If Stoops can win 2 more titles.....

[Soonermagik]

Let's assume coach Stoops stays for at least another 8 years and wins 2 more national titles. Giving him a total of 3 national title wins. The other years he's winning big BCS games and beating his rivals on a consistent basis. Now, would you say he's the greatest coach to ever coach at OU?

That would mean he would have played in 6 national title games and won half of them. Plus, he could boast an insane home winning record, too. I still think Stoops has a legit chance to cement his legacy as the greatest coach ever at OU.

[Breadburner]

He doesn't need anymore titles....He's clearly the best..

[Seamus]

I'm cool with that scenario.

One thing -- over the next 8 years, he might be playing for the title without capturing it -- might be 8 or even 10 times in the BCS title game. you never know.

I for one could accept a few more BCS losses if it meant two more titles in the next 8 years.

[yermom]

two more in however many years and i think he's probably got that sewn up

[TahoeSOONER]

One more title and he would retire the greatest ever. I believe great things are about to come to him and our program because the man runs things the right way. We're spoiled with three coaching legends at Oklahoma and Bob is about to take it to another level.

[soonervegas]

He doesn't need anymore titles....He's clearly the best..

I disagree. I think Bud is still #1 until Bob wins #2.

[IndySooner]

Championships are so much harder to win today than they were decades ago that I think it's possible he's already the best coach in the history of the program.

[soonervegas]

They are def harder - but he still has to get to #2 to be the best. (IMO)

[MyT Oklahoma]

I'm too young to remember Bud Wilkinson and although I think the world of Bob Stoops.. Barry will always be the man IMO.

P.S. You really can't compare different decades. We each just have our own favorites.

[Collier11]

Let's assume coach Stoops stays for at least another 8 years and wins 2 more national titles. Giving him a total of 3 national title wins..

If Stoops only wins 2 more national titles in the next 8 years, some of our fans will slit their wrists and demand Stoops be fired

[Memtig14]

He needs 2 more.

[PSK2080]

Bud's #1...47 game streak and 3 NC's...before Bud OU wasn't much of a program...

If Bob wins 2 more titles AND maintains his winning % he might be equal to Barry...but neither beat Bud...

[Collier11]

Bennie Owen was pretty damn good before Bud

[BrockLanders]

Stoops already the best.......

[SoCaliSooner]

If he leaves OU without major scandal and probation, he'll be better than Barry. Two more NC's and he'll be the best.

[BoulderSooner79]

Barry was funnier than Bob.

[bornnbredou]

I dont know if hes the greatest coach in our history, but I would take him over Bud or Barry anyday. Not that those guys arent great, but Barry got us into way too much trouble, and Bud coached in an era where football was a totally different game. Bob runs an extremely clean program, and does it with the utmost integrity while doing so. Theres a lot to be said for running a program the way he does in this era, winning isnt the only thing that makes a great coach, of course Bob does that pretty well too.

[Soonerson1975]

winning isnt the only thing that makes a great coach

But it's by far the most important thing.

[bornnbredou]

But it's by far the most important thing.

I know, but I said it only for this comparison because they are all three great winners, but Bob has many other great attributes that define him as a coach.

[soonerboy824]

wow talk about unrealistic. not saying it cant happen but weve won one in 10 yrs now you expect 2 in 8. i mean its not like saying kobe winning 2 of the next 8. thats realistic. hes won 5 of 10 so it would be understandable for him to win 2 of the next 8.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

wow talk about unrealistic. not saying it cant happen but weve won one in 10 yrs now you expect 2 in 8. i mean its not like saying kobe winning 2 of the next 8. thats realistic. hes won 5 of 10 so it would be understandable for him to win 2 of the next 8.

in general, coaches put together teams that will win 1-2 in a 2 year span. Stoops has managed to put together 2 different teams like this and went 0fer. However, Osborne did the same for the first 20 years of his career and then won 3 in a short span. The question is how many more times can Stoops assemble teams like he has in the past.

[spowart]

Barry will always be "The King". His winning percentage will never be surpassed. He was also one Billy Sims fumble away from 4 NC's.

[Soonermagik]

wow talk about unrealistic. not saying it cant happen but weve won one in 10 yrs now you expect 2 in 8. i mean its not like saying kobe winning 2 of the next 8. thats realistic. hes won 5 of 10 so it would be understandable for him to win 2 of the next 8.

