OU Opens Big 12 Play With Kansas State

NORMAN, Okla. -- After a bye week, Oklahoma opens Big 12 Conference play when the Sooners entertain Kansas State. OU is coming off a bye week, while the Wildcats are fresh off a 54-7 victory over North Texas.

This marks K-State's first trip to Norman since the 2001 season. The game will also be the first game under the lights at Owen Field this season with a 6 p.m. kickoff.

View complete broadcast information for Fox Sports Net, Sooner Sports Radio Network affiliates, Sirius Satellite, internet audio, live stats and O-Zone webcasts at Sooner Gameday Central.

Sooner Gameday Central - K-State | Season Stats | Notes (PDF)

Oklahoma and the Big 12 Conference
OU is 5-4 in Big 12 openers, 5-1 under Bob Stoops. The Sooners have won their last five Big 12 openers including a 28-13 triumph over Texas Tech last season.
This marks the fifth time and the second year in a row that the Sooners have played their Big 12 opener at home.
OU is 49-23 in Big 12 regular season games, 44-7 under Bob Stoops.
Oklahoma owns four Big 12 championships (2000, 2002, 2003 and 2004).

The Series
Overall: OU leads 67-17-4, At Norman: OU leads, 36-6-3; At Manhattan: OU leads 30-10-1; At Kansas City: The series is tied 1-1. OU's Widest Margin of Victory: 76-0 in Norman in 1942; KSU's Widest Margin of Victory: 49-10 in Manhattan in 1995.

Series notes: Oklahoma has won four of the last five meetings, including a 31-21 victory in Manhattan last season ... the Sooners reeled off 22 straight in this series from 1971-92 and 32 in a row from 1937-1968.

The Coaches
Oklahoma: Bob Stoops (Iowa 83), now in his seventh season with the Sooners, is 68-14 overall. He is 3-3 in bowls, 3-2 in January bowls, 2-2 in BCS games, 44-8 vs. the Big 12, 25-5 vs. the Big 12 South, 19-3 vs. the Big 12 North, 3-1 in the Big 12 title game, 25-6 vs. non-conference opponents, 37-2 at home, 20-7 on the road, 11-5 on neutral fields, 21-5 vs. ranked opponents and 4-1 vs. Kansas State.

Kansas State: Bill Snyder (William Jewell 63) is 134-62-1 in his 17th season. He is 6-8 vs. Oklahoma.

Festivities
Game Sponsor: Oklahoma Highway Safety Office. Pre-game Presentation: OU's National Merit Scholars. Halftime: Recognition of Joe Washington's induction into the College Football Hall of Fame, celebration of Oklahoma's 2005 Men's Gymnastics NCAA National Championship and a performance by the Pride of Oklahoma. Student Giveaway: 8,000 inflatable pennants. Sooner FanFest: Opens three hours before kickoff on the Brooks Mall north of the stadium (autograph tent will feature former Sooner greats Jack Mildren and Steve Zabel).

The Program
Oklahoma owns one of the most storied and accomplished traditions in all of college football ...
OU's all-time record is 750-287-53.
Seven national championships (1950, 1955, 1956, 1974, 1975, 1985, 2000).
Thirty-eight bowl appearances (No. 7 nationally) with 23 victories (No. 3 nationally).
Since WWII, Oklahoma is the most successful college football program with 506 victories.
OU's all-time winning percentage of .711 ranks No. 4 among Division I-A members.
From 2000 forward, OU leads the nation in victories with 61.

This Week's Opponent
Kansas State is 3-0 with home wins over Florida International (35-21) and North Texas (54-7) sandwiched around a road triumph at Marshall (21-19).
KSU backs Thomas Clayton (7.7) and Parrish Fisher (6.9) have gaudy averages per carry.
QB Allen Webb has completed 39-of-62 passes for 543 yards with six touchdowns and three interceptions. Jordy Nelson and Jermaine Moreira share the receptions lead at 11.
The top tackler is LB Brandon Archer with 16. Justin McKinney leads in interceptions with two.

