Sooners' offensive lineman McKade Mettauer, defensive lineman Ethan Downs and defensive back Billy Bowman speak to the media at Alamo Bowl Media Day on Dec. 26, 2023.
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00:00 -Trying to get an idea of what you guys think about the balance between a bowl
00:04 game as sort of exclamation point on this past season
00:08 or lead into next. Because it seems like anymore, especially
00:12 with roster changes in December, guys going portal in and opting out and stuff like that,
00:16 it becomes even more and more driven toward when you're setting something up for the next season.
00:20 I take it you've got to balance that though with, look, we've got something to accomplish
00:24 here. -Yeah, we totally do. This is still team 129 as we
00:28 say. Even though some players have opted out, we wish the best
00:32 for them. Those are still our teammates. Wherever they go, we want them to plant a seed
00:36 and grow and be the best they can. This team
00:40 that we have in our locker room right now, this base of guys, we have a goal
00:44 to still chase. We're training this as a championship. We've been practicing like it
00:48 and preparing like it. We've got to go chase this thing and go get this victory and stand on that stage
00:52 and have a victory to the season. It's not just
00:56 let's finish it out and move on. It's let's win this championship
01:00 and let's build momentum going into the next one. It's another level
01:04 rather than just a win. -I even wondered about your practice.
01:08 Again, with depth chart changes and roster changes, that felt even more like a spring
01:12 than December. -Yeah, it's giving even younger
01:16 guys, it's telling them to grow up and to learn the game faster.
01:20 Guys that may have played some throughout the season due to injuries or whatever are now getting
01:24 the shot to jump in there at this game and show and improve something
01:28 to themselves and to the team. It is like that spring. It's
01:32 pushing them forward. Hey, let's go. We like that. We like that pressure. -You just
01:36 got a curiosity. Did you know anything about Arizona before you drew them in this game? Do you remember
01:41 watching anything? Billy said he watched them play SC late one night.
01:45 -I personally don't watch a ton of football anyway.
01:49 I didn't hear much about them up until
01:53 they started coming to the bowl game. I've been really impressed by them because
01:57 they've been under the radar name in college football
02:01 and the world of college football. Now hearing about them, wow. They look like a great
02:05 team and they're really close to being in the playoffs, to being
02:09 an undefeated team. They're really close. They're gonna be a great opponent and I'm excited.
02:13 -I know a lot of your fans are kind of dreaming of maybe drawing, if you were gonna come here and play PAC,
02:17 you know who out in LA, SC. I didn't know if that
02:21 would pop a little more.
02:25 -It would have been scary for him. It would have been scary for Riley. I don't know
02:29 what the OU fans would have done. No idea.
02:33 The idea did come across. It was funny. -But you're impressed with Arizona. -Yes.
02:37 I'm impressed. -Thanks Ethan. -Yes sir. -I haven't been asked this but
02:41 defensively you've got, it feels like, everybody coming back
02:45 next year. What does that do, this bowl practice stretch,
02:49 which was so key for development, not just of the younger guys but this defense as a
02:53 whole having 15 practices to kind of launch you into the spring?
02:57 -Another three weeks of development and preparation to get
03:01 a victory at the end of the season. That's what we're shooting for. Treating this like a championship. We've got a big goal
03:05 to attain. It's coming together, the buy in together.
03:09 We wish guys who have opted out or wherever they've gone, we wish them the best.
03:13 They're still part of team 129. The guys we have now, using
03:17 this as like a springboard to jump forward. We're really excited about this game.
03:22 To prove our skills at the end of the season, how much we've grown just in the season.
03:26 This last three weeks of work, putting our best
03:30 product out there. -Got a ton of young guys still in your defensive end room.
03:34 How much are you looking forward to not just your continued growth as a leader but
03:38 seeing those guys be able to continue to fire in? -Absolutely. We got
03:42 two senior DMs that just came from high school that are practicing
03:46 right now. It's 17, 18 years old.
03:50 If that was me, I would not have been emotionally prepared for all of it.
03:54 For the speed of it, for the craziness, and for all the characters that come
03:58 with the locker room. Small town, countryside kid. I would have
04:02 been blown away. Now being in a position of knowing what that felt like as a senior in high school,
04:06 I can use my role to prepare those guys up.
04:10 That's an amazing opportunity. Teach them ball, pull them up to speed, but also to calm them down
04:14 and just show them the simple things and to make it all smaller than it is.
04:18 -Those new guys, the freshmen that just signed,
04:22 any of those guys stick out?
04:26 -All the transfers that have come in or all the new guys that have come in, really talented group.
04:30 They've all been practicing really hard and they're really disciplined coming from their previous
04:34 schools. All of them have stuck out. They've done a great job.
04:38 -Did you catch any of their games? -I caught some.
