gopokes.com poll

[shaun4411]

What are your realistic expectations for football 08

Win 8 games, + Bowl Game, Finish top 3 in the South: 79 votes
Win more than 8, + Bowl Game, Finish at least top 3: 19 votes
Win 10 Games, Big Bowl, Top 2 in the south: 8 votes
Win The South, Big Bowl: 1 vote
Win The South, Win the Big 12, Win BCS game: 7 votes
Win South, Win the Big 12, Be competitive in BCS game: 3 votes
Beat who we are expected to beat: 19 votes
Beat who we are expected to beat + 1 Upset: 28 votesW
Who cares it's all about the tailgate: 5 votes]

where is the "Go .500 again after an upset win in a dump bowl game" ?

[stoops the eternal pimp]

NYC is around here somewhere..get his opinion...I would take his word over any other Poke fan

[NYC Poke]

NYC is around here somewhere..get his opinion...I would take his word over any other Poke fan

Honestly, 8 wins (pre-bowl game) would be a great season for us. I see 6 "should wins" on our sked: WSU, Houston, Missouri State, Troy (save the wisecracks), and Baylor. A&M is a question mark - they always have talent, we'll have to see how Sherman does. Colorado is supposed to be a lot better, and we play them at Colorado (I'll save my wisecracks). However, I can see us winning one of those 2.

Realistically, we probably lose at TT, Mizzou, and UT, though karma owes us one against UT.

That leave only the B-word game, and I wouldn't be so bold as to predict a win, though I feel better that it's at our place.

So I guess I foresee a 7-win season, though I think 8 is within reach.*


*None of this has taken into account the choke factor, which might make us 6-6, for a change.

[stoops the eternal pimp]

See...there ya have it

[NYC Poke]

I'm glad our fans are excited about our football team. We've been through long stretches where that wasn't the case. We WILL be a better football team next year. However, so will every conference team we face, in all probability. UT is the only one I see as sort of treading water, but their O-line will be more experienced next year, which should make McCoy better.

The Big XII next year might be the best in the nation. Just being better doesn't not necessarily mean winning a bunch more games. It's not just who you are, it's also who you play.

[MichiganSooner]

NYC Poke said, "I'm glad our fans are excited about our football team."

Hey NYC Poke, they are always an excited bunch. Last year, all we heard was "we have the 2 best QB's in the state in Zach and Bobby Reid". At the end of the year, the 2 best were Sam Bradford and Paul Smith; Pokes barely ahead of Baylor in the South and headed to their normal Mediocre Bowl with a 6-6 record. A colleague of mine just gave me his annual spring, "I can't wait for football" speech with his normal, "I just hope we are bowl eligible" closing.

If you call that being excited then enjoy.

[swardboy]

Hey, they're football fans at least. There was a time I was worried the country was going all euro with soccer. Football rosters were down....

[badger]

Why don't they have a pole like ours? "If not the Sooners, who will win?"

Oh wait, let's poke-ize it:

"Them fairweather fan cheatin' Gooners always win, but NOT THIS YEAR. If next year's our year instead of this year, which Big 12 South champion do we upset?"

:rolleyes:

[King Crimson]

3rd in the South, that's great.

[NYC Poke]

NYC Poke said, "I'm glad our fans are excited about our football team."

Hey NYC Poke, they are always an excited bunch. Last year, all we heard was "we have the 2 best QB's in the state in Zach and Bobby Reid". At the end of the year, the 2 best were Sam Bradford and Paul Smith; Pokes barely ahead of Baylor in the South and headed to their normal Mediocre Bowl with a 6-6 record. A colleague of mine just gave me his annual spring, "I can't wait for football" speech with his normal, "I just hope we are bowl eligible" closing.

If you call that being excited then enjoy.


We finished third in the Big XII South. Sure, we were tied with TT and A&M, but half the conference finished "barely ahead of Baylor" in the standings. Our game with Baylor wasn't even close (and no, that's not bragging).

I was asked for an honest assessment and I gave it. I'm not here saying I think we're a better team than OU, because I don't think we are. I think our fans that are predicting us to win the South are unrealistic; it could happen -- it's college football, after all -- but I think your competition for the South this year is Tumbleweed Tech.

You are right to an extent. Our expectations are different. A thread on our board asking "If not us, then who" would be stupid. An ideal season for any college football team means avoiding stupid losses, sucking our a game or two that your should have lost, and then winning your final game.

Under that formulation, next year I think we could go 6-6, or we could go 10-2. Who knows? We could pull a Kansas, though that is unlikely. I expect we'll end up somewhere in between.

[Curly Bill]

Well reasoned and well said by NYC Poke...but that has usually been the case. Ever think about switching sides? ;)

[Outopia]

Stones NYC, stones. You have them, and speak the truth. That's about what I see them doing too. Colorado may be the "surprise" in the North. Tech may have their best team in forever in the South.

