OU's Defensive Turnaround Starts With Turnovers

There's plenty to fix on the OU defense, but new Defensive Coordinator Alex Grinch knows just where to start. He's been putting an emphasis on forcing turnovers. The defensive staff has been tracking how many times their players have tried to strip the ba

Tuesday, August 13th 2019, 11:08 pm

By: Brian Mueller

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OU's Defensive Turnaround Starts With Turnovers

There's plenty to fix on the OU defense, but new Defensive Coordinator Alex Grinch knows just where to start. He's been putting an emphasis on forcing turnovers.

The defensive staff has been tracking how many times their players have tried to strip the ball from the offense during practice. Their goal is to have 1,000 strip attempts by the start of the season.

"That's a learned skill, that's a learned trait, it's no different than a basketball player shooting a thousand shots," Grinch said. "That's one of the skills and traits on defense, so we make it an emphasis. It's hard to get it out. That's why it has to be emphasized as much as it is."

As for the quarterbacks, Lincoln Riley said he isn't any closer to naming a starter, and he's been impressed by all the QBs in fall camp.

Brian Mueller

Brian Mueller is a sports reporter/producer in Oklahoma City. He is happy to get back to his Midwest roots, having grown up in St. Louis. Brian graduated from Syracuse University and spent

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