Resetting OU’s 2015 Big Board
Posted on: January 26, 2015
Image of Arthur McGinnis via 247 Sports
Had a couple of requests for something like this to just kind of summarize OU’s remaining targets in this 2015 class, and that was before the *insert your own adjective of choice here* that was Sunday night.
The coaches have about a week and a half until NSD, but a little less than a week before another dead period starts in the lead up to Feb. 4th. So there’s obviously a chance they could reach back out to some kids they haven’t been actively recruiting in an effort to try and fill this class, but that’s not a lot of time to re-establish relationships. And even less time to get a kid on campus with this coming weekend being the last chance to do so before next Wednesday. If NSD were today, the names you’ll see listed below — with no guarantee any actual sign with OU — almost assuredly would not be enough for a full class. So you’re looking at the very real possibility of OU having unused scholarships next year.
So there’s a chance we see a new(ish) name or two pop up on the radar in the coming days, but as of right now this is where things currently stand.
* OT Pat Allen (Reisterstown, MD) – This has been somewhat of an off-and-on deal between the big offensive tackle and OU. But the Sooners are definitely back in this thanks to the continued efforts put in by Bill Bedenbaugh & Bob Stoops.
* DT Darrion Daniels (Dallas, TX) – Very little out there in the way of information, at least that I’ve seen/heard, especially for a kid who is expected to announce his commitment in the next day or two. But OU’s Jerry Montgomery has developed a strong relationship with the Bishop Dunne product, so you have to believe the Sooners have at least a puncher’s chance here.
* DT Du’Vonta Lampkin (Houston, TX) – It has been speculated/rumored that Lampkin could pull a Signing Day flip and cross the Red River for a second time. But coming out of a visit to Austin this past weekend, if you take Lampkin’s comments at face value the chances of said flip possibilities seem much less likely.
* LB Arthur McGinnis (New Orleans, LA) – OU’s lone remaining LB target which only further increases the importance of landing him. Very difficult kid to get a good read on, but hoping to get a much better sense of things if he makes the planned visit to Norman this weekend as is expected.
* WR Dominique Reed (Coffeyville, KS) – After missing out on 2015 WR Van Jefferson, OU will now shift all of their focus to the JUCO receiver who is coming off a visit to Austin over the weekend. Rest assured former OU assistant Jay Norvell is doing everything he can to land the big-bodied wide out.
* OL Josh Wariboko (Oklahoma City, OK) – At this point, you all know the deal here. He has continued to say tOSU is out in front, but the sentiment from many is that ultimately OU will win out. But this thing has shifted so many times since he decommitted, I’m not sure how anyone could feel confident in a prediction as to what he decides to do on NSD.
Alright, there you have it. If there’s a name you expected to see and don’t, there’s a reason I didn’t include them. Now I could easily be wrong and OU pulls a rabbit or two out of their hat, but right now I think this list represents those they have a realistic chance with.
I can’t tell you whether this next week and a half will be good for the program, bad, or somewhere in between, but I feel confident in saying it will be interesting.
128 Comments
Is Josh Smith a no go now? Heard he may be there this weekend with McGinnis.
Thought I read he had a schedule OV at Oregon this weekend.
Smith eliminated ou last week.
Well everything has been so wishy washy with everyone so I don’t know and still don’t.
K will have more on this in today’s OP
Pitiful if you ask me, having no one come last weekend is unacceptable and if no one comes this weekend it will be even worse. If OU still has some spots open don’t just give them to anyone use them next year. It’s hard to get recruits with no WR, DB and a lame duck LB coach!!!
Mike Hughes? Anything on him?
I hope whoever the coaches are that Stoops is keeping quiet and not announcing are worth it because its probably costing us on the recruiting trail.
Agree and probably ammo for some negative recruiting down the stretch.
yep, probably alot of it this past weekend @ old pi$$!!
I was thinking the same.
The only thing I can try and grasp is that they’re going to 4-2-5 multiple defense and plan on recruiting bigger safties that can put muscle on and use them as nickel backs or they are just absolutely confident the RS FR and SO are more that ready for the speed of the game.
Yeah but its not like they are not offering linebackers, Plenty of offers and we are 1 for 20 in landing them
Gundy & Riley were getting on a plane about an hour ago, Wonder where they are headed. Probably a 2016 guy since there isnt much left for 2015
I hope to go see Mike Hughes
Wake me up in August….
