In Bob Stoops debut as Oklahoma head coach, the Sooners won seven games, five fewer than Lincoln Riley did in his first season at the helm of one of college football’s most decorated brands.
Nineteen seasons ago, in 1999, Stoops first season at OU and his first time as a head coach, Oklahoma went 7-5 and recorded its first season with better than a .500 record since 1993. It was definitely a good sign for Sooner fans and finally a cause for celebration after a very difficult and disappointing few years, something that doesn’t go down well in the Sooner State.
Little did anyone know that the following season would engender the ultimate Sooner Magic and a return to the top of the college football world, as aptly proclaimed on the Nov. 6, 2000, cover of Sports Illustrated.
Could 2018 deliver an encore performance of Oklahoma’s last national championship triumph? The Sooners certainly have the offensive fire power to put themselves in that position, even with a new face at quarterback for the first time in three years. The real question is: Does Oklahoma possess the defensive wherewithal to allow the Sooners to reach another college football summit?
The 2018 Sooners, No. 1 in the country in total offense and No. 3 in scoring offense a year ago, are potentially better on offense than the 2000 championship team, but the current edition of OU football has a long way to go to equal the No. 8 national ranking of Stoops’ 2000 Sooners on defense. And that may be a hill too steep to summit.
Oklahoma is off to a great start in 2018, steamrolling its first two opponents and winning a tough Big 12 opener on the road at Iowa State..
Consider this: Riley is in his second season as a head coach, the same as Stoops was in 2000 and Barry Switzer was in 1974. Riley was also Stoops’ personal choice to take over the head coaching position when the latter announced his retirement prior to the 2017 season. A pretty good choice, wouldn’t you say?
It was 18 seasons between Bud Wilkinson’s third of three national championships while at Oklahoma and the first of three national championships won by Switzer. It has also been 18 years since Stoops’ one and only national title at Oklahoma and the beginning of Riley’s second season as the Sooners’ head coach.
Coincidence? Sure. But wouldn’t it be special if that was the way the stars aligned this season? Then you would have to really wonder if Sooner Magic is more than just OU football lore.