1985

[SteelClip49]

Miami beat OU

OU beat undefeated PSU

Tennessee killed Miami.

Tennessee finished (9-1-2)

How do you think Oklahoma and Tennessee would have matched up for the NC in 1985?

[KantoSooner]

quirky team as I recall. Put a hurting on some people, rolled over for others. But, we had Bosworth. Give him a big mug of rage-punch before the game and we'd have won.

[Jdog]

Tenn could have defended the bone with 9 in the box for a little while - but Jammin Jamelle would have thrown to Jackson a couple of times to keep em honest -and that would have opened things up.

Don't forget that our starting QB that year got injured early in the Miami game and Jammin was the back up. Think Bama vs Texas.

[Salt City Sooner]

Would've been interesting, IMO. Not sure on this, but IIRC, their QB was Darrell Dickey.I do know thatTim McGee was on that team & as we know, it wasn't unheard of for OU to have issues with teams who had that caliber of player at WR. Although the competition was less than stellar (except for Ga. Tech & Miami), their D allowed 34 points over the last 7 games so it was pretty solid by the time we would've faced them as well. I love me a good OOC game so suffice it to say that I'd loved to have seen it happen, but then again, I'm fairly satisfied with how that season turned out anyway. :D

[Jacie]

A common off season thread is the one about the number of titles Oklahoma almost won but let slip away. Miami was responsible for at least one of those but this thread points out one of three I know of that the thugs lost on the last game.

The loss to Tennessee in the Sugar Bowl is one.

The loss to Penn State in the Fiesta Bowl is two.

The loss to Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl is three.

[sooner94]

A common off season thread is the one about the number of titles Oklahoma almost won but let slip away. Miami was responsible for at least one of those but this thread points out one of three I know of that the thugs lost on the last game.

The loss to Tennessee in the Sugar Bowl is one.

The loss to Penn State in the Fiesta Bowl is two.

The loss to Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl is three.

Didn't they lose a title game to Bama in the early 90's? Right before they voluntarily cancelled an entire season because the NCAA pulled 20+ scholarships for violations.

[Salt City Sooner]

Didn't they lose a title game to Bama in the early 90's? Right before they voluntarily cancelled an entire season because the NCAA pulled 20+ scholarships for violations.
'92. Don't know if you can really call that one a case of letting one slip away though. Bama put a SEVERE case of butthurt on UM that night. Teague stripped Thomas butt nekkid, & Lassic pretty much came, saw, & conquered.

[Sabanball]

I think OU would have beaten Tennessee--and easily. The vols were a pretty good team that season, but not great, and their D against the run was awful. I don't think they would have been able to stop the pure wishbone O that your guys were running at that time. As I recall, you all wore down Penn St in the second half, which was finally apparent when Lydell Carr ripped off his long TD run that sealed the win in the Orange.

Just be glad you all didn't have to face the 'canes--they would have beaten you again. As good as your teams were from '84-'87, Jimmy Johnson's team was a notch better.

[Harry Beanbag]

Just be glad you all didn't have to face the 'canes--they would have beaten you again. As good as your teams were from '84-'87, Jimmy Johnson's team was a notch better.

You don't have to remind us. :(

[Jacie]

The best way for an aggie coach to get the upper hand against the Sooners is to go somewhere else then . . .

I had a nightmare where Mike Gundy left OSU to become head coach of Notre Dame and beats Oklahoma in a bowl game.

[Salt City Sooner]

Thing is, Johnson was the OU DL coach when OU went to the 'bone. Thusly, he knew much more about the schemes/intricacies of it, & how to counter them. Gundy. When he went to OSU, 1980 was pretty much the only year of his time there that they didn't at least slow down OU's offense, culminating w/ a HUGE dose of Sooner Magic to wriggle off the hook in '83. He then takes off to Miami in '84 (after Schnelly's USFL dreams go up in smoke), falls into a place where he can get the athletes/talent to actually execute his knowledge of how to shut down the 'bone, & bingo, OU's worst nightmare is realized.

[Sabanball]

Thing is, Johnson was the OU DL coach when OU went to the 'bone. Thusly, he knew much more about the schemes/intricacies of it, & how to counter them. Gundy. When he went to OSU, 1980 was pretty much the only year of his time there that they didn't at least slow down OU's offense, culminating w/ a HUGE dose of Sooner Magic to wriggle off the hook in '83. He then takes off to Miami in '84 (after Schnelly's USFL dreams go up in smoke), falls into a place where he can get the athletes/talent to actually execute his knowledge of how to shut down the 'bone, & bingo, OU's worst nightmare is realized.

I agree with Barry Switzer, when he once said,"Schemes don't win games, players do." As good as your bunch was back in the mid 80's, with guys like Boz, Migliazzo, Casillas, Keith Jackson, that hard to tackle as a water bug Jamelle Holieway, and your mammoth offensive line, Miami simply had MORE and BETTER ATHLETES that could make plays in space. THAT is why they dominated you guys during that time period, IMHO--not because of some wealth of knowledge that Jimmy Johnson had about the wishbone O.

Remember, in the mid 80's, the 'bone was on the decline already but saw a brief resurgence with you guys, Colorado, and Air Force. Switzer himself had junked it at one point, only to bring it back in '84 with the help of--Mac Brown and the "Mac Attack". So, most coaches were already onto the 'bone. I wouldn't give JJ more credit than he deserves--He fell into a good situation where the program was already built.

...

[BoulderSooner79]

I agree with Barry Switzer, when he once said,"Schemes don't win games, players do." As good as your bunch was back in the mid 80's, with guys like Boz, Migliazzo, Casillas, Keith Jackson, that hard to tackle as a water bug Jamelle Holieway, and your mammoth offensive line, Miami simply had MORE and BETTER ATHLETES that could make plays in space. THAT is why they dominated you guys during that time period, IMHO--not because of some wealth of knowledge that Jimmy Johnson had about the wishbone O.

Remember, in the mid 80's, the 'bone was on the decline already but saw a brief resurgence with you guys, Colorado, and Air Force. Switzer himself had junked it at one point, only to bring it back in '84 with the help of--Mac Brown and the "Mac Attack". So, most coaches were already onto the 'bone. I wouldn't give JJ more credit than he deserves--He fell into a good situation where the program was already built.

...

I agree for the most part, except for that last ('87) season. I call that "the best game that never was". Losing Holieway tilted the game to being almost futile before kick-off. It was almost as bad as the horns losing McCoy during your game with them. Thompson did have the full bowl preparation to try to get ready, but he was not even close to Holieway who I think was the best pure option QB we ever had. The OU defense put up one of the toughest fights I've ever seen in that game against a near-pro level offense, but we could do nothing on offense. Thompson just handed to the fulback up the middle over half the time and that stout Miami D never got tired of tackling him. I can't say OU wins if Holieway plays, but it would have been a whole different ballgame.

[Sabanball]

I agree for the most part, except for that last ('87) season. I call that "the best game that never was". Losing Holieway tilted the game to being almost futile before kick-off. It was almost as bad as the horns losing McCoy during your game with them. Thompson did have the full bowl preparation to try to get ready, but he was not even close to Holieway who I think was the best pure option QB we ever had. The OU defense put up one of the toughest fights I've ever seen in that game against a near-pro level offense, but we could do nothing on offense. Thompson just handed to the fulback up the middle over half the time and that stout Miami D never got tired of tackling him. I can't say OU wins if Holieway plays, but it would have been a whole different ballgame.

Maybe--or it could have been WORSE. Remember, they completely shut down Holieway in the '86 return game in Miami.