After taking the team to the Independence Bowl in 1999, Stoops engineered a remarkable turnaround as the Sooners went 13-0, won the Orange Bowl and claimed the national championship in 2000.
Last season, the Sooners finished with a No. 6 national ranking after beating Arkansas, 10-3, in the SBC Cotton Bowl.
In the three seasons before Stoops’ arrival, the Sooners had not made a bowl appearance and had not been ranked in the polls. Since Stoops took over, the Sooners have been ranked 28 times in 38 weeks, including the last 27, and have been ranked in the top 10 in 21 of the last 22 polls.
Stoops sees no reason for that trend to change this year.
Oklahoma, 24-2 over the last two seasons, has had two coaching changes since the last game of the 2001 regular season.
Kevin Wilson assumed the job as offensive line coach and run game coordinator; Wilson succeeded Mark Mangino, who took over as head coach at Kansas. Wilson was on Oklahoma’s staff for the Cotton Bowl.
Mangino was also the Sooners’ offensive coordinator, a job that now belongs to Chuck Long, who previously was the Sooners’ quarterbacks coach and now holds both titles.
Darrell Wyatt is in his first season as receivers coach after after holding the same job at Oklahoma State (2001) and Kansas (1997-2000). He was the assistant head coach at Kansas.
Defensively, the Sooners again have Mike Stoops and Brent Venables as co-defensive coordinators, and they’ll put another stern defense on the field this year. In 2001, the Sooners ranked fourth nationally in total defense (262.8), fourth in scoring defense (13.8), fifth in pass efficiency defense, seventh in rushing defense (89.9) and 11th in pass defense.
QUARTERBACKS
One of the most heated battles for a starting job will be at quarterback. Stoops isn’t rushing a decision, either.
Senior Nate Hybl (6-4, 220) started 11 of 13 games last season and has the edge in experience. Junior Jason White (6-2, 224) started two games and looked good before suffering a season-ending knee injury in the eighth game against Nebraska. Red-shirt freshman Brett Rawls (6-5, 205) was impressive at times in the spring; he took almost every snap with the scout team in 2001.
White played in seven games last season and completed 64.6 percent of his passes for 681 yards and five touchdowns. He was 73-of-113 with three interceptions.
White played well enough against Texas and Kansas to earn the starting job for the seventh game of the season against Baylor. He came off the bench and completed 16-of-23 passes against Texas, then rushed for 117 yards and threw for 151 at Kansas. In his first start, White completed 32-of-44 passes for 343 yards and one touchdown with no interceptions.
His season came to an end when he suffered the knee injury in the second quarter of the Nebraska game. Stoops has confidence in White’s ability to come back.
With White on the sideline, Hybl and Rawls split time in the spring.
Last season, Hybl started the first six games and the last four. He set a Cotton Bowl record with 24 completions and moved into the Sooner record book with 222 completions, the fifth-best in school history; 380 attempts, third-most for a quarterback; a .584 completion percentage, fifth-best; 14 touchdown passes, third-best; and 2,234 passing yards, third-best. His 350 passing yards against North Texas ranked eight all-time for a Sooner quarterback, and his 347 against Tulsa was ninth.
Rawls, who has plenty of arm strength, played only one season of quarterback at Evangel Christian High School in Shreveport, La., but he made it count. He threw for 3,549 yards and 35 touchdowns as a senior and rushed for 577 yards and 10 touchdowns.
RUNNING BACKS
With Wilson taking over as the run game coordinator, the Sooners’ rushing game could undergo some changes, but you can bet Quentin Griffin will be the focal point of the plans.
Griffin (5-7, 190) has played almost 90 percent of the time over the last two seasons in the one-back set. He’s an elusive runner and one of the best pass-catching running backs in the nation.
Last season, Griffin rushed for 804 yards and nine touchdowns, averaging 4.4 yards per carry. He was the team’s second-leading receiver with 55 catches for 440 yards and two touchdowns.
In the second game of the season against Air Force, Griffin rushed for a career-high 201 yards and three touchdowns. Against North Texas, Griffin caught 10 passes, the most ever for a running back at Oklahoma. In that game, Griffin became just the fourth Sooner to catch at least 100 passes.
