Louisiana-Monroe @ Oklahoma preview

Blake Knight has a difficult act to follow, but he's off to a strong start as he leads the 16th-ranked Oklahoma Sooners into Saturday's season-opening tilt with Louisiana-Monroe. Knight beat out junior Blake Bell to take the Sooners' starting quarterback job vacated when Landry Jones bolted for the NFL. He leads the Sooners in search of their fourth consecutive season-opening victory against a Warhawks team that is no stranger to Week 1 upsets.

Oklahoma comes into the season looking to erase the memories of last year's embarrassing 41-13 Cotton Bowl defeat to the Texas A&M Aggies. "We've got a challenging year ahead of us, and it really starts from the beginning," head coach Bob Stoops said. Louisiana-Monroe finished 8-5 last season - and kicked things off in style, defeating then-No. 8 Arkansas 34-31 in overtime in an opening-week stunner.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, Fox Sports Oklahoma. LINE: Oklahoma -21.

ABOUT LOUISIANA-MONROE (2012: 8-5): The Warhawks' star power begins and ends with quarterback Kolton Browning, who led the Sun Belt with 29 passing touchdowns and who Stoops considers "the best offensive player in that league." To head coach Todd Berry, Browning represents even more than that to the Warhawks. “Every team needs hope,” Berry told The Daily Advertiser. “Hope is a very, very powerful thing, and for our football team, when Kolton’s back there, he creates hope." Under Browning, Louisiana-Monroe finished 27th in the nation with just over 290 passing yards per game.

ABOUT OKLAHOMA (2012: 10-3): The Sooners didn't encounter many quarterbacks in 2012 like Browning, who added seven rushing touchdowns. For that reason, Stoops is approaching Saturday's game with an equal mix of respect and caution for the Manning Award Watch List finalist. "That is the tricky part about it ... you have to cover so much ground," Stoops told the Tahlequah Daily Press. "These teams run it as well as they throw it, and they certainly know how to create run-pass conflicts for everybody." Oklahoma ranked second to last in the Big 12 in average rushing yards allowed last season at 192.2.
That is the tricky part about it is you have to cover so much ground and there’s a lot of run-pass conflicts,” Stoops said. “These teams run it as well as they throw it, and they certainly know how to create run-pass conflicts for everybody. - See more at: http://tahlequahdailypress.com/sports/x789515409/OU-to-deploy-linebackers-against-Monroe-s-Kolton-Browning#sthash.7wJyOHhg.dpufThat is the tricky part about it is you have to cover so much ground and there’s a lot of run-pass conflicts,” Stoops said. “These teams run it as well as they throw it, and they certainly know how to create run-pass conflicts for everybody. - See more at: http://tahlequahdailypress.com/sports/x789515409/OU-to-deploy-linebackers-against-Monroe-s-Kolton-Browning#sthash.7wJyOHhg.dpufThat is the tricky part about it is you have to cover so much ground and there’s a lot of run-pass conflicts,” Stoops said. “These teams run it as well as they throw it, and they certainly know how to create run-pass conflicts for everybody - See more at: http://tahlequahdailypress.com/sports/x789515409/OU-to-deploy-linebackers-against-Monroe-s-Kolton-Browning#sthash.7wJyOHhg.dpufThat is the tricky part about it is you have to cover so much ground and there’s a lot of run-pass conflicts,” Stoops said. “These teams run it as well as they throw it, and they certainly know how to create run-pass conflicts for everybody - See more at: http://tahlequahdailypress.com/sports/x789515409/OU-to-deploy-linebackers-against-Monroe-s-Kolton-Browning#sthash.7wJyOHhg.dpuf
EXTRA POINTS

1. Sooners DE D.J. Ward is expected to miss the next six weeks after having his spleen removed earlier this month.

2. Louisiana-Monroe fell 45-14 to Ohio in the Independence Bowl.

3. The Warhawks are 0-10 all-time against the Big 12.

PREDICTION: Oklahoma 42, Louisiana-Monroe 17