GAME NOTES: A pair of teams hoping to bounce back from tough losses meet in Lawrence on Saturday afternoon, as the 25th-ranked Oklahoma Sooners tangle with the 24th-ranked Kansas Jayhawks in a Big 12 Conference showdown.

Bob Stoops' Oklahoma club is a disappointing 3-3 on the year, and is fresh off a gut-wrenching 16-13 loss to bitter rival Texas. The Sooners have actually dropped two of their last three games, and have had to go into battle several times this year without Heisman-winning QB Sam Bradford (shoulder injury). Bradford was originally hurt in OU's season-opening setback to BYU, but returned to action in a 33-7 rout of Baylor in the conference lidlifter. He re-injured the same shoulder in last week's loss to the Longhorns, and Landry Jones is expected to get the start this week in Bradford's absence.

Talk about being snake-bitten. Not only have they had to play the majority of the season without their All-American QB, but the Sooners' three losses have been by a combined five points and have come against nationally-ranked foes on either neutral fields or on the road.

Stoops doesn't make excuses for his team's mediocre record though, "It's a different year. We haven't had a lot of these. There's no doubt that we've had a lot to overcome, but it doesn't matter; we've got a season to play."

As for Kansas, it had run off five straight wins to start the 2009 campaign, but coach Mark Mangino's squad suffered its first setback last week in a 34-30 loss at Colorado. The defeat was particularly alarming when you consider that the Buffaloes were just 1-4 entering the clash.

The Jayhawks are 4-0 at home so they will obviously be playing with an abundance of confidence this weekend.

Oklahoma owns a commanding 67-27-6 lead in the all-time series with Kansas, and the Sooners have won the last five meetings. OU is 30-14-3 in Lawrence, and this is the club's first visit to the Jayhawks' home field since 2001, that game resulting in a 38-10 Sooner victory.

Bradford is one of the top signal-callers in the nation and the reigning Heisman Trophy winner has 14 300-yard passing games to his credit. And while he being out of the lineup hurts, Jones is a reliable performer who has plenty of big-play ability as evidenced by the school-record six TD passes he threw in Oklahoma's 45-0 shellacking of Tulsa on September 19th. On the season, Jones is completing almost 60 percent of his passes for 1,111 yards with 11 TDs and five INTs.

Jones won't have to do it alone against the Jayhawks, however, as the Sooners have plenty of talented players ready to step up and assist in getting the team what would be a huge win. Ryan Broyles and Brandon Caleb have combined for 49 catches, 761 yards and 10 TDs -- Broyles credited with eight scores himself.

The OU run game accounts for 153.8 ypg, and both Demarco Murray and Chris Brown average better than four yards per carry and have scored three TDs each. Overall, Oklahoma averages 31.3 ppg behind 432.7 total ypg.

Last week's matchup with Texas was one of the uglier in the history of the storied rivalry, with the two teams combining for eight turnovers, 21 penalties and scoring just one TD apiece. Jones finished the day 24-of-43 for 250 yards with a TD and two INTs. The Texas defense stood its ground throughout, holding the Sooners to minus-16 yards rushing. Murray led all pass catchers in the game with eight grabs and 116 receiving yards.

Jones talked about replacing Bradford and what it was like facing a team as good as Texas. "Obviously when Sam [Bradford] first went down I felt bad for him I could tell he was hurt again, but after that I put it in the back of my head, and I was ready to step in there and not lose any of our rhythm. I just wanted to come in like I was a starter and take our team to a victory today. We just didn't get it done."

The Oklahoma defense was also on top of its game last week against Texas, holding star QB Colt McCoy to 127 yards with a TD and an INT on a lackluster 21-of-39 passing effort. The Longhorns produced 142 yards on the ground. Jeremy Beal led the Sooners with 12 tackles, 11 of which were solo efforts, while Auston English notched a pair of sacks, and he and Gerald McCoy combined for five of the team's nine TFLs.

On the season, Oklahoma is permitting just 9.7 points and 258.2 total yards per contest. Opponents have found it extremely difficult to move the ball on the ground, doing so for just 68.3 ypg. The Sooners have yet to allow a rushing score this year. Travis Reynolds is the team's leading tackler through the first six games with 51 stops, and Beal has 6.5 of the team's 22 sacks. Brian Jackson has four INTs.

The Kansas offense is lighting up the scoreboard to the tune of 38.8 ppg, doing so on the strength of more than 503 total ypg. QB Todd Reesing is one of the top gunslingers in the nation and the 5-11, 200-pounder is completing a highly efficient 67.1 percent of his passes for 330 ypg with 15 TDs against only four INTs. He is fortunate to have two of the best receivers in the country at his disposal, as Kerry Meier paces the team with 54 grabs for 580 yards and six scores, and Dezmon Briscoe leads the nation with 134.2 receiving ypg and he has four TD catches.

The KU ground attack features a pair of skilled guys in Toben Opurum and Jake Sharp, and the two have combined for 698 yards and 11 TDs -- eight belonging to the 6-2, 235-pound Opurum.

Knowing his team is in for a serious battle this week, Reesing had high praise for the Oklahoma defense, "I think it is (the best defense). I think from top to bottom on their defensive personnel size-wise, athleticism and the way they play, I think we've got the biggest challenge ahead of us."

With no run game (minus-eight yards) to speak of last week against Colorado, Reesing had to do it all himself and threw for 401 yards and two TDs, one each going to Briscoe and Meier. Both receivers went over 100 yards in the game, but the Jayhawks converted just 5-of-17 third down attempts and Reesing was sacked five times in what wound up being the team's first loss of the season.

Colorado scored 24 points in the second quarter, giving the Buffaloes a head of steam that would carry them to the upset victory. The Jayhawks allowed 322 yards of total offense and recorded three sacks while coming away with three takeaways. Drew Dudley was a man possessed for KU, logging a career-high 17 tackles, while Darrell Stuckey added a dozen stops and an INT.

While obviously disappointed in the outcome, coach Mangino pointed out the positives from the CU game, "Once again, I felt like Todd Reesing played really well, and he had a lot of help from his receivers. We did not run the ball well, which is something that we need to get back to doing. On the defensive side of the ball, Darrell Stuckey played a strong game. Also, Drew Dudley played extremely well. He is really settling in there at linebacker and we like the way he is progressing."

Dudley and Stuckey rank one-two on the team's tackles list for the season, coming in with 53 and 50 stops, respectively. Jake Lapstad has 5.5 of the team's 19 sacks and Dudley has taken down the opposing QB three times. Kansas is giving up 20.7 points and 346.2 total yards per game. The team's effort against the run has been solid in that foes are averaging just 100.5 ypg on the ground. Unfortunately, defending the pass has proven more challenging with opponents coming up with 245.7 ypg through the air.

Few would have thought Oklahoma would be .500 after six games, but that's where Stoops' troops are at the moment. If Kansas can somehow establish the run, Reesing should be able to outduel Jones and lead the Jayhawks to a big win over a quality opponent. If he is left to do it alone, however, the Sooners could pull out a tough road win. The home team wins this one, but it will be close from start to finish.