During the 2000 season, Griffin rushed for 783 yards and 16 touchdowns in 13 games, averaging 4.1 yards per carry.
Several others will try to get some of the carries either alongside Griffin or in place of him.
Junior Renaldo Works (6-0, 209) was Griffin’s primary backup last season and was the team’s second-leading rusher with 293 yards and six touchdowns. He averaged 6.4 yards per carry and had the team’s longest run of the season, a 72-yarder against North Texas.
Red-shirt freshmen Kejuan Jones (5-7, 187) and Donta Hickson (5-9, 195) worked out with the scout team last season, and both showed signs that they could one day take over as the starter. Jones rushed for 1,725 yards and 29 touchdowns two years ago as a senior at Jenks (Okla.) High School and Hickson rushed for 2,581 yards and 31 touchdowns as a senior at McKinney (Texas) High School two years ago.
WIDE RECEIVERS/TIGHT ENDS
The Sooners are loaded with experience at the receiver position with only one starter, Josh Norman, lost to graduation. Four others who started are back.
Sophomore Mark Clayton (5-11, 169) set a Sooner freshman record with 45 catches last season, which ranked third on the team behind tight end Trent Smith and Griffin. Clayton had 519 receiving yards, averaged 11.5 yards per catch and caught three touchdown passes. He was chosen to the All-Big 12 honorable mention team by the coaches and Associated Press.
Other prime targets include seniors Antwone Savage (6-0, 190), Curtis Fagan (6-0, 180) and Andre Woolfolk (6-1, 191).
Savage caught 34 passes for 446 yards and five touchdowns, second best behind Smith. Fagan caught 31 for 275 yards and one touchdown and Woolfolk six passes for 134 yard and a team-best 22.3 yards per catch.
Smith (6-5, 230), a senior, led the nation’s tight ends in catches with 61 for 564 yards, an average of 9.2 yards per catch. He led the team in touchdown catches with six.
Smith was chosen to The Sporting News All-America second team and was on four All-Big 12 second teams. He was one of three finalists for the Mackey Award, which goes to the nation’s top tight ends; his 61 catches set a single-season record at Oklahoma.
OFFENSIVE LINE
With two starters gone from the left side, the Sooners had some heavy competition for those spots in the spring. No problem. Stoops was impressed with the line in the spring, and he’s optimistic he can put together a formidable front by the time the Sooners open the season Aug. 30 at Tulsa.
During a spring scrimmage, the Sooners’ backs rushed for 135 yards on 28 carries. They gained four or more yards on all but seven of the carries.
Senior Mike Skinner (6-5, 300) anchors the line at right guard. Two players had starts at right tackle last season, both sophomores -- Wes Sims (6-5, 317) and Jerod Fields (6-7, 302). Jammal Brown (6-6, 298), a sophomore, also had significant time at right tackle.
Skinner started the first 10 games, missed the Texas Tech game with an injury, and played in the regular-season finale and bowl game.
Sims started the first five games at left tackle before moving to right tackle for the Kansas game. He played two games at right tackle before suffering a knee injury that sidelined him until the bowl game, in which he started.
Fields was a backup at right tackle until Sims was hurt, then started the last five games of the season as the Sooners’ offense had some of its most productive games of the season.
The center will be sophomore Vince Carter (6-3, 277), who took over as the starter in 2001 when Josh Smith was injured. Carter made his first start against Kansas State and started the rest of the year.
On the left side, it’s a battle for starting jobs, thanks to the departures of tackle Frank Romero and guard Howard Duncan. Duncan was chosen as the team’s most outstanding lineman.
Senior Brad Davis (6-0, 300) will be one of the top candidates at right guard. Davis started one game in place of Skinner and also played center at times last season.
DEFENSIVE LINE
The strength of the Sooners’ defense will probably be the front, where junior Kory Klein (6-2, 285) and sophomore Tommie Harris (6-3, 288) return as starting tackles.
