Oklahoma Sooners football under Bob Stoops

Bob Stoops is the current head coach of the Oklahoma Sooners football team which represents the University of Oklahoma in the NCAA Division I Bowl Subdivision. He was hired in 1999 and won the national championship the next year after going undefeated through the regular season. Under his direction, the Sooners have won seven Big 12 conference championships, produced 32 All-Americans, had two Heisman Trophy winners (and two runners-up), and visited all four BCS bowl games.

Seasons [edit]

1999 [edit]

The 1999 Oklahoma Sooners football team represented the University of Oklahoma in the 1999 college football season, the 105th season of Sooner football. The team was led by first-year head coach Bob Stoops. After five straight non–winning seasons and not making a bowl appearance for four years, athletic director Joe Castiglione decided to fire three–year coach John Blake and hire Stoops away from his job as defensive coordinator at the University of Florida. Others considered for the job included Barry Alvarez, Jim Donnan, Bob Toledo, Dennis Franchione, Tommy Bowden, Gary Barnett, and Mike Bellotti.^[1] The decision to promote a defensive coordinator to head coach ran contrary to the conventional wisdom of the time, but from the beginning Stoops was expected to be an exception to that theory, even without any experience calling offensive plays.^[2] They played their home games at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Oklahoma. They were a charter member of the Big 12 conference.

Conference play began with a win over Baylor at home on September 18th, and ended with a win over Oklahoma State in the annual Bedlam Series on November 27th.

The Sooners finished the season 7-5 (5-3 in Big 12), tying for second with Texas A&M in the Big 12 South. They were invited to the Independence Bowl, where they lost to Ole Miss, 25-27.

Following the season, Stockar McDougle was selected 20th overall in the 2000 NFL Draft, along with William Bartee in the 2nd round.

• Captains: Cornelius Burton, Josh Heupel, Matt O'Neal, Rodney Rideau, Mike Thornton^[3]

Schedule [edit]

Date	Time	Opponent#	Rank#	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 11	6:30 PM	Indiana State*		Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK		W 49–0	74,119[4]
September 18	11:30 AM	Baylor		Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	FSN	W 41–10	74,309[4]
September 25	2:30 PM	at Louisville*		Papa John's Cardinal Stadium • Louisville, KY	FSN	W 42–21	41,214[4]
October 2	1:30 PM	at Notre Dame*	#23	Notre Dame Stadium • Notre Dame, IN	NBC	L 30–34	80,012[4]
October 9	2:30 PM	vs. #23 Texas		Cotton Bowl • Dallas, TX (Red River Rivalry)	ABC	L 28–38	75,587[4]
October 23	6:00 PM	#13 Texas A&M		Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	FSN	W 51–6	74,552[4]
October 30	2:30 PM	at Colorado	#24	Folsom Field • Boulder, CO	ABC	L 24–38	48,194[4]
November 6	2:00 PM	Missouri		Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK (Tiger-Sooner Peace Pipe)		W 37–0	74,966[4]
November 13	1:00 PM	at Iowa State		Jack Trice Stadium • Ames, IA		W 31–10	37,073[4]
November 20	11:30 AM	at Texas Tech		Jones Stadium • Lubbock, TX	FSN	L 28–38	42,020[4]
November 27	2:00 PM	Oklahoma State		Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK (Bedlam Series)	FSN	W 44–7	75,374[4]
December 31	7:30 PM	vs. Mississippi		Independence Stadium • Shreveport, LA (Independence Bowl)	ESPN	L 25–27	49,873[4]
*Non-conference game. Homecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll. All times are in Central Time.

2000 [edit]

2001 [edit]

• Captains: Rocky Calmus, Josh Norman, Frank Romero, Roy Williams

The 2001 Oklahoma Sooners Football team represented the University of Oklahoma in the 2001 college football season, the 107th season of Sooner football. The team was led by Bob Stoops in his 3rd season as the OU head coach. They played their home games at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Oklahoma. They were a charter member of the Big 12 conference.

Conference play began with a win over Kansas State in Norman on September 29th, and ended in an upset loss to Oklahoma State in the annual Bedlam Series.

