six yards per carry, led by junior Da- mien Williams with 508 rushing yards and six scores through five games. He broke a 95-yard run in the Sooners' 63-21 rout of Texas to bump his average up to 7.7 yards per carry. The Oklahoma backfield makes the most out of its touches. Redshirt sophomore quarterback Blake Bell makes Oklahoma's top four running backs are all averag- OKLAHOMA RUNNING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME RUN DEFENSE the most out of his, too. Bell (6-6, 254 pounds) is Oklahoma's short-yardage specialist. He has seven touchdowns in 28 carries this season, including four in the Red River Rivalry game. Notre Dame has built its success this season on its front seven. The Irish have a habit of holding teams well below their season average on the ground and are allowing only 3.5 yards per carry. A "classic" goal-line stand against Stanford kept the streak of eight straight games without surrendering a rushing touchdown alive and helped Notre Dame become one of only two teams to yield less than 10 points per game in its first six contests. Advantage: Notre Dame receiving corps the Irish have faced to date. Junior Kenny Stills (32 catches for 381 yards and three touchdowns) is a deep threat with his athletic abil- ity. Freshmen Trey Metoyer and Sterling Shepard are talented enough to keep defenses from focusing too much on Stills. Junior fullback Trey Millard is also a threat to catch passes out of the backfield. Fifth-year senior Landry Jones has not been the The Sooners have the deepest and most talented OKLAHOMA PASSING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME PASS DEFENSE Junior running back Damien Williams leads the way for the Sooners' potent ground attack with 508 yards (7.7 yards per carry) and six touchdowns through five games. PHOTO COURTESY OU ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS Heisman candidate he was billed as to start the season, but he still completed 62.0 percent of his passes for 1,353 yards with nine scores through five contests, and brings a boatload of experience to the quarterback position in Norman. Notre Dame's secondary was the biggest surprise