Open Post | Wednesday, November 14th By: TFB Posted on: November 14, 2018

Chris Steele & Jordan Battle | Sourced Updates
– Super K

First let me note again, in case you missed it in one of my previous updates, I’m told the Sooners are in a position to take two defensive backs. Their decision to do that will obviously depend on who those two are.

***I know there was some disappointment around Chris Steele not making it in for the Bedlam game. I’ve asked around and while I myself had started to feel a bit skeptical, when I asked a source close to Chris if OU is still in it, I was told, “hell yeah. He will visit but it may not be till after the season. He’s trying to reset right now and see how things played out. But hell yea, he’s still interested (in OU).”

Right now two of three schools Steele is interested – OU and USC – have some things that still need to be ironed out. Florida’s coaching staff seems fine. But USC is in disarray and OU fired their defensive coordinator. Now, Chris has told me that the dismissal of Mike Stoops won’t affect him but you still have to imagine that he wants to see how things play out.

***As far as Battle goes, I spoke with a source close to him as well regarding his Alabama trip. Source didn’t sugar coat it. Said the Alabama visit went really well. Battle loved his OU visit. Source said Alabama definitely matched the visit.

However, source said it’s still Alabama, Ohio State and OU in the mix. What’s keeping OU in the mix is pretty simple. The family believes Battle can start at OU as a freshman. Obviously, there is the added bonus of being able to play with his best friend (Jaden Davis) but I gather that the opportunity to play right away and Lincoln Riley are the two primary draws. And, in my opinion, Battle probably could play right away at OU.

I’ve reached out to Battle to get a decision timeline from him.

 

 

Jacoby Jones Decommits From Sooners
– Charlie S

In what is not a complete surprise, JUCO DE Jacoby Jones has decommitted from Oklahoma.

As we told you earlier, Jones is visiting Texas this weekend.

Jones was also a Mike Stoops recruit and while Lincoln and the rest of the staff surely did all they could to keep him around, he has decided to open up his recruitment.

The Sooners will continue to look for defensive line help with David Ugwoegbu and Marcus Stripling being the top targets at this time.

 

 

Marcus Stripling | Sourced Quick-Hitter
– Super K

So, I know there was some not so good news earlier with Jacoby Jones decommitting but I have some potentially good news for you.

First, I should say that Jacoby and Stripling are pretty similar in terms of their build.

Source said Stripling is actually down to OU and LSU. This came as a surprise to me since Stripling he still plans on taking official visits to Texas A&M and Alabama. I’m waiting to hear back on an LSU visit date. But was told that the Sooners currently lead.

I will admit that my Bama sources tell me Stripling has a few guys in front of him. And, it sounds like Texas A&M still likes Stripling but they remain unsure about their numbers.

 

 

Tramonda Moore Dismissed
– Ryan Lewis

Tramonda Moore has been dismissed from the team per a release.

We mentioned a few weeks back that Moore and the Sooners may be separating sooner rather than later and it has now become official.

The lineman was in his first season at OU after a difficult path to get there. Hopefully, he can put his life on a good path.

 

 

JUCO Weapons | Recruiting | Hollywood Brown 2.0 & Rhamondre Stevenson
– Super K

A couple of JUCO names to watch. One you already know.

***As I mentioned last week, my contacts in California have all raved about Sooners recent JUCO RB offer, Rhamondre Stevenson. My latest conversation with someone out in California was with a coach over at College of the Canyons which is where Hollywood Brown played (more on that below).

I was asking coach about one of his players and we starting talking about JUCO RBS in California. He said, “There are probably three guys in California that can play at that level (P5) and Rhamondre is the best of them. The thing that strikes me about him is just how big he is and he has speed”.

Coach faced Stevenson and that division is the toughest JUCO division. He said he thinks Rhamondre can be very successful at the P5 level.

I feel like this could end up being a good get for OU for a number of reasons if they end up landing Stevenson.

I did exchange a few texts with Rhamondre who said about a visit to OU, “I will be visiting some time next month. No set date but definitely getting up there!”

***Jalen Saunders, Sterling Shepherd, Ryan Broyles, Dede Westbrook, Hollywood Brown are all smaller receivers that the Sooners have had tremendous success with. Each year their little receivers seem to be get faster.

I think most expect Brown to head off to the NFL after this season. But it appears there is another Hollywood Brown who happens to be at the same school where Brown came from, College of the Canyons.

Image result for another babka gif

Hollywood is fast. I mean, fast fast. Brandon Pierce over at College of the Canyons is as fast – maybe faster.

Image result for man please gif

No, seriously. Don’t believe me? Cut on this film and tell me it doesn’t make your eyes pop out of your head or giggle like a school girl. This young man is flying.

Now, take note that at the beginning of the film it says he runs a 4.31 40. That’s his timed speed at College of the Canyons. Do you know what Hollywood Brown’s timed speed was at the same college a couple years ago?

