(Sports Network) - It'll be "Bedlam" in Norman this Saturday, as
the 11th-ranked Oklahoma State pays a visit to long-time rival Oklahoma in the
regular-season finale for both teams.

Oklahoma State has won three straight games, and eight of its last nine
overall to secure second place in the Big 12 South. It is the Cowboys' best
finish in the 14-year history of the conference, and their six league wins is
a school record. The Pokes can actually claim a share of the South Division
title if they beat Oklahoma and Texas loses to Texas A&M on Thanksgiving
night, but the Longhorns have already clinched a spot in the Big 12 title game
where they will face North Division champion Nebraska on December 5th.

OSU slipped past Colorado its last time on the field, 31-28.

A season that began with so much promise has turned into bitter disappointment
as Oklahoma currently sits at 6-5 and has lost two of its last three games to
fall to 4-3 in conference, which has coach Bob Stoops' club in a third-place
tie with Texas Tech in the Big 12 South. The Sooners' decline this year has
more to do with the fact that Heisman-winning QB Sam Bradford went down early
with a shoulder injury.

OU was manhandled in its most recent outing against Texas Tech, losing to the
Red Raiders in a 41-13 final.

The all-time series between these two teams stands at 80-16-7 in favor of the
Sooners, which includes a 37-8-2 mark in Norman. Oklahoma has won the last six
meetings.

The impact this particular game has on both schools and the state of Oklahoma
in general can not be minimized. Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy recently
stated, "Obviously it's Bedlam week. It's a very exciting time in the state. I
know that our players are looking forward to preparing this week, looking
forward to a game on Saturday."

The Cowboys are averaging 32.9 points and 400.5 total yards per clash, with
near equal production coming from the run (203.5 ypg) and the pass (197.0
ypg). If OSU is going to snap the Sooners' win streak in the series, the team
will need to excel in all phases of the game. QB Zac Robinson, a 63.5 percent
passer who has thrown for 1,922 yards, 15 TDs and only seven INTs in 10 games,
is expected back to run the show after missing the last game with a shoulder
injury. Robinson will be playing his final regular-season game in this one,
and he is the school's all-time leader in passing yards (8,155), passing TDs
(66) and total offense (10,010 yards), so his importance to the Pokes is
clearly immeasurable.

In the narrow win over Colorado, it was third-string signal-caller Brandon
Weeden who led the OSU offense, throwing for 168 yards and two TDs in the
fourth quarter. Weeden came in for backup Alex Cate, who appeared lost out on
the field as he failed to complete any of his nine pass attempts and was
picked off once in limited duty. Oklahoma State won the game despite turning
the ball over four times.

With Weeden doing his best to settle in under center, the Pokes had the good
fortune of being able to hand the ball off to Keith Totson, who rushed for 172
yards and a score on 30 carries. Totson went over 1,000 yards for the season,
becoming the 13th different OSU player to accomplish that feat. He currently
has 1,130 yards and 11 TDs, while adding 256 yards and a score in the passing
game. With star WR Dez Bryant out of action due to suspension, Hubert Anyiam
is the team's top pass catcher with 39 grabs for 482 yard and three TDs.

The Oklahoma State defense is just one of six in the country yet to allow a
100-yard rusher. As a result, the Cowboys are permitting just 82.6 rushing ypg
to rank sixth nationally, and their total average yield of 326.5 ypg ranks
31st.

With standout performers like Perrish Cox, (national-best 1.90 passes defended
per game), Patrick Lavine (67 tackles, team-high five INTs) and Donald Booker
(team leader in tackles with 80, and sacks with five) roaming the field on
defense, the Pokes have the ability to stop any momentum an opposing offense
may establish.

Colorado amassed just 251 yards against the Cowboys the last time out, of
which only 13 came on the ground. The Buffs average a paltry 0.6 ypc and
converted just 5-of-18 third-down tries. Booker led the Pokes with nine
tackles, while Lavine totaled eight stops, forced a fumble and posted one of
the team's four sacks.

Oklahoma's Stoops was clearly not happy with his team's performance in the
recent loss to Texas Tech, but was quick to point out that it wasn't all a
matter of his Sooners playing poorly, but more that the Red Raiders executed
their game plan to near perfection. "Compliments to Texas Tech. They played an
excellent game and beat us in every part of the game. They really moved the
football on us and I think a big part of it was their ability to run the
football. But then on third downs, they converted 8-of-17, so we couldn't get
off the field."

He continued, "With that, offensively, we couldn't stay on the field. We were
3-of-13 on third downs. They ended up with 15 minutes of possession time more
than we had. In the end, you have to have them sitting down on the bench and
you can't give them that many opportunities. Again, Tech played a good game
and we didn't play a good game in any part."

With Bradford out of commission, the Sooners have turned to Landry Jones to
supply leadership and make plays down the field and he has responded by
completing 58.4 percent of his passes for 2,556 yards, 23 TDs and 13 INTs.
Ryan Broyles is the team's leading receiver with 67 catches for 861 yards and
12 scores, while Chris Brown and DeMarco Murray spearhead the ground attack
with a combined 1,251 yards and 12 TDs.

Jones threw for 262 yards with a TD and an INT in the blowout loss to Texas
Tech, his scoring strike landing in the hands of Broyles, who finished with
seven grabs for 117 yards. Oklahoma couldn't get anything going in the run
game, as Brown was limited to 37 yards on 11 totes.

Oklahoma is averaging 31.5 points and 424.2 total yards per contest, with the
run accounting for 140.7 ypg and the pass 283.5 ypg. 25 of the team's 40 TDs
have come through the air and the Sooners have scored on 91 percent of their
red-zone opportunities.

Stoops knows it's going to take a complete team effort to beat Oklahoma State
this week, and in particular his defense is going to have to step it up. "They
do a nice job in all parts of their run game. It is a power-running game in
some occasions, in others it's just zone blocking and they have always had the
ability to pull the ball with Zac (Robinson) in particular. We have got to be
really physical, good in our blocks, tackling and disciplined to be where we
need to be."

Doing his best to lead the OU defense is veteran LB Travis Lewis, who paces
the club with 99 tackles. Overall, the Sooners are giving up a mere 14.7 ppg,
with their effort against the run resulting in just 91.0 ypg and only 2.8 ypc.
They have given up just seven rushing TDs in 11 games.

As mentioned, Texas Tech dominated the game against Oklahoma, cranking out 549
yards of total offense (388 passing, 161 rushing) and picking up 32 first
downs. Lewis was one of four Sooners to record double-digit tackles in the
loss, logging 13 stops.





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