Why we didn't sign a quarterback this year.

[Plainosooner]

And a question.

The 2014 roster lists a redshirt freshman, a redshirting freshman, a redshirt soph, and Mayfield, listed as a soph. So next year, we'll have everybody returning, but no seniors on the roster.

My question is about Mayfield. Was it ever resolved about whether he'll be considered a soph or a junior next season? Just curious.

I don't think we've carried more than four shipped quarterbacks on the roster more than once or twice in the Stoops era. At his presser yesterday, Cale Gundy said that with who Oklahoma is, and who the new DC is, and with Bob Stoops being one of the greatest coaches in college football history, that there will be several great quarterbacks next season that will be very attracted to OU because they didn't sign anybody this season.

Sounds good to me.

 

[JMISASANO]

In an interview, Cale Gundy said that OU did recruit QBs, but the staff wasn't able to get truly involved with them, e.g. OU and Heupel.

In Lincoln Riley's interview, he said that upon arriving to OU, several prospects came calling, but the recruiting staff decided to wait until the next recruiting cycle because they didn't have time to evaluate QB talents. He wants to take his time to know his QBs as prospects, leaders and students, etc. With OU's current depth, he didn't want to sign a QB just to sign a QB.

Riley also said that at highly visible program like OU known for not taking a QB in the 2015 class will be an attractive sell for talented QBs next season once the offense is on the field.






This post was edited on 2/5 1:50 PM by JMISASANO

 

[BillyRay]

Unless a QB unexpectedly decides to leave the program, OU is set on QBs on scholarship. OU would have signed one this class if it were a QB they couldn't turn away, but outside of that they really didn't need to sign one.

 

[CTOkie]

I think the answer lies in the fact that Knight's Sugar Bowl performance made the coaches feel that they could forgo recruiting a quarterback in the 2015 class and could concentrate recruiting in other areas for at least one year.....and combined with Thomas and Hansen on the roster and then having Mayfield transfer into the program in the spring, the case was closed once and for all.
I think it was the right choice and I think that a lackluster receiving corps, along with Knight's injury against Baylor, worked against the quarterbacks looking as good as they could have been. Basically, I believe that had Saunders, Bester and Reynolds been on last year's team, along with Clay coming out of the backfield and more throws to Bell at TE, Knight and/or Thomas would have had much more success.

 

[JMISASANO]

Originally posted by CTOkie:
I think the answer lies in the fact that Knight's Sugar Bowl performance made the coaches feel that they could forgo recruiting a quarterback in the 2015 class and could concentrate recruiting in other areas for at least one year.....and combined with Thomas and Hansen on the roster and then having Mayfield transfer into the program in the spring, the case was closed once and for all.
I think it was the right choice and I think that a lackluster receiving corps, along with Knight's injury against Baylor, worked against the quarterbacks looking as good as they could have been. Basically, I believe that had Saunders, Bester and Reynolds been on last year's team, along with Clay coming out of the backfield and more throws to Bell at TE, Knight and/or Thomas would have had much more success.

If you watch the interviews, OU actually tried to recruit QBs in 2015 without success.

Lincoln Riley chose to wait until 2016 due to time.

 

[Plainosooner]

CTO, I'm in total agreement with Billy Ray on this one. If they could have brought in a guy clearly better than the four we have now, they'd have done it. They made a strong run at Kyler at the end, but it didn't happen. I personally think that worked out for the best, because I think he's very possibly going to go baseball, anyway. I'm thinking that Texas got a little thin at quarterback a few years back when one guy transferred and another decided to go baseball. When you're only averaging one guy a year at a position, you need a guy to come compete to start before he heads elsewhere, like to the minor leagues.

Tech ended up with the same issues in 2014 after Mayfield left. They ended up with a true freshman backup halfway through the season.

I don't think they didn't try because of Trevor's Sugar Bowl at all. I think that after they saw Mayfield in spring ball last year, after seeing him on tape the year before, he was their "recruit" for this year. I believe they were surprised that he couldn't play last season and was likely to not be a soph next year if he didn't.

If some guy becomes elite, he's unlikely to stay for all of his eligibility anyway. But they have next year covered. And as Toby Rowland said on the Stoops presser broadcast, they do have a quarterback in this class: Dalton Wood. But like Joe Jon Finley, I doubt we'll ever see him there.

 

[Plainosooner]

I don't think OU recruited more than Gibson and Murray. They'd love to have had either, but otherwise, wanted to wait til next year, Heupel or not.

 

[JMISASANO]

Originally posted by Plainosooner:
I don't think OU recruited more than Gibson and Murray. They'd love to have had either, but otherwise, wanted to wait til next year, Heupel or not.

QB Chason Virgil even said no thanks to Heupel mid December, committing to Fresno State as an early entry.

I believe that was an eye opener for Bob Stoops.



