OU Football Week 4 Notebook

News and notes from the Sooner press conference on Monday. Coach Stoops and players discuss Blake Bell, Roy Finch, Keith Ford and more.

Monday, September 16th 2013, 2:48 pm

By: News 9


Coming off Oklahoma's 51-20 win over Tulsa, much of the talk at OU coach Bob Stoops' weekly time with the media centered on quarterback Blake Bell's performance. Here are some news and notes from the press conference.

• Stoops said he did not choose an offense over a quarterback when he chose Trevor Knight as the opening day starter at quarterback. "There isn't an offense for one guy and an offense for another guy," Stoops said.

• Offensive tackle Daryl Williams said the offensive game plan wasn't different from the first two games, even though the Sooners didn't do nearly as much from the read-option look. "Coach Heupel called what was best against their defense so I don't think it was any different," Williams said.

• Stoops said there was no question Bell's game experience from the previous two seasons helped him to perform well and avoid any problems with nerves.

• Stoops admitted it's difficult to judge quarterbacks in practice because of the inability to go live-action during practice. "You can't simulate live action in practice," Stoops said. "All you can do is try to scrimmage more but then you're taking the opportunity for everyone else to get hurt."

• Williams said Bell's performance was not surprising at all to any of the OU players. "All of our quarterbacks are good enough to play," Williams said.

• Williams said running back Keith Ford running over would-be tacklers is a common sight. "We see that all the time in practice," Williams said. "That's what he does and we love it."

• Stoops said Ford's physical running style reminds him some of Adrian Peterson. "Maybe, when you're talking about just physical," Stoops said. "I'm not comparing him to Adrian but he's a really powerful guy."

• Stoops said all players who were injured would be fine going forward. He added he wasn't sure when Knight would be practicing again.

• With Bell the starting quarterback going forward, Stoops said the Belldozer formation, which the Sooners used once on Saturday, still has its place in the offense, particularly in short yardage situations.

• Stoops said Roy Finch has been much more consistent in practice and on the field so far this season which has led to him playing a bigger role in the offense. Stoops also added Jaz Reynolds has been a great story with how he has come back from being suspended all of last season.

• Defensive end Charles Tapper said freshman Matt Dimon, who saw the field a lot on Saturday, has been impressing players and coaches alike. "He's just working hard everyday in practice, staying in the film room and talking with Coach Montgomery to get the technique down until it's almost perfect," Tapper said.

• Tapper added he could throw a football 60-70 yards. When he received some skeptical looks, he revised his claim. "Maybe I'm getting ahead of myself, probably 50 yards," Tapper said.

• Tapper said he's been able to make a big leap this season thanks to the arrival of defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery. "They're just breaking the techniques down and showing me how to play the game of football," Tapper said. "Coming from a basketball mindset, it was confusing at first, but them breaking it down, showing me basic techniques, walking me through things really helped me a lot."

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