Keith Ford To Transfer
Posted on: May 13, 2015
You may recall TFB told you earlier this week to expect an announcement from OU running back Keith Ford and his family this week regarding Ford’s future with the program. On Wednesday afternoon Ford confirmed the suspicions of many an OU fan in announcing his intention to transfer from the University of Oklahoma.
Ford’s statement also addressed his current suspension from the OU program saying he is “currently academically eligible to transfer according NCAA rules” and that OU and Bob Stoops have granted him a full release to transfer to another school. TFB was told from a source that Ford signed his transfer papers last Friday.
#Sooners RB Keith Ford announces he is transferring. pic.twitter.com/xW4SkkYr4v
— Guerin Emig (@GuerinEmig) May 13, 2015
Running back would certainly appear not to be a position the Sooners are suffering from a lack of talent and/or depth, but Ford was a very talented player in his own right and one of OU’s more experienced returning backs.
Hopefully a fresh start at a new school will provide the type of opportunity and success Ford is seeking.
162 Comments
Wish him the best
Good luck young man. Some school is about to get better at running back!
Wish him nothing but the best. Appreciate his hard work while he was at OU!
“despite what the suspension was about………”
what was it about?
Apparently in the off-season his attendance for class and football activities was very poor. So I would imagine there was an academic suspension and on top of that a team rules suspension for missing team stuff.
Good Luck and best wishes, He will always be a Sooner in my book.
Thanks for the memories #21
RB position doesn’t have that much depth. Injuries happen so there needs to be depth.
Perine & Mixon, then Ross who offers speed but not much on moves. Brooks who is a change up guy and then a freshman in Anderson. All of these guys will be playing so an injury can really mess things up.
Riley plans to spread them out, so between 4 wide outs and even empty sets we won’t need a dozen backs. You just named 4 guys, Flowers is another who could be great in this offense.
excuse me, you named 5.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/2008-0830-UVA-FiveGuys-peanuts.jpg
Dave Brubeck says…
https://youtu.be/PHdU5sHigYQ
Flowers isn’t a RB.
First time you see him as the lone back this season what is he? Because you know that is happening. Also, just add a slash. fb/rb/te because you will probably see him at all 3.
Are saying we will line up without any RBs and have Flowers as our lone slash backfield player? Riley thrives on speed so don’t know why he would use this formation.
That’s the thing it isn’t a “formation” this isn’t madden. It’s a substitution. This is depth. This is the starter getting a breather and fresh legs. If we never see him line up as the oneback that still doesn’t change the fact that it is an option. We’ve seen him carry the ball amd we’ve seen him catches passes out of the back field. Check and check, he can play running back.
I guess what I’m saying is he’s not a pure RB. 4.7 isn’t what I would call break away speed. If you want to lump them in there you can add Palange & Woods too.
PURE RB has to have elite speed? I guess these guys were not “Pure” RB’s?
Barry Sanders, Emmitt Smith, Franco Harris, John Riggins, Jerome Bettis, Edgerrin James, Marcus Allen, Thurman Thomas, Stephen Jackson, Corey Dillon, Ricky Waters to name a few NFL guys! Sooners…Steve Owens ,Quentin Griffin, Stanley Wilson, Chris Brown, Lydell Carr, Kenny King, Kejuan Jones, Leon Perry to name just a few! All these guys did not have breakaway speed! RB are much more then speed! And these guys ran 4.6 and above…
Never did I say a RB has to have elite speed. I said i dont consider 4.7 elite speed. I agree with you so ease up. My whole point was flowers is not a pure RB. He has a combination of abilities. I’m a fan of flowers.
Whatever… that’s exactly what you said. You were insinuating break away speed makes a pure running back and posted 4.7. Boomer- “I guess what I am saying is he’s not a pure RB. 4.7 isn’t what I would call break away speed.”. Not going to argue with you. Have a great day…
Buster, it’s cool we on same page. I’m agreeing with ya.
With the new offense I expect to see teams blitz our QB a lot more. I think Flowers will see quite a bit of playing time for his versatility.
Hope so as I’m a fan and don’t feel like he was used enough last year.
We never got to see if he was Millard 2.0 or not last year. With the season Rip had and that the running game was the offensive strength, he didn’t really have a well defined role.
Sure hope he is ready this year and he de-cleats some blitzing LBs.