Take your one post and jump in a cold creek. :D

Seriously, the guy has already played for 4 national titles. If the Whorns stay down for a long time then I think he has a great chance. It's not insane to think he could get back to back titles if Jones stays for the next two years. Don't try to dash my dreams, newbie!! :P

[BoulderSooner79]

I dont know if hes the greatest coach in our history, but I would take him over Bud or Barry anyday. Not that those guys arent great, but Barry got us into way too much trouble, and Bud coached in an era where football was a totally different game. Bob runs an extremely clean program, and does it with the utmost integrity while doing so. Theres a lot to be said for running a program the way he does in this era, winning isnt the only thing that makes a great coach, of course Bob does that pretty well too.


But it's by far the most important thing.

I think the phrase here would be "necessary but not sufficient". A great coach on the field may not be a great coach for the program.

I will claim Bob is more versatile than Barry. If they swapped places via a time machine, Bob would be a winner in the '70s and '80. Maybe not to Barry's level, but solid. Barry would be a disaster in current times trying to handle today's players - he wouldn't get to the team on the field part.

[Soonerson1975]

Barry will always be "The King". His winning percentage will never be surpassed. He was also one Billy Sims fumble away from 4 NC's.

If they beat Washington in the 85 OB he may of won 5. If not for Miami 7.

[reevie]

P.S. You really can't compare different decades. We each just have our own favorites.

This. Bennie, Bud and Barry may each been in the top 5 or top 10 best coaches in the country during their eras. They each had challenges to overcome to maintain a high level of consistency. I think instead of crowning one of the 4 as the greatest OU coach ever, we should be thankful and feel blessed to have 4 great coaches at OU.

[soonerboy824]

Take your one post and jump in a cold creek. :D

Seriously, the guy has already played for 4 national titles. If the Whorns stay down for a long time then I think he has a great chance. It's not insane to think he could get back to back titles if Jones stays for the next two years. Don't try to dash my dreams, newbie!! :P

not hatin biut at a 1 out of 4 pace wed have to make the championship the next 8 yrs to get 2

[SoonerinSouthlake]

Barry was funnier than Bob.

way funnier

[SoonerinSouthlake]

Barry will always be "The King". His winning percentage will never be surpassed. He was also one Billy Sims fumble away from 4 NC's.

Bob is probably a few crazy plays away from 3 right now.

[texaspokieokie]

Barry will always be "The King". His winning percentage will never be surpassed. He was also one Billy Sims fumble away from 4 NC's.

No Billy Sims, not even close.

[CrescentCityOUAlum]

I believe if Bob can notch two more titles, and have the most wins ever at OU, he'll move into the top spot. Furthermore, I think it will happen.

[Jboozer]

even if he wins 2 more titles I don't think he will be the best. he hasn't set the NCAA wins record (47) in a row. and he is coaching at one of the truest of blue chip programs in the history of college football. When Bud started OU wasn't a tradition. Bud is the architect of the modern day OU program. Bob's job was a bit easier because he had to bring the program "back", not create it in the first place. I'm a sucker for history and tradition, and what Bud did was beyond reproach in my book. Bob is an all time great for sure, but Bud will always be the greatest at OU no matter what.

[soonercoop1]

Let's assume coach Stoops stays for at least another 8 years and wins 2 more national titles. Giving him a total of 3 national title wins. The other years he's winning big BCS games and beating his rivals on a consistent basis. Now, would you say he's the greatest coach to ever coach at OU?

That would mean he would have played in 6 national title games and won half of them. Plus, he could boast an insane home winning record, too. I still think Stoops has a legit chance to cement his legacy as the greatest coach ever at OU.

He definitely has to win em' first. Barry coached many MNC games as well...

[BoulderSooner79]

Actually, Barry didn't coach in any MNC games as the BCS didn't exist and the polls had to sort out a bunch of apples to oranges match-ups at the end of the year. The '75 team backed-in beating a good but not great Michigan team and then needing tOSU to be upset in the Rose bowl. The only defacto MNC game Barry directed was after the '87 season against the Canes and we lost our star QB to injury the next to last game of the season and really didn't have a real chance. That was Barry's best team too, IMO, so it was a real shame.

[101sooner]

Actually, Barry didn't coach in any MNC games as the BCS didn't exist and the polls had to sort out a bunch of apples to oranges match-ups at the end of the year. The '75 team backed-in beating a good but not great Michigan team and then needing tOSU to be upset in the Rose bowl. The only defacto MNC game Barry directed was after the '87 season against the Canes and we lost our star QB to injury the next to last game of the season and really didn't have a real chance. That was Barry's best team too, IMO, so it was a real shame.


'78 Arkansas in the Orange Bowl was a sure National Championship if we'd have won. Had we smoked Washington in '84 we would have beat out BYU in the polls. That's two that we lost.