The Sooners finished the season 11-2 (6-2 in Big 12), while finishing 2nd in the Big 12 South. They were invited to the 2002 Cotton Bowl, where they defeated Arkansas, 10-3.

Following the season, Roy Williams was selected 8th overall in the 2002 NFL Draft, along with Rocky Calmus in the 3rd round.

Schedule [edit]

Date	Time	Opponent#	Rank#	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 25	6:45 PM	North Carolina*	#3	Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK (Hispanic Fund College Classic)	ESPN	W 41–27	75,423[5]
September 1	2:30 PM	at Air Force*	#3	Falcon Stadium • Colorado Springs, CO	ABC	W 44–3	56,162[5]
September 8	6:30 PM	North Texas*	#3	Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	FSN	W 37–10	74,930[5]
September 29	11:00 AM	#11 Kansas State	#3	Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	ABC	W 38–37	75,862[5]
October 6	2:30 PM	vs. #5 Texas	#3	Cotton Bowl • Dallas, TX (Red River Rivalry)	ABC	W 14–3	75,587[5]
October 13	6:00 PM	at Kansas	#3	Memorial Stadium • Lawrence, KS	FSN	W 38–10	48,700[5]
October 20	2:00 PM	Baylor	#2	Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK		W 33–17	75,499[5]
October 27	11:00 AM	at #3 Nebraska	#2	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, NE (OU–Nebraska)	ABC	L 10–20	78,031[5]
November 3	2:00 PM	Tulsa*	#3	Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	FSN	W 58–0	74,911[5]
November 10	11:00 AM	Texas A&M	#3	Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	ABC	W 31–10	75,525[5]
November 17	2:30 PM	at Texas Tech	#3	Jones SBC Stadium • Lubbock, TX	ABC	W 30–13	52,008[5]
November 24	2:30 PM	Oklahoma State	#4	Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK (Bedlam Series)	FSN	L 13–16	75,537[5]
January 1	10:00 AM	vs. Arkansas	#10	Cotton Bowl • Dallas, TX (Cotton Bowl)	FOX	W 10–3	72,955[5]
*Non-conference game. Homecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll.

Game notes [edit]

Air Force [edit]

^[6]

2002 NFL Draft [edit]

The 2002 NFL Draft was held on April 20-21, 2002 at Madison Square Garden in New York City The following Oklahoma players were either selected or signed as undrafted free agents following the draft.

2002 [edit]

The 2002 Oklahoma Sooners football team represented the University of Oklahoma during the 2004 college football season, the 108th season of Sooner football. The team was led by Bob Stoops in his 4th season as the OU head coach. They played their games at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Oklahoma. They were a charter of the Big 12 Conference.

Conference play began with a win over Missouri in Columbia on October 5th, and ended with their second win over Colorado that season in the 2002 Big 12 Championship Game on December 7th.

The Sooners finished the season 12-2 (9-2 in Big 12) with their 2nd Big 12 title and their 38th conference title overall. They received an automatic berth to play in their first Rose Bowl in Oklahoma history, where they upset Washington State, 34-14.

Following the season, Andre Woolfolk was selected 28th overall in the 2003 NFL Draft, along with Quentin Griffin in the 4th round, Jimmy Wilkerson in the 6th, and Trent Smith in the 7th.

Schedule [edit]