He’s not, but he could be. The kid may not be the Moose that OU has had in the past, but the kid can play.
Flowers can certainly be used in Rileys offense not only as a solid blocker on blitzing LBs/safetys etc but also hes an excellent receiver coming out of the backfield.
No indication whatsoever that this will be a staple formation in the fall @disqus_3VtosyMWg9:disqus. Riley has stated on numerous occasions that he is aware of the talent he has in the backfield and there have been reports that he experimented with Perine and Mixon in the backfield at the same time this past spring.
I kind of agree. Even though we all are pretty sure that Mixon will be a star, he’s never played in college. Anderson will be a true freshman coming off an MCL(?) injury, and while both Ross and Brooks have a ton of talent, neither has produced a whole lot on the field. Ford was the most proven behind Perine, and while I THINK we’ll be just fine, if a couple things go wrong or not the way we’re hoping, we could be wishing we still had #21 back there.
Still, like I said, I think we’ll be okay, and I hope Ross goes on to do great things. All the best to him!
Let’s look at Ross’ stats and compare them to Ford.
Ross = more total yards; more total yards/carry; only a small difference in total number of carries; only a small difference in yards/game
I think people should be worrying themselves into a state of fear and paralysis for other positions, not RB.
You just mentioned five different guys. How exactly is that not depth?
Even prior to this Ford deal and his injury, the coaches were already talking (if you can put any weight in what the coaches say these days, but that’s up to the individual) about Anderson not redshirting. Which is saying something considering the guys he came in behind simply from a roster standpoint.
They have depth at RB, I’m not sure how that is even arguable.
Pardon me for sharing my opinion.
But Jordan is right. How many teams carry 5 RB’s?
I would think most major conference teams have 5 RBs on their rosters.
Not like the 5 at OU.
There’s nothing wrong at all w/ sharing your opinion, nor is there w/ me having a differing opinion.
Cool. Then leave language like arguable out of it. I’m not arguing.
argument – a reason or set of reasons given with the aim of persuading others that an action or idea is right or wrong. People mistakenly believe that an argument only means yelling or fighting using words. Basically any time you express a view with supporting facts, you are putting forth an argument.
I didn’t do either. I said if there were some injuries to key RBs, our dept would be low IMO. I hope all these guys if given a chance go out and kick butt. Also, I hope there are no injuries too.
Well said!
When only 2 of them have ever played a down, it is very arguable.
Which is the same situation we had at the beginning of last year with Ford and Ross and things turned out OK.
Well stated Cam.
As fantastical as last year was for our RBs, we can’t bank on that every year. It just isn’t possible.
OU has quite a bit of “depth” at the position. They don’t have much “experience” returning at the position.
Only 63% of all carries last year is coming back, and not counting Knight’s 12% of the carries or mentioning that part of the 63% of the carries is the NCAA record holder for yards in a game. So, you know, not much experience.
For the 2015 season, they have a true sophomore who, while being VERY good, still only saw meaningful action in 10 games last year. They have a junior RB who switched to the position as a senior in HS & saw his first meaningful action as RB in college last year. They have a RS FR who sat out a year away from all football activities. They have a RS JR who has carried the ball 6 times since HS. They have a True FR who enrolled early, but who obviously has not played yet. So, no, not much game experience.
Oh come on now……Perine only had 1,700 yards last year….you can’t pooh-pooh his experience….
Come on!!!!!!!!!!!!
@soonermgb56:disqus
And it was only his coordinator’s “experience” that held him back from getting even more!
Depth and experience are two different things, IMO.
And at no position does experience count for less than RB @jordanesco:disqus
QB without experience: frightening.
RB without experience: very interesting indeed.
Perine, Ross, and Brooks. Am I miscounting? 1 + 1 + 1 is 3 right?
I’ve never actually seen Brooks play, but if he has, I don’t imagine it being of any significance at all.
He has played. Not a lot. I believe he had some injury issues or something that kept him out of action. Don’t remember the whole story. But he definitely has played a snap. Based on what I’ve seen from him I would trust him with the ball. You could argue that the running back core isn’t experienced. But arguing that the running back position doesn’t have depth is simply misusing the word. Or simply not knowing what the word means. The backfield has a lot of depth. Whether it is quality depth remains to be seen.
According tony one source within the program, Anderson is the real deal and was ahead of where Perine was during his first spring, which is saying a lot.
