Oklahoma football notebook: Stoops not impressed with defense

Published: March 15, 2007

Bob Stoops' initial impression of his team's first open scrimmage of the spring was displeasure, mostly because of what he called sloppy tackling by the defense.

"I wasn't very pleased,” Stoops said after the 2½-hour workout on Owen Field. "I didn't expect it to be, in five days, execution-wise what it needs to be, but I wasn't pleased, maybe, with our overall intensity in the way we came out here.”

Stoops was most unhappy with his linebackers and secondary.

"I saw sloppy tackling, which hopefully is just rust,” he said. "We have some guys who are trying to get on the field who are showing you've either got to make tackles or you're gonna have a hard time playing.

"But again, that's why you scrimmage, so hopefully, we'll get better as we go.”

•Double duty: Freshman DeMarco Murray saw action in two roles Wednesday. Aside from getting nine carries for 92 yards at tailback, the 6-foot, 191-pound freshman from Las Vegas lined up as a slot receiver on several plays. He caught three passes for 37 yards.

"They're trying to spread me out, get me in space,” Murray said. "I've been working on my hands, so I'm all for it.”

Murray turned in the day's most impressive play. The freshman zipped through a hole created by left tackle Cory Brandon and outran everyone 65 yards for a touchdown.

•Missing in action: Several key players were not available to participate in the scrimmage. Some, such as receiver Malcolm Kelly and offensive guard Brandon Walker, are being held out of spring practice to rehabilitate injuries suffered last season. Both Kelly and Walker had offseason knee surgery.

Others, like running backs Allen Patrick (bruised leg) and Mossis Madu (concussion), did not participate because of minor injuries suffered during the first four practices of the spring.

Other potential starters who did not play included tight end Jermaine Gresham, defensive end Alonzo Dotson, free safety Darien Williams and defensive tackle Steven Coleman.

•Hit of the day: Linebacker Mike Reed couldn't wait for the scrimmage to start before making an impression on the OU fans. During a 7-on-7 drill, Reed flattened Brody Eldridge after the tight end failed to come down with a pass from Keith Nichol.

By Scott Wright