Stoops still among coaching elite
Their linebackers may not be Bosworthian any more. Besides, if Ryan Reynolds were more bandaged up, he’d be starring alongside Brendan Fraser as the mummy.
Dominique Franks intercepted three balls in the spring game, but are he and redshirt freshman Jamell Fleming good enough at cornerback to fend off all those elite quarterbacks in the Big 12?
Wide receiver Malcolm Kelly and linebacker Curtis Lofton? Both team leaders are in the NFL.
Oh, and placekicker? Oklahoma may be counting on a true freshman or 5-foot-6 redshirt freshman Jimmy Stevens to win that battle.
So just why are the Sooners the hands-on favorite to win the South Division and probably the conference title for the third consecutive year?
Bob Stoops, that’s why.
Sure, there are other reasons. The offensive line may be the best in all of college football. Quarterback Sam Bradford was the nation’s most efficient as a redshirt freshman, and this year he may look old enough not to hold his mother’s hand before crossing the street. And that defensive front with Auston English? Having that strength worked out OK for those New York Giants.
statesman.com
7/27/08