Not going to lie, I could care less about anyone on that list that’s not a LB.
I sincerely hope Kish gets his walking papers if we are short of 2-3 solid Linebackers after next week. It’s 10 days to NSD and we are 1 of 20 LB on offers, losing out targets to anyone with a pulse.
On the other site, poster is claiming that OU has a shot at LB Houston out of California. He has stated that OU is putting on a full court press with all coaches and resources and Houston really likes OU. He also states that the pressure to stay in California is significant. This poster has sources….
Until they’ve signed that LOI…https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMRrNY0pxfM
Wish OU luck but im not gonna hold my breath. Couldn’t close the deal with Wheeler,Jefferson,Townsend,Smith, Kirkland Etc. Houston thought by many to be the best LB in this class
I’m aware of what’s out there re: Houston, I just don’t happen to buy any of it. At this point, why would I believe Kish could land a five star LB?
Would LOVE to be wrong and I hope that I am, but until it actually happens I’m going w/ the consensus of virtually everyone non-OU centric who are saying he’s a near lock to land at USC.
Dude, what if… Just what if.. Kish closed with both McGinnis & Houston.. ? This and every OU message may actually have a bigger meltdown if Kish got those guys than if we didn’t…
Boy. . . . .lot of IF’s in that comment. And so far the words IF and KISH don’t blend well.
Mike Hughes. a Lincoln Riley prospect and one he followed soon after his announcement as OU OC. Watch his HUDL highlights, not just 5 or 6 standout plays, more like 25-30. He’s lightening in a bottle, could be a dynamite RZ QB, SRCVR, CB (with great hands). When in doubt, get former QBs who have handled the bal. They are often the best athlete on a team, and the same selection method Patterson/TCU has used over and over. Have you guys done anything on this guy?
saw somewhere that Hughes is a legit speed guy….Won’t player QB but more like a slot type player
I would very much LOVE to have this guy. But I am not seeing where any interest has been indicated on his part. This is a NC kid committed to UNC never having visited OU, I just don’t see how people are reading into him coming here. I would love to be wrong here.
I’m gonna need something a little more tangible than a Twitter follow.
Jordan, is there any, any any any chance they still have contact with Tulsa commit McKinley Whitfield from Spiro? Thought they should have offered him BEFORE all the wheels came off.
Pretty unlikely at this point.
Kinda what I figured, but he would be a good player to have as he could play several positions.
Demetric Warren made a random pick for Mike Hughes and OU. Shortly after Hughes delayed his early enrollment at UNC, and Riley recruited him while at ECU.
That’s the connection
I’m aware of the connection. K had a big write up on it in an OP last week or so. But far as I can tell, the kid doesn’t even have an OU offer. So I’m supposed to a kid w/o an OU offer in hand b/c Riley followed him on Twitter and one guy (whose opinion I respect and IMO is right much more than he’s wrong, but is still just one guy) made a Crystal Ball prediction?
Look, I’m not trying to be a dick. I’m just trying to explain the ‘why’ behind my reasoning and while I’m obv biased, I think it’s pretty sound at least w/ respect to how things stand right now.
Oh I see your point. Just pointing out the connection.
Also, his highlights look great and since Warren is a respectable voice it’s a source for optimism. Plus OU always gets a “random” commit and people thought Hughes could be that guy
Certainly could be, but it’d be hard w/o an offer. If that changes, then I’d definitely reassess things but until then…
JMO but don’t think OU has a snowball’s chance in **** of turning Hughes and , outside of his apparent quickness, don’t know he is big enough to be a factor for OU . sorta reminds one of Daniel brooks, sizewise…..
Got a link to film?
Here you go….http://www.hudl.com/athlete/3278122/mike-hughes
I predict we go 0 for 6 from that list.
McGinnis the only LB–what happened to Cali LB?
It’s just that he’s a long shot and highly ranked kids from his school rarely leave LA
The is also a bigtime Cali LB recruit we are in on who is a 2016 recruit. So you might be confused as well.
IMO, he’s a lock to USC
After recent events, I pretty much feel embarrassed as an OU fan right now. I have zero excitement going into NSD. I expect no surprises. And I actually expect us to lose someone big, like DeBerry, either on or just before NSD. I know I sound very “negative Nancy/sky is falling”, but I have not seen any positive signs to steer me otherwise. We have no momentum on or off the field, and our coaching situation is still very much in flux. 2015 could be VERY rough for us.
