2006 Offensive Line

[JohnnyMack]

I know there was a lot of chicken little doom and gloom from some football posting pundits around here about how bad our O-line was going to be in '06 (which I guess it still could be), but I was just wondering if the players who've committed to OU as offensive linemen have given any glimmer of hope?

[BASSooner]

Brandon Walker, Sherrone Moore, and Chad Roark...thats all I can think of

[Desert Sapper]

I think the 'glimmer of hope' comes from Sherrone Moore and Brandon Walker (JUCO) and the development of some young guys that saw time last year, but needed some fundamentals work. Those guys would be Jon Cooper, George 'Duke' Robinson, JD Quinn, and Branndon Braxton. Overall, we are looking much better for next year than we were this year, with the exception of Davin Joseph's departure.

[KingDavid]

I know there was a lot of chicken little doom and gloom from some football posting pundits around here about how bad our O-line was going to be in '06 (which I guess it still could be), but I was just wondering if the players who've committed to OU as offensive linemen have given any glimmer of hope?

Short answer - Walker et. al are awesome recruits, but at this point, we need to address the offensive coaching turn-over more than anything.

Long answer - here's the problem we're facing:

1) Getting the o-line talent to work TOGETHER is more important than putting it on the field, as we saw last year;
2) That takes time which can typically only be shortened through solid coaching . . .
3) This is going to be a challenge because the O-line position coach (KW) just got promoted, and he only has so much time in the day, so he's going to have to "give" somewhere; and
4) This is exacerbated by the fact that the offensive coaching staff just got almost completely over-hauled in every other position except with the tight-ends: A) Our Passing Game Coordinator and probably the best WR coaches in college football is gone (Wyatt); and B) Our Offensive Coordinator and QB coach is gone (Long). So KW already has his hands full with all of that turnover, and he will have less to give back to the O-line as a true position coach; furthermore
5) The situation is not helped by the fact that Stoops - by virtue of his own strengths and experience- has always paid more attention to the defensive side of the ball. So he's not going to be able to provide as much continuity/oversight on this side of the ball as he might otherwise.

Sure, we can make the case that the new coaching staff will be better than this one and that a change-up will help. Heupel, for instance - we all know he's the real deal. But that would be missing the point about having an offensive squad - coaches and players together - with enough common experience to know how to bring out the best in each other.

So in my opinion, these are the burning questions:

1) How are Stoops and KW going to address the coaching vacancy created by Wyatt?
2) How long will it take this staff to come together?
3) How do you maintain the continuity and momentum that the offense was having at the end of 2005 in light of all these changes?; and more directly to your original question:
4) How do you develop a young offensive line with only one returning FT starter in the midst of all this change?

I'm not saying the sky is falling, though - I'm just calling it like I see it. And we've certainly got some things going for us:

1) Stoops is an awesome coach;
2) Heupel was an awesome addition;
3) Bomar is a coach's son and he can be expected to handle the transition with a lot of maturity;
4) We've got a healthy, hungry, and more mature Adrian Peterson coming back (this is huge);
5) We've got some awesome emerging talent at the other offensive skill positions: and probably the most important thing of all . . .
6) We should have an incredible defense - and we are going to need it if we're going to get through the first 6 games undefeated while the o-line (and really the whole offense) figures out how to play together.

But if we make it through Texas without a loss and don't have any major injuries, then I think the offense, and the whole team, is going to be one scary unit.

So, back to my original one-sentence response: coaching is the deal: the most important recruit on OU's board is wearing a whistle. It's going to be interesting to see how Stoops & KW tackle this issue.

[MojoRisen]

Could we do further Analysis? Chris Messner? Ben Barresi, (Jessie White) inj, Curtis Bailey have a shot at PT as a true freshman?

What is our starting line up and two deep? help a brother out :) I am starting to get fired up and would like to know.

[BOOMERBRADLEY]

I don't see any true freshman getting much playing time unless they really impress the coaches alot

I agree OUr D will be very impressive. I get chills just thinking about having the #1 DT's in the nation on the same team

[Rhino]

So long as any of them don't pull a Hawk/Werth/Keith/Millington, things look hopeful.

