Big 12 Media Day Notebook

DALLAS – Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops headed to Dallas on Tuesday with players Ty Darlington, Trevor Knight, Sterling Shepard and Eric Striker in tow to take part in the 2015 Big 12 Media Days at the Omni Hotel. For six hours, Stoops and crew addressed the media about the upcoming 2015 season.

Bob Stoops and Bob Bowlsby Bob Stoops speaks with Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby at media day.

A DATE CIRCLED

Without a doubt, the Sooners will take it one game at a time this season, but one contest OU fans have circled on their calendars is the Sept. 12 meeting with Tennessee in Knoxville.

After topping the Volunteers 34-10 in Norman last season, Oklahoma heads to Tennessee looking to make it a series sweep. Coaches and players alike said they are looking forward to the opportunity to play in front of 100,000 fans at Neyland Stadium.

“It will be exciting,” Stoops said. “That is why we schedule these games. I know our fan base is excited, at least the ones who will be able to get tickets to go over there. It will be a challenge for us, but an exciting one, for sure.”

Those are the types of games you want to play in when you come to Oklahoma. We got to go up to Notre Dame a couple years ago and this will be another great opportunity for us.
Trevor Knight

The September clash will not be Stoops' first trip to Neyland Stadium. He twice visited the stadium while he served as defensive coordinator at Florida.

“We won a game there against Peyton Manning in 1996,” Stoops said. “It may have been the first game played after their renovation took them above 100,000 seats. It is a great environment. We also played there in 1998 when Tee Martin was their quarterback and they beat us in overtime. It's always fun and exciting to play there.”

While Stoops might have experience of playing in front of 100,000 fans at Neyland, it will be the first such trip for the current Sooner roster.

“It has over 100,000 people?” Striker asked. “That's going to be fun. I love disrespectful fans. I love when they talk crap. That makes it fun.”

“Everything I hear is that it is a consensus top-10 place to play in the country,” Knight said. “Those are the types of games you want to play in when you come to Oklahoma. We got to go up to Notre Dame a couple years ago and this will be another great opportunity for us.”

TREVOR KNIGHT: LEADER

Knight, a redshirt junior quarterback, came to media day despite being in the midst of a closely contested battle for the starting quarterback job with junior Texas Tech transfer Baker Mayfield and redshirt sophomore Cody Thomas.

With a heated race for football's premier position in full swing, some wondered why Stoops chose to make Knight a part of the Sooners' media day contingent.

“Trevor is a great leader and worker for us in everything he does,” Stoops explained. “Last year wasn't a great year for OU, for our offense or defense, or even maybe Trevor. I still believe in the young man in the way he works, the kind of leader he is and the kind of person he is, and that matters.”

Knight said he isn't concerned with outside opinions on the quarterback race, but rather is focused on doing whatever he can to make the team better.

“It's not about one guy,” Knight said. “It's about the strength of our meeting room and our group. Regardless of who is the guy, we are all going to be leaders on this team. That's just the nature of this position. We have three guys who are playing the very best that they can play and that leadership is going to permeate through the team.”

Despite his singular focus on helping the team, Knight recognizes his roles as a leader and is committed to making the most of it.

“It's a dream come true,” Knight said of his current position. “It is a platform. I have these four or five years where, for whatever reason, people care what I have to say and what I do. I am just trying to use that platform to do the best I can on and off the field.”

FRESHMEN MAKING NOISE IN DEFENSIVE BACKFIELD

A major question for every team during the preseason is which young players will emerge and impact the team as freshmen and first-year players.

For Oklahoma, that young help looks like it could be coming in the secondary. Stoops and crew raved about the early performance of the young defensive backs.

“We have maybe the best secondary class we have ever recruited,” Stoops said. “Who of those young guys will be ready to challenge the guys that are there?”

We will be another year older in the secondary. We will be more mature. We played a lot better and more consistently in the spring. We really played well in the spring game. We had four or five interceptions and just played with more discipline. As guys gain more experience, generally you get better play.
Head Coach Bob Stoops

Two names in particular stuck out as players that are ready to make that challenge.

“Those freshman DBs are looking really good,” Striker said. “Prentice (McKinney) looks really good, P.J. (Mbanasor) looks good. Those guys are out there making plays in 7-on-7. They look like naturals. They can help this year. From what I see they are ready to go.”

