Bob Stoops will match wits with one of his former lieutenants in the Cotton Bowl on Jan. 4, but it’s not the first time he’s encountered one of his former assistants.

Kevin Sumlin is in his first season as Texas A&M’s head coach after spending four years as head coach for the Houston Cougars. Sumlin, who served as a Sooners assistant from 2003 to 2007, might be the best former assistant from Stoops’ coaching tree.

In four years at Houston, Sumlin compiled a 35-17 record. He twice led Houston to the Conference-USA Championship Game, capturing the title in 2011. When the Texas A&M job came open, Sumlin jumped at the chance, since he formerly coached there as an assistant a couple of years before his OU tenure. He has led the Aggies to a 10-2 record this year, which includes a stunning upset over Alabama in Tuscaloosa.

(Editor's note: With the 2012 regular season in the books, we'll be reviewing the performance of the different position groups for Oklahoma. We start with quarterback and a look at the play of Landry Jones and understudy Blake Bell.)

What did we think/hope would happen?

Landry Jones would start every game and Blake Bell would continue to provide short-yardage support. With a refreshed and restocked wide receiver corps, Jones would regain the form of 2010 and shake off his poor play at the end of 2011.

It's a short list this week due to the abbreviated schedule, but here goes.

A 10-2 record and co-champions of the Big 12. Don't blame Bob Stoops or the players; blame the Big 12 for sending the Trophy.

In yet another cardiac win, OU showed how much it hates prosperity at times. All year, the Sooners have been unable to combine offensive and defensive success to separate from teams and win games by a comfortable margin.

Still, a win is a win, and this team hit a nice mark despite all kinds of gaps on defense.

Oklahoma’s 2012 season couldn’t have ended much more appropriately than it did Saturday in Fort Worth.

The Sooners did their fair share to keep the TCU Horned Frogs in the game. OU alternated between playing brilliantly and cluelessly. Texas Christian nearly stole the game away in the fourth quarter with some late heroics. Yet, when the final gun went off, the Sooners had again held on for a 24-17 win.

After two consecutive close shaves versus Oklahoma State and West Virginia, the Sooners’ play was ragged throughout the contest. Senior quarterback Landry Jones, playing in his final regular season game for the Crimson and Cream, struggled to find his rhythm. He completed just 22 of his 40 pass attempts and threw his once-per-game horrendous interception, which set up a short touchdown run for TCU.

No. 11 Oklahoma (8-2) at TCU (7-4)
Dec. 1, 11 a.m.
Amon G. Carter Stadium (Fort Worth, Texas)
TV: ESPN
Line: OU -6.5

Oklahoma is a game away and some help from ending the season at 10-2 and a BCS bowl berth. After the negativity and bad ending of last year, that would be an excellent rebound for the Sooners.

While OU is probably playing a less explosive offense this week than in the past couples of games, OU is playing a much better defense as well. TCU is sky high off its humiliation of Texas in Austin, and it's not a stretch to wonder what OU has left in the tank after back-to-back battles for 60 minutes.

Oklahoma is hitting the stretch run in recruiting. No more game weekends for visits, but OU will likely host one big weekend in December next week after the TCU game. The Sooners will host some late mid-term JUCO targets the following week if need be, then shut down until January.

OU needs a strong end to recruiting. It’s not impossible, and the coaching chaos out there could make even more kids available to OU. OU always flips one kid in late January from another school. Also, OU usually loses a verbal, but maybe that has already occurred with Greg Bryant.

Some new names are bound to bubble up as OU gets late film on prospects who have had big senior years. Remember that last year that at this time, Zach Sanchez and Gary Simon were both nowhere on the OU offer list.

Jackie Shipp has to get at least one JUCO defensive tackle in the next three weeks and then add two more in the remaining time period. Shipp can go from goat to recruiting ace in that short amount of time.

No time for a podcast this week. We've got a squeaker. No Lee Greenwood Special this week.

The Skinny
(Last Week: 3-2-1; Overall: 41-36-1)

UCLA +8.5
Texas +11
UGA +7
Nebraska -3
Nevada +8.5

Blatant Homerism
(Last Week: 3-3; Overall: 40-38)

Nebraska -3
Baylor +4.5
Kansas State -11
Northern Illinois -5
Georgia Tech +14

No. 11 Oklahoma (8-2) at TCU (7-4)
Dec. 1, 11 a.m.
Amon G. Carter Stadium (Fort Worth, Texas)
TV: ESPN
Line: OU -6.5

Series: OU leads 7-4