Oklahoma football: 8 reactions from a Rose Bowl romp

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 14: Jalen Hurts #1 of the Oklahoma Sooners breaks free from the pocket on a run during the first half of a game against the UCLA Bruins at the Rose Bowl on September 14, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 14: Jalen Hurts #1 of the Oklahoma Sooners breaks free from the pocket on a run during the first half of a game against the UCLA Bruins at the Rose Bowl on September 14, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
(Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /

The defensive line has a chance to be special

When was the last time the Sooners looked this disruptive up front? You have to go back to the days of Gerald McCoy.

Not saying this group is quite that good (at least not yet), but watching the growth of guys like Jalen Redmond, Ronnie Perkins, LeRon Stokes, Isaiah Thomas and others has been fun for Sooner fans.

This team hasn’t really been tested yet

All the good tidings that have come over the course of this article have to be taken with a moderate grain of salt (especially on the defensive side of the ball). The Sooners haven’t faced anyone that can compete with them for four quarters yet.

More from Stormin in Norman

Don’t get us wrong. The Sooners have done exactly what good teams are supposed to do against overmatched opponents, but we can’t ignore the context in which all of these great statistics have come.

Houston looks like it might be decent after taking Washington State to the limit Friday night, South Dakota is a below-average FCS team and UCLA will be lucky to win five games in 2018. None of these teams are close to the kind of competition the Sooners will see down the stretch with Texas, Oklahoma State and Iowa State all looking salty so far. Heck, Kansas State has a chance to be a dark horse in the conference title race after a 3-0 start.

With Texas Tech looking unimpressive against Arizona State tonight, Oklahoma might still be nearly a moth away from their first real test when it heads to Dallas for the Red River Rivalry against a battle-tested Texas team.

Then we’ll know for sure if this team’s national title aspirations are for real.