We are not losing Deberry. I see where you are coming from, but because of how OU recruits, we don’t usually see much attrition. If anything, NSD has been surprising especially last year landing Zeus and Frison. Looking forward to getting the names rolling with the BOOMs
Embarrassed? Crack me up!!
Bama has no mo either, but they are happy with their class so far. Chin up soldier, this is still OU. Check Rivals OU is only 1 point behind the 8th best class according to star average. We’re getting players.
“…this is still OU.” While true, many powerful empires have crumbled under the same sentiment.
True. However, new coaches are being put in place. This is exciting times.
It is. I cannot look past the necrotic blemish that is still on the D side though; Kish and Mike. Right now I feel like Bob is trying to polish a turd. You know what happens when you polish a turd? You get sh*t on your hands.
It be more exciting with coaches I am familiar with…Fans gotta see to believe…Can’t just retread old players or staff so why retread old offenses or defenses? Try something new when what all else you have tried would & could be considered failure….Go to blitz heavy scheme I think you need 4.4 guys to do it. We don’t have great cover guys anyhow no matter how good people say sanchez is..Then on offense run what other people are not. Everyone in the damn big 12 is running spread principles..Go to something they are not seeing every week. It is a gamble, nothing is a sure thing but playing it safe is why were paying a 5 million dollars for a 1 million dollar return….
OU waiting till Dwaine Thomas comitted to aTm before offering him pretty much sums up the train wreck that was our LB recruiting this year.
…Kish.
Keep Kish!
Pull the plug on the server, shut down the site, line up the bulldozers outside the stadium, OU is done with football, first time ever we can’t even put a team on the turf. ///////
I see what you did there……:)
The good news is the recruits we currently have are quality guys. It would be nice to finish with about 4 or 5 more 4 star guys but I don’t see that happening. I’m not sure why we aren’t working Townsend or wheeler since Texas still has a numbers problem at LB imo
I’m sure the coaches are busting their butts on everyone they have a good feeling about. I like what we have so far and we may add a few here at the end. There are players every year that turn out to be productive who for some reason didn’t get thrown into the high star game, we just need to find a couple of those.
I’m ok with saving one or 2 scholarships for the “what if” and one of those being Overton. But also maybe there’s a late transfer like in the past that gets approved for immediate playing time.
both townsend & wheeler WANT to be at Texas and WANT to fight for playing time with a coaching staff they WANT to play for and think will make them better players……both have had over a year to buy into and drink the koolaid from Norman….both preferred Texas tea .
It feels like we don’t have a identity on defense right now. With last years failures and as of today MStoops and Monty being Co Dc’s how is this going to work. I know they tell recruits more of their plan. But it seems like we just missing something.
I mean if we’re including Lampkin & Allen as possibilities late.. Then, no doubt, Houston & Hughes should be in the mix as well… I’d be happy if we got 2 of the guys listed..
K has more on Allen that he and I have discussed that led me to include Allen. And there is some stuff re: Lampkin that led to him being included as well. You’re probably right in that there’s at least an argument to be made re: Houston, but I’m just not convinced he’s going anywhere other than USC.
Been awhile since I posted but I can’t resist anymore. No disrespect to any of the fine players on this list but I don’t care. At this point I care about the 1 and 2 star guys from small schools who are ballers. Any school can offer the 4 and 5 star guys but finding the hidden guys who are out there is where recruiting really is a skill. Look at the number of 2 star guys playing in the pro bowl. OU has done some of this already by bringing in the kid Sims as a preferred walk on. He has a chance to be special.
That would be great if we were truly developing players. We’re not.
Don’t get the point. We cannot base whether or not OU is developing players or not on one season. Lane Johnson was he developed? 1st rounder. If you are talking about LB, possibly, but other posters here have argued that Kish is a good coach.
And some people will argue that Hitler was a good guy, just misunderstood. NOT TO COMPARE THE TWO MEN! Just saying anything can happen.
Anyone who expected a strong finish like last year was dreaming. Last year we were coming off the momentum of a huge Sugar Bowl win over the best team in he country. This year we finished with an absolute thud. I really don’t understand how any of you could have expected much better than we’ve got.
The other side of this is we aren’t carrying momentum into the 2016 class yet. hopefully the junior days work out better this year
Those are right around the corner. Hopefully our complete staff is in place by that time.
Do you know when the JR days are? Feb right?