Harris was a much-heralded recruit when he arrived on campus last season, but he more than lived up to his billing. He started 13 games and was double-teamed for much of the year. With great strength and quickness, Harris is being touted as an All-America candidate after being chosen to The Sporting News Freshman All-America first team. He was the Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the Year, chosen by the league’s coaches, and was on the All-Big 12 first team by the coaches, the Associated Press, and three media outlets.
Last season, Harris had a tackle for loss in his first career play against North Carolina. He finished second on the team in tackles for loss with 17 and was third in quarterback hurries with 14.
Klein followed an outstanding red-shirt freshman year with a solid year in 2001, earning All-Big 12 second-team honors from the league’s coaches. He tied with Harris for most quarterback hurries and finished with 27 tackles, three for losses and two sacks.
The Sooners have good depth at tackle, led by sophomore Dusty Dvoracek (6-3, 271) and sophomore Lynn McGruder (6-3, 290). McGruder transferred from Tennessee last fall and was a highly recruited player out of North Las Vegas High School. He played in 10 games for Tennessee in 2000 and made six tackles.
Junior Jimmy Wilkerson (6-4, 260) returns as the starter at one defensive end spot. After playing linebacker through the preseason, Wilkerson moved to end after the season opener and looked like he’d played there for years.
Wilkerson led the team in tackles for loss with 18, 13 coming against rushes or short pass plays.
While Wilkerson’s spot is secure, that isn’t the case on the other side. Sophomore Dan Cody (6-5, 270) is the leading candidate, however, after leaving the team for medical reasons last fall.
Also contending for the starting job at end is sophomore Jonathan Jackson (6-3, 235), who saw limited action last season. Jackson played in six games and had seven tackles, including three tackles for loss and two sacks.
LINEBACKERS
Only one starter returns, and the Sooners lost one of the best linebackers in the country in Rocky Calmus, the Butkus Award winner. Calmus led the team in tackles with 117, including 15 tackles for loss and four sacks.
With the departure of Calmus, junior Teddy Lehman (6-2, 240) assumes the role as the team’s premier linebacker. Lehman, former sprinter on his high school track team, has great speed and quickness.
Last season, Lehman was the team’s third-leading tackler with 83 and had 10 tackles for loss.
Also gone is starting linebacker Brandon Moore, who had 36 tackles last season. Two junior college transfers from City College in San Francisco could step into starting jobs at linebacker -- Lance Mitchell (6-2, 245) in the middle and Pasha Jackson (6-3, 235) at one of the outside spots. Mitchell was a first-team NJCAA All-American and Jackson was a third-team All-American.
Mitchell originally signed with Florida out of Los Banos, Calif. Last season, he had 80 tackles and five sacks. Jackson had 62 tackles last season. Mitchell and Jackson helped City College go 24-0 over the last two seasons. Both were mid-year transfers who worked out with the team during the off-season.
Clint Ingram (6-2, 240) had 100 tackles as a senior at Hallsville (Texas) High School two years ago and was rated as the No. 6 linebacker in the Midlands by Prep Star and the No. 25 player in Texas by LoneStarRecruiting.com.
Red-shirt freshman Russell Dennison (6-3, 240) will also push for a starting job on the outside.
DEFENSIVE BACKS
After winning the Jim Thorpe Award, Sooners’ safety Roy Williams decided to enter the NFL draft. Williams is certainly a talent -- he was a close second on the team in tackles with 101 and had the team-high five interceptions -- but he wasn’t the only top-notch player in the secondary.
All three players who started at cornerback return this season. Junior Derrick Strait (5-11, 194) is one of the nation’s top cover corners and was chosen to the All-Big 12 second team by the Associated Press and was an honorable mention selection by the league’s coaches. He had at least three tackles in 11 of the 12 regular-season games, including a season-high 12 against Texas, and returned an interception 47 yards for a touchdown in the season opener against North Carolina.
Senior Andre Woolfolk (6-1, 195), who doubles as wide receiver, started the first four games at wide receiver and also the first nine at left-side cornerback. He missed the last three games of the regular season because of an injury, but returned for the Cotton Bowl and started at corner.
Sophomore Antonio Perkins (6-0, 180) started three games at corner when Woolfolk was injured but played in every game. He had three interceptions and made a key pick against Texas, making a leaping grab in the end zone.
