There is no excuse to lose with so many good players

[rubyspirit]

Our coaching is suspect.

Florida offense is - Tebow, his roommate, another WR, and a running back with a bad knee and TWO bad ankles.

We had - Sammy, Iggy, Greshman, Manning, Chaney, Chris Brown, Madu, Broyles, Eldridge, etc., etc., etc ...

Sooner Defense was outstanding and ready to play!!!!

If we had made field goals on those 2 interceptions our momentum would have been exceptional going into halftime.

We have THE BEST talent in the country on our team and we lose to a subpar team. The only reason can be ... COACHING. Why was plays changed as many as 3 times???!!!

COACHING. Bob Stoops should be embarrassed.

I accept it and look forward to a change. I want to win outside the Big 12.

Stop getting your hopes up for another national title under Stoops. We didn't win with this roster, It can't be done.

[MelloYello]

Wrong. Florida was more talented. They were a better team. It sucks, but that's just the way it is.

[rubyspirit]

You're wrong. The Sooners have much more talent then the Gators.

[85Sooner]

I agree but the homers here are taking on a burnt orange glow. Coaching. Simply Coaching.

[ashley]

they had more speed and our O did not hold up their end.

[DoubleDown]

I'm pretty much convinced we'll never see our 8th under this staff. Maybe my opinion will change when this sinks in, but right now it appears coaching is the one thing holding them back.

[The_Red_Patriot]

Some of the coaching calls were questionable.

Running it twice on the 1 yd line when Florida was banking on it....we have been money all year throwing the ball inside the 5...especially hitting a TE in the endzone.

[FlaGators]

Good. If y'all get rid of Stoops (for no reason....4 National Title games in 9 years isn't all that bad folks) and when Charlie Strong finally gets the head coaching job he should have got 5 years ago (if not more)...we will gladly take Stoops back as our Defensive Coordinator.

[Sooner5030]

The same coaching staff is able to get us to these BCS games in the first place. Which is better than 115 other FBS programs over the last 8 years.

I don't like all the calls or some of the schemes......but I'm also not having to watch OU lose to A&M at home in rain in another 3 win season.

Because of Coach Stoops I'm actually afforded the opportunity to complain about another BCS loss. I'm lucky.

[UTsucks]

Some of the coaching calls were questionable.

Running it twice on the 1 yd line when Florida was banking on it....we have been money all year throwing the ball inside the 5...especially hitting a TE in the endzone.

Were sitting here watching the game with 6 of us and we all said the same thing. That TE pass has been there ALL year for a TD. So what do we do? Run the ball :eek:

[TXBOOMER]

I can't believe what I am hearing. Stoops is obviously one of the best coaches and recruiters in the nation. Offensively, we simply did not execute in the red zone, although I will admit we got overly conservative inside the red zone. But give the Gators defense some credit. You can't leave points on the field in a championship game.

[Crimsontothecore]

The same coaching staff is able to get us to these BCS games in the first place. Which is better than 115 other FBS programs over the last 8 years.

I don't like all the calls or some of the schemes......but I'm also not having to watch OU lose to A&M at home in rain in another 3 win season.

Because of Coach Stoops I'm actually afforded the opportunity to complain about another BCS loss. I'm lucky.

This post should be in bold letters on the front page of Soonerfans. One idiot in another thread asked the question "Has any other coach lost 3 title games in a row?" well, how many coaches get their teams to that many title games?

[jmr_77]

Count me as one who will not blame Stoops or the rest of the coaches for this loss. I do not agree with all of the play calls, especially at the goal line in the first half, but it was not on the coaches. The plays were just not executed. On 4th and 1 at the goalline I was yelling at the TV for a pass to Gresham or Eldridge. Gresham was a physical mis-match for Florida all night long. I feel that the talent levels were extremely even all night long, even though the media was so slanted toward Florida before the game. Florida just executed a couple of more times than we did last night.

[MichiganSooner]

Play calls are fine when they work and shouldn't have been tried when it turns out they do not work. We ran the ball down the field with authority and when we get inside the 5 you don't want to do what has worked and run?

Go back to 2003 versus LSU. Kejuan is running the ball with authority in the
the last drive. We throw a couple passes to try to tie the game. They miss. Since then, on this board and in coffee shops, the coaches have been criticized for poor play calling--"we should have run it in."