[JohnnyMack]

I just got a "hopeful" out of Rhino

Wo0t!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11111111111!!!!!!!!

;)

[Collier11]

[QUOTE=BOOMERBRADLEY]I don't see any true freshman, sophomore, junior, or senriors getting much playing time unless they really impress the coaches alot
FIXED ;)

[NickZeppelin]

JUCO offensive linemen under Stoops haven't done all that well for the most part.

Brandon Keith is the most recent, Clint Werth never did anything, Jon Hawk.

The only offensive lineman Stoops recruited that did well was Howard Duncan. Stockar McDougal wasn't a Stoops recruit but turned it around under Stoops. I still say the best thing he ever did was help get his cousin here.

[westcoast_sooner]

The point that MBurton makes is good, that coaching is the key. I would expect that some of the guys coming back from the 2005 season will still be rough and need to get solid coaching. Though we had 4 senior linemen depart, there were some underclassmen that got some significant PT last year, and should come back to help out. The biggest thing they'll have to do in Spring and early fall practice is to figure out the right rotations, and figure out who the starters should be. Plus, some of the guys who have had some injuries will need to come back strong.

I'm a little surprised that Wyatt's spot hasn't been filled yet, but perhaps the coaching staff has all they can do until after signing day.

To the point, I think that if we assume that we don't have defections to the starting lineup a few days before our first game, we'll struggle at first, but should be better going into 2006 than we were in 2005.

[NS5]

going to be line of CAT D-6's
what to do with all that dirt?

[The Consumate Showman]

Our OL should be huge this year (in size) and witha little coaching, they should be pretty damn good. Duke and BB are both 6'5"/6'6" type guys along with Messner, Walker is 6'3" and a monster on the field apparently (according to reports) , Jon Cooper or Roark should be good centers for OU and the other Guard spot should probably go to Quinn or Baressi. This is how I would line these "big boys" up if I was OL Coach. I'm really more worried about our Secondary......

Smith has shown flashes of possibly Gridiron Greatness on the field, but has to be more consistent, Dairen Williams....ditto, Lewis Baker has some work to do, Nic Harris (apparently in the dog house at the end of the year) and Keenan Clayton (Red Shirt) are "supposed" to be standout players this year according to coaches, DJ is solid and I don't worry so much about him (tackiling sometimes), and the interesting player, to me, is going to be Brian Jackson.....Bobby Jack has said that he LOVES Jackson and that he could be one of the best DB's OU has seen in a few years. Now, if Marcus Walker can keep himself 100% healthy, we may be in for a revisit of the days of Strait, Woolfolk, and TRRW days....time will tell

[BOOMERBRADLEY]

going to be line of CAT D-6's
what to do with all that dirt?

Am I the only one that has no earthly idea what this means ?

[Octavian]

Am I the only one that has no earthly idea what this means ?

me too :confused:

[Octavian]

JUCO offensive linemen under Stoops haven't done all that well for the most part.

Brandon Keith is the most recent, Clint Werth never did anything, Jon Hawk.

The only offensive lineman Stoops recruited that did well was Howard Duncan. Stockar McDougal wasn't a Stoops recruit but turned it around under Stoops. I still say the best thing he ever did was help get his cousin here.

Nick, you dont seem to approve of much that Stoops does...what gives man?

[OUGreg723]

All I can say is............It's all gonna work out. I think the players and the fans can feel "it".

[NickZeppelin]

He'll get approval if he deserves it. The job he and his staff did last year was horrific

[Octavian]

He'll get approval if he deserves it. The job he and his staff did last year was horrific

Well OK I dont wanna get into it w/ you but I just couldnt disagree any more. I think Stoops did a good job w/ the deck we were handed. 8-4 w/ a Frosh qb and a host of terrible luck (w/ a bowl win over a top 5 team) is nothing to be ashamed of...

