Bring on the TLDR gifs!!
Truly exciting season upcoming on endless levels for OU. Are the roster and the fanbase "SEC ready", can the OL and DL come together and maintain a winning level of play, are Coach V and the new coordinators capable of establishing themselves among the national elite, and will this season be evidence of proof of concept to build a National Championship contender, or a head-scratching offseason of doubt and skepticism? The range of outcomes are as wide as any Offseason in recent memory, and it's going to be a fascinating ride along the way.
#OUDNA at it's very best produces a blue collar, defensive brand of hard-nosed football, and 2024 appears to be our best chance to reestablish ourselves among the nation's very best on the defensive side of the ball. We're as deep with experience and talent as any OU defense in a decade (or more), and the pulse of the team should flow through the leadership of the best OU linebacker in 20 years (since 2003 Butkus winner T. Lehman). A top 20 defense nationally is expected, and if portal gem D Williams and the true FR DTs (Stone and Jackson) can both contribute immediately and hold up to the grind of a brutal schedule, a Top 5-10 defensive unit isn't out of the question. At our best, this defense makes us capable of winning any game on the schedule, period. At our worst, we can't hold up season-long in the trenches and we don't have an Edge (PJ or RMT) take a step forward to create a meaningful pass rush and the size and physicality of the SEC slate simply wears us down. If we can't stop the run when we know it's coming or get to the QB, no amount of talent in the back 7 can overcome the sustained beating they'll be asked to endure. I believe that our talent on defense will rise, and I expect them to be the unit responsible for resetting the foundation for what Coach V has been trying to build since arriving. We're going to have to replace a LOT between this year and next, but we also have enough young ascending talent that if we can prove nationally that our D is back to elite and send multiple players to the NFL Draft, we should be able to recruit and portal our way to a sustained higher level of defensive football.
On offense, I believe we've got the most talented QB we've had since Kyler Murray (sorry Jalen Hurts). JFA's ceiling is limitless, and I will be shocked if he doesn't out perform expectations early and often. He's not the vocal/emotional leader that Baker was, and he's not the rushing threat that Hurts nor Kyler were, but I think he's the best pure passer we've had in Norman since Sam Bradford (2009). I've now dropped the names of 3 NFL overall #1 picks, and that wasn't accidental. This year will be a coming out party for QB1, and next year will be a validation. The WR room was absolutely LOADED and is still a strength, despite losing difference-maker Jaden Gibson for the season in fall camp, if they can stay healthy. The question I had coming out of last year regarding how we'd handle the loss of 'glue guy' Drake Stoops has been answered with the addition of D Burks, and the accumulation of immense talent by undervalued WR Coach Emmett Jones. Question marks about our ceiling loom at RB and OL, both of which are critical. I think we're currently 'good enough' at RB with the chance to be solidly above average if the J Barnes reemergence is real and the OCs can figure out how to integrate 5-star FR T. Tatum in the RB passing game in a way that's been missing from our attack for several years. Everything hinges on Coach Bedenbaugh's ability to patch together an OL that allows us to run the ball when necessary, and to access the full playbook by giving the QB enough time to show the talent previously mentioned, rather than being forced to run quick-hitting RPO and get the ball out immediately in self-preservation. Losing star OL Caden Green leaves a still-bleeding scar. That kid has 1st Rounder written all over him, and he should have been moved to LT and served as the anchor of the unit for this season and next. I thought he was already a Top 5 player on our roster when we lost him. Talent and depth on the OL just aren't where they need to be for a Championship contender in 2024, but this season is enormously important to identify the players up front who are part of the solution moving forward. If we lose momentum on (re)building the OL, it will be the weak link that undermines an immense amount of talent and depth elsewhere on the team that appears to be ascending together towards championship contender levels. The clearest path to ascending to a more consistent and multi-faceted offense would be if we actually find and use a meaningful weapon at TE (B Sharp being named a Week 1 Captain hopefully indicates he's earned the respect of his team and the attention of the QB).
In sum, our overall talent, size, strength, and depth are all definitely headed in the right direction, and we will be special at some critical positions sooner than later. Thank God Lincoln Riley got out of town when he did and we're not tiptoeing into the SEC with a soft, more talented version of Texas Tech. The Riley model would have been a guaranteed long-term failure, with a smattering of exciting moments. We're better off (whether or not it actually works) with BV and his efforts to construct a team whose strengths and roster look like almost every National Championship winner in the past 20 years. At least if it works, we're legitimately in the running with a meaningful chance. That's far better than trying to outscore and/or luck your way through a 12-team playoff of teams who will (almost entirely) be built with a more consistent, game-controlling style of play and players.
Considering the amount of change we're going into, and with a healthy skepticism about the OL/DL ceiling, 8 wins with this schedule feels like shooting even par at Augusta from the tips. It's impressive, and shows you have the game to play anywhere; but it's not going to win you the green jacket. 9 wins puts us right on the bubble for the 12-team playoff and I expect our new Conference to push the narrative enough to get that kind of teams in the dance (assuming we're not being compared to an Ole Miss/Mizzou team who may have both beaten us head-to-head). 10 wins, and we're hosting a CFP game, or even getting a bye.
After the Texas game last year, I predicted OU was a 2024 CFP team, and would play for the Natty in 2025. I wish I had known what our 2024 Schedule was going to look like when I ran my mouth. But, as the copy shop guy reminded Jerry Maguire, "That's how you become great, man. You hang your balls out there!"
I'm sticking with it. Gimme OU to sneak into the CFP with a 9-3 record, feat. Ws against Tennessee, Texas, and Alabama and overcoming (only) road losses to Auburn, Ole Miss and Mizzou/Caden Green. The strength of those wins and the respectability/timing of the road losses should be just enough to get us in. As bad as it will suck to lose in God-forsaken Columbia, Missouri after winning 20 of our last 22 against them overall, that loss will hurt us far less than ending the season with a L in Baton Rouge. Enjoy the ride, roll with the punches, and don't be the kind of fan that ends up on a viral meme.
Boomer!
oklahoma.rivals.com
oklahoma.rivals.com
