Fellas...we are officially a basketball school...

[usedtobe1]

I think one of the problems on offense tonight was Clemson knew what was coming .... or wasn't coming. (1) Trevor couldn't throw at all. That was maybe the worst passing performance I've ever seen for a power conference QB. Some of his passes were off by 20 feet and he kept throwing into double coverage. I couldn't believe they didn't give Cody Thomas a series or two in the 4th quarter. (2) They knew Knight wouldn't run on the read option because of health concerns.

That meant they could tee off on Perine because they didn't respect the pass or QB keeper.

 

[WTSooner]

You are always level-headed about the football program WT, but surely you at least think we need new coordinators...come on.

I'm not as down on JH as the OC as most. I think poor QB play is the biggest issue. And yes, I know JH recruited TK, and is his position coach.

But our offense finished the season, with below average QB play all year, as the 11th highest scoring offense in the country. And that wasn't against a piss poor schedule either. Give JH a solid QB, and I think he'd be fine. Again, I know some of that (not having a good QB) is on him as well, but strictly as an OC, I don't think he has to go. And keep in mind, that was the 11th highest scoring offense with Ford missing a bunch of games, TK missing some games, Shepard missing a bunch, and other injuries.

I think Mike is in a little over his head on D. I hope Bob can find a way to get some fresh faces and ideas on the defensive staff.

 

[WTSooner]

I like most of your picks...though Heupel should be in the GONE category. I remember how happy I was when Mike Stoops returned to the program. I'm undecided as to whether he doesn't know how to stop the spread offense or whether the talent level on defense is as thin as it has been in my 40+ years as a fan (and I haven't forgotten the Blake era).

So the OC leads the 11th best scoring offense, and he should be gone.

But the DC leads the 48th best scoring defense, and you just don't know.

There is WAY more NFL talent on the D side of the ball, than the O. By far.

 

[WTSooner]

I think Kish, Wright, and Norvell are gone. And maybe Mike. If not Mike, I hope they bring in somebody for Kish/Wright that can help Mike out with DC responsibilities. Would love the guy that was the UF DC this year, but he may be aTm bound.

I don't see why so many want Boulware gone. ST's were pretty good this year, except punt returns. And I think that was on Bob. Can't blame Boulware for Hunnicut, as most ST's coaches don't actually teach the kicking aspect.

 

[BCSooners]

It's weird how our 2 best offensive, position coaches are now under the gun. I still live norvell and heupel but I think the promotion magnified their weaknesses. Other than the d-line the defense is absolutely terrible to watch.

 

[usedtobe1]

It's weird how our 2 best offensive, position coaches are now under the gun. I still live norvell and heupel but I think the promotion magnified their weaknesses. Other than the d-line the defense is absolutely terrible to watch.

I would argue that Cale Gundy (RB) and Bill Bedenbaugh (OL) are the 2 best offensive position coaches. JMHO

It sounds like Norvell may join the new Wisconsin staff. Our receivers were knocked this year because they can't get separation.... and none of the recent recruits has done particularly well at receiver. Josh does a decent job as QB coach, but I think the additional responsibilities of Offensive Coordinator were too much for him. If/When Novell leaves, bring in an experienced OC and let Heupel concentrate on the QB's. Again, JMHO.

 

[stormspencer]

I'm not as down on JH as the OC as most. I think poor QB play is the biggest issue. And yes, I know JH recruited TK, and is his position coach.

But our offense finished the season, with below average QB play all year, as the 11th highest scoring offense in the country. And that wasn't against a piss poor schedule either. Give JH a solid QB, and I think he'd be fine. Again, I know some of that (not having a good QB) is on him as well, but strictly as an OC, I don't think he has to go. And keep in mind, that was the 11th highest scoring offense with Ford missing a bunch of games, TK missing some games, Shepard missing a bunch, and other injuries.

I think Mike is in a little over his head on D. I hope Bob can find a way to get some fresh faces and ideas on the defensive staff.

Very well said. I think if they had more of a pro-style QB that is accurate, then Heupel would be much more in his comfort zone. We will see what Baker Mayfield can do.

