Sooners Prepare For Undefeated Kansas State

News9.com

NORMAN, Oklahoma – The Oklahoma Sooners are back at practice this week preparing to take on the undefeated Kansas State Wildcats.

After suffering their first loss of the season the Sooners are zeroing in on improving and executing in order to play well against KSU Saturday.

"There's a lot of areas that obviously we've got to continue to work to improve on and the guys yesterday had a really good attitude in the way they came to practice and watched and studied the tape so hopefully we can go out this week and make some improvements—I know the players are determined to do that and to work hard and keep pushing forward," said Stoops.

"Going there up to Manhattan is a major challenge," added Stoops. "Here you have a team that's 7-0 and has really played well and continues to play well."

The No. 8 Wildcats are 19th in the country in rushing yards per game with 213.9. That plus the treat of quarterback Collin Klein who is forth in the nation with 14 touchdowns through seven games, along with receivers Tyler Lockett and Chris Harper pose quite the challenge for the rebounding Sooners.

"Offensively they do maybe the best job of anyone rushing the football and the way they find different ways to run the football and they're doing a great job taking care of the ball," said Stoops. "Defensively they've been very disciplined and structured in how they play--a team that's really playing well and we know it's always a ruckus environment going up to Manhattan to play so it will be a big challenge."

This week Oklahoma is focusing on execution, fundamentals and getting healthy, as a handful of players missed last game with various sick issues and injuries.

"It's a lack of execution and guys not picking up the run game, the blocks and the structure of the defense like they need to and that's the biggest factor," said Stoops.

"The basic fundamentals of the game usually win games for you," said Stoops. "People can get elaborate schemes, but at the end of the day it all comes down to those basic principles."

"We've got to keep progressing --in some areas we have an in some areas we have not," said Stoops. "So we are still learning and hopefully we can improve here this week—we need to."

Stoops says the way he get the Sooners ready for a game by the way they practice, the way they come into the game.

"Now it's about doing the work that's needed to be ready for that to be able to execute against them," said Stoops. "This isn't their first game of going into a game with somebody that is dying to play them."

"I truly mean it--anyone can beat us that we'll play and we can beat anyone too—that's this week, next week and all the coming weeks," said Stoops.

Oklahoma and Kansas State kick off at 2:30 p.m. Saturday Oct. 29.