The Oklahoma Sooners round out its non-conference schedule Saturday, facing the SEC East’s Tennessee Volunteers. The Sooners hung half-a-hundred on the Tulsa Golden Hurricane, and they held the Hurricane to just seven points in their week two victory.
Outside of a few garbage time scores, the OU defense has given up little to their first two opponents. With the Volunteers coming to Norman, the defense will go up against a veteran quarterback and a young Tennessee offense.
The game is five days away, but here is our early scouting report of the Tennessee Volunteers’ offense:
Tennessee’s offensive line is inexperienced.
The Volunteers don’t have the commodity of a veteran offensive line. This SEC Network info graphic says it all:
This could bode well for OU.
The Oklahoma Sooners have a talented defensive line, which features upperclassmen Charles Tapper and Chuka Ndulue. Plus, the Vols will deal with junior linebacker Eric Striker, touted as one of the country’s elite pass rushers.
Senior quarterback Justin Worley could be in for a long night if the Tennessee Volunteers’ offensive line can’t hold back an Oklahoma squad looking to make a statement on national television.
I would like to point out, however, starting offensive tackle Jacob Gilliam tore his ACL during Tennessee’s season opener against Utah State. His replacement Brett Kendrick redshirted last season, but The Daily Beacon noted Kendrick “helped propel the running game to an improved performance in Week 2.”
Jalen Hurd will test Oklahoma.
Oklahoma’s five-star freshman running back won’t suit up Saturday, but Tennessee will have their five-star frosh in the rotation.
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Tennessee-native Jalen Hurd, who was an early enrollee at UT, received a majority of the carries against Arkansas State and has split most of the reps with senior Marlin Lane. Oklahoma may benefit from a Tennessee offensive line still trying to work out the kinks, but every now and then, Hurd could make them pay.
He’s a 6-foot-3, 220-pound running back who spent a lot of time with the Vols’ program after enduring an injury his senior season of high school. He’s yet to break loose for a big run, and hopefully for the Sooner faithful, he doesn’t choose Saturday to begin.
Justin Worley has a variety of options.
Oklahoma sophomore corner Zack Sanchez left the game early against Tulsa. While it doesn’t appear to be a serious injury, the Oklahoma Sooners may need his services Saturday, because Tennessee features a seasoned veteran at quarterback.
The Volunteers will trot out senior signal-caller Justin Worley, who played in eight games a year ago and threw 10 touchdowns. He had eight interceptions as well, but the Oklahoma secondary could be on its heels all night if Worley can find sophomore receiver Marquez North.
North possesses great play-making ability as well size at 6-foot-4, and he caught both of Worley’s touchdown passes this past Saturday.
The Vols will look to involve junior Pig Howard and sophomore Josh Smith, who played a majority of the 2013 season. Plus, the Volunteers brought in highly touted junior college transfer Von Pearson this past off-season. However, it’s worth noting, Pearson left Saturday’s game with an ankle injury and when he’ll return is unknown.
Worley isn’t afraid to make plays on his feet and with Tennessee running an up-tempo offense, this game should be more interesting than the last two.
The Oklahoma Sooners and Tennessee Volunteers kick off at 7 p.m. CST this Saturday. The game will be in Norman, OK at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, and this one will be televised on ABC.
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