[RedstickSooner]

Actually, there were three primary factors which caused us to lose:

1) Florida players were breaking tackles more often than we were.
2) Our guys were dropping balls.
3) We had some crucial players declare early for no good g-d'd reason last season, and that left us massively vulnerable at middle linebacker, in particular.

Without those early defections, we win this game. So, perhaps more importantly, we can point to lousy coaching for the West Virginia game (whatever personnel deficiencies we had, our guys simply weren't up for playing, and that's a coaching issue) as forcing this loss. Had we played well against WVU, I think those underclassmen would've stuck around. Had they stuck around, we'd have number 8 and an undefeated season.

[East Coast Bias]

Michigan is right, it was the right call based on the flow of the game, the execution was not there. It looked to me like Clapp got too far in front looking for a block and should have at least scrap-blocked the tackler. On the pass that was intercepted, I believe it was a good call however Heuple should have told Sam to throw it into the bleachers if something wasn't wide open, and take the three. Hats off to the Florida secondary, it seemed like all our routes were covered tonight, even the ones we hit required a surgical strike by Bradford. In most of our games someone is running free, not in this game...

[Bourbon St Sooner]

This thread is stupid!

We were out-executed. This was a game between two evenly matched teams that were well prepared. Fla receivers made sure-handed catches. OUr guys juggled balls that ended up in the hands of Fla d-backs. In critical short yardage situations OUr O-line didn't get it done. While I might have preferred a simple QB sneak on 3rd and a foot, we should still be able to prevent a guy from shooting the gap on a simple run play.

Execution!

[TUSooner]

Umm. Some of Florida's players were pretty good, too

[S008NER]

As Barry noted during the post game, we were facing an opponent on this stage that had equal or better talent then what we have. Florida is an excellent team with depth. We had a good game plan, but they made a few big plays in the fourth quarter to seal it.

[sooner518]

this thread is idiotic. As for the playcalling on 3rd and goal from the 1, I won't question it. In that situation, I have no problem with telling the team that we have 2 plays to get one yard and we are going to do it by being physical and running the ball. if it had been 1st and goal at the 1 and we ran 4 straight run plays up the middle, then I'd be pissed, but this wasn't like that. We had gashed them with the run up to that point as well so we were sticking with what worked.

for the idiot who started this thread, UF has just as much if not a little more talent than we do. thats really not even that debatable.

[josh09]

Wrong. Florida was more talented. They were a better team. It sucks, but that's just the way it is.

Idk about that. I think we were pretty even, both sides had huge weapons, and I think we even played better most of the game. But we just missed chances to score when we should have scored. We had more chances than Florida did, too.

[josh09]

Also, those penalties that kept killing our drives in the 1st half didn't help, either.

[85Sooner]

As Barry noted during the post game, we were facing an opponent on this stage that had equal or better talent then what we have. Florida is an excellent team with depth. We had a good game plan, but they made a few big plays in the fourth quarter to seal it.

and THATS when coaching matters. And again we get another 8 months to hear that we are the buffalo bills of college football and sadly, right now, we are. From the way Barry was talking I don't think he is very impressed with the state of things either.

Yeah this game was closer than the others but OU has lost to teams of every level during this bowl fiasco. For a team that wins as much as they do, something has to be fundementally wrong for these losses to occur.

[wishbonesooner]

I don't know. Right or wrong, people are going to question OU until we break through and win that 8th championship. Is this bad stretch now in the heads of our coaches and players? It would be human nature to wonder. Bob is no doubt a very tough person mentally, but do you think he allows doubt to creep into his thinking? I don't know, I don't know the man personally. His face didn't show a lot last night, but it is painful to see the man that had so much success early struggle with the biggest games.

[JLEW1818]

Does anybody remember the first drive????? 2 flags on Duke, we were rolling ..

[Tear Down This Wall]

Folks, Florida has great players, too. Why can't some of you see that? We're not the only school in America with great talent. We can only offer 20-25 scholarships per seasons. Kids have to go to other programs...and there are more than 20-25 great prospects in America every year.

Seriously.

