It’s Official: Cody Thomas Is Starting vs. Texas Tech
Posted on: November 13, 2014
Image via USA Today
Bob Stoops announced Thursday mid-morning, via the official OU Football Twitter account, that Trevor Knight has not been medically cleared and that redshirt freshman Cody Thomas will be making his first career start.
. @OU_CoachStoops confirms QB Trevor Knight not medically cleared to play on Sat.
QB Cody Thomas to start at Texas Tech for #Sooners.
— Oklahoma Football (@OU_Football) November 13, 2014
How this impacts the game plan remains to be seen, though you can bet on the coaches (assuming they address it publicly at all prior to Saturday) will assure you it will change nothing. Either way, this news surely came as no surprise to those within the program as Knight had yet to take part in practices this week.
So does this news now being official change anything for you in terms of your expectations heading into Saturday? Are you any more or less confident? Are you excited to see what Thomas is capable of as the leader of this OU offense?
Discuss…
UPDATE: Just wanted to add a quick update after reading through some of the comments. It has been asked and answered, but just so it’s here in one easy to find place – Bob Stoops said earlier this week that if Thomas is the starter, then Blake Bell would be the backup. He (Bell) has been taking QB reps during this week of practice in order to be prepared “just in case.” That doesn’t necessarily mean he will not see any time on Saturday at tight end, but we won’t probably know that until then.
At this time there is no reason to believe the coaches would be willing to burn Justice Hansen’s redshirt with just three games remaining in the regular season and a bowl game.
155 Comments
Based on T. Thompson’s comments and how the players reacted to Cody when he entered the game against Kansas St., I am excited to see what he can do. Maybe he provides a spark. I’m not saying he will dominate. There is a reason he wasn’t starting, but I like his calm demeanor and I really liked his high school film. Hopefully he does well.
I’m sure everyone wants to see someone different. However, I feel Trevor has not been consistently put in a position to succeed. The area that causes concern about Thomas is his back up in case he is hurt. I get it, it would be Bell.
What a mess the QB position has turned out to be this year. Trevor was treated like a glass vase early, then they ran him and then he’s in the pocket.
Cody will hand off or throw out of the pocket. Outside of that I will be shocked. Also, this fits perfectly with JH as that is his type of QB.
Cody is talented and poised and will do well but he will have his growing pains too.
A step in the right direction would be not to throw pick 6’s!!
A step in the right direction would be for the OC to not call an Out with a defense in an alignment that allows the corner to gamble when your QB is standing in the shadow of his goal post. Or to not call a slant over the middle when your QB demonstrated a series or two earlier that he is not seeing the LB.
TK is a very talented and capable QB who has some obvious flaws at this point… if you are aware of those, and call a game according to them we would not have 3 losses.
Yeah 14 starts and 14 int’s.
Ratman, what I’m saying is, he’s not a pocket passer, nor is Boykin. However with a smart OC, they will put the QB in a position to be successful like they did at TCU. JH doesn’t get it. It would be like putting Landry as a read option QB, he would fail.
Look at history. Montana wasn’t a pure pocket passer but Walsh put in this thing called west coast offense and guess what? He knew Montana would be perfect before the draft. Rest is history. Play to their strengths.
He’s an excellent pocket passer. Just look at his performance against Bama or K-State or huge portions of any of the other games. He can throw on the move as well, but most of his great throws have come from the pocket. Yes he has things he needs to improve upon, not the least of which is seeing the linebacker in the window over the middle, but clearly he can make all the throws and when those around him have done their job properly, protection, correct route spacing, holding on to the ball, he’s been excellent.
I’m saying the pocket is not his #1 strength. I’m a fan of Trevor so no bashing. When he’s struggling, pocket is not where you want him to get back into the groove.
I think it’s been fashionable to assume that the pocket isn’t his #1 strength, but I don’t agree that’s correct. He’s been just as effective there as anywhere else. When he has “struggled” it has always been when those around him were not performing their job properly. His running ability is a spectacular added dimension, but his ability to pass from the pocket stands on its own.
fair enough
the call in the shadow of the goal line was not for an out.