We can only hope that’s true.
All around solid back just gotta get those fumble issues taken care of. Best of luck wherever he ends up at.
hope we dont face him in the big 12
best of luck.
since he says he’s current on eligibility, I would assume that he can’t tx to any of the majors without sitting out a yr, if I’m not mistaken……houston might work in which case we would see him next yr
He can’t go to any D1 (without sitting)…that means Houston too UNLESS he gets a waiver to move closer to home
Theres chatter about A&M grabbing him. Hearing there could be mutual interest on his part.
disagree. our defense could use the fumble recoveries.
this is predicated on the D causing a TO, JHF
I hope he has a great career.
Any ideas where he might be headed???? DI or DII? Is he looking to play immediately?
Best of luck to the young man.
Good luck with your future Keith Ford. And thanks for your time at Oklahoma.
I’m sad, I really liked Keith Ford.
Best of luck Keith! Hope everything works out! Great player
Hate to see him go, but completely understandable. Best of luck!
So that leaves OU with only 2 guys that have actually seen a field in a game. I don’t see how anyone can say the Sooners are set at rb without seeing any of those other guys. They might turn out to be really good but that’s all talk right now.
The 2 that have seen the field are damn good and the 2 who haven’t are as highly rated as anyone the last 2 years. I’m not worried about running back
Fo’ sho’. I’m not worried either.
Last year we had only two guys that had actually seen a field in a game. They had far fewer yards than this year (143 vs 2308). It is uncommon to start a season with more than two RB’s on a team that have significant yards. In some years you don’t start with any, like we did last year. And, strictly speaking, we do have three backs that have actually seen a field in a game. Brooks had some mop up duty last year and appears to be a serviceable back just not good enough to get on the field with all the talent we have.
How exactly does one need to experience to understand the two fundamentals of RB which are:
1) hold on to the ball and
2) run toward the end-zone
Ford was/is good so i wish nothing but luck to him and his family going fwd wouldve liked for him to get a better shot but sometimes the #s dont work in someones favor and it just doesnt help when a stud like Perine comes out and Rips it and has distanced himself on you as “The” Guy
I’m bummed. Keith Ford was one of my favorite players to watch. IMO, the biggest problem OU backs have had in recent years is their lack of “vision”. Ford easily was the best on the roster in that category.
Sorry to see Ford go, but wish him the best of luck wherever he ends up.
While expected, I am still saddened to hear Ford is leaving.
I was excited when he committed, when he showed up big in the Under Armor game and when he showed his explosiveness/power as a freshman. My brother and I dubbed him the “Krakken” after his first couple of games when he destroyed would be tacklers.
I can only wish Ford the absolute best in life and I’m certain this was not an easy decision for him to make.
Couldn’t have said it better. Sad day.
I’ve always liked Ford. It’s unfortunate. But I’m sure he’s still in God’s favor. I’m praying for blessing for Keith.
No big news here, now OU must take 2 RB in this class. Not sold on Ross, that dead beat couldn’t even get a first down against the pukes to seal the game
Hello.
…
http://www.engrish.com/wp-content/uploads//2015/04/step-forward-to-be-dangerous.jpg
I’m still very high on Ross. Gundy, who’s been around a couple of good RBs in his career, after watching spring/summer/fall practices had Ross starting the 1st game last yr. Remember, Gundy was watching Ford and Perine and Rip and Flowers, all pretty good. He started out of all them–Ross. Gundy plays the best, or whomever he thinks is the best. Things happened to get him out of the rotation and a RB likes reps, they can get into a rhythm. I also think Ross will do even better with the field spread out more like Riley’s offense. He can run better out of this offense, IMO, b/c it is spread out more, plus he can motion out or line up outside and catch the ball in space. I look for more great things from Ross the next couple of years (other than just kickoff return which he is fabulous at). I think Riley’s going to run 2 RBs, and I can see Mixon/Ross and perine/flowers combinations back there just fine. he’s certainly not a “dead beat” and I think lots of fault could be placed elsewhere way before Ross for losing to OSU. I think Ross makes a very good NFL RB someday, too.
Just hope Mixon and Perine don’t get hurt
Nice. Hope you don’t talk about your own kids like that.
This one is just like he-who-must-not-be-named: every comment by them is a waste of time. And they must have a helluva appetite with all of that self-serving garbage they spew.
Other than that, what’s up Toats?
