Badet bounces back
Sooners wide receiver Jeff Badet had a rocky start in his OU debut. But he bounced back quickly to finish with four receptions for 91 yards.
Jeff Badet’s Oklahoma career got started with a bang Saturday afternoon — but not in the way he would’ve preferred.
After fielding the opening kickoff, the Kentucky graduate transfer began sprinting up the field when he was leveled by a member of the UTEP kickoff coverage squad.
As he lay flat on his back, looking up at the sky above Owen Field, Badet’s mind flashed to a talk former OU offensive lineman Jammal Brown gave the Sooners earlier in the week.
“In the back of my mind, I was thinking about that presentation he gave us,” Badet said, “and I was like, ‘I’ve got to hop up man, it’s good, it’s football.’”
Badet got up after a couple seconds and went on to have a pretty solid first outing, reeling in four catches for 91 yards, including one 51-yard reception.
Flowers picks up first rushing touchdown
A season after picking up the first carry of his career, Dimitri Flowers finally found his way into the end zone on the ground, scoring on a three-yard run in the first quarter.
“It was awesome,” said the senior, who has eight receiving touchdowns. “All the credit goes to the o-line and coach (Lincoln) Riley for trusting in me to get the job done.”
The score came on a jumbo offensive package where OU used three full backs — Flowers, Jaxon Uhles and Carson Meier — along with big-bodied wide receiver Jordan Smallwood.
The Sooners utilized similar packages in a couple of short yardage situations. Later in the game, Uhles, Meier and Smallwood were on the field when Uhles scored his first career touchdown from one yard out.
“It’s always good to have a little change up,” Flowers said of the formation. “And we ran it successfully today.”
Norwood, Brown look to have increased roles
With backup cornerback Jordan Parker leaning on crutches, wearing a giant knee immobilizer on his left leg at the end of OU’s win, it seems that a couple of the younger Sooners will have to take on more responsibility.
Sophomore Parnell Motley got the start at left corner with Parker as the primary backup, but if Parker’s knee injury keeps him out an extended period of time, look for freshmen cornerbacks Tre Brown and Tre Norwood to move into more prominent roles.
“Tre Brown and Tre Norwood have both done really, really good things, so based on what happens to JP, we’ll take that next step with one of those guys, but they’ve been really good in camp,” defensive coordinator Mike Stoops said. “It’s going to be a learning experience for them.”
Brown impresses with postgame fashion
Standing at 6-foot-8 and weighing 345-pounds, it’s hard to miss Orlando Brown.
But it’s even harder to miss the left tackle when he’s wearing a white and pink polka dot shirt.
The offensive tackle showed off stylish digs in the interview room following the Sooners’ 56-7 win against UTEP wearing the polka dot shirt over a black t-shirt along with ripped jean shorts, grey and black slip on sneakers, and a foxtail latched on his shorts for good measure. So was he the best-dressed of his teammates after the game? “Oh, man,” he said. “Always. I’d like to be the best-dressed in the country.
“I’m still working on my swag, but it’s all right.”
Extra point
Oklahoma had 14 different receivers Saturday, the same number of players who caught a pass all of last season.