The cold hard truth

[WichitaSooner]

This team/program is in trouble. For all the folks who wanted Lon to retire or be pushed out … how do you feel now? So many of you felt like making the tournament every year should be a given at OU and that the potential was there for so much more. Moser will miss the tourney as many times in two seasons as Lon did in a decade.

What, exactly, is our identity? We are good but not great defensively, play ugly offense, make tons of mistakes at critical moments, and are the least athletic team in the league.

We just lost a home game in which we went on a 20-0 run. How is that even possible?

I guess some of you will say this game shows we are right on the verge because it was close, but that reminds me of the delusional people who claim the football team was close to winning 10 games.

As for Moser, the more I watch him, the more he reminds me of Bruce Weber. He paces frantically, smashes or throws his clipboard two or three times a game, but seems incapable of fixing the problems. And I don’t want to hear that he “needs time.” This roster is entirely his, except for Hill. Iowa State didn’t need time last year with a new coach who inherited a team that went winless in conference two years ago. Tang has turned KSU completely around. It happens all over the county in the portal age.

This is as dejected as I’ve been in a long time about the state of the program. I don’t know if we are quite at Capel level yet, but we are staring at 0-4 and could get there very quickly. As great as the athletic department is overall, seeing the two main sports be this depressingly bad is brutal.

 

[Jimmon]

I think Porter is the type of coach that gets lesser talented teams to overachieve like he did at Loyola. That’s great for winning lower level conferences and pulling off an upset every few years. That’s not where we are. We are in the best conference in CB. We need a coach that can go get big time athletes at all 5 positions. Running out a 6’6 PF against guys 2-4 inches taller every night is not a recipe for success. neither is having your post be so unathletic. I’m with you on being defected. I don’t even expect us to win anymore. I remember a 50 game home winning streak and now we are lucky to go .500 at home.
I’m also concerned about our system. We don’t have flow, rhythm, or much of an identity on offense. If you don’t have the horses, you better be great at execution. We look lost and have way too many turnovers. I know we are upgrading our athleticism at the guard/wing position, but we better do the same with our bigs. We need 6-8ish athletes at PF and 6-10ish guys at C adn they better be able to run and jump. KU, BU, UT, etc. all have those type of athletes.

 

[stormspencer]

This team/program is in trouble. For all the folks who wanted Lon to retire or be pushed out … how do you feel now? So many of you felt like making the tournament every year should be a given at OU and that the potential was there for so much more. Moser will miss the tourney as many times in two seasons as Lon did in a decade.

What, exactly, is our identity? We are good but not great defensively, play ugly offense, make tons of mistakes at critical moments, and are the least athletic team in the league.

We just lost a home game in which we went on a 20-0 run. How is that even possible?

I guess some of you will say this game shows we are right on the verge because it was close, but that reminds me of the delusional people who claim the football team was close to winning 10 games.

As for Moser, the more I watch him, the more he reminds me of Bruce Weber. He paces frantically, smashes or throws his clipboard two or three times a game, but seems incapable of fixing the problems. And I don’t want to hear that he “needs time.” This roster is entirely his, except for Hill. Iowa State didn’t need time last year with a new coach who inherited a team that went winless in conference two years ago. Tang has turned KSU completely around. It happens all over the county in the portal age.

This is as dejected as I’ve been in a long time about the state of the program. I don’t know if we are quite as Capel level yet, but we are staring at 0-4 and could get there very quickly. As great as the athletic department is overall, seeing the two main sports be this depressingly bad is brutal.

I'm with you. And the Bruce Weber analogy is eerily true. Moser has his sillyass offensive system which slows down the game and limits possessions. The problem with this system is once you get behind, it becomes that much more difficult to catch up....especially when the other team has better talent on most nights. And like you said, teams/programs can turn around things quickly these days with the portal, but you have to recruit and get a few "difference-makers".

I will give him credit that his teams play hard, but they are extremely limited in several facets.....and that's on him for not having a roster with a higher ceiling. An upgrade of talent/athleticism is needed and if it doesn't happen this offseason, we will be looking for a new coach after next year hopefully.

 

[oketex]

We just don't know how to finish a game, the last throw in to Hill under the basket was crazy there was no way to get it in. The team plays hard but they don't know what to do when it comes crunch time.

 

[AnotherSoonerInTX]

I'm with you. And the Bruce Weber analogy is eerily true. Moser has his sillyass offensive system which slows down the game and limits possessions. The problem with this system is once you get behind, it becomes that much more difficult to catch up....especially when the other team has better talent on most nights. And like you said, teams/programs can turn around things quickly these days with the portal, but you have to recruit and get a few "difference-makers".

