Having grown up in the glory years that were the Switzer era, then enduring the abject futility that characterized the Gibbs/Schnellenberger/Blake years and, finally, the resurrection and eventual plateau under Bob Stoops, I can’t think of a time when OU football was more frustrating to watch than right now.
Under both Barry and Bob (at least the first 10 years), Sooner fans “expected” to win every game. While the occasional loss did occur, it typically came down to dropping a hard fought game to another Top 10 team. More often then not, the Sooners just beat the crap out of the “also rans”. You could tune in on most Saturdays and rely on the fact that OU would physically dominate all but a small handful of teams. Sure, there were still some losses, but it was very rare to go in expecting an OU blowout and come out with a loss that simply defied all logic. It was even more rare to see a team that looked and played like they didn’t care.
During the down years, I think most Sooner fans just knew that the talent and coaching wasn’t there, and therefore begrudgingly accepted that uneven performance was the reality until a new regime arrived to right the ship. For most of the 90s, I watched games “hoping” that OU could find that signature win that would turn things around. It sucked because I lived in Colorado at the time and had to watch as CU and Nebraska took control of the conference. Regardless, most weekends went about as expected. OU generally beat the weak teams, competed with those in the middle and lost to anyone in Top 25.
The back half of Stoops’ tenure, and all of Riley years, have just been weird. The OU program has dominated the conference and played in the BCS and CFP more than all but 2 or 3 teams in the country. The Sooners are consistently “relevant” but never dominant. They are always on the cusp but never quite seem to get over it. LR has helmed some of the most prolific offenses in college football but been handicapped by hapless defense. As a result, the Sooners inexplicably find new an creative ways to lose to woefully inferior teams with regularity. Then, as soon as everyone writes them off, they bounce back and reel off 5 to 7 straight wins, coast through the conference championship game and get into position to play for a NC - only to promptly revert to early season form and get throttled. Every off-season brings new hope that, by recruiting well and addressing a handful of issues, the Sooners will join Alabama as team with the coaching and talent to play poorly at times and still get through the season undefeated. From there it will simply be a matter of playing up to potential when the stakes go up. Unfortunately, for OU, that never happens. The talent, coaching and culture never seem to converge when necessary. The Sooners are perpetually mired in a state where hope abounds but expectations are always muted by an unanticipated deficiency. The Riley era seems tailor made for DVR and waiting to see which Sooner team shows up before investing any time to watch. Seriously, how many times can you, in good conscience, tune in to see Pat Fields casually ambling along 20 yards behind a RB or WR on their way in to score? How often can you reasonably watch a drive that starts with three running plays that net 20 yards and two first downs abruptly interrupted by a screen that loses yards followed by two incomplete passes. Worse yet, how many times can/will Sooner fans have to endure a 3rd and 18 draw play that goes for 28 yards or a 3rd and 8 pass where the DBs are effectively giving up the sticks.
Long story short, LR’s teams have become so enigmatic and mercurial that they’re honestly not all that enjoyable to watch unless you know the outcome ahead of time. Heck, you can’t even safely count on these teams to close out up by 17 with 8 minutes left. As if that weren’t enough… the almost ritualistic staff mantras of “we’re close” and “we just missed a few plays that would have made a difference” are defensively and arrogantly directed at anyone (fans or media) with the audacity to wonder why such a talented team played like absolute crap!
Under both Barry and Bob (at least the first 10 years), Sooner fans “expected” to win every game. While the occasional loss did occur, it typically came down to dropping a hard fought game to another Top 10 team. More often then not, the Sooners just beat the crap out of the “also rans”. You could tune in on most Saturdays and rely on the fact that OU would physically dominate all but a small handful of teams. Sure, there were still some losses, but it was very rare to go in expecting an OU blowout and come out with a loss that simply defied all logic. It was even more rare to see a team that looked and played like they didn’t care.
During the down years, I think most Sooner fans just knew that the talent and coaching wasn’t there, and therefore begrudgingly accepted that uneven performance was the reality until a new regime arrived to right the ship. For most of the 90s, I watched games “hoping” that OU could find that signature win that would turn things around. It sucked because I lived in Colorado at the time and had to watch as CU and Nebraska took control of the conference. Regardless, most weekends went about as expected. OU generally beat the weak teams, competed with those in the middle and lost to anyone in Top 25.
The back half of Stoops’ tenure, and all of Riley years, have just been weird. The OU program has dominated the conference and played in the BCS and CFP more than all but 2 or 3 teams in the country. The Sooners are consistently “relevant” but never dominant. They are always on the cusp but never quite seem to get over it. LR has helmed some of the most prolific offenses in college football but been handicapped by hapless defense. As a result, the Sooners inexplicably find new an creative ways to lose to woefully inferior teams with regularity. Then, as soon as everyone writes them off, they bounce back and reel off 5 to 7 straight wins, coast through the conference championship game and get into position to play for a NC - only to promptly revert to early season form and get throttled. Every off-season brings new hope that, by recruiting well and addressing a handful of issues, the Sooners will join Alabama as team with the coaching and talent to play poorly at times and still get through the season undefeated. From there it will simply be a matter of playing up to potential when the stakes go up. Unfortunately, for OU, that never happens. The talent, coaching and culture never seem to converge when necessary. The Sooners are perpetually mired in a state where hope abounds but expectations are always muted by an unanticipated deficiency. The Riley era seems tailor made for DVR and waiting to see which Sooner team shows up before investing any time to watch. Seriously, how many times can you, in good conscience, tune in to see Pat Fields casually ambling along 20 yards behind a RB or WR on their way in to score? How often can you reasonably watch a drive that starts with three running plays that net 20 yards and two first downs abruptly interrupted by a screen that loses yards followed by two incomplete passes. Worse yet, how many times can/will Sooner fans have to endure a 3rd and 18 draw play that goes for 28 yards or a 3rd and 8 pass where the DBs are effectively giving up the sticks.
Long story short, LR’s teams have become so enigmatic and mercurial that they’re honestly not all that enjoyable to watch unless you know the outcome ahead of time. Heck, you can’t even safely count on these teams to close out up by 17 with 8 minutes left. As if that weren’t enough… the almost ritualistic staff mantras of “we’re close” and “we just missed a few plays that would have made a difference” are defensively and arrogantly directed at anyone (fans or media) with the audacity to wonder why such a talented team played like absolute crap!
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