The Last Meeting
These two teams last played on Oct. 16, 2004, at Manhattan, Kan. ...
Oklahoma prevailed in 31-21 as Jason White fired four touchdown passes, two each to Travis Wilson and Mark Clayton.
Adrian Peterson carried 36 times for 130 yards to pace the Sooner ground game.
OU's defense stymied Wildcat back Darren Sproles, limiting him to just 34 yards on 13 carries.

Ties With This Week's Opponent
Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops was a Kansas State assistant coach from1989-1995. From 1989-90, he was the defensive backs coach. From 1991-95, he added the additional title of co-defensive coordinator.
OU assistant head coach, co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Brent Venables played linebacker at KSU and was honorable mention All- Big Eight in 1992 before joining the Wildcat coaching staff. He was a graduate assistant from 1993-95, linebackers coach from 1996-98 and defensive run-game coordinator in 1998. Venables, a native of Salina, graduated from Kansas State in 1992.
OU receivers coach Darrell Wyatt lettered two years in football and also was a track and field standout for Kansas State. He is a 1989 KSU graduate.
OU football administrative coordinator Matt McMillen, also a native Salinian, was Kansas State's administrative staff from 1987-97. He left there as associate athletics director for external affairs. He is a 1985 KSU graduate.

Oklahoma's Most Recent Game
Oklahoma dropped a 41-24 decision to UCLA on Sept. 17 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. ...
The Sooners out-gained the Bruins in total yards, 398-397, but UCLA converted three lost fumbles into 17 points. The home team led 20-17 after three quarters.
QB Rhett Bomar played well in just his second career start. After going 5-of-13 with two interceptions against Tulsa one week earlier, the redshirt freshman hit 20-of-29 passes for 241 yards with no picks. He also ran 16 yards for a touchdown.
Oklahoma, already down two defensive ends with season-ending injuries, played without starting SLB Clint Ingram. Ingram had interceptions, including one for a 48-yard touchdown against Tulsa, in each of OU's first two games. Ingram's replacement, Demarrio Pleasant, logged a career-high 10 tackles and tied FS Darien Williams for the team lead in that category. Ingram is expected back for the Kansas State game.
WR Travis Wilson, who caught seven passes for 103 yards, scored the first touchdown of the game on a 56-yard reverse. He later rushed again for another five yards.
OU started three true frosh -- RT Branndon Braxton, WR Malcolm Kelly and SS Reggie Smith.
P Cody Freeby averaged 45.6 yards on five punts and allowed Maurice Drew, who entered the game as the nation's top punt returner, just one attempt for five yards.

Oklahoma Picks Up Win. No. 750
The win over Tulsa was the 750th all-time for Oklahoma. The Sooners' all-time record now stands 750-287-53. OU is one of just eight schools with 750 victories. With 1,090 games played, the Sooners are just 10 away from 1,100. Nineteen other schools have played 1,100 games.

Sooners Eclipse Three Million in Attendance Under Stoops
Oklahoma has sold out all 39 home games of Bob Stoops' tenure and during the Tulsa game the total number of fans during that period exceeded three million. The total stands at 3,059,908 for an average of 78,459. That figure is misleading because recent expansion moved the capacity to 82,112. That figure has been exceeded in 15 straight games.

Early Games Illustrate Changing of the Guard
Twelve players made the first start of their Oklahoma career this season. Last season, over a 13-game schedule, a grand total of 10 players made their first career start at OU. The numbers are typical of the changes that are taking place this season ...

The TCU Game
Seven defensive players made their first career start.
Thirteen freshmen (eight true, five redshirt) played.
The starting offensive players in last season's finale had a combined 301 starts. The offensive starters in the 05 opener had a combined 130. The offensive line that started in the Orange Bowl last season at 188 career starts compared to just 68 for the group that started this year's opener.

