FanHouse Bob Stoops

There is nothing new about Bob Stoops matching coaching wits with old mentor and boss Bill Snyder. They've done plenty of that over the years in Big 12 cross-divisional play.

But that doesn't mean Stoops isn't a little surprised to see Snyder, 70, back on the Wildcats sideline. The longtime Kansas State coach retired four years ago to pursue opportunities outside coaching, but was lured out of retirement last winter.

Stoops, whose 22nd-ranked Sooners host the Wildcats on Saturday, admits it's a little unexpected to be going up against his old boss again, but he was stunned when Snyder was no longer there, too.

It's the great mystery in Norman, Okla., right now.

Is quarterback Sam Bradford's career over at Oklahoma? Will the 2008 Heisman Trophy winner opt for surgery to repair the sprained AC joint in his right shoulder? Could he play again this season or next?

Those are all burning questions that Sam Bradford was supposed to address following Wednesday's Oklahoma Sooners practice, but he called off a scheduled press conference. Oklahoma associate athletic director for media relations Kenny Mossman told FanHouse that Bradford wants to gather more information. There is no rescheduled date set and that Bob Stoops will not be taking any questions on Bradford after practice.

Whether or not Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford returns to the Sooners this season, or if he has indeed played his last college game, seems to be anybody's guess.

DALLAS -- The play and the driving hit on a blitz from a Texas cornerback that left Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford squirming on the ground seemed eerily familiar Saturday afternoon at the Cotton Bowl.

Just a week after Bradford returned from a four-week rehab stint after suffering a third-degree AC joint sprain in his right throwing shoulder, he re-injured that same shoulder again early in the first quarter and did not return during the 20th-ranked Sooners' 16-13 loss to No.3 Texas in the annual Red River Rivalry.

It's not like Texas and Oklahoma ever needed a reason to make their annual Red River Rivalry game in Dallas any more intense.

The tradition of the two programs, the bordering states and the fight for superiority in fertile recruiting ground of Texas use to be enough. Who knew this early season game would take on so much more meaning when both teams joined the Big 12 in 1996?

This game has become about so much more than school pride and bragging rights, as one of these two teams has won the South each of the last 10 years, and it has sometimes set the stage for the national championship picture.

After two weeks of will he or won't he, Oklahoma announced Friday that Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Sam Bradford will return to the lineup for Saturday's Big 12 opener against Baylor.

Bradford, a junior, has missed the Sooners' (2-2) last three games and has been sidelined since the end of the first half of their season-opening loss to BYU (Sept. 5) with a sprained A-C Joint in his right throwing shoulder. There had been some speculation Bradford might return last week for the Miami game when he started throwing with the team for the first time, but it was determined the shoulder wasn't quite ready.

The news just seems to keep getting worse for the Oklahoma Sooners.

Coach Bob Stoops confirmed Monday that leading receiver Ryan Broyles (right) will miss the next four to six weeks with a broken left shoulder. Broyles, who has caught 23 passes for 346 yards and seven touchdowns, broke his shoulder during Saturday's 21-20 loss at Miami.

The Sooners are still awaiting word on when Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Sam Bradford can return to action. He has been out since suffering a shoulder sprain during the season-opening loss to BYU. Stoops acknowledged Bradford's progress last week when he began working with the team for the first time, but it was determined he wasn't healthy enough to return to the lineup against the Hurricanes.

Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops confirmed Thursday that Landry Jones will be the starting quarterback when the No.8 Sooners take on the 17th-ranked Miami Hurricanes in Miami on Saturday.

Heisman Trophy wining quarterback Sam Bradford, who has been out since suffering a shoulder joint sprain in the season opener, had practiced with the team this week and for a while looked ready to return under center. But Stoops feels his star needs more time.

"Sam has made daily progress, but we don't feel like he's quite where he needs to be yet," Stoops said in a statement released Thursday afternoon. "Our team has a lot of confidence in Landry's ability and we're looking forward to going into the game with him at quarterback. Our approach will be the same that it has been in the last two games"

Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops isn't sure yet about Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford's status this week, but he is pleased with the progress the star quarterback has made.

That could mean Bradford will be available for Saturday's game at No. 17 Miami. But then again, it could mean he still needs more time to heal the AC joint sprain in his right throwing shoulder he suffered during the first half of the Sooners' season-opening 14-13 loss to BYU on Sept 5.

"All his rehab to this point has been positive," Stoops said during Monday's Big 12 football media teleconference. "We just have to feel comfortable that he's healthy, that he feels good enough to make the throws we need to make and he's ready to do it."

HOUSTON -- It seems every football season there is the push to find the ultimate BCS buster.

And there have been some good ones to crash the "Members Only" party for the big boys of college football. The interesting thing is the club of little guys capable of breaking through has been even more exclusive than the club entry they seek.

Boise State. Utah. Hawaii. TCU.