Rex Ryan/ OU DC

[Mike Stoops]

I read on Wikipedia that he was OU's defensive coordinator in 1998. Does anyone remember his tenure here? I was a sophomore in high school at the time.

[stoopified]

YES.In fact many players campaigned for Stoops to retain RR as DC when he took over.

[85sooners]

YES.In fact many players campaigned for Stoops to retain RR as DC when he took over.yes they did

[SoonerRoy]

Yes, I remember Rex's time here and was among those to wanted the new head coach to keep him. (Instead of making his brother the DC). But it worked out okay for everyone.

[Soonerjeepman]

I was pullin for him to stay...but it did work out...!!

[stoops the eternal pimp]

I remember being pissed that bob let him go and brought mike in...I thought it was a horrible move..


That 98 D was pretty good..the O just sucked so bad that they didn't stand a chance

[Mike Stoops]

I wonder if he roots for OU? I think Buddy graduated from Oklahoma A & M (OSU) so he's probably a Poke fan.

[Scott D]

I doubt Rex is upset with how things turned out for him.

[Soonermagik]

Most of his time was spent at the waffle house and in pedicure salons.

[Jacie]

I wanted RR to stay at the time. He had OU run the "46" defense and it was a huge improvement over the other Blake teams.

Before RR, Sooners allowed:
1996 - 36 ppg, 392 total
1997 - 32 ppg, 379 total

With RR, Sooners allowed:
1998 - 21 ppg, 229 total

Interestingly, after RR, Sooners allowed:
1999 - 19 ppg, 229 total (OU played 1 more game in '99 than '98)

That is not a huge statistical difference. The reason the Sooners' record was better under Stoops in '99 than Blake in '98 was due to the increase in offense output:

Before Stoops, Sooners scored:
1998 - 17 ppg, 184 total

With Stoops, Sooners scored:
1999 - 36 ppg, 430 total

Most years under Stoops, the defensive statistics have been better than the single season with RR here. However, had RR remained on staff, the defensive statistics attributed to the "46" probably would have improved as subsequent Sooner teams became used to it.

[jcvsooner]

Rob was the DC of OSU that season as well. Our defense that year was actually pretty good, but as others said the offense was very bad. I also remember many people hoping/assuming that Stoops would keep Ryan on.

When Stoops hired Mike and Venables from Kansas State, Bill Snyder hired Rex Ryan to replace them, so OU and KSU basically traded coordinators that off-season. And I believe it was at a press conference that a reporter pointed that out and asked what Rex thought about that, and Rex said "Bob should have demanded a couple of draft picks with that deal."

But, of course, it worked out okay for all concerned :)

[prrriiide]

He couldn't get his foot in the door with Bob.

[Soonerfan88]

Rex was the DC of OSU that season as well. Our defense that year was actually pretty good, but as others said the offense was very bad. I also remember many people hoping/assuming that Stoops would keep Ryan on.

When Stoops hired Mike and Venables from Kansas State, Bill Snyder hired Rex Ryan to replace them, so OU and KSU basically traded coordinators that off-season. And I believe it was at a press conference that a reporter pointed that out and asked what Rex thought about that, and Rex said "Bob should have demanded a couple of draft picks with that deal."

But, of course, it worked out okay for all concerned :)

I believe you meant Rob.

Didn't Rex only stay at KSU for a month or so before moving on to the NFL?

[jcvsooner]

I believe you meant Rob.

Didn't Rex only stay at KSU for a month or so before moving on to the NFL?

Whoops -- yes, I meant Rob. And I don't remember whether it was a month or even just a few weeks, but it was definitely a short stint in Manhattan.

[I Am Right]

No, I like to win

[fadada1]

he was the anti-joe dickenson.. who could not score 21 points a game.

[MO_Sooner]

Wasn't that when the "Red Swarm" started?

[jkjsooner]

I read on Wikipedia that he was OU's defensive coordinator in 1998. Does anyone remember his tenure here? I was a sophomore in high school at the time.

Definitely. He was the one good hire that Blake made - even if it was a reactionary move to OSU hiring Rob Ryan. (Pokes were quick to point this out and it was true but there's no shame in learning or even copying from others. All good and in our case bad coaches do it.) Rex Ryan really turned around the defense.

I remember hoping Stoops would keep Ryan. I was a little disappointed when we didn't and instead brought in Mike and Brent Venables. It seemed to have turned out well for both parties.


Edit: I hadn't read this thread before writing my response. It seems we were all in agreement. Funny thing was back in 1998/9 I didn't remember a lot of folks on the message boards (boomersooner.net?) pushing to keep Ryan so I thought I was in the minority. Apparently not.

[KABOOKIE]

Hahaha! I was just telling some coworkers about Rex being on the OU staff under John Blake. I remember watching from the student section thinking that Rex was the only person on the staff with a flipping brain. He would regularly call timeouts a critical situations in the game even while OU was on OFFENSE! Heh.

I also remember walking to a summer class one early morning and no one was on campus but me and three others. Boo Blake followed closely behind was Joe Dickinson and a little further back was Rex. Boo was babling some nonsense and Joe was writing every word on a pad. I passed them and looked at Rex and he rolled his eyes at me and then smiled kind of like, "That guy is a ****ing idiot". :D

[Mike Stoops]

Good info all around. Thanks guys :)

[SpankyNek]

I definitely remember his year here.

Gana Joseph was (IMO) the star of that defense, as he was the "do everything" guy in the 46. Many times we had our SS (Joseph) within 3 yards of the LOS and sometimes directly on the line outside the end....it was something to watch.

[stoopified]

I remember being pissed that bob let him go and brought mike in...I thought it was a horrible move..


That 98 D was pretty good..the O just sucked so bad that they didn't stand a chanceELOQUENTLY STATED

[stoopified]

Correct me if I'm wrong but Wasn't Bill Young(current alleged defensive genuis at oSu) the DC Boo's first two seasons?

[Salt City Sooner]

Correct me if I'm wrong but Wasn't Bill Young(current alleged defensive genuis at oSu) the DC Boo's first two seasons?
Correct. We also had Phil Bennett (ex-KSU/Pitt, now DC @ Baylor) on staff in '98.

[OUmillenium]

Finally an offseason thread worth reading.

Loved the Rex Ryan 46 at OU, the bright spot of the season in 98.

[sooner518]

anyone got any photos of Rex in OU gear? Id like to see that. I never knew any of this....

[stoops the eternal pimp]

17 ppg....I remember under blake, it was either good o and bad d, or vice versa...they could never put 2 good products on the field together..

Gana Joseph was a beast in that defense...

[picasso]

They both had country music mullets.

[kiomanche]

I wonder if he roots for OU? I think Buddy graduated from Oklahoma A & M (OSU) so he's probably a Poke fan.

Buddy also attended Frederick High School, Frederick Okla!

[picasso]

Buddy also attended Frederick High School, Frederick Okla!

There was an old SI article about Buddy and his boys. Apparently they had a boxing ring in the backyard and would fight out any differences they had.

Tweren't no Ozzie and Harriet.

[Seamus]

Before Stoops, Sooners scored:
1998 - 17 ppg, 184 total



Jeebus. In 2008, we scored that many points in three games.

Literally.

[SoonerNutt]

I wonder if he roots for OU? I think Buddy graduated from Oklahoma A & M (OSU) so he's probably a Poke fan.

I always wondered why he was such a prick.

[humblesooner]

I read on Wikipedia that he was OU's defensive coordinator in 1998. Does anyone remember his tenure here? I was a sophomore in high school at the time.

One would think Mike Stoops wouldn't have to ask a question like this.
:D