John Houston looks like he is done with official visits. B. Stoops & Kish visited him on Jan. 22nd. Maybe BS could just move in with him till NSD.
…Kish…wish I could accurately depict in text the way I spit his name in speech.
He could pull a Switzer and hide him out until NSD.
How about Jalin Barnett and patterson out of lawton
Barnett –> Nebraska. Patterson = Test scores. Too high, too quick.
Both those ships have sailed
Absolute total cluster* is the only description of the OU recruiting efforts this past weekend which seem to fit the outcome. First, not a single visitor, and then whiffing on three, or was it four, recruits? I guess no one wanted to interrupt the quiet, family weekend…Part of holding up your end of the bargain if you are a highly paid employee is to sell your business’s product or service. It appears we have at least 2 non-performers on the staff, and guess what, those sectors are the worst performing parts of the team.
Watch out GreginDestin, the Sunshine Pumpers (SP’s) will pile up on you for seeing things that are obvious. In 9 days they will have the complete set of solar panels out there telling us we have a top 10 class as usual. NOT When you have only 5 or 6 coaches out of 10 that look like they are busting their butts to help get us back on track, it’s TOUGH going. Hellsbells, we have a GA recruiting for us. PITIFUL
The alternative was keeping JN. There had to be changes. No WR coach because you have to get the right fit with LR. Things are always bumpy before they get smooth. OU switched to the wishbone in 1970, 7-4 record. Be patient. This class is ranked at 3.58 stars that average is good for 9th best in the nation according to Rivals. This is a work in progress. And no, there is no room for chicken littles on my Sooner roster.
And that average doesn’t include Overton who if he gets qualified by summer, will end up signing then. I won’t disagree with any valid criticism of the outlook being ugly for the next 10 days. It doesn’t look good to me and I’m probably one of the more optimistic guys on here. To me McGinnis is the most important guy left and if we don’t land him then imo we failed to close strong.
I doubt if we take Overton in the end. He never played up to his rating. In the Semper Fi game, he hardly got to play based on his week of practice. And when he did play, his name was never called. And the Sempervivum Fi talent was very weak compared to the other two all-star games.
I sorta feel like Norvell was let go, because of Heuples problems as much as anything. However, we’ve recruited WR’s about as good as any position we have, and the production and ability to get open was not happening. I wish we’d have kept Norvell, but demoted him to just a position coach. If Bob-o hadn’t demoted him, it would have been harder to hire Riley as a Co off coord I think.
Duh! That’s all he was was a position coach. He was a Co-Coordinator just as much as Monty will be a Co-Coordinator. Title only. He was fired because our WR’s weren’t developing or performing worth a crap!
LMAO!!!!
Besides Houston and McGinnis, are there any LB’s OU might contact or offer between now and next week?
Love this site. But for a little perspective here. Since BS arrived OU’s highest recruiting average per stars was 3.9. The lowest last year 3.1 and the previous 3.2. This year OU is at 3.58 this is right at BS overall average for his career. 3.5. Being a long time OU fan, the only issue I have is with the 1 for 20 whiff on LB recruiting. Other than that, this class meets or exceeds BS average. Let’s get a grip here.
“…meets or exceeds BS average.” You have no idea the delicious pun you’ve just given us! LMAO…bwahahahaha!
True. But deal with the facts.
What facts? The numbers based on human opinion of a 17-18 year old kid? Those numbers are as flawed as the humans who draft them. If they were accurate, the K-State’s of the world would never beat the OU’s of the world…simply based on the “facts”.
The FACT is that Baylor, TCU and K-State are whipping OU regularly with VASTLY lower recruiting rankings. Those numbers are not facts. The facts are what happens between the lines. That’s what I care about.
Easy! Easy! Don’t throw yourself off that cliff! We need your perspective on here just like all the others! 🙂
I don’t think I ever intimated being on the edge of a cliff. Just tired of subjective numbers being touted as facts is all.
Whipping OU regularly? So twice is regularly? I need assistance in how many of you people think on here. You overreact to every little thing
Biggest bunch of whining babies that I’ve ever seen.
seriously. my sister in law works in newborn intensive care and she ain’t never heard this much crying
Name calling? Good work!