Doesn’t matter, lots of hate for JH regardless of info to the contrary.
Yeah. Every once in while I can’t help myself…:-)
Je comprends.
ya, it was more of a quick screen or something but to the sideline… i couldn’t remember exactly, point still stands.
It was neither. It was a run up the middle. There was an option for TK to make a throw to the side if and only if the defensive back was playing very soft.
The wr ran 3 yards up and two steps toward the sideline that’s a quick out. The OC should not have a called a play where that is an option in the reads. Play action go deep if you have to or just run the ball. It’s better to punt, even if it stays inside your own 50.
They run that play all the time. It has been regularly successful, even in the shadow of our own goal. Many of the run plays have that option. It’s not an issue. The call was fine.
The call is fine if you know your qb can handle the situation i.e. be safe with the ball. So, you are saying the pick 6 that cost the game was only on TK?
If you want to ignore the missed field goals, the missed extra point, the inability to block for a half a yard when we needed, and all the other mistakes that left points on the field, and just blame the loss on that one play, then yes, it was TK’s fault and his alone. He made a bad read on a play that he reads correctly not just 9 out of 10 times, but pretty much every other time. In his defense, the defender was being tricky with the way he snuck forward, but TK should have seen it, and bears the blame for that play.
Agreed. No one player ultimately should be blamed for a loss. Let me ask: Do you believe that Knight ought to be the QB next year?
If his health is ok, and the injury poses no increased threat to his long-term well being, then absolutely. I don’t want him risking serious life long injury just to play football. I have no problem with the other guys getting a shot at it, but I’m pretty confident I know how it will turn out.
His ability to be equally successful as a pocket guy without running or as an option guy with running, all depending upon what defense he is facing, marks him as special, even among the mobile qb’s out there. It’s really remarkable. I think he has a few important things that he needs to improve on, but they are learnable, and he appears to be a dedicated student of the game, and when those around him do their job, he has been great.
The best qb should start!! TK is VERY injury prone and is not that great!!!!
I’m certain the correct protocol in a play like that is for the QB to throw the ball out of bounds if it’s covered, not for a pick six. Putting that on JH is inappropriate.
I guess that’s a fallback, but the actual call was handoff up the middle. The exact play happened in a similar circumstance in a previous game, correct read, and Perine went for a nice gain.
Trevor was treated like a glass vase because he has shown himself to be that fragile. How many games has he left early or missed time in due to injury in just his first two years? I can think of about 5. That is not including the games he missed altogether due to injury. Maybe Coach Stoops was wise to not run Trevor more than he did.
Good point. The sad irony is this injury was due to a cheap shot that didn’t even draw a penalty.
As was the hit he took against K-State
Yep.
At the same time, Rip was being called for targeting.
Yeah, I’ve been trying not to dwell on the cheap shot aspect. I tried telling myself that if it were my guy making a hard hit trying to take out the opposing qb, maybe I’d respect it. But then I look at what the score was and how much time was left, and I think it’s not ok.
I will never understand why that didn’t draw a flag.
Yes, and there seems to be so little said about it. I understand about sour grapes and all but that was like the biggest dang end in the country hitting him on the ground with the obvious intention of hurting him. If that doesn’t justify a flag what the hell does?
I thought that the moment it happened. 2 players already had him down and the third launches and throws a forearm to the facemask and chin. I’m glad I wasn’t the only one who saw that. That said, TK does seem injury prone at the very least. Good kid, sad for him. Next man up! BOOM!
It was the launching that should have caused flags to fly.
TK is a great young man, possibly a better man than a ball player and hate to see him go down like that.
Hopefully this forces JH to run,run,run the ball down their throat. Hopefully we see a ton of diamond formations and use the play action to blow the top off the defense. Time to utilize the beef up front and our stable of talented backs.
once again…..if Thomas gets hurt ? ? ?
Protect the starter?
He won’t run..much.
Based on what Arkansas did to Tech, we should run the ball a bazillion times.
We thought the same thing per what West Virginia did to Baylor and what Baylor did to Texas. But we have seen all to many times that Josh Heupel goes to the beat of his own drum.
