Game Grades: Oklahoma 69, Florida A&M 13

Sept 8, 2012; Norman OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver Kenny Stills (4) catches the pass against Florida A

Landry Jones – Grade: B
Quite honestly, Jones looked better against UTEP than he did against Florida A&M. He threw his first pick of the season, which was a completely overthrown attempt. He had another attempt earlier that went through the hands of a Rattler defender. He put up some solid numbers, but it took Landry and the offense a while to start clicking. Hopefully, two weeks of preparation will serve Landry well enough to shake off some of the off-season rust.

Running backs – Grade: A+
It was a big day on the ground for the Sooners, and you can give a lot of credit to junior Damien Williams. He scored four times, one of those touchdowns from 89 yards out. Williams seems like the real deal, but Dominique Whaley still struggled a bit. Ball security was issue still for Whaley, but he did find the endzone once. Brennan Clay had two nice touchdowns, and Finch even scored late in the game. The Sooner rushing attack put up huge numbers, but do not be fist pumping too much, Sooner Nation. It is only Florida A&M.

Receivers – Grade: A
For the most part, you really could not complain about the receivers. They did a fine job bringing down everything, especially Kenny Stills. Once again, no. 4 made a highlight one-hand catch that moved the chains, and kept a drive alive that Oklahoma would eventually score. Trey Metoyer and Stills were the Sooners to catch a touchdown, but Justin Brown and Sterling Shepard made some noise. The unit looked good in its second outing, and can only get better.

Offensive Line – Grade: C+
Landry still was not getting the best of blocks, so the offensive line is still adjusting. Also, a few penalties did not help the unit’s case. Still, they had troubles run blocking, but did enough to allow some big runs from Williams and Co. This should be an interesting year for the line, though Florida A&M had some decent athletes on their defense.

Defensive Line – Grade: B
Early on the defensive line struggled, but eventually were able to stop the run game. Jamarkus McFarland led the team with two sacks, and the pressure was there on Florida A&M’s Damien Flemming. The line really overpowered Floria A&M’s offensive line, which should be surprising to no one, even if Casey Walker, Stacy McGee, and Torrea Peterson are still out.

Linebackers- Grade: A-
Solid day for the Sooner linebacking core. I still felt like Tom Wort went a little quiet, but Wort and Aaron Franklin led the team with tackles, as well a TFL each. Also, Corey Nelson and Jaydan Bird had decent games for the Sooners.

Secondary – Grade: B-
Flemming did not have a great, but something has to be said about Demontre Hurst getting burnt bad by Travis Harvey who reeled in a 75-yard touchdown pass. The secondary can not allow anyone to simply call a play where the team’s fastest receiver darts down field for a touchdown, but other than that play, Florida A&M’s effectiveness in the pass game was few and far between. The secondary disrupted Flemming plenty of times, and Javon Harris even got an interception.

Punting/Return – Grade: A+
Tress Way had a much better day against Florida A&M, than he did against the Miners of Texas-El Paso. The blocking was good enough to not allow any special team mishaps, though, Way only punted the ball twice. The big story for OU’s punt game, though, was Justin Brown. He absolutely dominated on punt returns, and if it wasn’t for that one Florida A&M player that always tripped him, he could have challenged Antonio Perkins’ touchdown off punt returns record.

Kicking/Return – Grade: B
The Sooners never had to attempt a field goal, which is a positive. However, Michael Hunnicutt missed an extra point, which brings the unit down a letter grade. Missed PAT’s are inexcusable, although, Roy Finch did have a good returning kickoffs for the Sooners.