Well…the last three years has been pretty regular. Debating decades or even total history is pointless. It’s a “what have you done for me lately?” era. I understand that facing this statement is a tough pill to swallow, but it is a fair assertion.
is it? i think baylor has whipped us the last couple times. other than that we’ve just gotten beat. i hope you’re not one of those that thinks losing to the new and improved(yet its still) baylor or losing recruits to a&m corpus christi are 2 of the worst things that could ever happen in life
I don’t always agree with Chief but when I do….https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8nt94LCyqY
Chief I have seen this team not even lined up right to defend the play and they see this same spread offense in practice everyday. Busts all over the place with backs & WR’s running free?LOL Stoops really can’t make fun of the Blake years anymore….
Facts? TCU has beaten OU once since entering the Big 12 and we led that game in the 4th until the Qb went brain dead. Yes, KSt has won two of three. Again Qb brain dead Bell fumbling near own goal line and Knight pick six. Baylor has clearly been better. The facts are that you are wringing your hands over recruiting woes and I say this is premature on your part. The facts are that OU is meeting or exceeding what they’ve done in recruiting since Coach Stoops took over. Those facts.
What a great idea. Next year let’s sign 1 Friggen 5 star kid and nobody else. At least our average will be number 1 !!!!! Yeah, great idea.
Please stop with the logical fallacies.
It’s amazing to me, that after everything we have accomplished in Stoops’ tenure and everything this program already was, we are still going to have to beat Tennessee this year to still look attractive. Tennessee? Are you kidding me? Tennessee hasn’t done sh!t in decades. Plural. Tennessee and Georgia are some over the worst SEC chest thumping offenders. OU should be embarrassed to lose NC’s but it’s a crowning achievement to win the gauntlet that is the SEC East? Missouri already has two east titles.
Go back 30 years 1984, since then Georgia has won the SEC twice. Tennessee has a resounding five. Last time 1998. We can all agree we’ve had quite a bit of success since 1998. There are 4 football programs in the SEC. The rest just like football.
4 is better than what we have in the big whatever, but conference affiliation should mean very little.
When is the last time you talked with teens? Most of them know only what THEY have seen. Many are also smitten with the program glitz. More and better recruiters will help. Bob Stoops may be a good coach, but he’s not the charismatic type, and Norman is not Austin, beachfront, etc…but it is a real college town. Even NE has the mystique of the “Blackshirts”. Might be time for Bob & staff to create some new traditions. The stadium renovation is a terrific start, so is Headington.
Think about this:
These high school recruits were 4 years old when OU last won a NC.
It’s the ‘what have you done lately’ scenario.
Can’t live in the glorious past anymore…
The OU football program from top to bottom better get it together …and soon.
Then why is Ole Miss cleaning house and A&M. Neither have even won their conference division since these kids parents were born. It’s about relationships, availability and being a salesman. Monty and Billy B both are showing that. Winning does help but there are plenty of schools wrecking shop with no recent or past success. The Vols are another example
Agree…
My point is just that.
Stoops/Adm better get in the game.
Bingo!!Soonerb.You have to keep changing and molding your staff and schemes to impress recruits and stay up with other programs.Right now Bob & OU have been spinning their wheels now for abot 5-6 years,trying to figure out what to do..
So, I’m been sitting here watching things unfold on this site. There seems to be two camps:
1. Those who are intent on holding it together who believe OU can still get it done (affectionately named: sun pumpers).
2. Those who believe the program is in shambles and the end is near ( who have been tagged Debbie downers/wet rags)
For the record, I’m in camp number one. I’m always optimistic. That’s what works for me in my personal and professional life. If it’s too negative for my taste, I will rarely post. It makes little to no sense to try and reason with anyone who is, figuratively speaking, covering their ears. I’m too practical: If you don’t want to hear what I have to say, I will stop speaking.
Because I’m in camp 1 does not mean I’m not a realist. I am very much aware that things could have gone better this year. Yes, I’m aware we missed out on some recruits. I’m aware the OU was 8-5 and, while disappointing, is not bad. The team kept playing hard. I saw effort. As for recruiting, we have some damn good kids who will be coming to OU. That’s good, right?
But, we all have our right to speak, respectfully, as we please. I post what I believe. Others post what they believe. We all believe what we believe. From my observations, some of us are determined to get other to believe what we believe, even when it’s evident you’re trying to convince someone in the opposite camp. I’m as guilty as anyone. Some fellow posters have cordially brought that to my attention.
Now that I’ve spoken to our differences, allow me to speak to where we are similar, what we have in common.