This post was edited on 2/5 1:11 PM by JMISASANO

 

[CTOkie]

Of course OU would have liked to bring in a QB this year....but only if it had been a prolific one like Torrance Gibson out of Florida, who landed at Ohio State. OU wanted to aim high in getting a QB, but all of the elite ones were spoken for and I believe that the coaches decided to address other positions in 2015 given the 4 players already on the roster. This is not what I believe, it's what was reported that the coaching staff believed.
What may have crossed up OU was Mayfield being ruled ineligible. By the time he was declared ineligible last summer, the really high end QB's had already committed to other schools. Perhaps if Mayfield had never come along, a QB...."clearly better than the four we have now"... may have been added to this year's class. But again, I point to Knight's "Cinderella" performance in the Sugar Bowl that gave all of us the false opinion that he was going to take OU to greener pastures.

I believe that a QB will be in the 2016 class but I would also have to believe that such a player would have to be a really elite player, that is, a player as highly touted as Bomar was. And it will help if OU establishes an offensive identity to get such a player....which it should.

 

[JMISASANO]

Originally posted by CTOkie:
Of course OU would have liked to bring in a QB this year....but only if it had been a prolific one like Torrance Gibson out of Florida, who landed at Ohio State. OU wanted to aim high in getting a QB, but all of the elite ones were spoken for and I believe that the coaches decided to address other positions in 2015 given the 4 players already on the roster. This is not what I believe, it's what was reported that the coaching staff believed.
What may have crossed up OU was Mayfield being ruled ineligible. By the time he was declared ineligible last summer, the really high end QB's had already committed to other schools. Perhaps if Mayfield had never come along, a QB...."clearly better than the four we have now"... may have been added to this year's class. But again, I point to Knight's "Cinderella" performance in the Sugar Bowl that gave all of us the false opinion that he was going to take OU to greener pastures.

I believe that a QB will be in the 2016 class but I would also have to believe that such a player would have to be a really elite player, that is, a player as highly touted as Bomar was. And it will help if OU establishes an offensive identity to get such a player....which it should.

QB Chason Virgil even said no thanks to Heupel mid December, committing to Fresno State as an early entry.

I believe that was an eye opener for Bob Stoops.

 

[CTOkie]

Gibson committed to Ohio State a month before Virgil committed to Fresno State. After Virgil was out of the picture, I don't recall OU chasing any other QB until it was rumored that Kyler Murray was reconsidering his ATM pledge.
I think OU was intent on aiming high, thinking it had the luxury to do so given what was thought to be...at the time....great QB depth. Because OU was aiming high might also be a reason why the 2015 class had no QB.

 

[Debou]

Originally posted by BillyRay:
Unless a QB unexpectedly decides to leave the program, OU is set on QBs on scholarship. OU would have signed one this class if it were a QB they couldn't turn away, but outside of that they really didn't need to sign one.

Bingo

 

[JMISASANO]

Originally posted by CTOkie:
Gibson committed to Ohio State a month before Virgil committed to Fresno State. After Virgil was out of the picture, I don't recall OU chasing any other QB until it was rumored that Kyler Murray was reconsidering his ATM pledge.
I think OU was intent on aiming high, thinking it had the luxury to do so given what was thought to be...at the time....great QB depth. Because OU was aiming high might also be a reason why the 2015 class had no QB.

My point here is Heupel went scrambling for a 3 stars QB not aiming high and he still missed out to Fresno State.

Bob Stoops had to be shaking his head by then.

 

[SoonerMikee05]

Not to de rail the thread but A&M could be in serious trouble next year at QB. If Kyler decides to play baseball, they have 2 QBs on their roster, and 1 is a walk on.

 

[TexShoe]

I think Baker Mayfield is your future. He's pretty good.

 

[soonerfastnloud]

I do too, I would rather not draft a QB if they were not top, or like they said wasn't able to evaluate them properly.

Originally posted by TexShoe:
I think Baker Mayfield is your future. He's pretty good.

 

[soonerfastnloud]

Of course, Sam Bradford was just rated as a 3 star and he turned out to be a 5 star.

 

[Oklabama]

If Baker hadn't moved to Norman, I'm pretty sure OU would have signed a QB. We have 4 QBs on scholarship. That's plenty. I sure hope Baker is as talented as everyone seems to think.

 

[PryorFan]

Backlash from an 8-5 season (and worse, 3 bad home losses) had to be a factor as well to elite QBs. Went beyond QBs, not aware of any 5*'s giving the Sooners serious consideration.

 

[JMISASANO]

Originally posted by TexShoe:
I think Baker Mayfield is your future. He's pretty good.

We'll find out, but he has to improve on his performance at Tech to be the caliber of QB needed to win championships.

 

[sybarite]

I want to see more of Hansen.

 

[JMISASANO]

Originally posted by Oklabama:
If Baker hadn't moved to Norman, I'm pretty sure OU would have signed a QB. We have 4 QBs on scholarship. That's plenty. I sure hope Baker is as talented as everyone seems to think.

How many of those QBs are stand tall in the pocket Air Raid passing QBs?

That remains to be seen.