For this reason, I hope that Cody goes 0-4 passing to start the game, then Heupel will decide to run it. If Cody goes 4-4 on his first drive and scores a TD, then I could see Josh dialing up about 60 pass plays and Cody going 32-60 with 2 INT’s.
Kind of sad that I think this way, but Heupel has shown me plenty of reasons to do so.
Wow what an indictment on a top 5 CFB university offensive coordinator! If this is a accurate picture of JH, he’s got to go. We all understand that Tech is going to load the box, and say OU can’t run, then what?
I would say a subjective view rather than accurate.
We aren’t a top 5 CFB university at the moment (unless you are just talking about historically or something). We are what we currently are in spite of JH not because of him.
If they load the box, then run at their weakside (numbers wise) with the diamond or something and use play action when its available. We should still be able to run even if they are playing to stop the run.
Yeah I agree. I was speaking potentially. In the NFL even if a team knows you are going to run, the superior team is still able to get man on man and beat the defense.
If they do that it is much easier to throw the ball!!!!
TTU is so bad on the line and on defense overall, we can still pound it down their throats.
“this was written with angry sarcasm” Maybe try switching to decaf….:-)
Unfortunately you are correct. Let’s hope he nails it this weekend.
Gameplan should include 50+ run plays, especially since all our backs are healthy again.
I think Thomas will do well. What I’d like to see is a steady dose of Ford, Perine, and Ross and have Thomas throw it maybe 15-20 times. We need to toughen up and finish out this season strong, we still have recruits on the fence, if we keep messing around we’re going to push them away. I hope M. Stoops decides to do more bump and run on D and attack Webb. get a little swagger back at OU. BOOMER SOONER
I pray for Josh to mix up the run plays. Last week Ross big run then 3 runs with Ross to the left for a 4th and 1 disaster. Against KState Josh calls Perine handoff up the middle 8 times before missed field goal by Hunnicutt. It’s like he thinks he is playing a video game from the booth. I would like to see Josh on the field for Cody!
I jus don’t know whether that would change anything though. Although you certainly don’t have to be sitting in the press box to know your plays aren’t working! Wouldn’t hurt anything I guess but I don’t know why it would change his decision making.
I think it would help Knight or Thomas having that face to face interaction and reading the guys body language and etc.
If Cody can turn and hand the ball off and throw some quick screens the offense will be fine. This game is going to come down to how well the defense is prepared.
Idealy yes, but will Heupel call the game that way? One would think he would have used TK in the same way and he hasn’t.
I would let Gundy call this game, leave the wide outs in the locker room.
Or let Gundy call the game and leave Josh in Norman.
I just got my first hearty laugh this morning… thank you
ok if it comes down to how well our defense is prepared then Im worried. Mike gives me NO reason to be confident. Ugh…hope Im wrong.
I want to see Sooner Dave get 150+ yards … playing most of the 2nd half.
They need to put him on the field more. I don’t understand why they favor 2 guys per game over and over when they have all that talent behind them.
If OU gets in the 3rd and long, which TT will surely attempt to put them there, look out. OU could be in trouble if they can’t get going quick.
No holding penalties on 1st and ten would be nice.
Exactly!
It gives me a reason to watch now.. I think a healthy Trevor would’ve lead to an ISU type game. But im intrigued now..
Remember what Kevin Wilson did with Bradford and Landry Jones, during their first couple of starts. OU would pass like 20 to 30 times in the flat with swing passes, line of scrimmage passes to the receiver, or screens. To get the QB some confidence then once in a while a pass or the tide end or down field for a big gain.
Congrats to you Cody. Time to shine.
I like it! Loved this guy or of high school. He could take the starting spot hopefully
Ah, yes! The back-up quarterback is always who we need to save the season. If he was the best at the position, he would have already been playing. He looked very good handing the ball off in one game, but he was under-whelming in the I-State game. I hope he does well, but we need to keep in mind his experience level and not be so quick to criticize him and don’t have expectations of perfection from him.
Never said he was going to save the season, just said I hope he does the most with his opportunity. But thanks for being the fun police!
