The Football Brainiacs

A friendly public service announcement: You know you have way too much time on your hands if you find yourself reviewing the discrepancies in Sooner Sports’ two online football rosters for height and/or weight changes.

That’s what I’ve been doing for the last half hour or so.

Here’s what I found.

But, first, a quick disclaimer. For whatever reasons, there are two different rosters available online at Sooner Sports. There is a web version (here) and a PDF version (here). Because — as we’ve previously established — I have way too much time on my hands, I know that the measurements listed on the web version, with the exception of this year’s incoming class, have yet to be updated since last year. The fine folks at Sooner Sports, who I’ve always felt do fantastic work, will update this roster periodically and with much more regularity during the actual football season. They’ve been very good about updating them in the past, but they’re human just like the rest of us so mistakes can always be made. Which is just another way of my qualifying all of this with the caveat of me relying

However, we’re not currently in the actual football season (as if you needed me to remind you of that). Which, frankly, is the primary motivation behind this post. It’s the offseason. We’re all desperate for things to talk about OU Football related. So any and all excuses to do so are on the table, at least as far as I’m concerned.

And this leads me into the second version of the online roster available on Sooner Sports (again, found here), which at the top of the page indicates it has been updated somewhat recently (as of Feb. 6, 2014). They’ve been very good about updating the rosters in the past, but they’re human just like the rest of us so mistakes can always be made. Which is just another way of my qualifying all of this with the caveat of my reliance on their data.

Why does any of this matter you may be asking yourself. Well that or cursing me under your breath to hurry up and get to the point.

It matters because it could give us some insight into the work the players have been putting in this winter and how some of those younger guys who could be asked to play more significant roles this year have been developing.

Again, before we review the results, let me just remind you I’m simply relying on the information available to us. I can’t guarantee you the figures listed on what is the more updated roster are 100% accurate. I just know there are differences between the two, because I took the time to review them both and found a number of said differences to be rather interesting. So as long as we’re all cool with that and you’re not going to hold my feet to the flames because of my reliance on second-hand information…..we can proceed.

I lied, one more. Any critique of where a guy may or may not be is done with the full and obvious knowledge that there are still approx. six months between now and the start of the season. So still plenty of time to get work in.

Okay, for real this time. Here we go.

– LB Dominique Alexander: Previously listed at 6’2″ 216 lbs. Now listed at 6’0″ 217 lbs. | Not sure where those two inches went, but for a guy who many felt was undersized last year would have liked to see more than just that one pound jump in his weight.

– TE Blake Bell: Previously listed at 6’6″ 252 lbs. Now listed at 6’6″ 264 lbs. | Back up to his fightin’ weight with that move to tight end.

– LB Devante Bond: Previously listed at 6’3″ 240 lbs. Now listed at 6’1″ 232 lbs. | My assumption is the height differential is simply a result of most recruiting services being somewhat inaccurate, which is what I suspect they used initially. And by arriving early, with that weight loss, it looks like he’s already been putting in work to play at this level.

– C Ty Darlington: Previously listed at 6’3″ 288 lbs. Now listed at 6’2″ 298 lbs. | Again, I’m not going to focus too much on the height thing. Programs fudge that type of thing all the time, though in my opinion OU is better than a lot of others about being pretty close to accurate (typically a one inch cushion). In terms of weight, it’s very encouraging to see him up around three bills. He’s going to need that weight to hold up all year as the full-time starter.

– LB Jordan Evans: Previously listed at 6’3″ 216 lbs. Now listed at 6’3″ 214 lbs. | Similar to Alexander, a guy who is undersized at LB and hasn’t yet really put on the needed weight.

– OG Tyler Evans: Previously listed at 6’5″ 305 lbs. Now listed at 6’5″ 331 lbs. | After sitting this past year with an ACL tear, Evans has bulked up considerably (26 pounds for all you non-math majors). He’ll likely be called upon this year and that size could come in quite handy.

– OT Derek Farniok: Previously listed at 6’9″ 325 lbs. Now listed at 6’9″ 335 lbs. | Dude was already big. Now he’s just big-ger.

– FB Dimitri Flowers: Previously listed at 6’3″ 219 lbs. Now listed at 6’1″ 234 lbs. | The early enrollee true frosh already putting in work to bulk up with the expectation that he’ll play in 2014.

– RB Keith Ford: Previously listed at 5’11” 205 lbs. Now listed at 5’11” 202 lbs. | Getting lean and mean.

– TE Sam Grant: Previously listed at 6’7″ 258 lbs. Now listed at 6’7″ 267 lbs. | Somebody wake up the “they’re moving him to OT” contingent. They’ll wanna hear this.