If possible, I'd sign Stoops to a lifetime contract right now ala Duke and Coach K.

[NickZeppelin]

I think he did a bad job with is most talented team and lost to some bad teams. You don't lose to TCU and UCLA at OU. And you don't nearly lose to Baylor and Tulsa also in the same season. Last year was just a bad year for OU football.

[Octavian]

his most talented team :confused:

[JohnnyMack]

He'll get approval if he deserves it. The job he and his staff did last year was horrific

They did a poor job of game planning for TCU, other than that, they had a good year.

[Scott D]

Pay no attention to the little man behind the curtain ;)

This team is magnificent for being talented but not talented, the coaching staff doing a great job while doing the worst possible job. Sometimes I wonder if this young man's fence has a sharp or rounded point where he sits.

[bspoke1]

Am I the only one that has no earthly idea what this means ?A CAT D-6 is a huge caterpillarAny okie should know that .HEE HEE

[NickZeppelin]

Pay no attention to the little man behind the curtain ;)

This team is magnificent for being talented but not talented, the coaching staff doing a great job while doing the worst possible job. Sometimes I wonder if this young man's fence has a sharp or rounded point where he sits.

I've said all along that last year was OU's most talented team and that the coaching staff did a terrible job with them.

[Scott D]

I've said all along that last year was OU's most talented team and that the coaching staff did a terrible job with them.

Really? I seem to remember you saying that more than a few individual players had no talent.

[NickZeppelin]

No I didn't I said the coaching staff did a bad job of getting the talent to play to what they should.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

No I didn't I said the coaching staff did a bad job of getting the talent to play to what they should.

wha? who didn't play up to potential?

[NormanPride]

wha? who didn't play up to potential?

Birdine. :rolleyes:

[Blitzkrieg]

According to this board, the departure of Chuck Long will be good for an extra 25 points and 450 yards a game.

Expect stellar play calling that exceeds all expecations on every play, regardless of the player's abilities to perform the aformentioned tasks.

[TJKDone]

Short answer - Walker et. al are awesome recruits, but at this point, we need to address the offensive coaching turn-over more than anything.

Long answer - here's the problem we're facing:

1) Getting the o-line talent to work TOGETHER is more important than putting it on the field, as we saw last year;
2) That takes time which can typically only be shortened through solid coaching . . .
3) This is going to be a challenge because the O-line position coach (KW) just got promoted, and he only has so much time in the day, so he's going to have to "give" somewhere; and
4) This is exacerbated by the fact that the offensive coaching staff just got almost completely over-hauled in every other position except with the tight-ends: A) Our Passing Game Coordinator and probably the best WR coaches in college football is gone (Wyatt); and B) Our Offensive Coordinator and QB coach is gone (Long). So KW already has his hands full with all of that turnover, and he will have less to give back to the O-line as a true position coach; furthermore
5) The situation is not helped by the fact that Stoops - by virtue of his own strengths and experience- has always paid more attention to the defensive side of the ball. So he's not going to be able to provide as much continuity/oversight on this side of the ball as he might otherwise.

Sure, we can make the case that the new coaching staff will be better than this one and that a change-up will help. Heupel, for instance - we all know he's the real deal. But that would be missing the point about having an offensive squad - coaches and players together - with enough common experience to know how to bring out the best in each other.

So in my opinion, these are the burning questions:

1) How are Stoops and KW going to address the coaching vacancy created by Wyatt?
2) How long will it take this staff to come together?
3) How do you maintain the continuity and momentum that the offense was having at the end of 2005 in light of all these changes?; and more directly to your original question:
4) How do you develop a young offensive line with only one returning FT starter in the midst of all this change?

I'm not saying the sky is falling, though - I'm just calling it like I see it. And we've certainly got some things going for us:

1) Stoops is an awesome coach;
2) Heupel was an awesome addition;
3) Bomar is a coach's son and he can be expected to handle the transition with a lot of maturity;
4) We've got a healthy, hungry, and more mature Adrian Peterson coming back (this is huge);
5) We've got some awesome emerging talent at the other offensive skill positions: and probably the most important thing of all . . .
6) We should have an incredible defense - and we are going to need it if we're going to get through the first 6 games undefeated while the o-line (and really the whole offense) figures out how to play together.

