Could Sooners lure alum Heupel?
Running off at the typewriter … Uh-oh, not again. First, it was Nebraska coach
Scott Frost who left UCF to return to his alma mater and now there is rampant speculation that the job at Josh Heupel’s alma mater — Oklahoma — might soon be open.
When the Cleveland Browns fired Hue Jackson earlier this week, Sooners coach Lincoln
Riley, who mentored Browns rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield in college, was immediately elevated as the No. 1 candidate for the job.
“The truth is for me, I love Oklahoma. I love coaching here,” Riley said in a news conference earlier this week when asked about the Browns opening. “I love coaching college football. I certainly don't have that itch right now. I don’t know that I ever will. But I'm never going to be a guy that stands up here and says, 'No way, no how,' with any of these things ever happening. I don't know that. But I know right now I could care less about the NFL.”
Still, you can understand the anxiety among UCF fans who are just getting over the disappointment of Frost leaving after only two seasons. Let’s face it, Heupel likely would be the first call the Sooners made to replace Riley if he were to leave.
Heupel is a hero in Sooner Nation: a Heisman runner-up who quarterbacked OU to its last national championship in 2000. He is also the school’s former offensive coordinator who was controversially fired by former head coach Bob Stoops three seasons ago in a move that rankled many OU fans and boosters.
Additionally, the UCF coach’s sister, Andrea Heupel, is married to Dan Boren, who is the son of
David Boren — the influential former OU president and exgovernor of the state.
What does this all mean?
Astonishingly, it means the ineptness and incompetence of the Cleveland Clowns could actually have a major impact on the future of the UCF Knights.
MIKEY LIKES: Gators over Mizzou by 5, N.C. State over FSU by 14, Duke over Miami by 3 in Upset Special, USF over Tulane by 10, Kentucky over Georgia by 1 in Upset Special II, Alabama over LSU by 21, Panthers over Bucs by 10, Jets over Dolphins by 4 in Upset Special III, Saints over Rams by 2, Patriots over Packers by 10, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups over Kit Kats by 3 (cavities) as best Halloween candy . ... SHORT STUFF:
Speaking of Heupel, do you think Missouri quarterback Drew Lock misses him? Last year with Heupel as the offensive coordinator, Lock threw an SEC-record 44 touchdown passes. This year, under new offensive coordinator, ahem, Derek
Dooley, Lock has thrown just 16 TD passes heading into Saturday’s game against the Gators.
And speaking of Halloween, I actually dressed up this year for the first time in ages. The problem was my costume was so frightening and ghoulish that it scared all the kids in the neighborhood. I should have known better than to dress up as an FSU blocking scheme. … Serious question: Aren’t the people who run universities — presidents, chancellors, provosts, etc. — supposed to be intelligent people, academicians and circumspect scholars who prudently survey situations before acting upon them? Then how do you explain the buffoons running the University of Maryland? If indeed Jameis Winston is done as the quarterback of the Tampa Bay Bucs, I’m sure the Head Ball Coach can find a spot for him on the roster of the Orlando Apollos. … Ah, don’t you love the nattering nabobs of negativity who are criticizing UCF’s 12-point
WIN over Temple. Um, what about Ohio State’s 29-point LOSS to Purdue or Texas’s five-point LOSS to Maryland? Let’s be real, those opponents aren’t any better than Temple. UCF may not have any quality wins, but let’s not forget: The Knights also doesn’t have any nonquality losses.
Heading into Friday night’s game against the Clippers, the Magic had attempted 43 3-pointers in each of their previous two games (both losses). Disturbingly, this is a chronic malady beginning to infect the entire NBA. I call it the Golden State Delusional Disorder in which otherwise pedestrian teams actually start having grandiose visions they are the Warriors and begin uncontrollably jacking up treys with 20 seconds left on the shot clock. … A moment of silence, please, Willie
McCovey has just gone to That Big Candlestick Park in the Sky. RIP, Stretch, and thanks for the memories.
Headline I saw the other day: “Rutgers boots football player who conspired to murder two people.” Ah, yes, yet another example of our institutions of higher earning, er, learning recruiting the finest of student-athletes. Reminds me of a famous quote when Queen Elizabeth was on a tour of the United States years ago and attended a college football game between Maryland and North Carolina. She was astounded by the size and skill of the athletes on the field and asked her host, former Maryland Governor Theodore McKeldin, “Where do you get all of these enormous players?” Replied a sheepish McKeldin: “Your Majesty, that’s a very embarrassing question.” … I’m not saying NBA coaches are totally unimportant, but
Tyronn Lue won a championship and made it to four consecutive NBA Finals when LeBron
James was on the roster. Without LeBron, Lue didn’t even make it through the first month of this season without getting fired. LAST WORD: Did you happen to see the viral photo of the shirtless Florida State fan sitting alone and reading a book at the end of Clemson’s 59-10 demolition of the Seminoles? I’m thinking it was a book about FSU’s offensive line: “Slaughterhouse-Five.”
Email me at mbianchi @orlandosentinel.com. Hit me up on Twitter @BianchiWrites and listen to my Open Mike radio show every weekday from 6 to 9 a.m. on FM 96.9 and AM 740.