04:42 I played in the Pac-12. I was watching Pac-12
04:46 after dark and those games are always on. Watched a little bit of them.
04:50 They had a really good game against Utah. I saw that. They beat them pretty good.
04:54 They have a 16 win streak right now.
04:58 They're playing really good football.
05:03 It's going to be a good show for the fans and a good test for us
05:07 and good competition come Thursday. -I wonder if some fans back home
05:11 just gave it pop a little bit more. It was like SC, Washington, Oregon.
05:15 A little more new, a little more traditional.
05:19 For you, with a bit deeper understanding of more teams in that league. -I guess
05:23 from me and your perspective,
05:27 you said there's not as much pop.
05:31 From my perspective, I look at the quality of the team and the quality of the team that we're playing is
05:35 very good. I think people need to understand that
05:39 this Arizona team could very well have been
05:43 undefeated or been a playoff team really.
05:47 Close games against Washington who's undefeated. Could have easily beaten
05:51 Mississippi State and SC. They could easily be in the playoff.
05:55 That's what people need to understand and know that this game should have
05:59 pop because it's two really good teams. -Thanks for the scout. Appreciate it.
06:03 -I apologize if you've already been asked this but in your time in the Pac-12, did you ever
06:07 get to play against Arizona? -Yeah, never beaten Arizona.
06:11 I'm 0-1. 3-10. -It was cancelled, right?
06:15 -It was cancelled and I was the last one standing pretty much on the O-line.
06:19 Everyone else had COVID. We went to the desert and played them and
06:23 lost 3-10. That was a brutal game. -Did that add any extra fuel to the fire?
06:27 -Yeah.
06:31 Extra fuel to the fire. Every game we want to win.
06:35 You're expected to win here. I'm pretty much
06:39 dispatched from my ties in California and
06:44 my rivalries or whatever that I had there. It'd be good to
06:48 beat those guys. Like I said, it's a good team. It's going to be a good game.
06:52 -Back to ask a couple more questions. I wanted to ask about Walter.
06:56 I forgot to ask earlier. Obviously another veteran in the offensive line. How big is
07:00 it to have him also coming back for this one along yourself? -It's really good to have
07:04 another vet who's played a ton of games. He's played, I think, started 46 games.
07:08 I think he said, which is going to be crucial.
07:12 I can only do so much on my side of the line, especially when it goes past the center to the left side.
07:16 I can't really reach them vocally. Having Walter over there is going to be huge for us.
07:20 -You guys both, I'm assuming, pro aspirations and whatnot. Were there any conversations
07:24 you need to make sure you guys are both coming back for this bowl game specifically? -Yeah. I don't think
07:28 there was any doubt in my mind that I was not going to play in this
07:32 bowl game. I don't think Walter either. Walter's never been to a bowl game. I think he was like,
07:36 whatever. He didn't care. Obviously he loves the team too.
07:40 He's never been to a bowl game. This is a big milestone for him.
07:44 I mean, and me too. It was a really good bowl game for us.
07:48 I don't think we had any thoughts or conversations about
07:52 leaving. I think we just expected that we were both going to play. -He's a guy who doesn't necessarily
07:56 hide his emotions. He has it all the way out there for everybody to see. I just noticed that excitement
08:00 for him being able to participate in these bowl practices. -Yeah. He gets very excited.
08:04 He definitely lets everyone know, which is a good quality to have. You want
08:08 people that have passion and emotion. I have that too. It's a good thing
08:12 to have and it permeates to other people on the team.
08:16 -I'm sure you've gotten a chance to watch film. What have you seen
08:20 from this Arizona wide receiver core, kind of their offense in general? -They're very
08:25 explosive. I think they're top five in the country in explosive plays.
08:29 Receiver core wise, they have some pretty dang good receivers.
08:33 Obviously number four, more than 1,000 yards on the
08:37 season. Big body, big target, big deep ball guy.
08:41 They all have great speed. Number two, real quick slot guy.
08:45 They like to get the ball into their hands a lot of different ways.
08:49 Whether that's trick plays, down the field screens, crossing routes,
08:53 all types of stuff. The receiver core
08:57 is pretty deep. I would say probably one of the best we've seen all year.
09:01 -Would you say that their offensive system, kind of the style they run, is that similar
09:05 to any offenses that y'all saw this year in conference or even out of conference or is it kind of different
09:09 than anything you've seen this season? -I would say it's kind of similar. I wouldn't
09:13 attach it to just one team. They have some sprinkles of
09:17 multiple people we've played. They have some sprinkles of some of the things that
09:21 Texas did. Obviously they'll probably throw in some of the stuff that
09:25 we struggle with throughout the season, especially in our two losses to Kansas
09:29 and Oklahoma State. I wouldn't say they're very
09:33 similar to just one specific team, but they definitely have some things here and
09:37 there that match up with teams we've played this season.