But if we make it through Texas without a loss and don't have any major injuries, then I think the offense, and the whole team, is going to be one scary unit.

So, back to my original one-sentence response: coaching is the deal: the most important recruit on OU's board is wearing a whistle. It's going to be interesting to see how Stoops & KW tackle this issue.

You've hit the nail on the head concerning Bomar. He is very tough mentally and the lumps he took last year will be a blessing over the next two years. He is going to be very good and unfortunately for me and my kind I think he will be great.

I don't think many with much viewing experience for CFB expect too much from Freshmen on the OL, even those that are regarded as can't miss prospects. It is a very technically demanding position which requires as much synchronization with team members as any other group on the field. I still don't get why you guys have had the trouble you have in this area, but you can't help but be improved in '06.

Hook'em

[MojoRisen]

Vince Carter started as a Frosh, Jon Cooper- I guess Center is easier to pull that off. Munoz kid started at Tenn as a frosh and he was over rated...

Getting PT and having a 2 deep rotation with a freshman or two- I don't think we really have a choice in that. Do we?

[Scott D]

No I didn't I said the coaching staff did a bad job of getting the talent to play to what they should.

Remember this post..


I quit. You guys just don't watch/know about football.

Then there is the one that I'm too lazy to find in your myriad of posts this year in reference to Bomar having no talent.

[SoonerLB]

According to this board, the departure of Chuck Long will be good for an extra 25 points and 450 yards a game.

Expect stellar play calling that exceeds all expecations on every play, regardless of the player's abilities to perform the aformentioned tasks.

WOW! I knew things were going to be better, and that most definitely exceeds any expectations I had! ;)

There wasn't much room for it getting worse as far as "Chuckie" was concerned. I know there are plenty out there that feel differently, but I am excited about the possibility of an offense that is NOT predictable! Our future opponents wish he was still here!

[KingDavid]

I think he did a bad job with is most talented team and lost to some bad teams. You don't lose to TCU and UCLA at OU. And you don't nearly lose to Baylor and Tulsa also in the same season. Last year was just a bad year for OU football.


You need to lower your levels of helium, Zeppelin: flying a bit too high.

[KingDavid]

You've hit the nail on the head concerning Bomar. He is very tough mentally and the lumps he took last year will be a blessing over the next two years. He is going to be very good and unfortunately for me and my kind I think he will be great.

I don't think many with much viewing experience for CFB expect too much from Freshmen on the OL, even those that are regarded as can't miss prospects. It is a very technically demanding position which requires as much synchronization with team members as any other group on the field. I still don't get why you guys have had the trouble you have in this area, but you can't help but be improved in '06.

Hook'em

It's an oddity, really. Everyone tries to explain it and assign blame, but the bottom line is that a lot of things of normal things happened (like players not panning out in talent, or deciding to quit, etc.), but they were concentrated in this one position. I kind of think we got a rash of wheenie-itis to tell you the truth. The ones that are left are solid and 4 of them (I think) have started at least one game. We'll see how it shakes out. If we get through the NC schedule without a loss and have a decent tune-up game with Ok-state, then it's going to be a good game.

Texas, on the other hand, is about to give us all a demonstration about what the world would look like if Atlas got tired of holding up the world and decided to move on to better things.

Too bad you could not "hook'im" for one more year. For you, that is.

Boomer!

P.S. In all seriousness . . . congrats to the horns on a great year and for bringing the epicenter of National Championships right back where it belongs - here in the Big XII South! That was the best game I've ever seen, bar none.

[Desert Sapper]

Am I the only one that has no earthly idea what this means ?

He's talking about Caterpillar Bulldozers. I'm hoping they end up looking more like D-9s. With armor.

http://www.wood.army.mil/dotld/index_files/D9%20dozer.jpg