I will give him credit that his teams play hard, but they are extremely limited in several facets.....and that's on him for not having a roster with a higher ceiling. An upgrade of talent/athleticism is needed and if it doesn't happen this offseason, we will be looking for a new coach after next year hopefully.

Yep. At this rate, he gets one more year after this one.

 

[TINY]

Yep. At this rate, he gets one more year after this one.

Lmao wrong. He will have at least 4 years to rebuild the dumpster fire he inherited.

 

[OklaSooners]

Portor is a good coach and good recruiter. OU is lucky to have him. It would be a giant mistake firing him, considering Joe C could care less about basketball. The problem is the athletic department, not moser

 

[TINY]

Portor is a good coach and good recruiter. OU is lucky to have him. It would be a giant mistake firing him, considering Joe C could care less about basketball. The problem is the athletic department, not moser

The problem is the fans. The program (AD and Coaches) has a remarkably impressive history in spite of the worst fans in the country.

 

[mict085]

This team/program is in trouble. For all the folks who wanted Lon to retire or be pushed out … how do you feel now? So many of you felt like making the tournament every year should be a given at OU and that the potential was there for so much more. Moser will miss the tourney as many times in two seasons as Lon did in a decade.

What, exactly, is our identity? We are good but not great defensively, play ugly offense, make tons of mistakes at critical moments, and are the least athletic team in the league.

We just lost a home game in which we went on a 20-0 run. How is that even possible?

I guess some of you will say this game shows we are right on the verge because it was close, but that reminds me of the delusional people who claim the football team was close to winning 10 games.

As for Moser, the more I watch him, the more he reminds me of Bruce Weber. He paces frantically, smashes or throws his clipboard two or three times a game, but seems incapable of fixing the problems. And I don’t want to hear that he “needs time.” This roster is entirely his, except for Hill. Iowa State didn’t need time last year with a new coach who inherited a team that went winless in conference two years ago. Tang has turned KSU completely around. It happens all over the county in the portal age.

This is as dejected as I’ve been in a long time about the state of the program. I don’t know if we are quite at Capel level yet, but we are staring at 0-4 and could get there very quickly. As great as the athletic department is overall, seeing the two main sports be this depressingly bad is brutal.

It was time for Lon Kruger to retire. That day was coming anyway. Moser has failed so far. I’m also as dejected and hopeless about the program as I’ve ever been. We have little support. It always feels like the program is swimming upstream. It’s more than just the coaching staff. Sampson was a damn good coach but even he faced an uphill battle to get the program to win

We need to invest heavily in the program at all levels but that’s not going to happen. Moser will eventually be fired in 5-7 years and we’ll hire someone else and try again. The same obstacles will remain and the basketball program will continue to flounder in irrelevance forever. We will never win consistently like we used to. We will never win a conference title. We will never win a national title.

We don’t have the donors or the admin support to be a contending basketball program. We don’t have the money to compete in the NIL and facilities arms race. This program is a dead man walking.

 

[WichitaSooner]

Lmao wrong. He will have at least 4 years to rebuild the dumpster fire he inherited.

Lol. Yea he inherited an awful situation. An annual tournament team returning three starters from Lon’s final year plus two highly regarded recruits.

I mean, do you watch other teams and coaches? ISU went WINLESS in the league two years ago, and their new coach took them to the Sweet 16 last year. Tang inherited one returning player and had to build an entire roster in three months, and has already moved that program by us like we are standing still. We have a veteran team with tons of experience, yet half the time we look like we look completely lost.

I’d love to get your actual opinion on what Moser has done well with this team the last two years. Sure, we play hard, but not any harder than a lot of teams. Other than that, what has he done? Built a culture wall and given good sound bites to the media?

 

[Boom Soon]

The problem is the fans. The program (AD and Coaches) has a remarkably impressive history in spite of the worst fans in the country.

Moser is paid MILLIONS of dollars to put out a good basketball team. The players are now making good money to play basketball. The fan excuse is irrelevant. This isn't "These are just college kids and they need our support." "They are doing their best to represent the school." These are paid athletes. They should put out quality basketball no matter where they play. It hits different when the players are paid.

I live in Missouri and I would happily drive four hours to watch a winning basketball team. I don't care how crappy the LNC is. I don't care if they played at a high school gym. Win games THEN worry about the darn fans.

