Oklahoma’s 2009 season got off to a disastrous start on Saturday as the Sooners were defeated 14-13 by BYU and quarterback Sam Bradford had to leave the game early after spraining his throwing shoulder. The defending Heisman winner could miss up to a month with the injury.

The injury was announced as a sprained AC joint. He was scheduled to undergo an MRI exam on Sunday to determine the severity of the sprain. The junior was in his white football pants and a gray T-shirt as he watched his teammates play the second half.

Bradford put his left hand on his right shoulder, sending athletic trainers rushing to him. He was first checked on a sideline table, then taken into the locker room. The Sooners kicked a field goal on the next play to take a 10-7 halftime lead.

One of the concerns for the Sooners entering the season was that they would have to play with four new starters on the offensive line. Granted, injuries happen in football. But it’s interesting that the offensive line was the biggest worry for OU coming into the new season and now Bradford is out for an extended period of time because he was hurt after a blitzer came in almost unblocked.

This is the worse case scenario for Oklahoma. While the Sooners are still a good team, Bradford is the key to how far they’ll go this season and OU already has one loss. That said, if a team is going to lose a game in college football, it’s better to have it be early in the year. Maybe the Sooners can bounce back, but they need Bradford to come back soon.