Just lurking, giving the occasional upvote. This guy, though…I’m sure this isn’t his first, or even second go around on this page.
…
http://www.reactiongifs.com/r/allw.gif
Down goes the gavel!
Just stating the facts homie
“Dead beat”. Please verify this “fact”
Dead beat is kind of strong. Keith hasn’t did anything to embarrass the university. Cut him some slack and be respectful to others. Not that I expect you to be respectful. My real point is to let you know that I think you’re being disrespectful.
To a kid, nonetheless…some people just have no class.
None. Negative none if were possible.
I’m probably just over reacting. I mean, I’m sure he’d say the same thing to Ross’ face in a dark alley. He looks pretty tough in his profile pic.
If you remember, he posted that pic and the Mods removed it. That, in itself, shows no class, as he’s assuming this is an all male audience. We have a lot of women who post here as well. I’m sure they didn’t appreciate it.
I didn’t realize this. Not sure why they’ve allowed it for this long. Hope they’re not softening up on us!
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So getting a D-1 ride, returning kicks for touchdowns, earning playing time as a RB, staying out of trouble makes one a dead beat? Please tell us about your accomplishments in life that makes you feel like a better person than him. We’ll be waiting.
Also, please tell us what you think the definition of deadbeat is (not you, Ray, unless you want to give it a go!)
I checked the dictionary and to my surprise….a dead beat is someone who earmarks their tax payment for other peoples cell phones and houses.
HAHAHA! Who knew? Well, other than Jeff?
I am a outstanding citizen that pays alot of taxes so people can get free cell phones, houses paid for ect
Well, you’re sure not an UPSTANDING citizen. Those don’t make a big fuss over doing the things they’re supposed to do.
There we go. There’s the crux. He doesn’t get anything free that someone else pays for.
What does you paying taxes have to do with Ross being a dead beat? I pay taxes. So does The Ross family.
He’s the only one who pays taxes. Get it right SR. LOL!
Weren’t you out standing in your field last night? 🙂
Too wet today, but I can still be “outstanding”. 🙂
Yessir, whether you are standing inside or out.
When asked about his accomplishments, he said he was a taxpayer. Should sum it all up on this one. “I do the absolute minimum…worship me…”-Jeff
Who’s yo daddy?
*an*
*etc*
*lawl*
A lot is TWO words, too bad you didn’t get a Ross education.
D’OH!
Meant to add that one.
Paying taxes doesn’t make you an outstanding citizen anymore than having a child makes you an outstanding father.
A good citizen is based on your behavior and the willingness to assist others. I don’t see any of that from you.
Do not even bring politics into this place.
I’d wipe the floor with you anyway.
I would pay $99.95 on PPV.
…
http://media.tumblr.com/8ec1e5101545561970d603010785aaaa/tumblr_inline_mszt9p7cdw1qz4rgp.gif
Do us all a favor and quit posting on this site.
Dude, calling our own guys names is bad form. These are young men who work hard and want to win even more than we do. What’s wrong with you?
Really sorry to hear this news. The guy has talent. Look at some of the plays he made against the vaunted Alabama run defense in the Sugar Bowl, for example.
Good luck Keith!
Not going to try and read every comment (shoot me). I’ll try and spin this as positively as possible.
#1: Keith Ford is a very, very talented running back. I hate to see him leave for any reason.
#2: With #1 out of the way, he showed some fumble tendencies over the course of his two year career and had an unfortunate injury which led to Perine’s opportunity to shine.
#3: Ford’s transfer may simply mean Mixon was absolutely every thing he was advertised to be and Keith simply saw the writing on the wall.
#3 is what I am hoping is the reason. Think about it. Did you think true freshman Perine would be more effective than Ford? He was…and then some. Mixon may very well be the best RB on the team. He will have to prove it, but I think Ford transferring may give us a small taste of that being true.
Certainly are hearing great things about Mixon and about Anderson as well. Keith has talent but put the ball on the ground and you don’t do that in OU’s offense. Keith might have been 4th on the depth chart in the fall. This also may mean that Anderson doesn’t redshirt.
Best of luck to Keith Ford. This was not the turn I expected his career to take after 2013 but I’ll keep rooting for him for sure.
me too, unless he ends up playing against the Sooners somehow
That would certainly be less than ideal. Part of me thinks he’ll go the immediate playing route via FCS or D2.