 

[allday92]

Lmao wrong. He will have at least 4 years to rebuild the dumpster fire he inherited.

Agreed. This is going to take time. And honestly the best thing for the program is going to be an early move to the SEC in 2024. This era of Big 12 basketball is such a gauntlet, under-talented teams have no margin for error. Otega Oweh was a 4 star top 70 recruit, but he might not see another minute this season just because there's no break in the schedule to give him time to develop.

Our fanbase is such that the support for the team at home won't come unless they win games. Even though having a true home court advantage vs Texas and Iowa State could have been the difference in winning those two one possession games. These are 18-22 year old kids that can get rattled with a noisy environment.

To sum up, we need to win games. And that should come with an easier schedule in the SEC. In theory, that should lead to more wins on the court, wins in recruiting out of HS/transfer portal, and more fan support.

I think Moser can get us to a period of sustained success, top 25 rankings, and NCAA tournament berths. It's going to take time, but as we've seen with a team like TCU in football, it can be faster than any of us think.

 

[Boom Soon]

I think the Moser question has been answered. He's not the right coach for the program. He's a good coach, but not Big 12/SEC caliber.
Honestly, the writing has been on the wall since the team lost to freaking Sam Houston State. The new questions are: who transfers out and how many more years does Moser get?

If Lon could take the 2018/2019 team to the tournament after an awful offseason and legit G5 transfers, then Moser should be able to make the tournament with this team.

 

[mict085]

How can anyone make excuses for moser saying he needs time? As Wichita said, he inherited a perennial tourney program and we are heading south in a hurry.

Ksu and ISU hired new coaches recently and they’ve ran circles around us building their programs. They’ve both already passed us. We are dead last. That should be a wake up call, but it’s not. Just more excuses.

 

[OUSKINS]

I was there Saturday and again tonight; took the whole family (5 of us) to both.

Tonight was awful. Crowd was good Saturday— I would say 90% full and energized. Tonight was maybe 30% and dead.

The lack of interest/support/enthusiasm around the program is not Moser’s fault. Not at all. I don’t pin any of that on him. We all know that story. Tonight I actually felt bad for him as implored the crowd to get loud a few times— but he was imploring to mostly empty seats.

It’s a bad, bad mix right now. He inherited a program that had become stagnant with a mostly disinterested fanbase. The only way you can infuse life into that situation it to be good and/or exciting. So far, his teams have been neither. They are average and boring. A team that absolutely cannot score playing a conf game in front of 70% empty seats? That’s a hard sell. It’s a hard sell for casual fans. It’s a hard sell for recruits.

The team DOES play hard. Effort is not an issue. And Moser gives it all he has I’m sure. I like him personally. And you don’t get to where he is without understanding the game. But a lot more goes into winning at a place like OU. He has time. There is time left in this season. And as others have stated, I think at MINIMUM he gets a third year. But this season and his tenure here is off to a very “meh” start.

Specific to THIS year, goodness it looks just like last year. This team has NIT written all over them (IF they qualify and finish .500 of course). 0-2 with two home losses is a disaster for us in B12. We are staring 0-4 in the face. It will take a minimum 7 wins to be in serious tourney convos— which would mean starting 0-4 and then going 7-7 the rest of the way— probably a tough task. And 7-11 probably wouldn’t cut it unless some of those wins were against KU, Baylor, etc.

A real damning thing is how I felt when ISU turned the ball over on the in-bounds play with 8 seconds left. I was disappointed the refs went to the monitor which created a timeout we didn’t have. Felt it would have been better to just throw it in to someone and let them wing it. Giving Moser and ISU both time to draw up a plan was going to go poorly for us. Sure enough, we didn’t even attempt a shot— common theme down the stretch tonight.

It all feels very blah. I know the guy is trying. And he probably feels like he’s on an island; doing it with pretty minimal support— which is true. Besides the paycheck, which I know matters, I sometimes wonder if he looks around and wishes he was back in Chicago.

 

[AdaSooner]

How quickly we forget that Lon’s career at OU started with a 15-16 record the first season. He righted the ship the next year and eventually led the team to a FF run.

What bothered me more than anything about Lon was the 11-20 disaster following our Final Four season six years later, proving that HOF coaches can have bad seasons too.

I’m not totally happy with this team, but I think there are brighter days ahead with our returning players next season and the recruits Moser’s staff signed. Time will tell if I’m right.

 

[AnotherSoonerInTX]

The problem is the fans. The program (AD and Coaches) has a remarkably impressive history in spite of the worst fans in the country.

