we're NOT the only big name team hurting this year
- Thread starter soonerfastnloud
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Does nothing to ease my disappointment after starting ranked #3 to being out of top 25. The above teams have not come close to be embarrassed nationally like the Sooners. And, I fear it's about to get worse, much worse.
Just trying to feel better about things. I hope this bye week, the coaches have worked out some kinks. When I watch Trevor last night, I was happy and sad.
Your questions along with many of us asking those same ones will be answered on Saturday but I have a hunch it will be another one of those head scratching days.
In watching the OSU-Baylor and the Arkansas -A&M game the one thing that stuck out to me for both the losers is that both teams played hard to the final whistle. I dont really remember seeing that from OU in either loss.
I sometimes wonder if our team we all love even has that drive, passion or desire when they get behind. Last year they seemed to have it and really showed the most attitude I have seen against BU in some time. I didnt see that same attitude vs. Htn or TOSU.
Basically from what I see the swagger Stoops teams showed in his early years have seem to vanish on a gamely basis since the 08 season. So that really begs the question ..." What the hell happened to that swagger that these coaches use to get from the players? "
In watching the OSU-Baylor and the Arkansas -A&M game the one thing that stuck out to me for both the losers is that both teams played hard to the final whistle. I dont really remember seeing that from OU in either loss.
I sometimes wonder if our team we all love even has that drive, passion or desire when they get behind. Last year they seemed to have it and really showed the most attitude I have seen against BU in some time. I didnt see that same attitude vs. Htn or TOSU.
Basically from what I see the swagger Stoops teams showed in his early years have seem to vanish on a gamely basis since the 08 season. So that really begs the question ..." What the hell happened to that swagger that these coaches use to get from the players? "
Good read, I wish that Bob would talk to his players when they come off the field. Meyers does he really gets his players hyped. Why can't Bob. When we get behind, our players fall apart. I don't know what I am saying grasping for straws.
Soonersincefitty
Sooner starter
The coaches and sportswriters had us 3.
I thought we were between 10 and 15...
I wish.
I get your point. USC is suck too.
At least there isn't a gofundme to buy out Stoops' contract like there is Miles at LSU.
By the by, that isn't going well.
435 raised with 1 million goal.
I thought we were between 10 and 15...
I wish.
I get your point. USC is suck too.
At least there isn't a gofundme to buy out Stoops' contract like there is Miles at LSU.
By the by, that isn't going well.
435 raised with 1 million goal.
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I never figured OU being a top ten team this year due to too many question marks and a tough OOC schedule. I only envisioned a winning record of at least 8 wins and a bowl berth. With two losses already and the likes of TCU, Texas, Baylor, West Virginia and Oklahoma State ahead.....and assuming the starting quarterbacks for these teams are healthy when they play OU....I won't be surprised if there are more losses looming.
For the record, I do not care about the fates of Oregon, LSU, Notre Dame, USC or any other team.....OU's issues are enough for me to be concerned about.
For the record, I do not care about the fates of Oregon, LSU, Notre Dame, USC or any other team.....OU's issues are enough for me to be concerned about.
There will always be teams hurting every season. But doesn't change the fact that OU has started 1-2 and it sucks.
I saw the same type of "NO QUIT" attitude with Tennessee and Stanford!! I was especially impressed with the Stanford Coach....no excuses, just play and get the job done!
Good post.
Drive, passion, and desire under the Stoops' , imho, has been replaced by panic, anxiety, and that familiar "here we go again" syndrome when the team encounters even slight adversity from another talented foe. Like the Tennessee game, we will occasionally grind out an improbable victory from the jaws of defeat. But, that's not how we've trended under the Stoops'. It's almost like defeat can be sensed and smelled immediately upon initial "signs" of calamity even early on in a game when a drive stalls or a field goal is missed. The players see it and feel it. How can they not based on the coaches body language, antics and words?
Players sense blame is coming because they - as such a heralded and talented group - aren't "executing" like it was drawn up on the coaches board and our sideline staff seems helpless to recover. Venables used to instill passion with his gung-ho optimism and fiery histrionics. He was into pumping up emotions to get players to play out of their minds versus what we have now which is all to often centered around attacking fragile egos. Mike just yells and screams blame. Bob seems to follow suit as well but to a lesser degree than Mike. I don't see much of Barry in either of the Stoops'.
