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Sooners, Mountaineers Have Something To Prove

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By ANDREW BAGNATO The Associated Press

Published: January 2, 2008

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - Welcome to the BCS consolation bracket, otherwise known as the Fiesta Bowl.

Third-ranked Oklahoma thought it deserved a shot at the Bowl Championship Series title after a series of late-season upsets shook up the BCS standings. But the Sooners finished behind another twice-beaten team, LSU.

No. 11 West Virginia only needed to beat Pitt - a team that lost to Navy - in Morgantown to clinch a berth in the national title game. The Mountaineers stumbled to a 13-9 loss, then watched Coach Rich Rodriguez bolt for Michigan two weeks later.

Denied a shot at No. 1, the Sooners and the Mountaineers have to manufacture motivation as they prepare to meet in the Fiesta Bowl tonight. After a week of workouts in the desert sunshine, they say they're ready to go.

"Both teams have been in the national title hunt all year," Oklahoma strong safety D.J. Wolfe said. "Both teams are trying to go out and show the world what we can do."

Each side has something to play for, though it's not as obvious or compelling as a national title.

For the Sooners, the game represents a chance to erase the painful memories of last January's loss to Boise State on the same field. Coach Bob Stoops dismisses the notion that there's been any carryover from that game, considered by many to be one of the great bowl games in history.

But many Sooners say beating the Mountaineers would help atone for the loss to the Broncos.

"I can't wait to play this game and get rid of that memory," Sooners linebacker Curtis Lofton said.

Oklahoma also wants to end a recent BCS bowl slump. The Sooners have dropped three straight BCS games, losing to LSU in the Sugar Bowl after the 2003 season, to USC in the Orange Bowl after the 2004 season and to Boise State last January.

Oklahoma, which won the 2000 national title, is 2-3 in BCS bowls. The Sooners' sixth BCS appearance is matched only by Florida State, Ohio State and Southern California. But the Sooners aren't satisfied with simply playing in the elite bowls.

"I think this could be a statement for us," Sooner guard Duke Robinson said. "We are going to make sure we come out fully prepared."

West Virginia, meanwhile, looks to rebound from a dispiriting December in which the Mountaineers lost a shot at the national title and their head coach. It wasn't an ideal way to prepare for a game against the Sooners, their toughest test of the season.

"I think this is going to be the biggest game we have this season because of what happened," wide receiver Darius Reynaud said. "After Coach Rod left, we got together as a team, and we've been sticking together."

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