Comments on: Oklahoma football: Moving offensive players to defense

By: Texas A&M asking Johnny Football to grow up – USA TODAY

Texas A&M asking Johnny Football to grow up – USA TODAY — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 21:21:07 +0000

[...] A&M OfficialsRant SportsRoundup: Stoops in trouble, big recruitESPN (blog)Dallas Morning News -NewsOK.com (blog) -Houston Chronicleall 34 news [...]

By: Randall

Randall — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 22:05:12 +0000

It would be an amazing upset for OU to beat Notre Dame in South Bend, and Bob Stoops is not in the business of upsetting good teams anymore. If OU plays a team with equal talent, like Notre Dame, it loses. If OU plays a team with better talent, like Texas A&M, it loses. If OU plays a team with inferior talent, but with better coaching, like K-State, it loses that one too.

OU looks like a 3-4 loss team next year, with 4 losses more likely than 3. If the 4th loss takes place in the regular season, then the Sooners can go to a crappy bowl and beat a crappy team, and we can all feel good about how the program is on the right track.

There does seem (at last) to have been some late energy in recruiting, so maybe Bob can get the program turned around by the 2014 season.

By: Mike

Mike — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 20:42:23 +0000

Tulsa and LA-Monroe huh? If that’s the case then 8-9 wins would be a good season and 6-7 will be the norm.

By: Jerry

Jerry — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 14:20:44 +0000

If Mike Stoops is correct and the strength of the defense next year is the linebackers then all the records the defense gave up this year will be topped by the opponents next year. And the problem is he could be correct. As bad as the defensive line was this year they will probably be worse next year. As bad at time as the secondary was this year, next year they look to be worse. The real delusional part is that with undersized linebackers Nelson and Shannon being the best linebackers at OU in years. They just don’t have the size to fill the holes and stop the running backs. Getting to the hole is one thing, doing something once you get there is something else. Basically, they will be two additional safeties playing linebacker. That might work against some of the Big XII offenses but when a team runs you can forget it. The coaching staff needs to look at themselves and the players and see where the program really is and where it is headed. Forget all this we finished in a tie for the Big XII Championship. This team would have finished 8th in the SEC and they are not recruiting as well as Vanderbilt and Ole Miss. But, I don’t expect any changes in the direction of the program. It has been slowly sinking the last several years and will continue to drift downward. They may win several more Big XII Championships, but the Big XII isn’t what is once was. Winning the Big XII in the new format will just get them to the Sugar Bowl but it won’t impress the committee that picks the playoff teams. Next year they could easily lose at least 2 of their non-conference games. They will lose on the road to ND and could lose to Tulsa or Louisiana-Monroe. I think OU is either headed for continual 8-9 win seasons with an occasional 10 wins in a good year. The only thing that will change that is a really disaster of a stretch of 6-7 win seasons that finally force change. This administration and staff is content with the current level of a program so fans should settle in for many more seasons like the last two.