[Leroy Lizard]

Florida is very talented. So is OU. Both teams were about as evenly matched as possible. In a situation like that, it comes down to a few plays. We had two freak INTs that were the difference. Bradford put both balls on the money, but Florida had defenders in perfect position to turn the play around.

So what if we are the Buffalo Bills of college football? Who has the right to look down on this Sooner team other than Florida or Utah fans? No one.

Who criticized the Buffalo Bills? The fans of the teams that didn't make it to the Super Bowl? Do their opinions matter? Nope.

Texas fans? Win your conference, THEN talk.
USC fans? Your team had its opportunity; it didn't deliver. Too bad.

So if you're a fan that doesn't want to see OU play (and lose) in the national title game, your favorite team can do something about it. If it doesn't, then STFU.

[Phantom Pain]

Our coaching is suspect.

Florida offense is - Tebow, his roommate, another WR, and a running back with a bad knee and TWO bad ankles.

We had - Sammy, Iggy, Greshman, Manning, Chaney, Chris Brown, Madu, Broyles, Eldridge, etc., etc., etc ...

Sooner Defense was outstanding and ready to play!!!!

If we had made field goals on those 2 interceptions our momentum would have been exceptional going into halftime.

We have THE BEST talent in the country on our team and we lose to a subpar team. The only reason can be ... COACHING. Why was plays changed as many as 3 times???!!!

COACHING. Bob Stoops should be embarrassed.

I accept it and look forward to a change. I want to win outside the Big 12.

Stop getting your hopes up for another national title under Stoops. We didn't win with this roster, It can't be done.

As an alum of a different B12 team I have no love for the Sooners but I do recognize the value of the individual you have coaching your team. I have to give credit where credit is due. Bob Stoops is an excellent head coach. Possibly irreplaceable.

The fact is the guy got you to the Big Dance several times even though he didn't win it. His teams are always competitive. In an age of reduced scholarships and practice hours, minimum GPAs, limited walkons and partial qualifiers, and stupid recruits who find creative ways to eliminate themselves in an unforgiving media world, we fans of the game will probably never see a program that is regularly dominant like we did in the 70s, 80s, and early 90s ever again.

What I saw last night was two very talented football teams. The game really come down to about three issues in my mind.

1. Failure of OU to score on the goal line twice in the first half. Putting 3 on the board with one of those would not have helped.

2. Solid adjustments by UF in the 2nd half countered the success of OUs defense in the first half.

3. Black's INT in the 4th quarter and the ensuing drive ended OUs chances. The time of possession of the that drive and Florida's scoring drive really ate up a lot of clock. In the end, UF possessed the ball 10 minutes more than OU did.

Firing Stoops over his bowl record would be asinine. If you can't remember what painful was like I can only suggest you click this link (http://images.chron.com/blogs/longhorns/74v94796.jpg) as a reminder.

[TahoeSOONER]

So easy to spot the pople that played the game and those who didn't. Second guessing on play calling with whining attached. While I'm for game chat this staff has the attitude if you can't get a yard you don't deserve to win and I'm personally proud to call these guys our coaches. Tempo of the game was a killer and turned it into a SEC meatgrinder. Bad bounced and missed opportunities.

Really proud of this group, coaching included, and in a few weeks I'll be looking forward to watching them line up again

BOOMER!

[SoonerSon]

I thought we could have executed the no-huddle a little better myself. For the one drive we did execute it well, UF was on their heels, we moved the ball and scored...however, most of the night continued to allow UF to get set.

Sam rarely had enough time to time to pass downfield because of tight coverage and an Oline that couldn't hold. It's all about execution.

Basically, UF did to us what was predicted...tight, agressive D, special teams, and Tebow. Our boys, especially the D, played a good game...but would the results would have been much different if they could've stopped UF on 3rd down. Not capitalizing on the INT's killed us.

I'm sad that CFB is over...but I'm now switching gears and plan to cheer on the Sooners BB team. They're tied for first in the B12at 14-1.

Boomer....

[TUSooner]

Best thing about this thread? ruby didn't say "no excuse to loose"

I got nuthin.

[ashley]

I can't believe that no one has said it. We proably got beat because our center couldn't reach the A gap defensive tackle on our left side on the goal line. In coaching terms he is a 1 technique. If you can't reach him you have to block everyone down and kickout with the fullback back.