At free safety, junior Brandon Everage (6-0, 190) returns after starting all but one game last season. Everage, fourth on the team in tackles with 76, was chosen to the All-Big 12 second team by the Dallas Morning News and the Fort Worth Stat-Telegram. As a sophomore, Everage was on the All-Big 12 third team chosen by the coaches.
Candidates expected to contend for Williams’ strong safety spot include red-shirt freshman Eric Bassey (6-1, 195), junior Michael Thompson (6-1, 196), junior Matt McCoy (5-11, 196) and red-shirt freshman Bobby Klinck.
PUNTERS
Jeff Ferguson finished his career as the Sooners’ career leader for punting average, but will be replaced by his younger brother this season. Jeff, a finalist for the Ray Guy Award, averaged 44 yards on 71 punts last season and had 21 punts inside the 20-yard line.
The Sooners hope Blake Ferguson (6-0, 190), a sophomore, can do what his brother did, or come close. Last fall, Blake would probably have been the starting punter at North Carolina, but decided to transfer a few days before the season opener against the Sooners, returning to his home state for his college career. The Fergusons are from Broken Arrow, Okla. Blake Ferguson will almost certainly assume the job held by is brother.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Savage and Fagan return as the kick returner and punt returner, respectively, and both are coming off good seasons. Savage was among the nation’s leaders, averaging 30.6 yards on 14 returns. He would have ranked third nationally, but did not return enough kicks to meet the NCAA’s minimum. He returned one kickoff for a touchdown.
Savage also returned six punts for a 24.2-yard average.
On punt returns, Fagan averaged 7.5 yards on 45 returns with a long return of 37 yards.
RECRUITING CLASS
As expected, Stoops’ 2002 recruiting class was a good one. The Sooners signed 24 players -- 12 defensive, 11 offensive and one place-kicker.
Offensively, the Sooners signed two quarterbacks, three wide receivers, four offensive linemen, a tight end and a fullback. On the defensive side, they signed four linebackers, four defensive backs, three defensive ends and one defensive lineman.
Roberts, the place-kicker, was a crucial get for Stoops with the departure of Panter. He comes from a Malta (Mont.) High School program that won the state championship in 2000 and finished runner-up in 1999 and 2001.
The quarterbacks are Noah Allen (6-3, 215) of Pearland (Texas) High School and Paul Thompson (6-4, 185) of Leander (Texas) High School.
Allen was rated as the No. 14 pro-style quarterback in the nation by Rivals.com and the 22nd best by recruiting analyst Tom Lemming. The Dallas Morning News rated Allen as the 46th-best prospect in Texas.
Allen threw for 2,047 yards and 20 touchdowns as a senior. He threw only two interceptions.
Thompson was rated as the 10th best athlete in the nation by Rivals100.com. He started three years at quarterback and one at defensive back. As a senior, he threw for 1,600 yards and ran for 1,053 yards. He threw for 12 touchdowns and rushed for 14. As a junior, Thompson had 2,060 total yards and 15 touchdowns.
When the addition of Mitchell and Jackson, Stoops has two junior-college linebackers who should be impact players. Both are accustomed to winning -- having led City College of San Francisco to two straight unbeaten seasons.
BLUE RIBBON ANALYSIS
The Sooners had a middle-of-the-pack offense last season, but one of the top defenses in the nation. During the spring, Stoops liked what he saw from his offense. Hybl has a year of quarterbacking in the system, and there is experience and talent at the skill positions. The offensive line should also be better.
As for special teams, the Sooners have a new punter and new place-kicker, but Stoops is confident the newcomers can handle the job.
Stoops has been a head coach for only three seasons, but he’s had no trouble proving himself. He’s the only Sooner coach in school history to lead the team to bowl games in each of his first three seasons. In three seasons, Stoops’ record is 31-7.
Only two Sooner coaches have reached 30 victories quicker -- Barry Switzer did it in 32 games and Bud Wilkinson did it in 34 games.
Stoops is in good company with those guys, and he has taken the program back to the upper echelon of college football in a short time. Stoops shrugs off his success, but points to the future. He’s in it for the long haul. Watch out, Big 12.