[MrJimBeam]

Honestly, 8 wins (pre-bowl game) would be a great season for us. I see 6 "should wins" on our sked: WSU, Houston, Missouri State, Troy (save the wisecracks), and Baylor. A&M is a question mark - they always have talent, we'll have to see how Sherman does. Colorado is supposed to be a lot better, and we play them at Colorado (I'll save my wisecracks). However, I can see us winning one of those 2.

Realistically, we probably lose at TT, Mizzou, and UT, though karma owes us one against UT.

That leave only the B-word game, and I wouldn't be so bold as to predict a win, though I feel better that it's at our place.

So I guess I foresee a 7-win season, though I think 8 is within reach.*


*None of this has taken into account the choke factor, which might make us 6-6, for a change.

Gotta win that first game in Seattle. I know Wash St sucks but it's on the road and the aggies not go on road. Win that first game and Halloween U. could win 7 more.

[olevetonahill]

Well reasoned and well said by NYC Poke...but that has usually been the case. Ever think about switching sides? ;)

Thats why hes still Green
He makes Mo sense than Most of the nOObs here ;)

[Curly Bill]

Thats why hes still Green
He makes Mo sense than Most of the nOObs here ;)

true dat! :D

[TheUnnamedSooner]

I remember a time when I would have been excited if my beloved Sooners were picked to finish 3rd in the south.

[MichiganSooner]

I hafta agree with you on your points NYC. Enjoy the season.

[silverwheels]

3rd in the South, that's great.

Hey, they finished as high as 3rd in the South once, didn't they?

[soonermix]

hey btw in our poll where was the option for who cares its all about the tailgate??

[StanberryWasIn]

They're excited about their football team? Of course they are; it's May. Their excitement will build to a fever pitch, up until the WSU game. After that loss, they'll be excited about the basketball team. Rinse, repeat.

[JohnnyMack]

I think aggie lite could win 8 games and finish in the top 3 of the Big XII south this year.

[JLEW1818]

No way new coach new system , maybe in a new decade.

[NYC Poke]

Thats why hes still Green
He makes Mo sense than Most of the nOObs here ;)


Thanks to the gracioiusness of my Crimson & Cream hosts, I think I have enough green to last me through the next football season, barring another loss to Troy. :O

The game in Seattle makes me nervous. You never know how a team's going to perform on opening day, and it's essentially a road game against a BCS conference opponent. WSU wasn't very good last year, and they have a new coach who seems to be a real quality guy, but he's installing a new offense and that tends to take a while. The opening-day x-factors seem to be in our favor in that regard, which is why I keep it in the "should win" category.

[JohnnyMack]

The game in Seattle makes me nervous. You never know how a team's going to perform on opening day, and it's essentially a road game against a BCS conference opponent. WSU wasn't very good last year, and they have a new coach who seems to be a real quality guy, but he's installing a new offense and that tends to take a while. The opening-day x-factors seem to be in our favor in that regard, which is why I keep it in the "should win" category.

What's your record in season opening road games? Srsly.

[stoopified]

I see TBS finishing anywhere from 8-4 to 4-8.I say split the difference and they finsh 6-6 AGAIN.

I see 3 wins for them(Missouri State,Houston,Baylor)

.IMHO there are 4 losses(OU,at UT,at Missou,at TT).Gundy has yet to win a road game vs. .500+ team and has not broken through vs. OU.I don't see that changing this year.

The key to the Pokes season is how they do in tossup games(WSU,CU,ISU which are road games) and Troy at home.Any Poke who sees Troy as a win needs to recall that Troy throttled the Orange Rabble last year and playing at TBS does not guarantee victory. aTm is no gimme either.If oSu can go 3-2 in tossups and win the 3 likely victories they will finish 6-6.Pull out one more tossup and an upset and 8-4 IS possible.

[NYC Poke]

What's your record in season opening road games? Srsly.


I don't know, but I suspect from your question that it's not very good. However, I feel a lot better about this one than, say, last year's game going into Georgia.* I don't view this as a gimme. Just one of those that on paper, we should win (and I know the game isn't played on paper).


*I met SI.com's Stewart "When you stop going 6-6" Mandel just before the start of the season and asked him what he thought our chances were against Georgia. After a very brief "Are you freaking crazy?" look, he politely explained that he thought we were making progress, that we didn't have the talent to compete with Georgia, but if we did manage to beat them, he'd be a believer. I assume from his recent comments his is still not a believer. He did have nice things to say about the pre-Rant Gundy.

[olevetonahill]

Dont Yall have a Pokestats.com or sumpun ?

[NYC Poke]

Dont Yall have a Pokestats.com or sumpun ?


Found it. 17-31-1, which is about what I expected (only goes to 2006, so, using a little math, that should probably be 17-32-1).

Ugh. 2002 opening loss at Louisiana Tech. I'd forgotten that. Now do you see why we're always looking to the future?

[JohnnyMack]

So you have a 1 in 3 chance of winning that game the way I see it.

[OU_Sooners75]

We finished third in the Big XII South. Sure, we were tied with TT and A&M, but half the conference finished "barely ahead of Baylor" in the standings. Our game with Baylor wasn't even close (and no, that's not bragging).