Date	Time	Opponent#	Rank#	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 30	7:00 PM	at Tulsa*	#1	Skelly Stadium • Tulsa, OK	ESPN	W 37–0	40,385[7]
September 7	2:30 PM	Alabama*	#2	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	ABC	W 37–27	75,564[7]
September 14	6:00 PM	UTEP*	#2	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	PPV	W 68–0	74,468[7]
September 28	6:00 PM	South Florida*	#2	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	TBS	W 31–14	74,432[7]
October 5	6:00 PM	at Missouri	#2	Faurot Field • Columbia, MO (Tiger-Sooner Peace Pipe)	FSN	W 31–24	60,578[7]
October 12	2:30 PM	vs. #3 Texas	#2	Cotton Bowl • Dallas, TX (Red River Rivalry)	ABC	W 35–24	75,587[7]
October 19	2:30 PM	#9 Iowa State	#2	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	ABC	W 49–3	75,201[7]
November 2	2:30 PM	#13 Colorado	#2	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	ABC	W 27–11	75,403[7]
November 9	2:30 PM	at Texas A&M	#1	Kyle Field • College Station, TX	ABC	L 26–30	84,036[7]
November 16	1:00 PM	at Baylor	#4	Floyd Casey Stadium • Waco, TX		W 49–9	28,375[7]
November 23	6:00 PM	#24 Texas Tech	#4	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	TBS	W 60–15	75,553[7]
November 30	1:30 PM	at Oklahoma State	#3	Lewis Field • Stillwater, OK (Bedlam Series)	FSN	L 28–38	48,500[7]
December 7	7:00 PM	vs. #12 Colorado	#8	Reliant Stadium • Houston, TX (Big 12 Championship Game)	ABC	W 29–7	63,332[7]
January 1	3:30 PM	vs. #7 Washington State	#8	Rose Bowl • Pasadena, CA (Rose Bowl)	ABC	W 34–14	86,848[7]
*Non-conference game. Homecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll. All times are in Central Time.

Oklahoma Sooners in the 2003 National Football League Draft [edit]

2003 [edit]

Players before the OU/Texas game in 2003. NFL players Dan Cody and Tommie Harris are easily visible in this photo.

The 2003 Oklahoma Sooners football team represented the University of Oklahoma in the 2003 college football season, the 109th season of Sooner football. The team was led by two-time Walter Camp Coach of the Year Award winner, Bob Stoops (winning his second one in 2003), in his 5th season as the OU head coach. They played their home games at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Oklahoma. They were a charter member of the Big 12 Conference.

Conference play began with a win over Iowa State in Ames on October 4th, and ended with an upset loss to Kansas State in the 2003 Big 12 Championship Game on December 6th.

The Sooners finished the season 12-2 (8-1 in Big 12), while finishing 1st in the Big 12 South. Despite their loss in the conference championship game, they were invited to the 2004 Sugar Bowl, which served as the BCS National Championship Game that year, where they to LSU, 14-21.

Following the season, Tommie Harris was selected 14th overall in the 2004 NFL Draft, along with Teddy Lehman in the 2nd round, and Derrick Strait in the 3rd.

Schedule [edit]

Date	Time	Opponent#	Rank#	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 30	6:00 PM	North Texas*	#1	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	FSN	W 37–3	83,073[8]
September 6	6:45 PM	at Alabama*	#1	Bryant–Denny Stadium • Tuscaloosa, AL	ESPN	W 20–13	83,818[8]
September 13	2:30 PM	Fresno State*	#1	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	FSN	W 52–28	83,091[8]
September 20	2:30 PM	UCLA*	#1	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	ABC	W 59–24	83,317[8]
October 4	6:00 PM	at Iowa State	#1	Jack Trice Stadium • Ames, IA	TBS	W 53–7	49,670[8]
October 11	2:30 PM	vs. #11 Texas	#1	Cotton Bowl • Dallas, TX (Red River Rivalry)	ABC	W 65–13	75,587[8]
October 18	6:00 PM	#24 Missouri	#1	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	FSN	W 34–13	83,327[8]
October 25	6:00 PM	at Colorado	#1	Folsom Field • Boulder, CO	TBS	W 34–20	54,215[8]
November 1	2:30 PM	#14 Oklahoma State	#1	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK (Bedlam Series)	ABC	W 52–9	84,027[8]
November 8	11:00 AM	Texas A&M	#1	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	ABC	W 77–0	83,461[8]
November 15	1:30 PM	Baylor	#1	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	FSN	W 41–3	82,117[8]
November 22	2:30 PM	at Texas Tech	#1	Jones SBC Stadium • Lubbock, TX	ABC	W 56–25	53,135[8]
December 6	7:00 PM	vs. #12 Kansas State	#1	Arrowhead Stadium • Kansas City, MO (Big 12 Championship Game)	ABC	L 7–35	79,451[8]
January 4	7:00 PM	vs. #2 LSU*	#3	Louisiana Superdome • New Orleans, LA (Sugar Bowl)	ABC	L 14–21	79,342[8]
*Non-conference game. Homecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll. All times are in Central Time.

