Can someone explain to me why we now have less talent than we did in '99?

it seems that Stoops is not recruiting Texas well. Not as many of the big name Texas players have OU on their radar.

He needs to ask Barry how it's done.

 

There is a lot more talent on the current roster than in 99.

The biggest problem is the coaching staff from top to bottom is perhaps the worst staff since Gomer Jones.

You can have all the talent you want, but when the coaching sucks, it effects the results.

Juswt be glad our coaching staff is better than the one in Asstin, TX.

 

Yeah, but I hate the NFL for the most part. I just want the Sooners to win, however we can. JC Watts and Jamelle Holieway were NFL types either.

I don't know about 1999, but if you move up to 2000, I think those guys just flat played better, whether more talented or not. As mentioned, we've lost a bunch of extremely good position coaches since then.

 

Bingo.

 

We may have more talent that our 99/00 team...BUT the opposition has better talent. I also agree, most of our position coaches have gone on to HC jobs, so they obviously have talent there.

I just think OU is in a lull...who knows. I'll still cheer, not much more I can do than that.

 

I get what the OP is saying but this team was and did better than the '99 squad. Just sayin'.

 

Goes back to schematic advantage.

 

as in we were running a "new offense" to college football then...therefor we had an adv..right? now it seems everyone runs something similar or even has up'd the anty by having a dual threat qb.

 

Maybe for next year we can get another "new offense". Don't care what, as long as its the kind that score more points than your opponent.

 

The 99/00 team played with more passion. After coming off the Gibbs/Blake/Smellyburger era (aka The Triumvirate of Doom), those guys wanted to win regardless of the pain and adversity. Does anyone else remember Rocky Calmus playing with a broken leg?

We have had flashes of it with players like Gerald McCoy, Lane Johnson, Frank Alexander, etc., but just not a team loaded with them. Gotta get the mojo back. We are, after all, Oklahoma. IF ND, A&M, Alabama can do it, so we can too.

 

We have become Nebraska. Decent team each year with tons of fan support, but can't compete with the big boys. We rest too much on our storied past, which current recruits could give two s*** about.

 

Momentum waves are funny. In 1999, it couldn't get much bigger. We rode it for a good while, but the last couple years seems like its dropped.

ATM's current situation seems alot like ours in '99. Hot coach, dynamic QB, hang on.

Boone bought a wave going with the stepkids. Though it would die down more than it has this year.

 

All those who laughed at A&M for their SEC move are starting to see the effects on their recruiting. High school stars don't want to go play throwball in the BIG 12. Especially not guys like we need in the defensive line and linebacker. It's very telling when a program like OU has to turn to junior college prospects on the DL. Sometimes, JC guys work out... but it doesn't mean it's not still a move of desperation.

 

Overall, I don't see that much of a talent drop-off compared to Bob's early teams. I really think that the issue is in the coaching department. It's almost as if the staff has run out of ideas. I believe that coaching football is a lot like other endeavors: if you stop innovating, you don't get further and likely fall into decline.

 

We have a lot more talent on offense, but WTF are you smoking about talent on defense?

What linebacker do we have on defense that even belongs in the same divisional level of college football as Rocky Calmus or Torrance Marshall?
Our safeties are poorer versions of our safeties in 2000 (TGRW > Jefferson && Thatcher > Harris)
We don't have a single DT who can stuff the middle like Ryan Fisher could.
DEs, Corners are about the same and play like it.

Whether you like it or not, college football is about linebacker play. Ours are just bad.

 

they picked up another WR from the Army all-star game today. Plus the announcers said they have 3 WR that have committed to them switching their commitments...I believe they all were in either the Army or UA all star games. Just sayin.

 

Defensively, also. That zone scheme Stoops brought bottled up the run game and confused the hell out of college passing games, at that time.

You saw the same thing in the Switzer Era. Wishbone took the country by storm, but eventually got stale.

Got to keep evolving. Perhaps too much coaching "inbreeding" at OU.

 

Ryan is a good dude, but he wouldn't have had his name called once last night.

 

Ryan's role, which he was really good at, was to hold a 6 feet by 1 foot rectangle of dirt centered on the ball. What this allowed you to do was secure the cutback lane when you flowed to the ball. Current college offensive philosophy is to ride the defense one direction and capitalize on the one on one matchup left on the cutback side. The problem our current DTs have is that not only are they ridden left or right, but they are also driven BACK. That was something that our 1999-2000 crop of DTs were very good at preventing.

 

Are linebackers those guys that play just behind the defensive line? Watching OU the last couple of years, I've kind of forgotten what they look like.