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Yes, the Oklahoma pass catchers are as complete a group as there is in the country, with four players already over 300 yards. But Harris believes he can do the job. He has already gone against Denver Broncos wide receiver Eddie Royal, who has taken the NFL by storm as a rookie, last year in the Orange Bowl when Royal played for Virginia Tech.
“I’m like, man, I was just guarding this dude last year,” Harris said. “He’s fast, but … that just drives you crazy knowing that you just played these dudes in college and they’re going crazy in the NFL.”
Looking to the past for motivation makes sense; the present has not been encouraging for the KU secondary. During a three-game stretch prior to last week’s reprieve against the deficient Colorado offense, the Jayhawks allowed an average of 315 yards passing. They have seen nothing like the Oklahoma offense led by quarterback Sam Bradford, who has completed 72 percent of his passes for 2,052 yards and 23 touchdowns.
Watching Bradford, whose back side is guarded by behemoths Phil Loadholt and Duke Robinson, it seems he could sit down in a La-Z-Boy in the pocket waiting for his talented targets to get open.
“We’re going to try and get him out of that recliner,” KU linebacker Joe Mortensen said.
KU coach Mark Mangino knows that’s easier said than done with Bradford.
“The fact of the matter is he doesn’t get disrupted very often,” Mangino said. “He doesn’t get flustered. If he has a bad play, he quickly puts it behind him and moves on to the next one.”
The Jayhawks will need their defensive ends, Oklahoma natives Russell Brorsen and Jake Laptad, to at least flush Bradford out of the pocket — although he showed numerous times last week against Texas that he can throw on the run.
“It’s really important to get pressure on Bradford,” Brorsen said. “He’s extremely accurate with the ball. With a guy like that, the more pressure you get on him the less accurate they’re going to be.”
It will take an unpredictable game plan, a perfectly timed mix of blitzes and four-man rushes, to keep the Sooners off balance.
“We can’t blitz every down,” Mangino said. “That’s not going to work against a quality team like this.”
If the Jayhawks don’t pressure Bradford, the KU secondary will be on its own with Oklahoma receivers Manuel Johnson, Juaquin Iglesias and Ryan Broyles (17 touchdowns between them this year) and future NFL tight end Jermaine Gresham, who is the last player KU can afford to ignore.
“This is a big-time game,” Harris said.
“This is a game where you can show what you got against the best.”
To reach J. Brady McCollough, KU reporter for The Star, call 816-234-4363 or send e-mail to jmccollough@kcstar.com
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