Game notes [edit]

Alabama [edit]

^[9]

Texas Tech [edit]

^[10]

2004 [edit]

2005 [edit]

• Captains: Dusty Dvoracek, Clint Ingram, Davin Joseph, J.D. Runnels ^[11]

The 2005 Oklahoma Sooners football team represented the University of Oklahoma in the 2005 college football season, the 111th season of Sooner football. The team was led by two-time Walter Camp Coach of the Year Award winner, Bob Stoops, in his 7th season as the OU head coach. They played their home games at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Oklahoma. They were a charter member of the Big 12 Conference.

Conference play began with a loss in the annual Red River Rivalry to Texas on October 8th, and ended with a win in the annual Bedlam Series over Oklahoma State on November 26th. During the second quarter of the game against Kansas State on October 1st, a nearby bomb exploded that was heard at the game.^[12]

The Sooners finished the season with an overall 8-4 record (6-2 in the Big 12), their worst record since 1999, finishing in a tie for second in the Big 12 South. They were invited to the Holiday Bowl, where they upset Oregon, 17-14.

Following the season, Davin Joseph was selected 23rd overall in the 2006 NFL Draft, along with Chris Chester in the 2nd round, Dusty Dvoracek, Travis Wilson and Clint Ingram in the 3rd, and J. D. Runnels in the 6th.

On July 11, 2007 the NCAA announced the Sooners would have to vacate every game from 2005 due to NCAA violations relating to Rhett Bomar and J.D. Quinn receiving money from a car dealership for work they did not perform. The punishment effectively gave the team a 0–4 record.^[13] However, on appeal, those wins were reinstated in early 2008.^[14]

Schedule [edit]

Date	Time	Opponent#	Rank#	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 3	11:00 AM	TCU*	#7	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	ABC	L 10–17	84,332[15]
September 10	11:30 AM	Tulsa*	#18	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	FSN	W 41–15	83,877[15]
September 17	2:30 PM	at UCLA*	#21	Rose Bowl • Pasadena, CA	ABC	L 24–41	56,552[15]
October 1	6:00 PM	Kansas State*		Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	FSN	W 43–21	84,501[15]
October 8	11:00 AM	vs. #2 Texas		Cotton Bowl • Dallas, TX (Red River Rivalry)	ABC	L 12–45	75,452[15]
October 15	6:00 PM	at Kansas		Arrowhead Stadium • Kansas City, MO	TBS	W 19–3	54,109[15]
October 22	6:00 PM	Baylor		Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	FSN	W 37–30 2OT	83,456[15]
October 29	11:00 PM	at Nebraska		Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, NE (OU–Nebraska)	ABC	W 31–24	77,438[15]
November 12	11:00 AM	Texas A&M		Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	ABC	W 36–30	84,943[15]
November 19	11:00 AM	at Texas Tech		Jones SBC Stadium • Lubbock, TX	FSN	L 21–23	52,625[15]
November 26	2:30 PM	Oklahoma State		Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK (Bedlam Series)	ABC	W 42–14	84,875[15]
December 29	7:00 PM	vs. #6 Oregon*		Qualcomm Stadium • San Diego, CA (Holiday Bowl)	ESPN	W 17–14	65,416[15]
*Non-conference game. Homecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll. All times are in Central Time.

Holiday Bowl [edit]

^[16]

2006 [edit]

2006 was a very tumultuous year for the Sooners. One week before fall practice began, returning quarterback Rhett Bomar and J.D. Quinn, a projected starter on the offensive line, were kicked off the team for violating NCAA rules when they received payment for work they did not do.^[17] Paul Thompson, who had not practiced in the quarterback role for nearly a year, was asked to move back to quarterback which he did. In mid-September, OU played the University of Oregon for the third time in three years. The Sooners lost this game 33–34. During the game a controversy arose when game officials awarded an onside kick to the Ducks when it should have been Oklahoma's ball.^[18][19] Following the game, all officials were suspended for one game but replay official Gordon Riese said he would take the year off;^[18] later in the year, he would quit completely.^[20] Gordon Riese later acknowledged that he knew OU recovered the onside kick but replay rules prevented him from correcting the on-field officials.^[21] A few weeks later, OU lost to rival Texas. Following these setbacks, the team regrouped and the defense vastly improved. Following the Oregon game, the defense was ranked 97th nationally^[22] but by the end of the regular season, they were ranked 17th.^[23]