– DE Geneo Grissom: Previously listed at 6’4″ 263 lbs. Now listed at 6’4″ 257 lbs. | That number is going in the wrong direction for a 3-4 DE, in my opinion.

– S Quentin Hayes: Previously listed at 6’0″ 193 lbs. Now listed at 6’0″ 184 lbs. | That’s almost ten pounds. Which I like from a speed perspective (already wasn’t the fastest guy out there), but how will that work in terms of holding up against the run?

– QB Trevor Knight: Previously listed at 6’1″ 201 lbs. Now listed at 6’1″ 196 lbs. | All you have to do is look at the guy to know he’s plenty put together solidly. But with those injuries last year, I fell like you’d prefer to see his weight go up, not down.

– TE Taylor McNamara: Previously listed at 6’5″ 246 lbs. Now listed at 6’5″ 240 lbs. | Again, not necessarily the end of the world or anything. But for a guy who has reportedly not seen the field because of his blocking, you’d like to see him getting bigger, not smaller.

– DE (/LB?) Ogbonnia ‘Obo’ Okoronkwo: Previously listed at 6’3″ 214 lbs. Now listed at 6’1″ 237 lbs. | Another mysterious loss of two inches, but those 23 pounds he has put on are a really good sign. He’s a guy the coaches raved about last year, even talk of maybe even playing at the time, but redshirted and could provide another pass rush threat on the outside in 2014.

– DE (/LB?) Michael Onuoha: Previously listed at 6’5″ 235 lbs. Now listed at 6’5″ 249 lbs. | See Obo.

– DT Torrea Peterson: Previously listed at 6’3″ 295 lbs. Now listed at 6’3″ 309 lbs. | This weight gain will be a trend, and a positive one, you’ll continue to see here with the guys OU is asking to play the nose.

– DT Jordan Phillips: Previously listed at 6’6″ 324 lbs. Now listed at 6’6″ 341 lbs (!!!) | Um, wow. Now I’m just assuming most of that isn’t really good weight and is a result of him being out for quite some time following that back surgery he underwent. So long as he’s eventually 100%, I don’t anticipate him getting back down to a more “manageable” weight will be a significant problem.

– FB Aaron Ripkowski: Previously listed at 6’1″ 254 lbs. Now listed at 6’1″ 261 lbs. | As though this guy needed to get bigger and/or stronger.

– DT Matthew Romar: Previously listed at 6’3″ 286 lbs. Now listed at 6’0″ 278 lbs. | The change in both of those measurements perplex me.

– RB Alex Ross: Previously listed at 6’1″ 209 lbs. Now listed at 6’1″ 221 lbs. | If he can get down the mental part, with his speed and at that size…..dude could be special.

– CB Zack Sanchez: Previously listed at 5’11” 176 lbs. Now listed at 5’11” 164 lbs. | This one in particular could be (stress, could be) troubling. My man was already pretty light for the position and what M.Stoops asks of his corners. Now apparently he’s 12 pounds lighter???

– LB Frank Shannon: Previously listed at 6’1″ 229 lbs. Now listed at 6’1″ 234 lbs. | Good to see him getting a little bit bigger.

– OT Josiah St. John: Previously listed at 6’6″ 305 lbs. Now listed at 6’6″ 284 lbs. | Not sure what’s going on here.

– LB Eric Striker: Previously listed at 6’0″ 219 lbs. Now listed at 6’0″ 217 lbs. | Two pounds is nothing for these type of athletes, but that’s still not a number you want to see going down. I think his size pretty much is what it is and clearly his game is built on a very specific asset. That said, he needs to develop more than that one move and it almost has to involve something to the inside. Which, at that size, could be a legitimate problem in terms of limiting his effectiveness.

– DE Charles Tapper: Previously listed at 6’4″ 261 lbs. Now listed at 6’4″ 269 lbs. | MON-STER.

– CB Stanvon Taylor: Previously listed at 5’11” 173 lbs. Now listed at 5’10” 170 lbs. | If he wins the starting job opposite Sanchez, as some are predicting, would that give OU the smallest pair of corners in the entire country?

– DT Jordan Wade: Previously listed at 6’4″ 296 lbs. Now listed at 6’4″ 312 lbs. | Really came on last year, nice to see him clip that three bill mark (and then some).

– DT Charles Walker: Previously listed at 6’3″ 281 lbs. Now listed at 6’2″ 289 lbs. | We’ve told you all about this kid and just how good so many think he could be. At that weight though, will we see him playing more at DE than DT in this 3-4 scheme?

That’s about it. I didn’t list every single player where there was a difference, though you might think it as long as this thing became.

So does anything stand out to you, be it good or bad? Hit us up in the comments with your thoughts.