The Tulsa Game
Eighteen first-year players saw action. Of those, 16 were freshmen, including 10 true.
Four of the five starting offensive linemen were in their first game at that particular position. Only Chris Bush, who had two previous starts at right guard (one in 03 and another in 04) was in a spot he had previously held. The offensive line that started against TU had a combined 41 career starts, down some 27 from the opener.
Three freshmen linemen played, including RT Branndon Braxton in his first career start.
CB D.J. Wolfe was OU's leading tackler with 12. At the same time last year he was a reserve running back.
OU's leading rusher and receiver was a sophomore (Adrian Peterson), the QB was a redshirt freshman (Rhett Bomar), the P was a sophomore (Cody Freeby), the K was a sophomore (Garrett Hartley), the leading tackle was a sophomore (D.J. Wolfe) and three of the four sacks were made by players who either weren't here last season or were playing offense in 2004.

The UCLA Game
Three true freshmen started in the game in RT Branndon Braxton, WR Malcolm Kelly and SS Reggie Smith. To put that in perspective, only four true freshmen even played for OU all of 2004.
Of the 15 players who had statistics on offense or in returns, 10 have at least two years of eligibility remaining, as did the leading tacklers Demarrio Pleasant and Darien Williams (both had 10), both of whom are sophomores.

Sooners Taking a Different Position
Paul Thompson's move from QB (he's still the No. 2) to WR continues a venture that has been successful for OU under Bob Stoops -- players moving from one position to another ...
Lewis Baker: LB SS Started this year's opener at strong safety.
Mark Bradley: DB WR Drafted by Chicago after last season.
Jammal Brown: DL RT Outland winner, first round pick by New Orleans.
Chris Chester: TE C Started first game of 05 as OG then next two at C. Brandon Daniels: QB, DB WR, KR Set OU season kickoff return record (508 yards).
Curtis Fagan: CB WR Top five in OU history (receptions and yards).
Cory Heinecke LB/LS DE Started for 2000 national championship team.
Josh Norman: RB WR Signed with San Diego as a tight end.
Frank Romero: DL OL All-Big 12 player who signed with Philadelphia.
Jimmy Wilkerson: LB DE Drafted by Kansas City.
D.J. Wolfe: RB CB Started every game this season at corner.
Andre Woolfolk: WR/CB CB Drafted by Tennessee.

Nothing Average About the New Linemen
By physical stature, this is the biggest group of offensive lineman to join the OU program under Bob Stoops. The average size of the Sooners' first-year o-linemen is 6-5, 305. Ben Baressi is 6-5, 282; Branndon Braxton 6-6, 300; George Robinson 6-6, 330 and Jesse White 6-5, 282. Add defensive interior newcomers DeMarcus Granger (6-2, 320) and Brian Simmons (6-5, 305) and there are five incoming players who tip the scales at better than 300 pounds.

Sooner Extremes
Tallest: Willie Roberts, TE (6-7); Shortest: David Robinson, WR (5-6); Heaviest: George Robinson, OL (330); Lightest: David Robinson, WR (156); Oldest: Willie Roberts, TE (born Feb. 10, 1981); Youngest: Juaquin Iglesias, WR (born Aug. 22, 1987).

About the Sooner Offense
Under Bob Stoops, OU has produced its career leader in passing and receiving, while also turning out the fourth-leading rusher in school history and the school record holder for single season rushing yards.
Oklahoma has scored at least one touchdown in 83 consecutive games dating back to Nov. 7, 1998.
Under Stoops, OU has rushed for 200 yards 23 times, including 18 over the last four seasons.
Also under Stoops, OU has 86 touchdowns of 25 yards or longer and 198 scoring drives that lasted less than two minutes.