I believe sustained lack of "executing" is more within the coaches arena than with the players. Sure, players will fail from time to time via the occasional fumble, missed block, or dropped pass. But, these things are recoverable through perseverance, strategy, and good old fashioned ego boosting. What we've been witnessing in the past decade is a laissez-faire approach by our coaches due to their level of comfort with their bottom line accomplishments. The fire in the belly is diminishing with each passing year. Just look at our now long-term history under present leadership of a systemic problem with our weak game preparation, leadership and in-game adjustments. Again, imho.
Boomer Sooner
Soonersincefitty
Sooner starter
A key word you left out...he said..."Coaching wasn't the problem....today." And then later in the presser he says HE needs to do a better job at finding out what things are putting his teams in the position of playing with lack of passion.
Individual games can no doubt come down to a few plays that are out of the hands of coaches, that make or break the outcome. But "patterns" over the course of numerous seasons are another story. Brian Kelly had the one season he went 12-1 with a trip to the National Title game. His team got embarrassed by Alabama. But outside of that lone season, Kelly is averaging over 4 losses per season. That pattern is on the coaches shoulders.
I can no longer totally attribute lack of "swagger" or motivation on the part of OU's coaches or players.
2016 has OU in a period of transition that no one recognized prior to the season....a handful of very good players cannot carry a team with so many question marks and overall inexperience. Not one of the graduating players from last season has been significantly replaced and true freshman and redshirt freshmen, with a few new JUCO's, just are not ready to be prime time performers.
2016 has OU in a period of transition that no one recognized prior to the season....a handful of very good players cannot carry a team with so many question marks and overall inexperience. Not one of the graduating players from last season has been significantly replaced and true freshman and redshirt freshmen, with a few new JUCO's, just are not ready to be prime time performers.
Yes, he did say, "...today." Was it not an issue against texASS? He used a two QB system that he was always against in the past... He had one of them sulking on the sideline throughout the game. To me, that is a coaching issue with an individual. It is like an employee. You get a guy who comes in and works hard, shows he can do the job and more right from the get go. You reward him early for his hard work and aptitude. So instead of the review for a raise in a month or 90 days, he has gotten one in two weeks. All seems well, until two weeks later and jobs aren't being done on time, excuses are coming up daily, what takes one man three hours now has 3 guys taking four... They then wonder why they are getting an ass chewing and are fired the following week.
If a player or coach is a detriment to the team... Kick rocks... There is no place for an individual or a small group of individuals to sink the ship...
CT
I always enjoy your post but I have to ask you this.
Why arent those players ready? If Alabama , Ohio State can plug them in to be ready why are the Stoop brothers having such a hard time of doing the same? In my opinion that is what seperates Saben and Meyer from other top coaches. Look at Harbaugh and what he is doing at Michigan by turning them around.
I think this falls on the coaches.
^^^^ Ding, ding, ding. Winner, winner, prime rib for dinner, compliments of BillyRay because I can't afford it... Ha!!!
I'm not saying the coaches are not to blame because they recruit and develop and motivate players. My point is that right now, OU seems caught within a "perfect storm" in which negative things are coming in from many directions....some of it....too much of it....are squarely on the coaches' shoulders.
A lot of you complained about the recent recruiting being down. Now we don't understand how OU coaches couldn't do what Meyer and Saban do. Who would you want to replace Stoops? I mean a coach that you think would be interested. I'm sure coaches are itching to win a title in the big 12. Three games into the year and the big 12 is out of the championship possibilities. Texas and others are thrilled about OU's start. Stupid they had to have us rated high to move up. Notre Dame is not a good win for Texas now.
Everyone talks about the "swagger" the teams have under Stoops. I've seen to many times where we are the "bully" that, once hit in the mouth, we fall apart.
I was never sold on this years or last years team. Last year I thought we were a good team but not an Elite team. Way to many lucky breaks with down QBs. This years team is solid but more of a Top 20-30 team, with a few breaks maybe Top 15-20. OU could run the table but it's against a weak conference or OU could lose 3 more games.
The thing I've seen the last 10 years, are the transfers or washouts. USC and Bama during there dominance had guys making NFL rosters with little to no college playing time. The Kid from Bama that transferred to Georgia was the first kid I can remember transferring under Saban.
The other thing is the lack of Elite lineman. Every year at OU, we should have 3 guys on both sides of the ball, with different levels of experience ie Freshman or Seniors. That have a NFL future. With another 3 that are marginal, NFL talent.
The last ten years we have seen the Houston area and Vegas area pipelines dry up. We have to get back in the Houston Market. We've lost some ground to TCU and Baylor in the DFW markets. So the Houston market should be a priority.OU has a TON of Alumni in the Houston area but we have not been that aggressive with recruiting. We have ex OU players coaching in the Houston area and I've heard of OU not contacting any of these guys.