1. We are OU fans.
2. We want OU to win (games and recruiting)
3. We do not want this site to become like other OU sites.
4. We all love the work Jordan, JY, and K put into getting us information.
There is no right or wrong. We’re just having a discussion. A good conversation allows for good dialogue. If we speak long enough, something we’ve said to one another will stick with the other, just like fibers from a tennis ball on a racquet.
Civility. We can disagree and still be civil.
One suggestion I would make to people on the site: don’t rip the players. They aren’t making a cool $5M a year. They are working hard to achieve their dream. If you think they aren’t cutting it, something like “he isn’t playing at the level we need to be successful” is a reasonable statement. “He’s an idiot and couldn’t cover my mom who is in a wheelchair” is over the top. And I’ve seen too many of that kind of comment here. We don’t need to run down players who are playing their hearts out.
The coaches are in a different category. They ARE being paid, and I think it is fair to criticize them. Something like “JH has no clue how to run the zone read” seems fair. But we can still treat them respectfully: we don’t need to call names and some of the other things I’ve seen on this site. Here’s an example I think is over the top: when JH got the job at Utah State, posters were ripping him and saying how he was going to mess them up. C’mon, the guy is gone … wish him well. He was trying hard, and maybe he didn’t cut it. But that’s no excuse for the meanness that I hear from some on this site.
“Do unto others” is a pretty good standard for remarks you make here.
I’m in the camp (#1.5) where it is never as good as it seems, nor is it as bad as it seems. We have a lot of talent already on the team, and the players that are strong in their intent to sign with us are good players too. We have some gaps we need to fill of course, but Bob and Company are working hard to do so. Let’s have some faith in their abilities to close on the remaining deals. They have real skin in this game and want to do the absolute best they can. BTW – I don’t like to post derogatory messages on anyone, coaches, players, or fans. Or read those kind of posts either.
SamSooner, I agree with lots of what you’re saying. 99% of the time, I’m an OU homer of the biggest magnitude. But, in the last year I’ve seen my beloved Sooners DROP, and so I’ve been labeled a Debbie Downer. But, let’s get in the “DeLorean” and go back to 2008 in what I consider great years. No, we didn’t win a NC, but we were regularly winning conference championships. If 7 years ago, we were reading a paper and watching games in the “FUTURE” and saw that we were 8-5, hadn’t won an outright conf championship in 6 years, let alone a NC, had the worst WR’s in the conf, the worst LB ‘s in the conf, a QB that COULDN’T start for any other school in the conf, lose a QB recruit out of Texas to Fresno State, lose 2 coveted WR’s to Old Miss, lose ANY recruits to Baylor, or Tech, lose 3 HOME games in ONE season, get embarrassed twice on national TV in 1 year, have the worst recruiting class in 16 years, have a coaching staff in a state of disarray, facilities that have not been updated or improved since ALL the other teams in conference have, have a great need for a position player, and we fail to offer the kid until he’s ALREADY committed to another team, have a grad assistant on the recruiting trail, fail to even bring kids in on official visits 10 days before national signing day, and pay a D-coord $890,000 per year for a defense that couldn’t stop Jenks!. But. . . . .we do have our national merit scholars! Yes, I love the Sooners, but I want this leaking boat fixed. From Boren all the way down to the student managers. And I think anybody that loves them, that is what they want too. Ask yourself, if you read this “future paper” 7 years ago, would you be “SATISFIED” or think everything is ok? I’m betting that you’d about puke, just like al lot of us Sooner lovers, called Debbie Downers are doing. Come on OU, lets get this thing righted.
Okie, I get it. I agree. It’s frustrating.
But ask yourself, is moaning and complaining made it any better? Has it made you feel any better?
I appreciate your perspective. I appreciate that you read my post. You make some good points.
If I may project and assume you’re measuring success by wins and losses (games and recruits). That’s hard to debate. You win. But for me, it’s not that absolute: wins are sometimes close losses and losses are sometime close wins. What makes it palatable to me is evaluating all aspects. It’s the Wright Brothers who kept at it, despite the many crashes. Eventually, success.
Now, as you’ve asked, let’s go back to the past in order to come back to the future. It’s 2008. Things play out as you’ve listed them with one small change: OU wins championships, avoid three home losses in one season, don’t get embarrassed twice on national TV. They do this with a sub-par QB Would that change your perspective of the team?
One last thing: if you were an OU coach, would you want to read some of the negative stuff that’s being said about you? How would that make you feel?