He should go to Arkansas, redshirt and tear up the SEC for a year then head off to the NFL
I would enjoy the heck out of him taking it to the SEC.
not a bad idea………they emphasize the run
Good luck to Keith wherever he ends up. He quickly became one of the fan favorites but a transfer is probably best. As much fun as he is to watch, I feel like his touches would have been very limited next season.
What exactly is a “full release” to transfer to another school?
No list of schools to avoid like OSU did to Wes Lundt.
Thanks. I thought that was it. That shows a lot of class on the part of Stoops and OU. Not like some other schools we know of.
It means Bob Stoops isn’t a vindictive douchebag like Kliff Kingsbury.
You said it….I read it. 🙂
That’s what I thought but you said it so much better than I could have.
At one point I thought he’d be the next great OU RB. It sucks to see him go, but like everyone else I wish him well.
First of all good luck to Keith. I hope he finds success wherever he goes (except against us).
Second. Some people will worry/complain about anything. Last year we had to replace our top three running backs and 70% of our rushing offense. The results was a 16% INCREASE in our rushing output with far less experience returning. So now we are going to worry about losing one back and 11% of our rushing offense?
No worrying here. We have the best backfield in the NCAA.
Yeah, I don’t get the worrying. I would be more worried if Kish left right now than I am about the RB situation.
Good luck to a great and gracious young man.
Things happen obviously in life, but it looks like he’s getting (or has gotten) himself on the right track to bounce back and become a really good college RB. Good luck to him.
Is anyone else kinda worried about Boulware taking over RB duties from Gundy? Gundy was killing it on the recruiting trail and in game
No.
Do a little research of Boulware before worrying
Good luck and best wishes to Keith Ford. I wish him well no matter where he ends up. It may be in his best interest to take his skill set to another place, but he will still be thought of as a Sooner first. Best wishes to the young man.
RB?
Godspeed….
Good luck to him. He is a good back, and maybe could be a great one. We wish him the best.
Go to class. Be a team player. Hold on to the ball.
Looks like we are swapping Keith Ford for Nick Harvey. I would say good pick up by both teams in a position of need
Best of luck and God bless you, Mr. Ford. We hope for you great things, much success and happiness and blessings to you and your family. We hope you always look upon the Sooner Nation as a place you are welcome. Tear it up and win in your next home, Keith!
Just like most of you here I hate to see Ford go not so much from the team need stand point but just because of the type of person he seems to be. He would have been a contributor in some capacity but he wouldn’t be THE guy. I think this also says volumes about Mixon’s potential as Ford may have seen himself as the #3 or 4 back if he got reinstated.
I think you’re right about Mixon, but I was sure hoping speculation about Ford transferring was wrong because I wanted to see him stay and fight his way back from suspension. With his ability he would have still been a contributor if he could get right physically and academically. None of us know all he went through after the injury. Anyway, I wish him well. Agree that whoever gets him will get a good kid.
Yeah I think Keith saw the writing on the wall.
Wish the best Mr Ford!
Amen. I hope he does well. However, Injuries or not Stoops’ running backs will not get on the field if they give the ball away. Ford started to fumble, remember Brandon Williams? Fumbler…Stoops’doghouse…real standard set in 08 when Murray and Brown et al…only fumbled twice the whole year.
Reading into what Ford said, it sounds like he may feel that he didn’t get back to his former form. Possibly mentally, possibly physically. Faced with the current competition, if he feels like he’s not yet fully back at the top of his game, it makes sense that he would look for a fresh start. At his best, I thought he had as much potential as any back on the squad, and had perhaps the best combination of different skills. If football remains in his future, I hope he returns to full form and has a great career somewhere.
Depth is relative, I think. Based upon what we’ve seen and heard, in order to run the number of plays that they would like, the coaches want to be able to rotate at least three guys, and a couple more ready to go, in case somebody goes down for a game or two. I know they remember recently, 2011 I think, when we entered the season with 6 pretty highly touted rb’s, and although the “play me or trade me attitude” had something to do with it, by the time everything played out 6 turned out not to be enough, or just barely.
Right, we have plenty of depth until Perine and Mixon get dinged up and then we will suffer from lack of depth. I hate to see Ford leave OU as I think he is a good back and we will likely miss his services during the 2015 season.
Don’t kid yourself as we needed to have Ford on the roster.