4.32

Here’s what Pierce’s coach at College of the Canyons had to say about Pierce and Hollywood, both of which he coached.

“If you line them (Pierce and Brown) up side by side and had them race, I don’t know who would win. Brandon is that fast”. He went on to say, “They both have very similar games but Brandon will lull you to sleep by taking a half step and then he’ll blow by you whereas Marquise has his foot on the gas from go. But they are very similar in that their game is about an exceptional level of speed”.

I call this kind of speed, “Nonnegotiable speed”. There is no amount of technique or situational awareness that can save a college level cornerback who doesn’t have at least really good speed himself.

Coach spoke highly of Brandon in terms of his character. He also added that Brandon has good hands but immediately reverted back to the speed, “I tell you college coaches, you don’t have anyone in your program with *this* kind of speed”.

Given their previous relationship, coach tells me that OU has been in touch and says they sound very interested. He said they appear to be waiting to receive Pierce’s transcripts.

Pierce was actually a bounce back from San Jose State. He was a qualifier out of high school. I spoke with Pierce and he gave me some information about his background and how he ended up at College of the Canyons.

“I was a bounce back out of San Jose State. I went there out of high school and I was set to start my freshman year but I ended up getting injured before the season (broken rib). I ended up redshirting that year and when the staff got let go I went to JUCO”.

Pierce says right when Hollywood left to head to OU, Pierce came in and took the vacated spot. Pierce is a May graduate who will have two years to play two. If Pierce has the kind of success that Hollywood and Westbrook had then OU wouldn’t be able to keep him for more than two anyway.

Right now Pierce holds offers from Arkansas State, Toledo and Bowling Green. But, I think we all know by now that at certain positions, wide receiver included, Riley and company don’t follow anyone else’s evaluations. They do their own. And while the rest of the country sits there and questions these kinds of players’ size, OU just used one of them to score another touchdown.

Image result for winning gif

 

 

Quick Hitters | Kundarrius Taylor Re-Offered & Official Visitor For Kansas
– Charlie S

Couple quick notes…

– The Sooners have re-offered 2018 Wide Receiver signee Kundarrius Taylor who will be classified as a 2020 recruit. He will be a 3 for 2 recruit.

Touched base with Taylor and he confirmed that Coach Dennis Simmons re-extended the Oklahoma offer earlier this evening.

I for one did not think this would OU would be offering him, especially this early, however, the Sooner staff loves the kid’s abilities and if he does what he needs to do in the classroom, he could be a tremendous asset for them on the field in the future.

I will be speaking with Kundarrius later this week and will get a feel for where things stand between him and OU.

 

– The Sooners will host 2019 Iowa City C.C. (JUCO) offensive lineman Myron Cunningham for an official visit this weekend.

He’s 6’5″ and close to 300 lbs and while he is listed as a tackle, he told me that he has discussed a potential move inside based on his versatility should the school he chooses see him as a better fit there.

If you recall, we brought him to your attention in the morning back in October and he was offered later that same day…

In the wake of the Tramonda Moore news, I would assume that there will be some additional importance placed on this recruitment but we will see what we can dig up over the next few days on the OU side.

 

 

Negative Recruiting | How Does Riley Address It?
– Charlie S

“Lincoln Riley will be in the NFL next year”

…that has become a common theme on social media as well as on the recruiting trail of late.

You all see it every day on social media and as we discussed last week, it is taking place behind the scenes in the recruiting world.

Desperate staff’s taking their shots at flipping OU commits and securing uncommitted common targets. I almost cannot blame them for taking that angle while they are able too because once spring rolls around and Lincoln is still in Norman, they lose that line of attack.

So with a bunch of recruits and commits in town this weekend I asked a handful of them how exactly did Coach Riley address those rumors with them. Think you will be pleased with the responses.

 

OU Commit: “I didn’t really speak to him about that. When we talked, it never really came up. I believe him when he says he is not going to the league”

OU Commit: “He’s done nothing but change my life and he took an opportunity on me. He believes in me. So no matter what they say, it won’t change anything to me. I trust in him and I believe in him.”

OU Commit: “I get hella coaches in my DM’s saying that type of (stuff). He has personally told me ‘I have no aspirations of going to the NFL. Most coaches in the NFL would take my spot in a heartbeat, so be ready to win natty’s’. That is word for word what he told me and my family.”

OU Recruit: “Coach Riley tells it like it is. He said he (doesn’t) want to coach in the NFL, he’s never lied to me and never sold me or my family anything but the truth.

OU Commit: “We didn’t really talk about it at all. It’s not an issue”

OU Commit: “He hasn’t said anything to me about the rumors, there’s no need. I have watched the interviews of him saying he’s going to stay at OU. My trust in him is the big reason I am such a solid commit. I’m not going anywhere. Other schools…they’ve tried, but I don’t tolerate disrespect on my school”

 

Of course none of this is concrete evidence that Lincoln Riley will not talk to NFL teams about prospective openings (again as I have said in the past, in my opinion, he would be foolish NOT to have those discussions) however it should comfort you that not only did he issue that very public denial of interest immediately after the Browns job came open, but he is also telling commits and their families that he has no aspirations to go to the league at this point.