SamSooner, if all you read is positive things about the job that you have done what does that do for you? Sure, these coaches know they have fallen short of where we need to be. But if the only thing coaches hear in the media/posts is what a wonderful job they are doing and how this was just a blip on the radar, why ever push and get better.
Do you think Josh Heupel would still be here if the fans didn’t voice their displeasure? Absolutely not. Does ranting make anyone feel better? Probably not. But what about OKRandolphs post in inaccurate in any way. Point by point he was correct. It may not be fun to read/hear, but it is true. ALL OF IT.
Ultimately fans pay Stoops’ salary. We don’t watch the games, we don’t buy tickets and apparel, the football program suffers as do the salaries of the coaches. Hearing that your base is pissed, lets you know your livelihood is in jeopardy. As long as the posts are factual and not slanderous, have at it. Tell the coaches what you think.
The simple thought that we may not actually be able to fill a class at the University of Oklahoma is sickening. It is a testament to how bad things have gotten. Recruits are staying away from this dumpster fire, because that’s what they see right now a dumpster fire!
Did you read my entire post?
Some of the things I read are outlandish. It’s almost like what’s going on with OU is a reflection of them.
If anyone is that intent on being miserable, then by all means, be miserable. I’m not having any miserable, whoever wants it can have it.
While most of your points are well taken, you claim this years is the worse recruiting class in Bob’s tenure. Simply a false statement. Go check the history of the rankings.
Jordan, any word on A.D. Miller?
Again how do we expect to do great anyway? We have no WR coach, no DB coach, and a lame duck LB coach that is waiting to be let go. It’s a wonder we have what we have. What we in reality need to start doing is eliminating all the SEC schools from the rankings and then seeing where we stand. Probably have a top five class!!! (Sarcasm)
of those mentioned by esco , MAYBE —maybe OU gets daniels. I don’t think they sign any of the others…OU will have some scholarships left over and should follow KST’s policy of rewarding walkons who display some developmental skills and show some love for and loyalty to the university….IF———IF OU doesn’t suffer several decommits, looks like a class of 20…
Oh yea, let’s burn our ability to sign more top flight players later. Brilliant.
Just not getting them like they used to. Putting thall their eggs in one basket. Top 10 teams loaded with 5star, 4 star, and a few 3star. Sure you can coach up talent but, you still need next level talent.
Cant even fill a class, while tenn has what, 60 commits over the last 2 years.
Frustration abounds.
What’s the latest on Overton?
This class is effectively a bad one for the linebacker position. DeBerry keeps it from being a total bust, but unless McGinnis ends up at OU, it’s pretty ugly. However, the remaining class is actually pretty good and one of the better ones we’ve had recently. It won’t be the first time we’ve not used every scholarship available, and it probably won’t be the last. I just don’t think the entire class should be discounted because we failed to land the LBs we needed.
Another LB OU should be offering but isn’t.
Nathan Fox
My eight year old nephews hands were laced together on the back of his head as he watched Tyreek Hill streak towards the South End Zone. He turned around, tears streaming down his face expecting his father, or me to offer some explanation as to what had just happened. Neither of us could. Just two short weeks before my wife and I, having seen the weather forecasts, decided to let him and his dad have our tickets to the rain soaked KU game, his first home game, he wouldn’t let his father take him home at half-time. We all know what he witnessed that day, as #32 tore it up and established yet another unforgettable SOONER memory. Later, during one of our talks I tried to explain to him that in his time he would see a lot of great SOONER football games, that he would see more wins than losses, and that some of the wins would be glorious and some of the losses heartbreaking, even devastating. I doubt the I got through to him, time will though. I thought back to 1971, Thanksgiving day, I decided to go to my first OU football game. I was still reeling from a tour with a Marine Corps rifle company in Vietnam, didn’t feel like going home, had nothing better to do, not a huge OU fan…yet. I watched Johnny Rodgers field the punt and streak towards the South End Zone. That one play created something in me that I’ve cherished ever since, a deep and never ending love for SOONER football. We all know what happened, I’m sure I stood with my hands laced together on the back of my head more than once that day, wondering what had just happened. OU football is bigger that any of us, bigger than any one recruit, any one coach, and one player. The program will have it’s ups and downs, but like I told my nephew, more ups than downs. Stay tuned, BOOMER!
Well said. SOONER!!!
Agree!!