[SoonerSon]

[QUOTE=TUSooner;2558444]Best thing about this thread? ruby didn't say "no excuse to loose"



LMAO....

[WestAustinSooner]

Bottom line is we should have converted on the two interceptions.

Call the TE slant and throw the ball to Gresham. We score both times and win 28-24.

It was a bit disconcerting that Florida had such a young defense and dominated our offense like they did.

[SoonerSon]

Bottom line is we should have converted on the two interceptions.

Call the TE slant and throw the ball to Gresham. We score both times and win 28-24.

It was a bit disconcerting that Florida had such a young defense and dominated our offense like they did.[/QUOTE]

No doubt...Gresham was money last night and should have been used much more.

[BillyBall]

Big plays at bad times, OU outplayed FU for the most part.

Blaming the coaches is retarded.

[OUAlumni1990]

I just believe our offense had way too many jitters. They looked nervous out there. Sam looked good, but our receivers looked nervous as heck. They usually play alot looser than that. I believe if they were to loosen up abit and not worry about #8 and just worry about having fun, they would have caught more of those catchable passes. Not taking away from Florida Defense, they really showed up and made the plays when they needed to. But I believe it was nerves that got us...

[oubose]

Where was SOONER MAGIC last night? Just because we weren't playing the huskers that doesn't mean we couldn't use it!

[85Sooner]

Havn't seen sooner magic since hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm I think 2000 against aTm. Am I wrong?

[cvsooner]

2004 against A & M; 2005 Holiday Bowl; one brief moment with about a minute and a half to go in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl; naw, Sooner Magic still happens. Just not always when we need it.

[KC//CRIMSON]

And again we get another 8 months to hear that we are the buffalo bills of college football

Buffalo has never won a super bowl. OU has won seven national championships.

move along......nothing to see here.........

[Soonerman08]

they had more speed and our O did not hold up their end.

I am not convinced about the speed. I was at the game and our defense was playing stride for stride with Florida's offense. Though we didn't win it just showed we had the athletes to compete with Florida, unlike what most analysts have said. The D got the game ready for the offense, the offense didn't execute when they needed to. That is what lost the game. This bowl game CANNOT be blamed on the D. I was thoroughly impressed with the way they were playing. I mean we knew Florida would get their yards, but I was disappointed in the execution of the offense.

[Iam4OUru]

For a team that wins as much as they do, something has to be fundementally wrong for these losses to occur.

I think it has become a mental thing.

[ashley]

Soonerman, our receivers could not run away from their DB's. Thats just one of the ways their speed was telling. Didn't you notice?

[Iam4OUru]

We lost because of that damn stiff-arm trophy.

:eek:

[bluedogok]

I think a contributing factor is the ridiculous amount of time between the CCG and the NCG, almost six weeks is just absurd. If you watch most of the around new Years and after bowls, most offenses struggled for awhile, the only ones that seemed to "get up to speed" were the zone read or running based offenses and even those took awhile to get going. Most of the teams with timing based passing offenses struggled to get in sync and most didn't, they looked off all night. The receivers dropped balls that hit them in the hands (including two of the interceptions) and the o-line just flat missed blocks all night. You also give defenses almost six weeks to scheme and practice, that is a huge thing. If you look over all the bowl games, for the most part scoring was way down.

Utah got going quick off turnovers, USC got going quick because they were just that much better than Penn State. PSU "made it close" with cheap scores at the end of the game much in the same way OU's defensive stats were skewed all season by the fourth quarters of blowouts.

I was proud of the defense and kick/punt coverage teams, they improved greatly. The difference was execution, OU's receivers dropped too balls and Florida's receivers caught them. They should have scored those two before the half, I think the game would have ended up much different with a 21-7 lead at the half. I didn't like some of the play calling, like handing off 3-4 yards back on fourth down when you have it inside the 1 but if the O-Line would have blocked on the play it would probably have been a score.

I had a bad feeling about the game before and was just glad that it was competitive and not like....well, ya know.

[tnraider1]

The drops turned into int's killed us, although the one in endzone appeared to be aided by some serious defensive holding. Haven't watched the tv version yet to verify.

