Emails on Stoops & OSU schedule
Another week of emails, and lots of discussion about Bob Stoops. And other topics.
Colleen says too much Bob Stoops and not enough Olympics. “I am an OU graduate and an OU football season ticket holder for many years but even I say ‘enough already!’ I think you have devoted way too many pages in the last two weeks to OU football stories with every detail of coaches’ lives. I am expressing my disagreement with the choices of stories when I would have appreciated more stories about the Olympic sports and athletes. There has been a lot of TV coverage of the Olympics but some of the minor sports have not been featured. Such sports as shooting, archery, fencing, wrestling, synchronized swimming etc. are sports in which many Oklahomans are participants in amateur arenas. Please cover a wider range of sports and do not concentrate so acutely on college football and especially OU football.
Well, I appreciate all suggestions, but if we cut back on OU football to make room for archery and fencing, we’ll soon be cutting back on things like employees.
Jim, an OSU fan, did not appreciate the Stoops series. “This endless love affair with a favorite son from a dying rust belt city that seems to go on forever in the paper confuses me on many levels. Purists like myself, and if Bob were given truth serum, he would agree with me I’m sure, that the one national championship he is credited with leaves a sour taste in his mouth since 66 percent of the starting 22 plus two kickers, were recruited by Boo (Blake). Eddie Sutton was so quick to point out, many, many times, that his early success was in great part the result of the great talent that was left by Leonard (Hamilton). Why is Bob Stoops, after a decade of not winning a national title on his own, so loved and revered? Why the weeklong adoration? It’s like Obama in the press. In the quest of coaching to the standards of UO football (national titles), he pales in comparison to legends like Bud and Barry, yet he seems to be equally if not more revered by the Kool-aid masses. It amazes me. Think about it. After his first 10 years Mike Gundy will have just as many national titles while coaching his recruited players as Bob will have. Mike won’t play for any like Bob has, but he’ll have just as many.”
Jim actually had a lot of other creative lines, but I’ve got to condense this post somewhere. All I’ll say in response is that anyone who thinks John Blake deserves partial credit for OU’s national title would say that FDR should share his presidential legacy with Herbert Hoover, because without the Great Depression, where would Roosevelt have been?
OSU fans also wrote about my take on the Cowboys’ home schedule, which lacks meat past Bedlam. Josh, a self-proclaimed OSU psycho, is one of my favorite readers. Always makes a good point, even when he wants to disagree. “I read your blog about the difficulty of OSU selling tickets because of a weak schedule. I am gonna have to go ahead and disagree with you there for one simple reason - timing. The OSU Big 12 home schedule this season is probably the weakest it will be in the four-year rotation. It might be overkill to go the Buffs route and schedule ourselves into mediocrity because of our Big 12 rotation. In 2009 we’ll host Georgia, Texas, Colorado, Missouri and, the way it looks right now, Tech. N.C. State, Washington State, Air Force, Arizona and Clemson all appear on future non-conference slates for the Pokes. If the teams remain at a similar strength, the next time this schedule rolls around in 2012, it should be much more enticing with a better non-conference.”
Good points - and that was my point. Next year’s OSU home schedule looks very good. But that doesn’t help sell tickets in 2008 and it won’t help sell tickets in 2012 when Iowa State and Baylor are back in Stillwater with assorted non-conference rumdums.
G.G. also chimed in on the OSU schedule, saying athletic director Mike Holder “has already sold more season tickets then last year. He is already showing his decision was a success. As the team continues to win, the stadium will fill. I think you need to give it time. In regards to OU having a better home schedule??? Wow, I don’t see it…”
G.G. also makes some good points. But no one really wants to address my main theme, which was that OSU might have to upgrade its non-conference to entice more fans. That’s precisely what Colorado has done. OSU’s non-conference schedules isn’t bad. But it’s not attractive. Houston and Troy are decent teams, but not decent draws. I know everyone in college east of USC is dumbing down their schedule, but the price is slow ticket sales. As for OU’s home schedule, it’s clearly better. Iowa State is OSU’s third-best draw; the Cyclones clearly are a bigger name than Houston or Troy. Kansas, which won the Orange Bowl eight months ago, is OU’s third-best draw.
Bob wants to talk Big 12 championship game, 2007. “I do not like Chase Daniel. He is a big crybaby that seems to blame everyone but himself. Is there any chance that we could have the championship game in San Antonio every year? What a great place to have a game.”
I don’t know what it has to do with anything, but Daniel had lunch with Warren Buffet the other day. And no, no chance of San Antonio hosting every year. Jerry Jones and the Big 12 North schools will have something to say about that.
