FanHouse Landry Jones

So much for Todd Reesing and the whole Heisman Trophy conversation. The same can be said for the 25th-ranked Kansas Jayhawks and their once-promising season.

On an afternoon when the Jayhawks had a chance to make a major statement against a respectable Oklahoma team, they simply showed they aren't ready for the big time in a 35-13 drubbing in front of their home crowd at Memorial Stadium on Saturday.

Reesing, third in the country in passing yardage per game coming into the contest, threw three interceptions during the Jayhawks' first three possessions . Oklahoma defensive back Dominique Franks was the recipient of the third, which he promptly returned 85 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter to help the Sooners take a 14-6 lead into halftime.

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.

Sam Bradford at times looked a little rusty, and he and his receivers seemed out of synch, but the Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback returned after a nearly one-month layoff to lead the 19th-ranked Oklahoma Sooners to a 33-7 win over Baylor on Saturday in Norman, Okla.

Bradford, who had missed three games after spraining the AC joint in his (right) throwing shoulder in the first half of the season opener, passed for 389 yards and a touchdown in a relatively easy Big 12 opener. The real test comes next Saturday when the Sooners take on No. 2 Texas in the annual Red River Rivalry in Dallas.

"It's extremely gratifying just to get back out on the field," Bradford said. "Just to be out there with the guys that I have put in so much work with in the offseason and just the simple things like handoffs. Everything out there, it's just exciting to be back."

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.

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."

It was of little surprise Monday when Texas coach Mack Brown named redshirt freshman running back Tre' Newton as the starter for Saturday's UTEP game.

Newton gave the second-ranked Longhorns everything they had been looking for in a tailback for the last two seasons during Saturday's win over Texas Tech, picking up difficult yards and moving the chains. Filling in for injured starter Vondrell McGee in the second half, Newton rushed for 88 yards and one touchdown on 20 carries.

His 18 carries for 81 yards in the second half proved pivotal in keeping Texas Tech's explosive offense off the field as the Longhorns escaped with a 34-24 win. It was the inability of the Longhorns backs to pick up critical yards late that paved the way for their upset loss to Tech last season.

The calls into head football coach Cooper Henderson's Artesia (N.M.) High School office have come in a steady stream this week.

They all are congratulatory. And they all relate to Henderson's former quarterback, Landry Jones, who has been thrust into the national spotlight this week after being named the Oklahoma Sooners starting quarterback in place of injured Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford.

The promotion is temporary, but in a state where football isn't exactly a way life, this is huge news nonetheless.

Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops certainly had a different vision for the start of the season than the one he is staring at right now.

In less than a week's span Stoops has lost his two most important offensive players, was upset in the season-opener to BYU and almost certainly will see their lofty No.3 ranking take a tumble when the latest polls are released this week.

Returning to the BCS national championship game all of sudden seems a far-off goal to the Sooners.