Agree 110% on Mike....he needs to be gone. The act of screaming at your players gets old....especially when you have a poor defensive scheme that isolates and exploits the weakest part of your defensive unit (your secondary).

 

[DenverSooner]

Bob Stoops ass needs to go.

Silly.

I think we are a softball school.

Thevdefense was horrible this season. The wasted timeouts on offense were unacceptable.

 

[campbest]

This is the best result an OU fan could ask for...even better than beating Alabama.

 

[MenderofRoads]

The Big 12 is a basketball conference. It's not just OU.

Big 12 football for the most part is mediocre at best.

 

[WaymanFan]

So the OC leads the 11th best scoring offense, and he should be gone.

But the DC leads the 48th best scoring defense, and you just don't know.

There is WAY more NFL talent on the D side of the ball, than the O. By far.

It's not rocket science. I'm undecided on Mike simply because he was arguably the best defensive coordinator in all of college football when he left after the 2003 season. In other words, he has a track record of proving he knows what he's doing. I just don't know whether he is out of touch with today's offenses.

As for Heupel, I was with a bunch of OU fans at sports bars several times this season. We were laughing at how easy it was to predict his play-calling. His offense was rated high because there are good players to choose from thanks to the recruiting of Cale Gundy.

More NFL talent on defense than offense? Where are you getting that from? I don't see a single future NFL defensive starter on defense. Not one. Striker and Phillips are NFL backups and no one else even sniffs the league. On offense, Perine is all but a lock as a 1st round draft pick. I think Sheppard is an NFL starter as well. On the line, Thompson and Williams are at least good reserves.

 

[jerry]

The Big 12 is a basketball conference. It's not just OU.

Big 12 football for the most part is mediocre at best.

Sure looked like it yesterday.

 

[MenderofRoads]

It's not rocket science. I'm undecided on Mike simply because he was arguably the best defensive coordinator in all of college football when he left after the 2003 season. In other words, he has a track record of proving he knows what he's doing. I just don't know whether he is out of touch with today's offenses.

As for Heupel, I was with a bunch of OU fans at sports bars several times this season. We were laughing at how easy it was to predict his play-calling. His offense was rated high because there are good players to choose from thanks to the recruiting of Cale Gundy.

More NFL talent on defense than offense? Where are you getting that from? I don't see a single future NFL defensive starter on defense. Not one. Striker and Phillips are NFL backups and no one else even sniffs the league. On offense, Perine is all but a lock as a 1st round draft pick. I think Sheppard is an NFL starter as well. On the line, Thompson and Williams are at least good reserves.

Crazy to think how much offenses have evolved since 2003.

I'm sure similar evolutions have taken place in just about any 10-year span, but we barely had anything resembling a modern spread offenses in 2003. The read-option was a novelty used by a handful of coaches (Rich Rod, Urban, Pinkel, etc). Now it's in virtually every playbook. The pass-happy version of the spread employed by guys like Leach have also become commonplace. He was a mad scientist in 2003. Now he's just another guy coaching a spread offense.

 

[SoonerNorm]

Heupel is responsible for Knight being recruited and starting. If for no other reason, he should be fired for that alone. I think Knight is an outstanding young man and I wish him nothing but the best but he is NOT a D-1 quarterback. Period. Apparently Heupel doesn't get that which tells me he cannot evaluate talent. If the best QB on the roster is Knight, and apparently he is, Heupel needs to lose his job so he go help some other team lose.

 

[thebigabd]

Bob Stoops,

Please go back to running the Mike Leach Air Raid system.

Would it really be so bad, even with average players, to go out there and average about 500-550 yards per game (like Washington State and Cal do with bad players)?

Would it really be so bad to go recruit some QB who will, on occasion, throw for 600+ yards in a single game like Leach and Dykes QB's do every season?

You won a national championship with this system... go build a good defense and the Leach system will put plenty of points on the board.

Thank you.