Lol! I never thought about being among the “fun police!” Does a member of that group spread the joy or repress the joy? I would prefer the former. I didn’t mean to be a downer. I only felt that some posters seemed delighted that TK wasn’t going to be on the field.
Go kick some booty, Cody.
Also, be aware that OU’s opponents don’t get called for targeting/personal fouls on cheap shots. If the play is dead get down or throw the ball out of bounds.
bottom line is trevors health is #1 priority, so im glad hes not trying to rush back.
That being said, im both confident, and excited about thomas. Any one good enough to set texas high school passing records has to be a pretty damn good QB.
I was already a fan of CT before he committed to OU, when he announced I was ecstatic.
The young man not only has skills and size(better to see over the line) he is very stable emotionally. He grew up in Southlake, a very affluent area, yet he still sacked groceries at a local grocery store while playing sports and going to school.
Any kid that will turn down millions(potentially), to go to college, is a kid ill take 85 of on our team.
After watching his HS highlights, its clear he has all the tools. Big, strong, accurate, and still has wheels.
I think he will do very well on saturday. Lets hope this goes better than last saturdays prediction, lol!
Hope he is prepared and the team rallies around him.
Gonna be a cold day at the Taco Vendors stadium.
Have no idea what the mentality of this team is going to be, but i sure hope youre right. As long as heupel lets the run game do their thing, and ease cody into the game, I think he will be fine.
I would love to see two TE sets with the opportunity for Mc or Bell to get some big plays over the middle.
Middle seems like its been wide open all year. Guess its because teams know we dont utilize it.
That is an area where I think CT’s additional height gives him an advantage over TK.
Tech had arguably the worst rushing defense in the country, so naturally Heup is going to throw it 40+ times.
Wading past your negativity, it wouldn’t bother me one bit if he throws 50 if he is moving the offense and scoring points.
EasTex, what do you see them doing with Cody. I feel TT will put 8 or 9 in box and force our hand to throw which is fine. Based on your experience watching Cody, what type of throws come easy to him.
I expect the panhandlers to load the box too.
He made every throw known to man in high school while running an offense very similar to the OU offense we ran before TK. He had a knack for seeing quickly which of his receivers would get open and throw them open. Other times he would use his feet to buy time for a receiver to get open or give himself a better lane. He could also throw well on the move.
Hopefully, they will take the zone read out of the game plan this week.
If you haven’t seen it or it has been awhile, here is a five minute video on Cody from his senior season. Notice the variety of throws he makes.
http://youtu.be/6R8YfTGPlCU
I didn’t watch one pass, all I watched was his footwork. It’s really good which is why he’s an accurate passer. Also, he didn’t get jumpy, stayed in pocket and then planted feet and threw. good stuff.
I mentioned it already, he is very stable.
Great footwork without happy feet. Makes his checks quickly. Doesn’t seem to stare down a receiver. Calm in the pocket and moves well. If he can adjust well to the speed of the game……….Thanks EasTex
This is his big chance, it seems to me, to remain the starter just as Blake Bell did last year when TK was hurt. If he plays well I don’t see any reason to switch back even if Trevor feels better- but more importantly Bob Stoops seems to value consistency in personnel over almost everything else as well- in the sense that once he puts you in a position you’re usually there for a while barring injury or repeated and severe mistakes. Thomas has obvious skills that would seem to indicate that he has a vey good chance of passing much better then TK does, and almost anyone will surely be less prone to injury then poor Trevor. There’s a good chance he is our new quarterback.
He is essentially an unknown at this point. This is his opportunity and would love to not only see him play well, but see his teammates rally to him.
very proud of trevor, but i kinda want this to be one of those moments you look back on and remember that special moment when a guy seized his opportunity and ran with it and became one of those special players
Haha. Sorry to you and the other posters who had to read all that crap the last couple days. I do apologize to y’all. I will never apologize to the people who feel negatively and are stuck in their pessimistic ways or to those who feel its ok to bash amateur players trying to chase their dreams. I hope you guys don’t feel I’m lording over the site but I can’t sit idly by and let people have a rip and just bring everybody down. Again sorry to everybody who can have a discussion and not an argument
Just be you, bud.
We all need to know when to fire and when to check fire.