Following the Texas game, OU played Iowa State and soundly defeated them 34–9. However, on the final touchdown drive for the Sooners, star running back Adrian Peterson suffered a broken collar bone when he dove into the end zone. The Sooners would turn to two untested running backs to replace the Heisman-hopeful Peterson: Allen Patrick, a junior, and Chris Brown, a freshman. The Sooners did not miss a step. The team went on a seven-game winning streak to finish Big 12 conference play 11–2. This streak included road wins over two ranked opponents: Texas A&M and Missouri. The defending national champion Texas Longhorns were favored to win the Big 12, but they suffered two losses to finish their regular season, which sent OU to the Big 12 Championship game against a former rival, the Nebraska Cornhuskers. The Sooners defeated the 19th-ranked Cornhuskers 21–7 to win the Big 12 title for the fourth time under Bob Stoops. The Sooners lost in overtime by a score of 43–42 to Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl.

2007 [edit]

The 2007 Oklahoma team opened up with a home game against the University of North Texas and soundly beat them 79–10. The 79 points scored by OU was the most in the country for Week 1. In Week 2 the Sooners played a much tougher opponent in the University of Miami. However, the results seemed to show a mismatch, as OU easily defeated the Hurricanes 51–13. In Week 3 the Sooners got the best of Utah State with a 54–3 thrashing. Week 4 matched OU up with an in–state foe, the Tulsa Golden Hurricane. Just as it has been all season (expect for the September 29 loss at unranked Colorado), the Sooners put up another dominant performance with a 62–21 victory. In Week 5 (September 29, 2007), the #4 Sooners saw their National Championship hopes take a hit as they lost to unranked Colorado in Boulder 27–24 after leading in the second half by a score of 24–7. The Sooners only had 234 net yards compared to Colorado's 379 net yards. The 2007 match–up between Oklahoma and Texas on Oct. 2007 was predicted to be the #3 game to watch in 2007 by SI.com's "Top 20 Games To Watch In 2007" list. The University of Oklahoma football team proved itself worthy of the top ten rankings when it defeated Texas 28–21 at the Red River Rivalry. The Texas Longhorns played up to their potential when they answered almost every point during the October 6 game. In the end Colt McCoy along with Jermichael Finley and the Longhorns could not withstand the adamant pressing of Sam Bradford, Demarco Murray and the Sooners.^[24] After losing quarterback Sam Bradford to a concussion, Oklahoma would go on to lose to an unranked Texas Tech team in an upset, although this was not enough to keep them from the Big 12 championship. They would go on to defeat Missouri in the Big 12 championship game and win the Big 12's automatic BCS berth, playing West Virginia University in the Fiesta Bowl. For the second consecutive year Oklahoma would lose in a BCS bowl game, although this game was not as close as the previous year. Oklahoma was down 14 points at halftime and never pulled closer than 20–15, eventually losing 48–28.

2008 [edit]

2009 [edit]

2010 [edit]

2011 [edit]

2012 [edit]

Legacy [edit]

Many of Oklahoma's players under Coach Stoops went on to play in the NFL. Some of these include, Sam Bradford (St. Louis Rams), Tommie Harris (Chicago Bears), Jammal Brown (Washington Redskins), Adrian Peterson (Minnesota Vikings), Curtis Lofton (Atlanta Falcons), Mark Clayton (St. Louis Rams), Jermaine Gresham (Cincinnati Bengals), Dan Cody, Teddy Lehman, Dusty Dvoracek, Davin Joseph (Tampa Bay Buccaneers), Brodney Pool, Mark Bradley, and Garrett Hartley (New Orleans Saints).

Several coaches who were assistants under Stoops are currently head coaches at FBS schools, such as Kevin Sumlin, Bo Pelini and Kevin Wilson.

References [edit]