Sooners move up
After beating Ohio State, Oklahoma jumps to No. 3 in the Amway Coaches Poll
When it was over, long after Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield had circled Ohio Stadium and planted a very large flag in the turf — which was essentially a dramatic interpretation of what he’d spent the last three-plus hours doing in a 31-16 victory — the Sooners rookie head coach finally came off the field. Lincoln Riley had an arm around his wife, Caitlin. Near the tunnel, he was embraced — it was a bearhug really — by his predecessor.
Moments earlier, as the final seconds ticked off, Bob Stoops had waved away a reporter.
“I’m out! I’m out!” Stoops said –— and pointing toward the field, he added, “It’s those guys!”
It was. Those guys and that guy — Stoops’ handpicked replacement — had delivered Oklahoma’s biggest, most emphatic road victory since, well, it’s hard to determine. What’s not difficult to figure is this: With a dominant road win Saturday night, the Sooners pushed themselves squarely into the way-too-early conversation about the College Football Playoff. The easy thing would be to overreact.
“We’ll be disappointed if this is the highlight of our season,” Riley said, later adding, “It’s two games in. Everybody is gonna want to anoint us now. We’ve got a long ways to go.”
He’s right. But Saturday night at least, Oklahoma was very good. Mayfield, who threw for 386 yards and three touchdowns, made a pretty good case as college football’s — if not its best player, at least its most valuable. The Sooners offensive line more than held its own against Ohio State’s freakishly talented defensive front. And in perhaps the biggest surprise, Oklahoma’s defense stymied Ohio State for most of the night.
The Buckeyes struggled especially in the passing game, resembling nothing so much as the wheezing, inefficient machine that lurched to a halt late last season. The questions about J.T. Barrett (19 of 35 for 183 yards, with a critical interception) will grow loud.
It all added up to an emphatic statement. “We should have won by a lot more,” Mayfield said — and he’s right.
But circle back to what the victory might have revealed about Oklahoma — not necessarily for this season but in an even bigger picture. Despite Stoops’ sudden and shocking retirement in June, the Sooners might be about to win a lot more under Riley.
When Stoops exited, those who had been paying attention weren’t surprised Riley was elevated from offensive coordinator. He’d been identified quickly by Oklahoma’s administration as a potential successor, a guy with the elusive “it” factor. Since being hired to run the offense, he’d helped rejuvenate the program.
Oklahoma defensive coordinator Mike Stoops, Bob’s younger brother, described the transition as “seamless.”
“He has a great pulse of our team,” he said, “and he’s got a closeness to them that’s very important.”
But still. Riley’s a rookie head coach. At Oklahoma. Following the winningest coach in the storied program’s history. And Saturday, four days after turning 34 — he’s the youngest head coach in college football’s top division — Riley was going up against the No. 2-ranked Buckeyes and Urban Meyer, who ranks among college football’s top two active coaches on almost anyone’s list. But if Ohio Stadium, volume boiling over from 109,088 fans, was a pressurized caldron, Riley didn’t let on.
“We expected to win this game,” he said. “We respected the program Ohio State is and all Coach Meyer has done. That makes it more special.”
Said Mike Stoops: “He’s way beyond his years. He wasn’t outclassed tonight, that’s for sure.”
Who knows what the emphatic win ultimately means. After the most impressive victory of a very young season, Oklahoma is riding high. The muchmaligned Big 12 can ride along. College football has a way of shattering crystallized perceptions, especially when they’re formed this early.
But as former and current coach wrapped up in that postgame hug, a seamless transition seemed to have left Oklahoma in very good hands.
“Lincoln’s our guy,” Mike
Stoops said.