Five most-surprising Oklahoma players

By foxsports
Published

NORMAN, Okla. - The 3-0 record isn't necessarily surprising, although the way the Sooners have gotten there may be.

With an off-week coming up, Oklahoma's next game is at Notre Dame on Sept. 28.

Here are the five most-surprising players so far this season for the Sooners:

1.Blake Bell
OK, so you're saying it was just one game, and you're right. The 413 yards passing and the four touchdowns were impressive, but Bell hasn't exactly proved himself. The one-game explosion against Tulsa isn't surprising, but the way Bell got there is.

Bell was passed over in August for freshman Trevor Knight, and according to coaches, Bell didn't pout or hang his head. He kept competing. Yet, that still isn't the most-surprising thing about Bell.

In an offense that had struggled through two games and all-but abandoned any similarities to the offenses of the past OU teams, Bell came out and showed he was a capable passer. He went 27-of-37 for the game and showed himself as efficient and poised when it looked like the Sooners would be moving toward a running offense.

Now, OU still may run more than pass but Bell showed in just a single game he can be a really good passer. No one knew that would be the case.

2. Trey Millard
This was the season Trey Millard was going to make his name known as the best offensive player on the team. The fullback is a punishing blocker, but this was going to be the year he broke out as a weapon offensively.

It hasn't happened.

Millard has just five rushing attempts and just three catches. Now, while he is the team's best blocker, he hasn't lived up to the hype OU coaches put on him years ago and continued to this year.

3. Keith Ford
When coach Bob Stoops says Ford is the most-physical freshman since Adrian Peterson, you take notice. That, for one, is surprising.

But the fact Ford has played at all is also a little surprising, too, considering the running back has seniors Brennan Clay, Roy Finch and Damien Williams in front of him.

Ford turned heads in August when the University released a video of him running over defensive tackle Jordan Phillips in a practice drill. Since, he has brought that same mentality to the field. Ford has 11 carries for 66 yards and has also scored a touchdown.

Surprising the Sooners would burn his redshirt, but also surprising Ford has shown he can certainly compete with any of the backs on the field for the Sooners.

4. Brennan Clay
We all knew Clay would be a major part of the offense this year, but his production through the first three games has been sensational. Clay had a career-best 17-0 yards against West Virginia and carried the offense when quarterback Trevor Knight scuffled.

It was his 22 rushes that impressed, showing Clay can be counted on to handle a heavy workload.

He has more than 1,200 yards in his career and in a season where there is not one dominant runner, Clay has shown the ability to not only make people miss but get the hard yards.

5. Gabe Lynn
Lynn has been all over the place in his career at OU, including in the coaches' doghouse. But this year, Lynn has been amazing.

He's earned Big 12 Player of the Week honors after his game against West Virginia where he had a 27-yards fumble return and an interception.

Lynn has settled in at safety after having some issues at cornerback and it's resulted in two interceptions and a fumble recovery already this year.


Follow Andrew Gilman on Twitter: @andrewgilmanOK