How are OU football players enjoying McKade Mettauer's return to O-line? 'It was lovely'
NORMAN — McKade Mettauer was visibly distraught as the medical staff tended to him.
The redshirt senior right guard was still on the ground following a play in the fourth quarter of OU's win over Texas on Oct. 7. An air cast was then placed on his left leg, and his teammates left the sideline to console him before he got carted away.
"I made kind of a scene because in the moment, I thought it was over," Mettauer said on Tuesday.
Fortunately for Mettauer, he only suffered a sprained ankle.
It was a lucky break for the veteran offensive lineman, who's expected to be at full strength when OU faces OSU on the road at 2:30 p.m. Saturday.
“I’m feeling good," Mettauer said. "I’ve just been rehabbing and getting everything tightened back up. Everything feels normal."
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Mettauer didn't have to miss much time following his injury.
OU had a bye week after its win over Texas, which gave Mettauer some extra time to heal up. He then a lone appearance on special teams against UCF the following week.
Mettauer returned the starting lineup against Kansas this past Saturday. And even though the Sooners suffered a 38-33 loss, they averaged 4.9 rushing yards per carry thanks in part to the return of their starting right guard.
"It was lovely," junior running back Tawee Walker said of Mettauer's return after the game. "McKade had a great game as well as all the O-line. They had a great game today."
Mettauer will be leaned on this Saturday when OU faces and OSU defense that ranks fifth in the Big 12 in sacks (18) this season.
The Cowboys are led by Nickolas Martin. The redshirt sophomore linebacker boasts team-highs of 83 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss and five sacks.
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Martin thrives in OSU's three-safety defense, which limits deep passes and allows the linebacker to rush the passer or stop the run. Fortunately for OU, it gained experience playing against three-safety defenses in its wins over Iowa State and TCU.
"It's similar to some teams that we've played," Mettauer said of OSU's defense. "But going back to our base rules and using the same techniques and same rules on other teams that run similar things to them is going to help us a lot."
OU will have its hands full when it faces OSU, which has won its last four games and is plenty motivated to win the final Bedlam for the foreseeable future.
It'll be quite the test for the Sooners. But after going through an injury scare against Texas, Mettauer is just glad to be suiting up.
"(The) staff did a good job of making sure, taking all the precautions, just in case something was wrong," Mettauer said. "I think that’s why the cart and the air cast and stuff came out. But I think we did a good job, just in case something was wrong.
"But thank the Lord that it was what it was, just a sprain. And I’m back now.”
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This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU football OL McKade Mettauer back from injury scare, eyes Bedlam