As far as running inside the 10. You have 4 plays to get into the endzone and the best QB in the Nation throws how many passes? 0, yeah poor play calling there. You have to try the play action at least once. And when you run a play on 3rd and 1 and lose a yard, don't run the same play again on 4th and 2. This isn't Madden 2009.

The defense played lights out. If I knew ahead of time that Florida was only going to score 24 points, I would have been celebrating early. We all would have.

The 2 dropped deep balls by Iglesias, and the one in the end zone were the biggest daggers in the game.

As far as speed goes, aside from Harvin's, there's not much to speak of on Florida's offense. They ARE fast, but no better than we usually see. But their defense had a ton of it. They are young and will be a force next year for sure.

Lastly, I was shocked when I saw Tebow's stats after the game. I didn't think he deserved the MVP. Without Harvin, they might not have scored in double digits. He set up every score with a big run.

Overall, it was a great game, but Florida got the bounces, they made the big plays, and they took advantage of turnovers. We did not, and that was the difference.

[tulsaoilerfan]

Folks, Florida has great players, too. Why can't some of you see that? We're not the only school in America with great talent. We can only offer 20-25 scholarships per seasons. Kids have to go to other programs...and there are more than 20-25 great prospects in America every year.

Seriously.

I'm sorry but that's a cop out; there is no ****ing way a team with OU's talent should lose 5 straight BCS games

[Jdog]

Michigan is right, it was the right call based on the flow of the game, the execution was not there. It looked to me like Clapp got too far in front looking for a block and should have at least scrap-blocked the tackler. On the pass that was intercepted, I believe it was a good call however Heuple should have told Sam to throw it into the bleachers if something wasn't wide open, and take the three. Hats off to the Florida secondary, it seemed like all our routes were covered tonight, even the ones we hit required a surgical strike by Bradford. In most of our games someone is running free, not in this game...

Sam should have known to do that - does hhe need heuple to wipe his butt?

[Jdog]

I just believe our offense had way too many jitters. They looked nervous out there. Sam looked good, but our receivers looked nervous as heck. They usually play alot looser than that. I believe if they were to loosen up abit and not worry about #8 and just worry about having fun, they would have caught more of those catchable passes. Not taking away from Florida Defense, they really showed up and made the plays when they needed to. But I believe it was nerves that got us...



Agreed - they were too nervous.

as for FU's speed - they all looked pretty banged up to me.

and is pass interference legal in the ACC? that first hit on Manny was ridiculous.

[Soonerman08]

Soonerman, our receivers could not run away from their DB's. Thats just one of the ways their speed was telling. Didn't you notice?

Ashley did you not see Jermaine Greshman ahead of their two defensive backs when he caught the pass from Bradford? Though it was negated by Robinson's false start, he was still ahead of one of their fastest corners and their safety. Same goes for Manny in the first quarter when he was nailed in the head from their safety. (He still had their corner beat). Didn't you notice?

[ashley]

Two times?

[Soonerman08]

Two times?

Call me crazy, but when a 6'6"-6'7" TE outruns smaller Defensive Backs then that isn't saying much for those DBs.

[IronSooner]

1. Defense wins championships. Offense doesn't.
2. Not capitalizing on an opponent's mistakes will cost you in a close game.
3. Turnovers and penalties will cost you.

I think our defense played as well as they were capable of. Our special teams looked the best they've looked all year. It came down to redzone offense/defense. UF was better in that category, and with all other things being roughly equal, that's the difference in the game. Period. Could've gone either way, and if we played again it could very well go our way. But you only get one shot. I just wish we'd have played like that the last several bowl games.

[wrestlerdad]

My only problem with the game was, when we had the ball inside the 10 and didn't throw to Gresham. Florida couldn't match up with him. He should have had at least 1 shot at the ball everytime we were there.

[S.PadreIsl.Sooner]

I'm pretty much convinced we'll never see our 8th under this staff. Maybe my opinion will change when this sinks in, but right now it appears coaching is the one thing holding them back.


The OU coaches are topflight!!!!! All of the funny bounces went Florida's way. The Sooners got 0 'breaks.' That's was the straw the broke...

If you want new coaches, you could become a Poke fan, then you get them quite frequently.:O