I was never sold on this years or last years team. Last year I thought we were a good team but not an Elite team. Way to many lucky breaks with down QBs. This years team is solid but more of a Top 20-30 team, with a few breaks maybe Top 15-20. OU could run the table but it's against a weak conference or OU could lose 3 more games.
The thing I've seen the last 10 years, are the transfers or washouts. USC and Bama during there dominance had guys making NFL rosters with little to no college playing time. The Kid from Bama that transferred to Georgia was the first kid I can remember transferring under Saban.
The other thing is the lack of Elite lineman. Every year at OU, we should have 3 guys on both sides of the ball, with different levels of experience ie Freshman or Seniors. That have a NFL future. With another 3 that are marginal, NFL talent.
The last ten years we have seen the Houston area and Vegas area pipelines dry up. We have to get back in the Houston Market. We've lost some ground to TCU and Baylor in the DFW markets. So the Houston market should be a priority.OU has a TON of Alumni in the Houston area but we have not been that aggressive with recruiting. We have ex OU players coaching in the Houston area and I've heard of OU not contacting any of these guys.
I'm willing to take out a loan for this one....spare no expense for answers to OU football issues!!
The question about recent recruiting I think is a valid one. Stoops let his staff get lazy as hell with recruiting for some years and it's showing. His recent hires though we can see recruiting has picked up and improved. So saying Stoops should be shown the door now is premature. Give a few years to see how the effects of recruiting impact what we see on the field.
Now that being said, it's a point that no doubt impacted the results against Ohio State. But it doesn't hold up in the loss to Houston. Houston doesn't recruit even remotely close to the level that OU does, and they came out on the field and gave OU a pretty thorough ass whipping. Herman and his staff is simply doing a superior job of developing and motivating the players he has instead of relying on just raw talent and elite level recruiting.
Billy Ray....The issue for me is this....We have arguably 2 of the best RB's in the country! We have a horrible O-line! WHY? Stoops should have been recruiting the best O-linemen in the country to block for these guys! Instead, we will basically throw away Perine's talents, and if things don't improve quickly, Mixon will go down the same road.... I love our RB's, but they can't make the holes themselves....
And to answer the question who I'd replace Stoops with?? ANYBODY with passion and vision and desire to take OU back to where we should be and not where we seem to be staying...Winning the Big 12 isn't all that huge anymore...not when you get pounded by any decent team outside the conference....The Alabama win in the Sugar Bowl aside....we simply are not getting the job done against the elite teams...
Damn, I hate being negative, but I'm frustrated!
And to answer the question who I'd replace Stoops with?? ANYBODY with passion and vision and desire to take OU back to where we should be and not where we seem to be staying...Winning the Big 12 isn't all that huge anymore...not when you get pounded by any decent team outside the conference....The Alabama win in the Sugar Bowl aside....we simply are not getting the job done against the elite teams...
Damn, I hate being negative, but I'm frustrated!
How does Ohio State do it, they have lost more players than any and totally reload with no issue. How nice that is.
I am so sick of the phrases from Bob, "need to take care of the ball", "we need to execute". My hell, get your act together, I too am sick of it.
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Soonersincefitty
Sooner starter
Well, distinct advantage owning a state of 11.5 million.
Why do you think Mike Stoops is up in the box? Is Bob afraid of him embarrassing himself and others like he did at Arizona. What has happened to Lincoln, is he collapsing under inept coaches? So many questions with ZERO answers.
Well, the honeymoon with Bedenbaugh is coming to an end. He got a pass the first few years till he could get his recruits in here. He made due with what he inherited. But this year the success or failure of the OLine is completely on his shoulders. It's not like OU has only been recruiting garbage players at OLine the last handful of years. But you look at how Ohio State just reloaded on BOTH SIDES OF THE BALL, and compare that with how OU reloaded at some positions. And it's night and day the difference in how much more prepared and developed the Ohio State players were. No doubt some of that was talent. But talent alone won't make that kind of difference. It's coaching that's responsible for developing the talent.
Hey sure put Utah Utes on the map. You did not even hear their name, but he really brought them up.
Soonersincefitty
Sooner starter
Which proves what? Coaching was a problem? He was lying? Both or more?
True. Then there are the pesky little facts... he wins. Everywhere he goes. Bowling Green, Utah, Florida, and Ohio State...
Don't know if it "proves" anything. Just reaffirms that it's better to pay attention to what a person does, rather than what a person says.
Ya I think this speaks volumes. In the end, I guess the defensive coordinator wasn't "executing" properly either....