Peterson Goes Over 2,000 Yards
Soph RB Adrian Peterson crossed over the 2,000 yard mark for his career vs. Tulsa, when be bolted for 220 against the Golden Hurricane. Peterson now has 2,266 yards for his career ...
The Tulsa game was the fourth 200-yard game (his fourth-highest total) and his fourth three-touchdown game. His 32 carries tied tie for his third-highest attempts total, but with two receptions on top of that, the 35 touches ranked second. He had 36 touches (all rushes) against Kansas State last season.
He currently ranks No. 15 nationally with 113.67 rypg.
Last season, Peterson carried 339 times for 1,925 yards. His attempts ranked No. 1 in the nation, while his net total yards was No. 3.
During the off-season he had surgery on his left shoulder, which precluded his participation in spring practice.
Peterson set a single season rushing record at Oklahoma in 2004, surpassing the previous best of 1,896 yards by Billy Sims in 1978.
Peterson also eclipsed the NCAA single season mark for a freshman. Ron Dayne had the previous best at 1,863 yards.
Peterson set other NCAA freshman standards for consecutive 100-yard games (nine) and 100-yard games (11). He tied the record for reaching 1,000 yards the fastest by doing so in the seventh game. He shares the record with Emmitt Smith (Florida, 1987) and Marshall Faulk (San Diego State, 1991).
He gained 100 yards in 11 of 13 games as a frosh and has done so in 12 of 16 games during his career.
He had the highest finish in the Heisman voting ever by a freshman (second) and was the first freshman to be named a finalist for the Doak Walker Award. He also was a finalist for the Maxwell.
Peterson averaged 164.0 yards vs. the four ranked foes on the 2004 schedule.

Two X 2,000
With Kejuan Jones (2,081) and Adrian Peterson (2,266) both over 2,000 career rushing yards, it marks the first time since 1987 that OU has two backs over that figure. Lydell Carr finished with 2,910 and Jamelle Holieway with 2,713 that year. It also happened in 1986 when Carr and Spencer Tillman both eclipsed 2,000.

Wilson on the Radar
Travis Wilson is closing in on a number of milestones ... he is just seven receptions away from 100 for his career, 30 yards away from 1,200, 13 receptions away from OU's career top 10 and 167 yards away from OU's career top 10 ...
In the opener, Wilson led OU with five receptions for 52 yards. Seventeen of those yards after the catch.
He had seven catches for 103 yards at UCLA. He also rushed twice for 61 yards, including a 56-yard TD.
Wilson logged 30 receptions for 345 yards and five touchdowns over his first two seasons before erupting in his junior campaign with 50 catches for 660 yards and the 11 scores.

Versatility in the Trenches
LG Davin Joseph has 27 starts at right guard, two at left tackle and one at left guard. Chris Bush has five starts at left guard, four at right guard and two at center. Chris Chester has one start at right guard and two at center. He's the only offensive lineman on the team with a touchdown. That came on a fake field goal at Missouri in 2002 when he caught a pass from holder Matt McCoy.

Frosh Starter at QB
They're rare. Not since Jake Sills in 1998 has a freshman started at quarterback for Oklahoma. Like Rhett Bomar, Sills was a redshirt freshman.

About the Sooner Defense
OU has forced at least one turnover in 72 of Bob Stoops' 82 games and has at least one interception in 53 of the last 69 games. OU has multiple picks in 17 of its last 42 outings.
Opponents completed 50% of their passes in less than half of their games against Stoops-coached teams -- 40 times in 82 games.
Foes scored less than 14 points in 47 of the 82 games.
OU has eight shutouts under its current coach. During that same period, the opponents failed to score more than seven points 25 times.

Making Clint's Day
SLB Clint Ingram, who missed the UCLA game with an injury, has one interception in each of the first two games -- a 23-yarder against TCU and a 48-yarder for a touchdown against Tulsa.
n Ingram has a knack for the ball. In his career, he has two interceptions, two fumbles caused, two fumbles recovered (against Texas last season, he caused and recovered a fumble on the same play) and four pass deflections. Not bad for a guy with 13 career starts.

Taking the Position that it Doesn't Matter on Position
Two of Oklahoma's top seven tacklers are playing new positions this season. CB D.J. Wolfe, the third-leading tackler with 19 (12 vs. Tulsa), was a running back last season, while SS Lewis Baker, the seventh-leading tackler with 12, was a linebacker.

Big Zach Attack
MLB Zach Latimer made his first career start against TCU. The junior responded with 15 tackles, including 11 that were solo. Latimer entered the game with 12 career tackles.
Latimer came back with another nine against Tulsa and leads the team with 24.