[King Barry's Back]

Barry Switzer was a great coach, and definitely deserves his Hall of Fame accolades, and he is and will always be the King. But in comparison to other all-time greats and Hall-of-Famers, I'd have to say his off-the field issues would slide him in behind Bud and Bob, and maybe Bennie as well. (How many schools would Barry Freakin' Switzer rank below number 2 all time?)

Bud Pros and Cons --

Pros: Absolutely a great Xs and Os coach. He was a leader in his profession in a way that Switzer could not have been, and that Stoops doesn't seem interested in. He was just so innovative. He invented the coach's show, for example. He was offensive mastermind. And, in an era when coaches routinely abused their players, he treated his players like his own sons.

Cons: The biggest mark against him being the greatest is simply how soft his schedules were, and how one-sided his matchups were. I bet Coach Stoops could make a pretty good run at 47-straight if he played Iowa State 7 times, TX Tech once, and then finished the season against a Callahan-era Nebraska team.

And give Stoops unlimited scholarships, I believe he could stockpile talent matching up with what Bud got.

Those of you that argue that Bob has already moved past Bud have a very good argument, but I'd still put Bud in front. But barely.

[AlboSooner]

Can we haz one more pretty soon?

[soonervegas]

ESPN within the past 5 years rated the top 20 college football coaches of alltime.

1. Bear
2. Switzer

That's not my opinion, but interesting none the less.

[landrun]

Bud built OU. Go back and look at where we were and what he did. He just might be the greatest coach in all of college football history. Bob is great. Wouldn't trade him for anyone else alive. But I'd trade him for Bud again. :)

[BoulderSooner79]

Bud built OU. Go back and look at where we were and what he did. He just might be the greatest coach in all of college football history. Bob is great. Wouldn't trade him for anyone else alive. But I'd trade him for Bud again. :)

I don't think Bud could handle all the CEO-like duties if he were head coach today since he would also be a flesh eating zombie.

[PalmBeachSooner]

Let's assume coach Stoops stays for at least another 8 years and wins 2 more national titles. Giving him a total of 3 national title wins. The other years he's winning big BCS games and beating his rivals on a consistent basis. Now, would you say he's the greatest coach to ever coach at OU?

That would mean he would have played in 6 national title games and won half of them. Plus, he could boast an insane home winning record, too. I still think Stoops has a legit chance to cement his legacy as the greatest coach ever at OU.

Why so pessimistic?

[Soonermagik]

Curly Bill negged me 3 times for this thread lol. Some homers on this board are insane. Asking if Coach Stoops could win 2 more titles to possibly becoming the greatest OU coach gets you negged? Take the crimson shades off and let's talk football, pansy!!

[LVSOONER15]

Not only the best at OU, but maybe all-time in the NCAA. The man has character and no negative baggage.

[Curly Bill]

Curly Bill negged me 3 times for this thread lol. Some homers on this board are insane. Asking if Coach Stoops could win 2 more titles to possibly becoming the greatest OU coach gets you negged? Take the crimson shades off and let's talk football, pansy!!

I negged you for being a do*che in another thread. :D

[The Maestro]

Can we momentarily remove the "on the field/off the field" issues regarding Switzer being some kind of convict and Stoops being an angel? Let's talk about the coaching. Call me biased, but Stoops is looking up at Switzer at this point. And I love Stoops.

Switzer coached 16 seasons. 12 times OU finished in the top 7. Folks, that is 75% of the time. 3 other times they were ranked in the top 20. Only in 1983 did OU finish outside the top 20...no top 25 back then.

And what were Switzer's "bad" losses? The ONLY team that ever finished with a losing record that beat the King was Kansas in 1984, and that does NOT happen if Danny Bradley isn't injured and some snotty nosed kid from Henryetta wasn't pressed into duty. Both the loss at home to OSU in 2001 and the loss at Colorado in 2007 were beyond brutal and slightly inexcusable.

Now Stoops could pass Switzer in another four years. He has been in the top 10 8 of 12 years and the future is bright for those numbers to be equalled if not better. And he wins conference titles with frequency just like Switzer did. Bottom line--national titles. Stoops is basically 1 for 4 even though the scenario is more difficult now than the days of no BCS in the past.

It's a great problem to have, and I sure hope in about five years Stoops has passed Bud and Barry based on more trophies coming back to Norman.

[Soonermagik]

I negged you for being a do*che in another thread. :D

HAHA you negged me a few times. :D

[Okie35]

Championships are so much harder to win today than they were decades ago that I think it's possible he's already the best coach in the history of the program.

Exactly what I was going to say. He's arguably the best coach.

[BoulderSooner79]

If Stoops can win 2 more titles...

goingoneight is going to look really silly.