Yeah I know it. I want these kids to at least have a shot at what I had. Just like I want for my own kids. I just hate for all y’all to have to read through it and sometimes it gets old and tough to let go. Thanks to you and ray for holding me back sometimes haha
B000MER!!!
SOONER!
Haven’t noticed any “lording” and although I might have missed something, haven’t really seen anything that warranted an apology, either. Not to worry. đŸ™‚
Thanks bud. Just getting into it with people like 3 out of 4 days cause I don’t want this site to become landthieves(which is the “you’re stupid…nuhuh you are” site with nothing but negative connotations)
Wading past your common sense and calm reasoned judgement, I’d agree it’s a good idea to call plays that the offense has demonstrated it can pull off, that when they do what’s expected will move the ball down the field and score, regardless of whether they are run or pass. It’s best when they are effective at both. ;- 0
What happen’s if cody where to get hurt what’s the game plan then.
Bell at QB
So no chance true frosh hansen play’s in this game.
why burn a red shirt
I am only saying what if i hope cody has great game just saying what if that’s all
What would Kirby Smart do?
I don’t know doesn’t matter he not coaching saturday i just hope cody doesn’t get hurt because not sure there is plan b if he got hurt.
Tip: Never answer a rhetorical question.
Let us hope cody has great game and we win big that is best outcome.
Thanks for the laugh EasTex!
Welcome.
I expect Cody to have 2 tds and 2 turnovers. I would say 4 tds but I trust our running game to account for 3 or 4 tds. So in all he will lead us to a 40 point performance I think.
What do you think? 16-17/24 225 2 and 2? Run 40 for 380 and 4? I could live with that. Pretty productive day for everybody
Sounds about right…rushing may be more like 280. I don’t know that we will gash them for 400. But I do think Cody will have a couple mistakes and I have no problem with 2 turnovers because I believe our defense needs to force turnovers. If we lose a game because the turnover battle was 2-0 I would blame our defense for not being aggressive enough.
At some point though if Cody or whoever the starter is next year…they need to average about 0.5 turnovers a game to 3 tds a game. We need to get back to the style of offense we ran with Jason white.
Would love that. That guy’s heart, passion, leadership and talent is what any man would long for in his own son. He will always be one of my favorites
also, you seem to have your finger on the pulse of recruiting. do you have the cliff notes on why everybody was freaking out about the ’16 kid that we didn’t make the top 5 for? i think i remember hearing someone mention that his dad played hoops for us awhile back. just wondering why this hit home so hard when there’s still 15 months til his signing day
I do follow recruiting and recently I’ve fallen off just because it’s been kind of a dead period for recruits.
As far as that kid I think those who are upset with a legacy basically ruling ou out..I understand why their upset but often they would find another reason to be upset if you know what I mean. If it wasn’t that news then they would be mad that wheeler says lsu is now a player in his recruiting.
Were not going to land every legacy recruit so we just need to appreciate the ones we have or have had like shep and the Evans boys.
ok. thanks. kind of what i figured. par for the course
I can honestly say I don’t know what to expect for any game this year.
That’s because JH just spins the “Wheel of Offenses” right before each game.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNtCqDYbfoo
Excited for Thomas, let’s face it we could use some hope:) Let’s JH uses the stable of horses in the backfield and some short to intermediate passing game on the TT defense. Oh, and no 30+ passing attempts., 12-15 would be ideal. My 2 cents
Totally agree. If the oline can’t average 4 yards against Tech, we got bigger problems.
Says 66 for high in Lubbock with 21mph winds. Not bad.
Really? That ain’t bad.
I was going by the Dallas forecast and figured it would be even colder there in the hinterlands. Calling for 47 and rain here on Saturday.
Just run the ball 60 times tech is a bad team don’t have to worry about wind,or rain.
In my mind this is an audition for 2015. We cannot have a QB who turns the ball over. Just as Bob pulls RB for fumbling, so he needs to put a QB on the field who isn’t plagued by the turnover. Second Heupel is also auditioning, at least in the minds of fans. In my view, he’s called only a few games well. WV, Iowa State, Tenn, Tulsa, Lutech. How about the D giving up an average of 27 per Big 12 game? 17 would be great…
Agreed
Still disappointment, in the lack of use of the TE.
