Oklahoma football 2017 kickoff preview: Part I

September 2 – The Miners of UTEP kick things off

The season kicks off on Sept. 2  with the Sooners hosting the University of Texas-El Paso Miners (UTEP).

Truth be told, unless the entire Oklahoma football team decides not to show up, this one is nothing more than a tune-up for the Sooners, who will most likely be looking ahead to their monumental matchup against the Ohio State Buckeyes on September 9th.

Oklahoma and UTEP last met in 2012 in El Paso, and the Sooners won that one 24-7. Overall, Oklahoma leads this series 3-0, and 2012 is the closest the Miners have come to making this game competitive (OU won the other two matchups with the Miners in 2000 and 2002 by a combined 123-14 score).

So, what should Sooner Nation look for in this one?

For starters, it is critical that the Sooner offense and defense come out sharp right out of the gate. It will be Lincoln Riley’s very first game as head coach, so the idea is to start off the Riley era with a crisp, efficient performance that readily takes care of the Miners and sets the stage for the Sooners’ visit to Columbus, Ohio, the following week.

Simply put, the offense must hum, and the defense must shut down the Miners’ attack and send a clear message that the Sooners are ready for 2017.

If OU starts sluggishly, especially on offense, that will certainly set off alarm bells.  There simply won’t be a whole lot of time to fix any issues that emerge, so the best outcome is for no issues to surface at all — and, of course, no key injuries.

Predicted Score: Sooners 35, Miners 7