Oklahoma's offense among the best in NCAA

Dec 7, 2008 - 7:58 PM By Marc Bowman PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Ticker) -- A prolific offense is nothing new for Oklahoma.

After all, this is a program which leads the all-time NCAA record books with 30,479 points scored in its 114-year history.

However, this year's team represents a new standard as the Sooner Schooner has rambled for 702 points - an NCAA record in the modern era, topping Hawaii's mark of 656 set in 2006.

"We've got a lot of weapons," Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops said. "These guys are really special and I think it all starts with (quarterback) Sam (Bradford), with his poise and his accuracy throwing the ball."

"We have so many different weapons on offense," Bradford said. "I think it's really hard for a defense to double-cover one guy because if they do that then they leave the one-on-one matches with other guys."

Most impressive, perhaps, are the 60-plus points scored in each of their last five games, an NCAA record.

"It's rolling," Stoops said after Oklahoma blasted Missouri, 62-21, for their third straight Big 12 championship on Saturday. "These guys are really special and I credit Kevin Wilson, our offensive coordinator, and all our offensive coaches and these players.

"Coach Wilson has done a great job of using them all, spreading them out and making people defend all of them. If you try to take one of them away, there's two or three or four others that can hurt you equally."

The Sooners have set a school record for touchdowns (97) and total yardage (7,307 yards), as well as a number of individual offensive records.

Despite playing with a soft cast on Saturday, protecting a left thumb which will require surgery for a torn ligament, sophomore Heisman Trophy candidate Bradford has led all NCAA quarterbacks with 48 touchdown passes this year and has led Oklahoma to a school-record 4,635 passing yards, including 384 on Saturday to set a Big 12 championship game record.

"No one throws it better than him," Stoops said. "He has just incredible accuracy and he's incredible on third downs, when you just have to have it."

"Everything goes through Sam," senior wide receiver Juaquin Iglesias said. "The way he's handled this offense, and the way we changed it to no huddle, he's doing a great job. You can't ask for more than what he's done for this team. And you can't ask for him to be more of a leader than he is."

Iglesias' 1,011 yards receiving this season ranks third-best in school history, while his 69 receptions are second-most. Junior tight end Jermaine Greshman has added 58 catches for 888 yards.

But it's not just the passing game which excels. Sophomore running back DeMarco Murray has teamed with junior Chris Brown to give the Sooners a pair of 1,000-yard rushers for the first time since 1973.

"I'm the biggest Chris Brown fan there is," Stoops said. "That guy is a great player, another 1,000-yard rusher. But it's a reflection of our offensive line, too. We've got great offensive linemen. They've been great at protecting (the quarterback) and in the running game."

Stoops' opinion of his front linemen is clearly reflected elsewhere, too, as three were chosen for the Big 12 first-team offensive line: senior tackle Phil Loadholt, junior tackle Trent Williams, and senior guard Duke Robinson.

It's a complete package, and it adds up to one of the greatest offenses in NCAA history.