Lets figure out what he can do before next year. Knight has a glass jaw, and there is not a hit that he cant get hurt on. All the more reason to have a back-up with as much experience as possible.
What Discus & Sanchez previously said. Thomas should be expected to have some’ rough spots’ . He hasn’t played when the game was on the line. Whether he leads the team to victory or watches the team lose, the experience will make him better for 2015. Since Knight apparantly isn’t the answer, maybe Thomas can develop in a QB who can be what the team needs –or–if not, then one less to wade thru next Spring as the coaches search for a leader….It may be Hansen or Mayfield next year ??
I know it was only the Spring game, but Knight’s performance mirrored what he did this year in the regular season. We can hope Mayfield’s performance in the same Spring game will mirror his in 2015.
I don’t see any way the staff keeps an experienced Knight, Thomas with a few games of experience, and Mayfield with the better part of a season of experience, on the bench to start Hansen who will have zero game experience next season. I just don’t see it.
Pretty excited to see what this kid has to offer!
Good luck Cody! Trevor is a good QB and lots of potential. It will be good to see another QB shine, too.. Knight and Thomas also have amazing character, which means alot when leading a team.
As long as WRs step up, I am not concerned… Go get Em Cody
JJ I read EasTex’s appraisal and agree with him. What’s your take on TK and what you think CT offers in comparison? You’re a realist and I respect that alot. Personally all CT needs is game reps and adjusting to game speed. Thoughts?
I think CT is a QB that is more likely to benefit from JH’s comfort zone. I think TK was almost too mobile, and JH couldn’t consistently play to his strengths. Whereas, from CT you have a bigger, taller guy, hopefully less pass bat downs etc. I thought CT looked comfortable against KSU. Starting against a bad defense is a good way to go. Not bashing Trevor, but he’s not the guy to win a championship with. Same mistakes over & over, players make plays but either JH is asking him to do things he can’t do. Or no one is reinforcing his decision making process during the games…
100% agree. Just wanted to make sure it wasn’t just me. TK’s got some grit but the height thing is so crucial in JH’s scheme. Being able to see the field and targets is just crucial. Thanx!!
TK could be effective in a true zone read/spread option system, he is asked to be a hybrid pocket passer, no bueno.
Like I said, his weaknesses out number his strengths, when JH continually refuses to play to his strengths. …
I think JH has a bright future, but I think they made him the head offensive play-caller way too soon. They should have promoted Norvell and let Heupel learn more under him.
The results haven’t been great as a result of his premature advancement.
Completely agree except I think the biggest component is his failure as QB coach. He is consistently showing he can’t do both on a week to week crunch. Seriously, and look what happened in bedlam last year, when he was FORCED to go with Blake Bells strengths & not get too complicated…
you are correct oh wise one:)
I’m not so sure anyone actually benefits from JH’s comfort zone – except for possibly the other team. But then, I’m burned out on JH at this point.
Right there with Ya. In fact just had that very conversation with SGE… It might indeed be better w/Thomas, but in the end there’s a disconnect with JH
Seconded!!!!
I’ll be concerned if we are throwing much at all. Arkansas showed the road map to easy victory over Texas Tech. Just line up, knock them over, and jam it down their throats.
Agreed, was actually thinking beyond TT. I am over the TK experiment. It’s a failure.
This is my favorite thing on the Internet today.
http://i.imgur.com/iTC3Ypa.gif
Can anybody read lips ? Wonder what he’s yelling?
NO MAYO! I ASKED FOR TOMATO AND NO MAYO!
Nachos!!! I need nachos!!!!
Change play! OMAHA OMAHA, time out!
Is it just me or should he be on the sideline?
I’ve been saying that all year, might feel different if we had junior or senior QB’s that were playing well.
As bad as tt is on run defense, we need to run the ball and let Cody get comfortable out there and then mix in the passing game gradually. It will take some of the heat off of him and let him get in the flow of the game. We have the rb’s that can take care of the game. I hope that is the plan and not rush CT in any situation that comes up at the beginning of the game.