I don't know about worst fans in the country, as I've seen some ridiculous statements and actions from fans of other football bluebloods after bowl games last weekend. But, I don't think we have the best fans in the country by any stretch of the imagination. Our fans support football and get cranky about it. Our fans support the other sports if they win.

My observation after 50+ years of OU fandom is that all sports are held to the standard of the football program. The football program is expected to win or compete for national championships. What Barry Switzer called "the monster" applies to the entire athletic department. If a sport shows the ability to compete at a national level, OU fans will support it. Our people won't go out and support something simply because the OU logo is on the uniform. The team has to win games and compete at a national level. It helps if the team plays a fun style.

I've seen more than one person on social media post a countdown to softball season upon the end of last week's bowl game. Um, we have basketball teams! But, the softball team dominates their opponents and wins national championships. Basketball, on the other hand, is an afterthought until the team wins consistently.

 

[mict085]

Iowa state, Kansas state, TCU, have all passed us by. We are the last place team this year but more concerning, is we’re the last place program right now.

I have lost all hope with this program. Lost hope on the coaching staff and the entire program from top to bottom.

 

[OUSKINS]

I don't know about worst fans in the country, as I've seen some ridiculous statements and actions from fans of other football bluebloods after bowl games last weekend. But, I don't think we have the best fans in the country by any stretch of the imagination. Our fans support football and get cranky about it. Our fans support the other sports if they win.

My observation after 50+ years of OU fandom is that all sports are held to the standard of the football program. The football program is expected to win or compete for national championships. What Barry Switzer called "the monster" applies to the entire athletic department. If a sport shows the ability to compete at a national level, OU fans will support it. Our people won't go out and support something simply because the OU logo is on the uniform. The team has to win games and compete at a national level. It helps if the team plays a fun style.

I've seen more than one person on social media post a countdown to softball season upon the end of last week's bowl game. Um, we have basketball teams! But, the softball team dominates their opponents and wins national championships. Basketball, on the other hand, is an afterthought until the team wins consistently.

This is all spot-on. It’s a front-running fanbase across the board. Football will always generate interest and chatter even when bad or mediocre. But tickets this year were as easy to get as ever and plenty games cleared out early. Our football fans are definitely supportive and people do care deeply about the program and its history and place in the national conversation, but even in football, I don’t think we classify as a “rabid” fanbase. No one talks about how Memorial Stadium shakes or the Gameday atmosphere is a madhouse like in Baton Rouge or something.

And yes, for the other sports, they have to be AWESOME for people to care. Sure, the softball team is getting crazy support right now. They are also perhaps the greatest softball team EVER. I think we all know it wouldn’t be this way if Gasso’s team was merely “good.” I mean our baseball team went to the College WS Final and six weeks prior was playing home games in a tiny stadium on a beautiful spring day with barely anyone there.

I love Norman. I live in Edmond and love going down whenever we can. Our fans are proud of our school and I think we mostly rep ourselves favorably. But this is not a particularly rowdy or passionate fanbase in general.

 

[WichitaSooner]

How quickly we forget that Lon’s career at OU started with a 15-16 record the first season. He righted the ship the next year and eventually led the team to a FF run.

What bothered me more than anything about Lon was the 11-20 disaster following our Final Four season six years later, proving that HOF coaches can have bad seasons too.

I’m not totally happy with this team, but I think there are brighter days ahead with our returning players next season and the recruits Moser’s staff signed. Time will tell if I’m right.

I don’t forget. I just realize that Lon inherited one of the worst messes in college basketball, both on and off the floor. Frankly, it was a miracle he got us to the tourney within two years, especially without the portal as a quick fix. 2017 was disappointing but it was also a total outlier, and came after graduating three really good players and then having the best returner get injured. Moser inherited a much better situation than the vast majority of coaches in their first year at a P5 school. Those jobs usually only open up because the team was bad enough that a coach got fired. He came into a pretty sweet spot compared to most. ISU, KSU, Missouri … all those coaches have come in and immediately energized their programs, and they are winning games. Setting aside recruiting, I just don’t see any strides in year two, even though we have lots of returning players and brought in a stud in Sherfield. Tanner hasn’t improved. CJ has taken a million steps back. Bam has been a disaster. We make the same crippling mistakes over and over. And as someone else pointed out, was it even the least bit surprising we didn’t even get a shot off when we got the ball back down one with eight seconds left?

I was sad that Lon retired but was very happy with the Moser hire, so it’s not like I have anything against the guy. I’d love for him to succeed, but to this point, he has been a big disappointment.