There was some Olympic talk. Leonard wants me to consider Edwin Moses for my list of the 10 greatest Olympians. “He won gold in 1976, would have won another in ‘80 (had Carter not discovered the Commies at the Khyber Pass) and took his last gold in ‘84. Between 1977 and 1987, Moses won 107 consecutive finals, 127 consecutive races and set the world record in the event four times. Moreover, he gave back to the sport. In 1988, he designed and created amateur sport’s first random out-of-competition drug testing program.”
Edwin Moses is a total stud, but his achievement was defined by all those victories between Olympics. Which doesn’t make him an epic Olympian.
Craig took exception to my supporting Usain Bolt’s antics in the 100 meters. “You guys think it is charming Bolt was goofing off? He is a showboat. Phelps won one of his golds because he kept trying and even did a half stroke while his competitor was gliding the last few feet. It won the Gold for Phelps and won over my respect. That is the Olympic spirit. It would have been funny as hell if someone had blew past Bolt as he was showing off.”
If someone had blown past Bolt as he was showing off, they would have been running 74 mph. I say anyone celebrating victory - and still setting a world record - deserves our admiration. Not our condemnation.
Jeff is upset with CBS’ Dan Dierdorf “for referring to Adrian Peterson as AP. Dierdorf surely knows (at least he should know) that Peterson is called AD, short for All Day. Dierdorf had a great opportunity Saturday evening to tell the story of Peterson’s father giving him the nickname as a child because he could run ‘all day.’ CBS and their color announcer blew it.”
Well, I can’t disagree. Dierdorf should have known better. But as nicknames go, I never have liked AD. All Day Peterson sounds a lot better. Sort of like Too Tall Jones. TT Jones would have sounded silly.
Craig wrote about my Tony Casillas column. “I wanted to pass along an incident involving Tony Casillas from back in about 1991. I had an employee who, at 48 years of age, came down with leukemia. Gary was going on permanent disability. He was also a gung ho ex-marine, and one of my salespeople. He wanted to go out and celebrate one last time at a local nightspot in Oklahoma City. It was the old Cajuns Wharf and it had just changed into a country music/ dance place, if I recall. I noticed Tony Casillas there and struck up casual conversation. While we were talking, Tony asked me if I was there alone, because he was there alone. I replied, I was out for one last fling with a guy who was dying with leukemia. To my surprise, Tony said he wanted to meet Gary and shake his hand for serving his country as a Marine. Gary was only about 5-9, 170 pounds, but he had these huge vise grip hands. Gary used to shake hands with people and make them cringe. Tony and I walked over to Gary and I introduced the two. I will never forget how gracious Tony was that night to Gary.”
I love these kinds of stories. Keep them coming.
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Comments
Barry, I have to ask: if KU is OU’s third biggest home game, what’s the first and second? I would have to guess Tech is one of those, but who else? Cinncy? TCU? NU? I would also have to say Houston is a bigger name right now that ISU. One of the hotter non-BCS teams, or a bottom-dwelling BCS school? Would you pick Duke or Utah as the better draw for a game?
I think we’re putting too much emphasis on this years OSU home schedule. Houston and Troy are both battling for conference crowns and Georgia, for some reason, skipped a year. But think about it on these terms. This is suppose to be a step up from last year, but what about next year? Next year the Cowboys host Georgia, Texas, Texas Tech, and Mizzou as well as what should be a surging Colorado team. AND they could be the class of the Big 12 with a number of teams losing considerable talent. They’re more talented than Texas at quite a few skill positions this year and Tech loses Harrell next year as well as Mizzou losing Daniel. OU’s losing their entire offensive line and we can’t predict how they’ll do until we see how the newbees play. However, OSU will have Bryant, Johnson, Robinson, and Hunter on offense and an experienced defense. Next year, it wouldn’t be completely out of the question to have a OSU-Colorado Big 12 Title game.
I want to mention that I didn’t read the thing on OSU’s schedule next season before I said that…haha…I guess I wasn’t the only one thinkging that…but I was the only one to mention that OSU might just be the class of the Big 12 next season
Also I think the response you made, Berry, to the comment that Blake should get credit for Stoops national title. In the same sense, should Miles get blamed for Gundy squandering all the talent that Miles left behind in Gundy’s first year? Also Switzer won the National Title in his second year on the job. Hmm…
Barry, we are all willing to wait for more meat until we can consistently, convincingly win our non-confrence schedule (and our fair share of top teir big 12 south games) then we will be hungry for beefier non-confrence competition. By the way nice sucking up to medium game bob and the rest of the ou gooners recently.