I was asked for an honest assessment and I gave it. I'm not here saying I think we're a better team than OU, because I don't think we are. I think our fans that are predicting us to win the South are unrealistic; it could happen -- it's college football, after all -- but I think your competition for the South this year is Tumbleweed Tech.

You are right to an extent. Our expectations are different. A thread on our board asking "If not us, then who" would be stupid. An ideal season for any college football team means avoiding stupid losses, sucking our a game or two that your should have lost, and then winning your final game.

Under that formulation, next year I think we could go 6-6, or we could go 10-2. Who knows? We could pull a Kansas, though that is unlikely. I expect we'll end up somewhere in between.

See, you get treated better here than at orangepower.com.

That site is ran by a bunch of hypocrites.

Enjoy your time here NYCpoke. never had a problem with you at op.com.

[NYC Poke]

So you have a 1 in 3 chance of winning that game the way I see it.

I don't see that as an unreasonable opinion, it's just one I don't share. They were a 5-win team last year, all at home or in Seattle, coming against SDSU, Idaho, Karl Dorrell-coached UCLA, Stanford, and Washington. They've got a new coach with a new offense. We return a pretty darn good QB, an experienced O-line, and have improved depth on D. I like those factors.

Troy is a good football team and I don't expect them to be a pushover. They stood toe-to-toe with Georgia and Florida last year. But it's a home game and hopefully the revenge factor will come into play. Feel free to neg-spek me into oblivion if we lose, 'cause we'll deserve it.

Notice I didn't call A&M a win, despite its being a home game. I'm taking a wait-and-see approach with them. If Coach Fran was still peddling inside info from College Station, I'd feel more confident.

[JohnnyMack]

You're Oklahoma State.

Playing on the road.

In your first game.

[NYC Poke]

You're Oklahoma State.

Playing on the road.

In your first game.


Yeah, but it's not like we're playing a powerhouse like Louisiana Tech.

[stoops the eternal pimp]

Couple of things they have going for them is

1. Robinson is a darn good QB..One of the better qbs in the big 12..and its good to have a not only a good QB but an experienced one on the road....
2. Bryant is 100 times the receiver Bowman was....Bowman was the Cedric Benson of WRs....

couple of things working against them

1. Gundy...I still haven't seen something about him that says he's a great/good/ok coach..I just don't believe the guy is a coordinator posing as a HC...
2. Defense...I know they will be better but not enough IMO....They will win a few games early on offensive power, but the D will fold down the stretch if more guys cant play in conference play

[cheezyq]

All I wanna know is who over there had the audacity to put the word "realistic" in a poll involving OP.com members.

[StoopTroup]

How can this be a poll without vcash?

[picasso]

I'm glad our fans are excited about our football team. We've been through long stretches where that wasn't the case. We WILL be a better football team next year. However, so will every conference team we face, in all probability. UT is the only one I see as sort of treading water, but their O-line will be more experienced next year, which should make McCoy better.

The Big XII next year might be the best in the nation. Just being better doesn't not necessarily mean winning a bunch more games. It's not just who you are, it's also who you play.

how will oSu be better this season? you lost most of your offense. you're not OU, you just can't reload.

burp.

[NYC Poke]

how will oSu be better this season? you lost most of your offense. you're not OU, you just can't reload.

burp.


We return most of our line. ZR is a productive QB under anyone's standards. We'll have Dez Bryant as our primary receiver, and he showed himself to be quite capable last year as a true freshman. Pettigrew is a solid TE. In the backfield, we signed a top JUCO guy, Beau Johnson, who will probably be our "every down" RB, and we return Kendall Hunter, who is a DM-type of runner. Depending on how his knee heels, and when he hangs onto the ball, Toston can be pretty good, too.

The two questions I have about our offense are: (1) Backup QB. Zac is a good running QB, but he takes some shots. We saw what happened to Oregon last year after Dixon went down. (2) Secondary receiver. Having Pettigrew will help keep defenses honest, but I'd like to see someone step up at WR the way Dez did last year.

[Civicus_Sooner]

You're Oklahoma State.

Playing on the road.

In your first game.

L




Poor bastards.

[tulsaoilerfan]

I remember a time when I would have been excited if my beloved Sooners were picked to finish 3rd in the south.

I remember when we were excited to beat Baylor:eek:

[stoopified]

I remember when we were excited to beat Baylor:eek:Oh?

[badger]

I remember when we were excited to beat Baylor:eek:

Me too. Traffic was held up more at that game in 2005 than any other game. Thanks to overtime. Just think... if we missed a field goal in OT, we would have lost to Baylor for the first time ever. But fortunately, our little surfer boy came through for us :D

[SoonerDood]

Me too. Traffic was held up more at that game in 2005 than any other game. Thanks to overtime. Just think... if we missed a field goal in OT, we would have lost to Baylor for the first time ever. But fortunately, our little surfer boy came through for us :D

I think he may be referring to the 1997 game. Baylor scores on 4th down with no time left, and we intercept the 2-point conversion. What a great win for John Blake!