Raising the Ruf
Junior WLB Rufus Alexander toiled in obscurity as a freshman then had a major breakout season as a sophomore. Alexander had two total tackles and a fumble caused as a freshman while playing in one game as a reserve. As a soph, he unseated returning starter Gayron Allen to get the nod in 10 of the 13 contests and finished with 74 tackles, the third-highest total on the team.
Alexander and SLB Clint Ingram were recently named to the preseason watch list for the Butkus Award. With four previous winners (Brian Bosworth - 1984-85, Rocky Calmus (2001) and Teddy Lehman (2003), no school has won the prestigious honor more than Oklahoma).
Alexander, who had seven tackles for loss in his career heading into the Tulsa game, logged four against the Golden Hurricane.
Alexander has 103 career tackles and eclipsed the century mark with six at UCLA.

Dvoracek Returns
DT Dusty Dvoracek is back after being dismissed from the 2004 squad. Dvoracek is a former All-Big 12 performer and CoSIDA Academic All-District selection. In 2003, he was credited with 40 tackles, including seven sacks and 16 TFL. All three of those numbers were tops among an OU interior line for that included Tommie Harris, the Lombardi Award winner and a first-round draft choice of the Chicago Bears. Dvoracek suffered a torn left biceps in the 2005 spring game and missed most of the August workouts. On August 26 he was voted a team captain.
Had four tackles at UCLA, three for loss. He logged a 10-yard sack despite the fact that the Bruin lineman was flagged for holding him on the play.

Which End is Up?
OU is now minus half of its anticipated two-deep at defensive end. Larry Birdine was lost during the August drills with a torn left biceps muscle. John Williams went down with a torn left ACL against TCU.

Special Teams Stuff
A look at special teams notes from Bob Stoops' era as OU's head coach ...
There have been 22 special teams TDs, including 15 in the last 42 regular season games. Those 15 came via five different kinds of plays -- nine punt returns, two faked field goals, a blocked punt, a kickoff return and a faked punt. The special teams also own one safety.
OU has returned five kickoffs and 13 punts for touchdowns.
The Sooners have blocked 18 kicks.
In this year's opener, OU did not block a kick or return one for a TD, but did get a big play when Jason Carter tackled the TCU punter. The Sooners converted the play into a field goal.

Many Happy Returns
OU special teams under Bob Stoops ...
Kickoff Returns -- There have been 31 returns of 25 yards or more with five TDs.
Punt Returns -- There have been 37 returns of 15 or more yards with 13 TDs.
Interceptions -- There have been 49 returns of 10 or more yards with 12 TDs.
Fumbles -- Three returns of 15 or more yards with three touchdowns.

Got it Covered
Oklahoma led the Big 12 in kickoff coverage, allowing just 15.7 yards per return, and started similarly this season. Through three games, OU's foes average just 11.1 yards/kickoff return.
In last year's Big 12 title game, Colorado returned six Sooner kicks, but passed the 20 only once (22). The average CU field position after an OU kickoff was its own 17.
Oklahoma also was stingy on punt returns last season. Sooner opponents brought back 21 punts for an average of 4.2 yards per return. The longest covered just 18 yards (Houston). At UCLA this season, Maurice Drew entered the game as the nation's leading returner, but managed just one attempt for five yards.

Sooners Get a Freeby
Sophomore Cody Freeby, is in his first season at Oklahoma's punter.
The left-footer also is the holder for Garrett Hartley's placements.
In his first game, Freeby averaged 38.3 yards on eight punts with three downed inside the 20 and no touchbacks. Only one of his punts was returned and that one went for 10 yards.
Against Tulsa, when he averaged 50.0 yards on five kicks, his 70-yarder was the first by a Sooner to cover that distance since Jeff Ferguson got off 71-yarder at Air Force in 2001.
At UCLA, he averaged 45.6 yards on five punts and allowed the then-nation's leading returner, Maurice Drew, just one attempt for five yards.

Sooners Have Hart-ley
Garrett Hartley, Oklahoma's kicker, has been especially impressive with his kickoffs ...
So far this season, Hartley has had six full kickoffs (does not include squibs) and his average is 64.3 yards. That means the ball lands or is caught at roughly the half yardline. Opponents are averaging just 11.1 yards per return.
Hartley is 3-of-5 on field goals this season. His misses were a 50-yarder against TCU and a 32-yarder at UCLA.

