Oklahoma went 11-2 in 2013 and put an exclamation point on their season with a solid Sugar Bowl victory over Alabama. Head Coach Bob Stoops became the winningest coach in school history last season, but the most interesting story to surface from 2013 is the recent verbal skirmish between Stoops and Nick Saban.
Riding momentum from their bowl win, OU was picked 1st in the Big 12’s preseason poll and far outpaced the next closest team (Baylor – 9) with 41 first place votes. In other words, the Big 12 media is projecting “business as usual†for the conference and the Sooners.
Stoops has eight conference titles in his 15 years as head coach in Norman. More impressive than that consistency, Stoops’ eight titles have come from six different quarterbacks. With things looking settled at quarterback (compared to 2013), Stoops and OU are looking to win 11 games in consecutive seasons for first time since 2008.
Last season, Texas snapped OU’s 10-game conference win streak with a 36-20 win. After being soundly beaten in back-to-back years, the Longhorns racked up two interceptions (one returned for a touchdown) and scored a touchdown on an 85-yard punt return. That loss proved to be a back breaker in the Big 12 race after the Sooners lost to Baylor later in the season.
Coaches and fans love to say that football games are won and lost by play along the line of scrimmage. If that’s true, then 2014 will be a very good year at OU where OL and DL are the team’s strengths and the question marks fall to the skill players.
Offense
Josh Heupel and Jay Norvell took over the OU offense as Co-coordinators in 2011 and have continued to field one of the more underappreciated units in the league (traditionally OU’s defense receives the publicity). At the end of last season, the Sooners scored 41.8 ppg and averaged 42% on 3rd down conversions, helping themselves to a 4-game win streak.
Defensive coordinator Mike Stoops is entering his third season back at OU after a stint as Arizona’s Head Coach. After taking a year to settle into the role, Stoops led the Sooners to a No. 1 finish in the Big 12 in total defense last year (350.2 ypg).
A hallmark of Stoops’ OU defenses is an aggressive style of play that creates turnovers. Last Fall, the Oklahoma defense forced 25 turnovers, and the offense scored on 21 of those opportunities. One of the keys to creating turnovers last year was a switch to a 3-4 alignment (30-front) to play to their roster’s strength.
OU returns their entire front seven on defense and the unit will be led by Charles Tapper and Geneo Grissom. The tandem are the Big 12’s best pair of DE’s (Grissom technically plays LB in the 3-4) and Tapper will be on the postseason All-conference squad.
At defensive tackle, Jordan Philips and Chuka Ndulue will eat up blockers in the middle of the 3-4. Philips missed most of 2013 (back) but is a considered a major talent when healthy.
If Nick Saban is correct and Alabama wasn’t motivated to win the Sugar Bowl, then you could justifiably argue that OU lost their two toughest games and their 11-2 record was somewhat pedestrian. On the other hand, Stoops might be right and OU’s win over Alabama was an exclamation point on an 11-win season. Either way, the Sooners are looking to build off that success and have the personnel to do so.
This is a team that is expected to do no less than compete for the Big 12 championship. If the Sugar Bowl was “realâ€, then this team has a legitimate shot at being one of the four playoff teams this season.
The key to the Texas game will be…
You’ll hear me say this often…this is a game where the Texas defensive line needs to step up and play like one of the best units on this Longhorn squad. OU’s line is weaker on the interior, so Malcom Brown and Dez Jackson need to play at an All-Conference level. By disrupting plays and penetrating into the Oklahoma backfield, the Sooners will have trouble running the football. About the time that OU slides a double team in to help on the interior, Cedric Reed, Shiro Davis and Caleb Bluiett need to make Trevor Knight uneasy. The back 7 on defense for the Horns will look much better in the Cotton Bowl if the front 4 have an outstanding day.
