It can be easy to discount a team’s success early in the season because of the assumed weakness in their nonconference schedule.

That’s the knock against Oklahoma heading into Big 12 play. “They haven’t played anyone,” people say.

The Sooners get a true test when they take on the [autotag]Cincinnati Bearcats[/autotag] today at 11 a.m. CT. Yes, the Bearcats are coming off of a loss to Miami (OH). Cincinnati had opportunities to win but failed to convert in the red zone and had some costly turnovers in the game. But that shouldn’t diminish what the Bearcats do really well, namely run the football.

Cincy comes into their first Big 12 matchup with the No. 8 rushing attack in the country. They’re averaging 239 rushing yards per game, five yards per carry, and two rushing touchdowns per game. In their lone Power Five contest against Pitt, the Bearcats ran for 216 yards in their 27-21 win.

Emory Jones will sling it, but Cincinnati wants to run the football. In order to take the air out of the high-flying Oklahoma Sooners offense, Bearcats head coach Scott Satterfield will want to use the running game to control the game.

For the Sooners to return from Ohio with a win, they’ll need to figure out how to slow down the Bearcats rushing attack.

Oklahoma comes into the game with the No. 16 run defense, allowing just 78 yards per game. Tulsa and SMU are currently averaging 166 rushing yards per game. The Sooners held the Mustangs to 116 yards and 3.54 yards per carry and the Golden Hurricane to just 71 yards rushing and 1.54 yards per carry.

The Sooners look like a team intent on stopping the run this season, and they’ve been very effective at it.

This offseason, they made a concerted effort to bulk up their defensive line in the weight room and in the transfer portal. After not having a defensive tackle over 300 pounds a year ago they have three players over that mark in 2023 in [autotag]Da’Jon Terry[/autotag], [autotag]Isaiah Coe[/autotag], and [autotag]Phillip Paea[/autotag]. [autotag]Jordan Kelly[/autotag] and [autotag]Jonah Laulu[/autotag] come in over 290 pounds. The Sooners have a healthy rotation of players with good size to help the OU hold up better at the point of attack this season.

The Oklahoma Sooners look like a defense trending in a fantastic direction. This game against Cincinnati will provide the Sooners a significant test for their run defense. If they can hold up and control the line of scrimmage, it will give Oklahoma a significantly better shot at winning the game.

Here are some of the best photos from Oklahoma’s last trip to Cincinnati back in 2010.