Rice Trumps all the Streaks
Jacob Rice, the long-snapper and a former standout tight end and defensive end at Norman High, trumps all the starts and games played streaks. The senior has been in his role as a starter for each of the last 44 games.

Dennison a Special Teams Stud
Russell Dennison, a senior fullback, has 35 special teams tackles over his career (18 in 2003, seven in 2003, eight in 2004 and one in 2005). Dennison also has played linebacker during his career at Oklahoma.

Individual Player Notes
DE C.J. Ah You
Transfer from Snow Junior College... played one season at BYU ... logged first career OU sack vs. Tulsa.

LB Rufus Alexander
Double digit tackles in both games this far -- 11 vs. Tulsa, 10 vs. TCU ... four tackles for loss and a sack against Tulsa.

DT Remi Ayodele
Starting tackle who moved up the depth chart from second to first team last spring.

SS Lewis Baker
Spent his first two seasons trying to gain weight, then converted from linebacker to strong safety last spring ... career-high eight tackles against Tulsa.

CB Eric Bassey
Has also played strong safety during his career ... first start of the season against Kansas State.

QB Rhett Bomar
Worked in a back-up role in the opener, then started and played the entire game vs. Tulsa.

DE Larry Birdine
Lost for the season with a torn left biceps muscle suffered during preseason camp.

C Chris Bush
Started the opener at center, then moved to right guard for game two.

DB Jason Carter
Accomplished special teams player ... sacked TCU's punter to set up a field goal.

WR Quentin Chaney
Tallest receiver on the team at 6-5.

OL Kelvin Chaisson
One of the most experienced players on the team, he starts at left guard.

DT Steven Coleman
Working in a back-up role, but is part of a four-man rotation ... three tackles vs. Tulsa.

FB Russell Dennison
Has also played linebacker at OU ... logged 35 special teams tackles during his career.

DT Dusty Dvoracek
Former All-Big 12 player who figures to be a mainstay in the Sooner defensive front.

TE Joe Jon Finley
Added 21 pounds in the off-season ... got his first career start against Tulsa when the Sooners opened in double tight ends ... started the last two games and had three grabs for 41 yards at UCLA.

P Cody Freeby
Left-footer is in his first season as OU's punter ... also holds for placements ... averaged 50 yards on five punts against Tulsa including the first 70-yarder by a Sooner since 2001.

RB Jacob Gutierrez
Won an award from the United Way and the Junior League of Norman last spring for his community service ... gained 11 yards on this first career rushing attempt (vs. TCU).

K Garrett Hartley
Shed his redshirt in the 04 regular season finale and made a 29-yard FG in the BCS title game ... has switched from No. 32 to No. 10.

RB Donta Hickson
Speedy reserve who averaged 6.1 yards on 10 attempts last season.

LB Clint Ingram
Had interceptions in both of the first two games ... returned the pick vs. Tulsa 48 yards for a touchdown ... eight tackles and an interception (23 yards) vs. TCU ... missed UCLA game with injury.
.RB Kejuan Jones
Might be the most accomplished back-up back in the country with 2,081 career rushing yards on just nine starts ... missed most of the August practices with a sprained foot ... started at UCLA.

OL Davin Joseph
Started the opener at left tackle then moved to left guard for game two and was back at left tackle for game three ... spent the first three years of his career at right guard.

LB Zach Latimer
Had 15 tackles in his first career start (vs. TCU) and is OU's top tackler on the season with 28.

TE James Moses
Goes by the nickname “Bubba” ... 11 of his 16 career starts came last season.

DT Carl Pendleton
Started eight games last season as a redshirt freshman.

RB Adrian Peterson
Used sparingly in the preseason as coaches took time to look at other running backs.

LB Demarrio Pleasant
Started at SLB in place of the injured Clint Ingram at UCLA ... versatile enough to play multiple spots in the LB corps.

WR Jejuan Rankins
Perhaps OU's most elusive receiver after the catch, he also is the team's punt returner.

LS Jacob Rice
Reliable long snapper now in his fourth season in that role (no bad snaps thus far).

