Finley Leads Texas Early, Kelly Paces OU Late
Chase Colston
By CHASE COLSTON
Staff Writer
DALLAS - Texas tight end Jermichael Finley and Oklahoma wide receiver Malcolm Kelly made the big plays catching the ball Saturday.
The difference between the two? Kelly was still a factor late in the game.
Finley, of Diboll, made two catches of 50-plus yards in the first half and caught a game-tying touchdown. Oklahoma's defense could not find an answer for him until the second half, when Finley had one catch for 14 yards.
Staff Writer
DALLAS - Texas tight end Jermichael Finley and Oklahoma wide receiver Malcolm Kelly made the big plays catching the ball Saturday.
The difference between the two? Kelly was still a factor late in the game.
Finley, of Diboll, made two catches of 50-plus yards in the first half and caught a game-tying touchdown. Oklahoma's defense could not find an answer for him until the second half, when Finley had one catch for 14 yards.
(AP Photo By Tim Sharp)
EAST TEXAN: Texas tight end Jermichael Finley (16), of Diboll, pulls in a 22-yard pass in front of Oklahoma linebacker Ryan Reynolds in the second quarter of Saturday’s game at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas.
"We just changed up our coverage a little more," said Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops. "We kind of sucked up on the play action a little too much and they had us in a hole."
Finley's 149 yards passed Randy Pesche's 126-yard performance against Rice in 1967 as the most ever by a Texas tight end. He had a 55-yard catch and a 58-yarder, which he caught in the middle of three Oklahoma defenders and broke free to get to the Sooners 27. He scored three plays later on a 22-yard reception, his first touchdown of the season and fourth of his career.
"(Oklahoma) had a linebacker manned up on me and all I had to do was beat the linebacker and I knew I could do that," said Finley, who scored 47 points against John Tyler in a basketball game his senior year.
After that, Finley seemed forgotten.
Kelly, a potential All-American, turned in another dominating performance. Like Finley, Kelly creates tough mismatches with his combination of size and athleticism.
The Longview graduate injured his hamstring in the second quarter but returned just in the nick of time.
On third-and-5 at the Texas 35, Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford connected with Kelly for a 35-yard touchdown for what would be the game-winning touchdown.
"Getting back into the game, I was real anxious," said Kelly, who will face the choice of coming out early for the NFL Draft after the season. "I didn't know if I was going to get into the game. It was real important to get back in there and help out."
Earlier in the week Kelly said he chose Oklahoma over Texas out of high school because the Sooners had won the previous five meetings.
Texas won the next two, making this the first win for Kelly against the Longhorns.
RETURNING TO ROOTS: Palestine graduate and former Oklahoma running back Adrian Peterson and former Texas safety Michael Huff signed autographs outside the Cotton Bowl prior to the game. The two participated in the AT&T College Football Technology Tailgate Tour, which is traveling to 16 different college games this season.
Peterson is quickly making his mark in the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings. The seventh overall pick in April's NFL Draft has rushed for 383 yards and a touchdown on 76 attempts (5.0 yards per carry) and has a receiving touchdown through four games.
Peterson has three 100-yard rushing games this season and does not appear to be slowing down anytime soon. He is already Minnesota's go-to guy on offense and is well on his way to following Tennessee quarterback and Texas grad Vince Young as the NFL's Offensive Rookie of the Year.
Huff has 21 tackles and a sack with the Oakland Raiders this season. He's a critical part of the Raiders' defense, which has developed into one of the best pass coverage teams in the league.
The Vikings and Raiders are off this weekend.
TEXAS 10, OU 4: Having six more East Texas on its roster is about the only thing Texas has on OU right now.
Texas has three former Kilgore stars on its roster - defensive end Eddie Jones, tight end Britt Mitchell and offensive lineman Michael Huey. Half of OU's East Texans hail from Longview - receiver Kelly and offensive lineman Trent Williams.
Oklahoma looks to cut into the number next season, already having commitments from Van running back Jermie Calhoun, the top-ranked running back in the nation by ESPN.com, and Gilmer running back/linebacker Justin Johnson.
Gilmer offensive lineman David Snow is the only East Texan committed to the Longhorns for 2008.
WHAT A LOSS CAN DO: Oklahoma snapped a two-game losing streak to Texas with the win. Texas now leads the all-time series, 57-40-5. Brown is 4-6 against Oklahoma, while Stoops is 6-3 in the series.
Finley's 149 yards passed Randy Pesche's 126-yard performance against Rice in 1967 as the most ever by a Texas tight end. He had a 55-yard catch and a 58-yarder, which he caught in the middle of three Oklahoma defenders and broke free to get to the Sooners 27. He scored three plays later on a 22-yard reception, his first touchdown of the season and fourth of his career.
"(Oklahoma) had a linebacker manned up on me and all I had to do was beat the linebacker and I knew I could do that," said Finley, who scored 47 points against John Tyler in a basketball game his senior year.
After that, Finley seemed forgotten.
Kelly, a potential All-American, turned in another dominating performance. Like Finley, Kelly creates tough mismatches with his combination of size and athleticism.
The Longview graduate injured his hamstring in the second quarter but returned just in the nick of time.
On third-and-5 at the Texas 35, Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford connected with Kelly for a 35-yard touchdown for what would be the game-winning touchdown.
"Getting back into the game, I was real anxious," said Kelly, who will face the choice of coming out early for the NFL Draft after the season. "I didn't know if I was going to get into the game. It was real important to get back in there and help out."
Earlier in the week Kelly said he chose Oklahoma over Texas out of high school because the Sooners had won the previous five meetings.
Texas won the next two, making this the first win for Kelly against the Longhorns.
RETURNING TO ROOTS: Palestine graduate and former Oklahoma running back Adrian Peterson and former Texas safety Michael Huff signed autographs outside the Cotton Bowl prior to the game. The two participated in the AT&T College Football Technology Tailgate Tour, which is traveling to 16 different college games this season.
Peterson is quickly making his mark in the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings. The seventh overall pick in April's NFL Draft has rushed for 383 yards and a touchdown on 76 attempts (5.0 yards per carry) and has a receiving touchdown through four games.
Peterson has three 100-yard rushing games this season and does not appear to be slowing down anytime soon. He is already Minnesota's go-to guy on offense and is well on his way to following Tennessee quarterback and Texas grad Vince Young as the NFL's Offensive Rookie of the Year.
Huff has 21 tackles and a sack with the Oakland Raiders this season. He's a critical part of the Raiders' defense, which has developed into one of the best pass coverage teams in the league.
The Vikings and Raiders are off this weekend.
TEXAS 10, OU 4: Having six more East Texas on its roster is about the only thing Texas has on OU right now.
Texas has three former Kilgore stars on its roster - defensive end Eddie Jones, tight end Britt Mitchell and offensive lineman Michael Huey. Half of OU's East Texans hail from Longview - receiver Kelly and offensive lineman Trent Williams.
Oklahoma looks to cut into the number next season, already having commitments from Van running back Jermie Calhoun, the top-ranked running back in the nation by ESPN.com, and Gilmer running back/linebacker Justin Johnson.
Gilmer offensive lineman David Snow is the only East Texan committed to the Longhorns for 2008.
WHAT A LOSS CAN DO: Oklahoma snapped a two-game losing streak to Texas with the win. Texas now leads the all-time series, 57-40-5. Brown is 4-6 against Oklahoma, while Stoops is 6-3 in the series.
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