I would think Cody Thomas would be that type of talent, but he didn't look comfortable in the pocket.

Time will tell.

 

[soonerfastnloud]

If you recall, Mayfield is believed to be the first walk-on true freshman quarterback to start a season opener at the quarterback position. So with that, he has to be good, I would think. It will be interesting to see who wins starting QB.

 

[JMISASANO]

Originally posted by soonerfastnloud:
If you recall, Mayfield is believed to be the first walk-on true freshman quarterback to start a season opener at the quarterback position. So with that, he has to be good, I would think. It will be interesting to see who wins starting QB.

Then replaced shortly thereafter and never given a scholarship during the season or spring, so he left school.

I want him to do well because he is a Sooner, but I do realize he isn't a Sam Bradford.

OU needs a Sam Bradford, Tim Tebow, Jameis Winston, Marcus Mariota type of QBs to compete for playoff spots.

 

[soonerfastnloud]

Russell Wilson

 

[Sooners83]

JM...I think there is more to the story about him than what has been actually release publicly. He beat out all of the QB's in Lubbock to win the starter position as a walk on as a freshman...played very well and then got hurt. He was promised a scholarship but was put off several times by TT as I understand there were no scholarships open. Not sure of his status as far as redshirt freshman or otherwise....but quite honestly?...with the new hierarchy on offense, I would not be surprised if he isn't the starter ....game one.

 

[Oklabama]

83, check out Baker's stats and see how he performed against the different levels of competition. It's been reported on the board a few times. Bottom line, he performed great against lesser talented teams and not well against better teams. However, he was a true freshman and has had a year working with the Sooners, so hopefully he can compete at a high level this spring. But there will be better competition than he had at Lubbock, IMO. Good luck to all four QBS.

 

[JMISASANO]

Originally posted by Sooners83:
JM...I think there is more to the story about him than what has been actually release publicly. He beat out all of the QB's in Lubbock to win the starter position as a walk on as a freshman...played very well and then got hurt. He was promised a scholarship but was put off several times by TT as I understand there were no scholarships open. Not sure of his status as far as redshirt freshman or otherwise....but quite honestly?...with the new hierarchy on offense, I would not be surprised if he isn't the starter ....game one.

Passing
Year School Conf Class Pos G Cmp Att Pct Yds Y/A AY/A TD Int Rate
*2013 Texas Tech Big 12 QB 8 218 340 64.1 2315 6.8 6.3 12 9 127.7

At least he could throw for 64%, which is better than the 56% seen over the last couple of years.

12 TD to 9 INT ratio needs a major overhaul, so Lincoln Riley can help him improve in this area.

He's a Sooner, so let's hope he can perform consistently enough on the big stage to win the conference.


This post was edited on 2/5 6:10 PM by JMISASANO

 

[Sooners83]

JM..at this point I am just looking/hoping for a knight in shining armor I suppose at the QB position..with subjects that can actually catch a pass if you will. I really like the class that we are bringing in.

I will still argue that unless we fix our issues on defense.....all is not.

 

[Sooners83]

Originally posted by Oklabama:
83, check out Baker's stats and see how he performed against the different levels of competition. It's been reported on the board a few times. Bottom line, he performed great against lesser talented teams and not well against better teams. However, he was a true freshman and has had a year working with the Sooners, so hopefully he can compete at a high level this spring. But there will be better competition than he had at Lubbock, IMO. Good luck to all four QBS.

I am seriously not defending the guy nor promoting him....just saying he knows the offense we are about to install and he was literally an 18 yo true freshman playing at ...yes TT where qb numbers go off the charts.

 

[Biltazar]

I think that we didn't sign a QB for obvious reasons. Without significantly more upside than folks that we already had, the idea of signing another clipboard holder on a team that needed multiple position talent upgrades was a non-starter Additionally, IMO, quality throw first QBs did not want anything to do with the offense that they saw being run on the field. Quality dual threat guys believed that OU thought that that they had their (OUr) dual threat guy already despite the fact that the results on the field did not pan out.

Outside of a major shift in offensive focus and an concomitant shift in WR recruiting that would seem to channel OUr energy into WRs with skill to catch AND quickness/speed to get open, we should have expected to have high target QB recruiting go down in flames. Now, however, with a pass friendly system and a push back from the table of a recruiting philosophy that often seemed to value WR size and blocking prowess more than college level necessity of quickness, speed, and body control, the likelihood of landing a game changing guy or two doesn't seem so remote.

 

[CTOkie]

Originally posted by Biltazar:
I think that we didn't sign a QB for obvious reasons. Without significantly more upside than folks that we already had, the idea of signing another clipboard holder on a team that needed multiple position talent upgrades was a non-starter Additionally, IMO, quality throw first QBs did not want anything to do with the offense that they saw being run on the field. Quality dual threat guys believed that OU thought that that they had their (OUr) dual threat guy already despite the fact that the results on the field did not pan out.

This is what I said earlier in this thread....couldn't agree more.