 

[garyeb2]

Heupel is responsible for Knight being recruited and starting. If for no other reason, he should be fired for that alone. I think Knight is an outstanding young man and I wish him nothing but the best but he is NOT a D-1 quarterback. Period. Apparently Heupel doesn't get that which tells me he cannot evaluate talent. If the best QB on the roster is Knight, and apparently he is, Heupel needs to lose his job so he go help some other team lose.

You are right. But, it actually started with the recruitment and development of Blake Bell. They thought Bell was going to be their man. By the time it dawned on them Bell couldn't pack the mail to Little Rock, Trevor was the plug in to try to salvage the position. Another mistake.

Heupel has to go. He is the living embodiment of the Peter Principal.

 

[SoonerTraveler]

Just as an aside, Josh Heupel is connected. He was promoted fast and may be hard to fire. It will be interesting to see what happens.

David Boren's son, Dan Boren, represented Oklahoma's 2nd Congressional District for four terms (January 3, 2005 – January 3, 2013). Dan Boren is married to Andrea Heupel, who is the sister of Josh Heupel, the starting Quarterback who led the Oklahoma Sooners to win the 2000 BCS National Championship, and who currently serves as the University of Oklahoma's co-offensive coordinator. Dan and Andrea live in Muskogee. Dan and Andrea have a daughter, Janna Lou, born on October 9, 2007, and a son, Hunter Daniel, born September 23, 2010.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Boren

**********

As another aside, those that are politically connected are able to land good, high paying positions (e.g., president of corporate development with the Chickasaw Nation).

http://www.newson6.com/story/188254...orate-development-job-when-he-leaves-congress

 

[bgrch1350]

Heupel is responsible for Knight being recruited and starting. If for no other reason, he should be fired for that alone. I think Knight is an outstanding young man and I wish him nothing but the best but he is NOT a D-1 quarterback. Period. Apparently Heupel doesn't get that which tells me he cannot evaluate talent. If the best QB on the roster is Knight, and apparently he is, Heupel needs to lose his job so he go help some other team lose.

You can't take the better of the qbs from last year and move him to tight end. Knight had one game. That's it.
Knight pretending to be Manziel on the scout team and it gave the coaches false hope. They chose him over Bell for that specific reason. Bell wasn't all world but he was better than knight. He proved it in several games last year.

This season was over as soon as Bell went to tight end and Thompson went to Utah. No qb competition and no backup. Knight would have lost the starting job a long time ago had anyone of those would have been on this roster or mayfield was eligible.

As for mike stoops, I'm not that critical of him yet. He had a young squad. It's not his fault that 3 guys missed those tackles on the first play. The guys were right there. And he can't help the offense put more then 6 points on the board. The offense puts our defense in bad situations over and over again. Turnover after turnover and 3 and outs all the time. A young defense cannot be on the field all game.

 

[SoonerTraveler]

.....

As for mike stoops, I'm not that critical of him yet. He had a young squad. It's not his fault that 3 guys missed those tackles on the first play.

That play set the tone for the game. It seems to me that really good defensive coaches recruit and train players to tackle. Tackling, after all, is the most basic part of defense.

 

[allday92]

OK, since this is already a football thread, what coaches do you think will be replaced? Here's my guess.

Return:
Montgomery
Bedenbaugh
Gundy
M Stoops - should be gone, but Bob won't do it
Schmidt

Gone:
Kish
Wright
Boulware

Maybe:
Heupel - might be retained as QB coach but need an experienced OC so in effect he should be demoted as a minimum
Norvell - might leave on his own. That's my guess.

What's your guess? I figure this board can be more objective than the other football boards. They're on fire now.

I agree for the most part. Boulware should stay - Hunnicutt is a decent kicker just mentally weak. If he misses his first field goal, he won't make another for that game.

Norvell needs to leave, our WRs outside of Shepard haven't developed. There is a lot of talent there, but no playmaking ability.

Bob needs to take a long look at who is in charge of scouting/recruiting, because the talent that OU is normally used to having, just isn't here anymore.

Additionally, some of this has to be on the players. Throughout the season, you don't see any emotion on the sidelines, any leadership, or any pride.