NORMAN, Okla. -- When the typed, two-page letter arrived at the Oklahoma football offices a few weeks ago, Nate Hybl opened it and found a kindred spirit.

Steve Davis wrote Hybl after an innocuous line in a local newspaper compared the OU quarterbacks. Writing the letter brought back Davis' memories of boos cascading down from Owen Field's bleachers and vile hate mail he's kept for 30 years.

The letter moved Hybl. He found it ridiculous that Davis, who went 32-1-1 as a starter from 1973-75 and won two national championships, could get booed off his home field. It also confirmed what Hybl already knew. The task of quarterbacking the Sooners is as unforgiving as it is timeless.

"I related to Nate in detail what my experience was," says Davis, now a business owner in Tulsa. "I went into my 29th game undefeated, and during my senior year, the team still got booed. Very few people know what it's like to be the quarterback at Oklahoma."

	Nate Hybl has thrown for 1,313 yards and 9 TDs this season.

Hybl, who has heard his share of boos and cat calls, knows all too well. But as he leads No. 2 OU to its matchup with No. 12 Colorado on Saturday (ABC, 3:30 p.m. ET), he brings with him a 15-1 record as a starter and a reputation as a winner. Just like Davis.

Since opening day starter Jason White tore his ACL in the season's second game, Hybl's kept the Sooners in contention for their second national title in three years.

"I've always respected the fans, they're one of the reasons that Saturdays are exciting," says Hybl, a senior transfer from Georgia. "But I've never played for the fans, I'm playing for the guys in this locker room with me."

Nate Hybl's place as a sacrificial chestnut roasting over the flames of public opinion stems from OU's regular season ending loss to rival Oklahoma State last November. Despite a separated shoulder, zero team rushing yards and an offensive line that yielded seven sacks, Hybl's three interceptions cast him as the offseason scapegoat.

Being a Georgia boy in Oklahoma, Hybl says, didn't help either, as his drawl sticks out in these parts like a pecan shack on the Creek Turnpike.

But since Hybl doesn't read newspapers, stays off the Internet and never listens to talk radio, he barely heard any of it. Instead, it trickled back to him with friends saying things like, "Dude, I wouldn't want to be in your shoes."

The critics made little personal contact, however. Instead, folks he encountered in person offered him support.

This summer, Hybl hawked cars at a local Chevy dealership. One customer demanded Hybl autograph the sun visor of a $50,000 SUV with permanent marker: "Boomer Sooner, Nate Hybl No. 8."

There's a dozen of those stories for every one like the old woman that came in and told him, "I would sit there on Saturdays and yell at you on TV."

While the occasional remark like that stung Hybl, he worried more about the negativity resonating amidst his peers.

"It was a phenomenon observed by other people," says Hybl. "Really, the most hurtful stuff was just knowing that people like my girlfriend and roommate were having to shield me from stuff."

	“	I related to Nate in detail what my experience was. I went into my 29th game undefeated, and during my senior year, the team still got booed. Very few people know what it's like to be the quarterback at Oklahoma. ”
		— Former OU QB Steve Davis, who won two national titles

The letters of apology have trickled into the OU football offices this fall. Hybl's 134.31 quarterback rating may be middle-of-the-pack in the Big 12, but his efficiency has won ballgames.

His only black mark comes from throwing four interceptions against Texas, but overlooked are performances like two weeks ago against Iowa State. Hybl not only outplayed then-Heisman candidate Seneca Wallace, but he also didn't turn the ball over on a wet, windy day.

But even Sooner success doesn't leave Hybl unscathed. Following Oklahoma's win over Texas, Hybl's roommate, TE Trent Smith, was on the cover of of Sports Illustrated and Hybl picked up one of the copies of the magazine scattered around the apartment. He flipped through to check out the other pictures and saw one of himself. His eyes then jumped to the right to a passage in bold letters: "Oklahoma's fortunes are in the hands of a shaky quarterback."

"Now that's motivation right there," says Hybl, admitting he made a mistake by even picking up the magazine. "That's exactly why I don't read some of the BS."

What makes Hybl's season more remarkable is that no one in Norman gave him a prayer to even play this season, save for eating some reps against Tulsa and UTEP.

Despite White coming off an ACL tear and missing spring ball, Hybl described the attitude around Norman this summer as, "Nate couldn't get the job done, now it's Jason's turn."

When asked if he felt he got a fair shot from the coaching staff at winning the starting job, Hybl says: "It's kind of a shady deal. You'd be better off asking other people."

With Hybl the only healthy non-freshman quarterback on the OU roster, the coaches have done nothing but pepper him with hosannas since he took over for White. After White limped off the field, Hybl immediately threw a 51-yard touchdown pass to Mark Clayton and led the Sooners to a come-from-behind win over Alabama.

Since then, aside from the four-pick hiccup against Texas -- his only four in 169 attempts this season -- the Sooners have won because of Hybl, not despite him.

Considering OU's No. 2-ranked defense (252.29 ypg) and its opportunistic special teams, OU coach Bob Stoops knows that Hybl needs to be more a cog than a catalyst.

"Is he going to be great every game?" says Stoops. "No. But that's all right. He doesn't need to be. The team needs to be great."

Unbeknownst to Hybl and Davis, Stoops got a copy of Davis' letter via OU radio analyst Merv Johnson.

The letter touched Stoops so much he buzzed Davis' cell phone during a bye-week to thank him. Davis and Stoops had never spoken, so the call surprised him. Stoops' message, however, didn't.

"You clearly understand," Stoops told Davis, "what it's like to be a quarterback at OU."

Stoops arranged for Davis and Hybl to meet the next week. Davis' son plays baseball for Missouri, and he was headed to Columbia to visit him and see OU's game there on Oct. 5th.

Between game planning meetings at the team hotel, Davis and Hybl spoke briefly.

It was a formality, really, as the letter had already passed along the message. Nevertheless, Hybl referred to his quarterback predecessor as "Mr. Davis" the entire conversation and relished the few minutes.

"It can be hard to understand being the quarterback here unless you've gone through it," says Hybl. "I thought it was unbelievably appropriate."

And if Hybl keeps playing consistent and Oklahoma keeps winning football games, the parallel stories of two criticized Sooners will come to a fitting ending.

Davis and Hybl will be able to share more than horror stories -- they'll be able to compare national championship rings.

Pete Thamel is a frequent contributor to ESPN.com and ESPN Magazine. His e-mail is vpthamel@yahoo.com.