OU faces mobile threat in Stanback

NORMAN - A week ago, few people in Oklahoma knew - or cared - who Sam Hunt was.

After rushing for 65 yards, throwing for 149 more and making the Oklahoma Sooners defense look silly along the way, the Alabama-Birmingham backup quarterback is well known across Soonerland.

OU defensive coordinator Brent Venables knows who Hunt is. He also knows who he is not.

“(Hunt) is a tough kid, but he wasn’t Vince Young,” Venables said. “We’re going to see a lot better, more athletic guy that can run much faster and is bigger and stronger this week.”

He’s speaking of Washington quarterback Isaiah Stanback, who rushed for 99 yards and passed for 169 in the Huskies’ 35-29 win over San Jose State last week.

He brings to Owen Field on Saturday running abilities more dangerous than Hunt and more similar to Young, the former Texas star, and the last QB to rush for over 100 yards against the Sooners.

Coming off a sub-par defensive performance, Oklahoma could have its hands full with Stanback, who is one of the Pac-10 Conference’s top 100-meter sprinters.

“It’s rare to have that gifted an athlete at your quarterback position,” second-year Washington coach Tyrone Willingham said. “When you have one that not only has speed, hand-eye coordination and the ability to throw the football, it’s a very nice combination.”

The Sooners have had their struggles with mobile QBs recently. Hunt’s rushing total was the most since another backup option quarterback -