It is a subject he could avoid altogether or speak in much less definitive terms about when questioned by recruits and their families. He would be burning a ton of trust, which would come back to haunt him down the line if he was out there telling these kids and their families he is not going anywhere and then bolts. Lincoln ain’t that guy in my opinion.

Again, I already can see the responses to this post “He has to say that”, “Why would he tell them differently”, “Money changes everything”…I get it. But what Lincoln is telling them is accurate. NFL coaches would change places with him in a minute in many cases as he has a job where he can stay forever as long as he wins 9-12 games a year. It is a job where he makes a ton of money, loves the community he lives in with a young family, will have the support and control of the entire program over time, and as he said, he enjoys coaching athletes in this age range.

Now…as to how to address the negative recruiting about the defensive issues and lack of defensive coordinator…I’ll leave that up to you all as to how to address that…

 

 

Final Exam | Bedlam
– The Professor

Bedlam has come and gone. Oklahoma squeaked by with a win in a game they probably shouldn’t have won. But, the Sooners had the most points when time expired, and the most hilarious rivalry in sports got a little more hilarious.

Usually, I break down the offense, the defense, and the special teams separately. In this lesson, I want to do something a little different. I’ve heard a lot about the defense since Saturday. I’ve heard about how the offense is great, but you need great defense to win championships. It isn’t a great offense that wins championships and it isn’t a great defense that wins championships. It’s the size of the margin between offensive performance and defensive performance that wins championships.

The Margin

As far as margins go, Bedlam was razor thin for the Sooners. Let’s explore some of these margins.

One straightforward way to measure the difference between the offensive and defensive performance is using measures like the difference between points scored and points allowed or the difference between yards gained and yards allowed.

Oklahoma’s margin between points scored per game and points allowed per game (P/G Margin) is 19.2. That’s good for just 13th in FBS football. However, here is how the Sooners’ P/G Margin compares to the rest of the Top 6 CFP teams.

Oklahoma is only above Notre Dame, probably one of the most overachieving teams in football. The Sooners are also significantly behind the top two teams in the country. It should be no surprise that the two teams considered by nearly everyone to be the two best teams in football have the largest margins here. On Saturday, this margin was one point. The week before it was five. The first two teams with an offensive pulse that Oklahoma has played since letting Stoops go have shrunk this season margin to nearly nothing.

Another margin you can look at is the margin between yards gained and yards allowed per play (Y/Play Margin). Oklahoma looks good in this light. The Sooners rank number two in the country at 3.31 Y/Play Margin. Again, here is how Oklahoma compares to the rest of the Top 6 CFP teams.

As you can see, Clemson, Oklahoma, and Alabama are a level above the rest in this regard. This margin is more of an efficiency number. Oklahoma’s huge offensive yards per play number this season is boosting this number a bit. Against Oklahoma State, however, that margin was just 1.68. Against Texas Tech it was 1.99. Again, you see the shrinking of the margin Oklahoma has enjoyed so far this season.

Consider this scenario. Team A wins their game 28-7. Team B wins their game 63-42. Without knowing anything else about these games, which team had a more dominant and decisive win? Both point margins were 21 points, but I would imagine a large majority of you said Team A had a more decisive win. There is something about these games that a straight point margin just doesn’t capture.

In the first game, Team A scored 80.0% of the total points scored. In the second game, Team B scored just 60.0% of the total points scored. A team’s total points scored as a percentage of the total points scored can be a way to show not only the margin between offense and defense, but it can also show the importance of that margin. Oklahoma ranks 18th in football in this measure at 62.2%. Here’s how Oklahoma compares to the rest of the Top 6 in this stat.

Oklahoma is even behind Notre Dame in this margin. Alabama and Clemson have scored nearly 80% of the total points in their games. That is far, far ahead of Oklahoma. The Sooners not only have a have a low margin in this respect, they seem to be getting worse. Below is a game-by-game look at this.

Look at the last four games. Against TCU and KSU, Oklahoma had a decent percentage, but they are two of the worst offenses in the country. You can also see the season average steadily dropping throughout the season.

Oklahoma is 9-1, because the offense is historic and the defense has done just enough keep up. However, that margin seems to be shrinking and it might be just a matter of time before the defense can no longer keep up.

That’s it for this lesson, hopefully you enjoyed this little change of pace. Check back later in the week for the Kansas pregame.

 

 

The Professor, also known on Twitter as Blinkin Riley (Steven Smith) will be dropping some knowledge on us throughout the season with a pre-game lesson and a post-game lesson each week! We encourage you to follow his Twitter account @blinkinriley for additional mini-lessons…