TE Willie Roberts
Tallest Sooner at 6-7, he also added nine pounds during the off-season.

WR David Robinson
Smallest player on the team, he can be a handful to tackle ... candidate to play in the slot.

FB J.D. Runnels
Devastating lead blocker ... averaged a little more than one reception per game over the last two seasons.

DB Reggie Smith
SS got his first career start at UCLA and also had four kickoff returns for 97 yards, including a long of 43.

DE Calvin Thibodeaux
Missed most of last season after suffering a knee injury at Kansas State.

QB Paul Thompson
Redshirted last season ... was Jason White's back-up in 2003 ... now splitting time at receiver.

DB Marcus Walker
Starting corner in the last two games of 04, then had off-season shoulder surgery ... missed spring ball, then dislocated his opposite shoulder (left) in August, which forced him to miss several days.

DB Darien Williams
Excelled in the spring and has started ever game at free safety.

DE John Williams
Had a sack vs. TCU, but then was lost for the season in the same game with a torn left ACL.

WR Travis Wilson
A combination of speed and power, he led Oklahoma with 11 touchdown receptions last season ... seven grabs for 103 yards at UCLA ... also in that game, he carried twice for 61 yards including a 56-yard touchdown dash.

Head Coach Bob Stoops | Coach Stoops' Bio
History is one tough customer at Oklahoma. The tradition, so rich and so long-standing, is as daunting as it is impressive. To be among the best at Oklahoma is to be among the best in college football.

Such dramatics are lost on Bob Stoops. The Sooner head coach befriended the would-be albatross of OU's successful past from his first day on campus and remains steadfastly focused on tomorrow and the championship it holds.

It falls then to the observers and experts of the game to define Stoops' impact. Rarely have the pundits had it so easy.

Under Stoops, Oklahoma has won 68 games (668-14), spent 69 consecutive weeks in the national rankings, played in six bowl games, four of the BCS variety, and captured three Big 12 crowns. His 2000 team won the national championship. On a playing field leveled by scholarship limits and parity, this era stares down the Oklahoma standard and does not blink.

The achievement dulls the memory of what Stoops inherited. When he arrived in Norman, the proud Sooner program was five years removed from a winning record, four from bowl play. Those atypical days of angst are so forgotten now that they might as well be mentioned with the land rush and dust bowl.

Stoops has been characterized as a grounded family man, brilliant big-game coach, relentless recruiter, disciplined leader and a person with uncommon perspective. His success emanates from a disciplined style true to his roots in the Steel Valley of Ohio, but he is far from inflexible. The principles to which he holds are the tried and true axioms of the sport ... mixed with cutting edge strategy and an appreciation for the calculated risk.

During his time, OU has produced recordsetting passers and receivers, two 1,000-yard rushers, suffocating defense and special teams units that rank among the most dynamic in the land. Every facet has been impacted.

His players have snagged 16 national awards, including the 2003 Heisman Trophy won by Jason White. There have been 49 academic honorees, 43 All-Big 12 players, 21 All-Americans and 13 NFL draft choices.

Stoops has won a total of 10 national coach of the year awards and has been Big 12 Coach of the year in three of his six campaigns in Norman.

This is one of the finest coaches in the history of one of college football's most storied traditions.

The son of a coach, Stoops was a four-year starter at Iowa. He began his coaching career in 1983 as a volunteer in the Hawkeye program under Hayden Fry. He worked through the ranks until he became co-defensive coordinator at Kansas State (1991-95).

With the Wildcats, he played a key role in their impressive turnaround. During his final four seasons there, K-State was 35-12 with three bowl appearances. Eventually, he left for Florida and a three-year stint as Steve Spurrier's defensive coordinator. In 1996, he was part of a national championship team. It was with the Gators that the spotlight found Stoops and made him one of the hottest names in the profession.

Stoops, who was born Sept. 9, 1960, in Youngstown, Ohio, graduated from Iowa in 1983 with a degree in marketing. He and his wife, Carol, have three children: daughter, Mackenzie, and twin sons, Drake and Isaac.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

OU Opens Big 12 Play With Kansas State

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