“Prentice (McKinney) is definitely one of the guys that I have noticed that could make an impact on the team early,” Shepard said. “He can cover. We'll see if he can come down and hit anyone. I always mess with him that he needs to pack on a little weight, but he is definitely a guy I could see that can help us out.”

In addition to the young players coming in, Stoops is optimistic about the returning players and their growth in the offseason.

“We will be another year older in the secondary,” Stoops said. “We will be more mature. We played a lot better and more consistently in the spring. We really played well in the spring game. We had four or five interceptions and just played with more discipline. As guys gain more experience, generally you get better play.”

A BRAND NEW OFFENSE

One of the most anticipated aspects of the 2015 Oklahoma football season will be the revamped offense under first-year offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley. Riley arrived in Norman after spending the last four seasons in the same role at East Carolina where he led a Pirates offense that ranked fifth nationally in total offense and third in total passing last year.

“He has great experience and success running the kind of offense we have run before,” Stoops said. “I feel strongly that it's the right thing to do for us, and we have the personnel to fit it. Lincoln, with his experience, has an excellent chance to have success.”

Darlington and Shepard said they are thrilled with the new offense so far.

“Our schemes are a little different and our pace of play will be a little bit faster,” Darlington said. “For me, there is a lot less on the center. It allows me to sit back and just play a little bit more. I definitely enjoy the new offense. I can't wait to see how our different playmakers will thrive in the new system.”

“Coach Riley has simplified things,” Shepard said. “The signals are different and we are all in the film room constantly learning. It's just so fast paced.”

With a simplified attack, Darlington thinks the 2015 Sooner offense is in position to put the pressure squarely on the shoulders of opposing defenses.

“There is no doubt that it is simpler,” Darlington noted. “It is much more predicated on us attacking rather than us waiting to see what they would do and then reacting to that and trying to find the perfect play. We are going to run what we are going to run, and we're going to get the ball into the hands of guys who can make a play.”

Stoops has been happy with the progress he seen since installing the new offense.

“So far everything has been really positive and smooth,” he explained. “The players have really taken to the new system and what we are trying to do.”

Knight in particular seems to have grasped what Riley is asking the offense to do.

“The mentality is the main thing,” Knight said. “When Coach Riley stepped on campus he nailed into us. The plays are going to come. The concepts are going to come, but have the mentality that when you step on the field we are going to get after it.”

ENCORE PERFORMANCE FOR PERINE

Perhaps the most talked about and anticipated Sooner of the offseason is sophomore running back Samaje Perine. The Pflugerville, Texas, native rushed for 1,713 yards as a freshman and set the NCAA single-game rushing record with 427 yards on the ground against Kansas.

“The way he performed was truly special,” Stoops said. “I believe there is so much more for him. He is an amazing person in the way he works and his humble attitude. He is always hungry.”

It's that humble attitude and voracious work ethic that made Perine stand out to teammates and players before the 2014 season.

“When Samaje came in during the summer, [former offensive coordinator] Coach [Josh] Heupel asked me about the new guys,” Knight said. “I told him, 'That guy [Perine] is special.'

“Not necessarily because of his skill, but just the way he handled himself with maturity. He got in the workouts and went as hard as he possibly could. He got around his teammates and earned their respect on and off the field. I knew he had the character to be a great player. Obviously he his gifted physically, but it is more than that. It is character.”

I'm just going to keep it 100 with you.(If) me and Samaje meet with a full head of steam, I probably end up on my back. He is another type of being.”
Eric Striker

While the results have been outstanding, it is Perine's physicality that has fans standing and cheering for more. That ability to shed tacklers and run through defenders isn't lost on his teammates.

“I'm blocking sometimes and I look back like, 'He's about to run this guy over,'” Shepard said. “I love to watch him work. I have to stay on my blocks.”

“I'm just going to keep it 100 with you,” Striker added. “(If) me and Samaje meet with a full head of steam, I probably end up on my back. He is another type of being.”

With Riley's track record of success in the passing game, some in attendance on Tuesday wondered about Perine's role in the new system.

“He is going to have a strong presence in the new offense,” Stoops said. “He has gained some strength but lost some weight, so he is faster. He has worked hard in the offseason. As guys mature and get older that tends to happen. They get faster and stronger. They lose some weight that wasn't great for them. He has continued to improve and he will have a major part in our offense.”

STRIKER SETS THE TONE

You don't have to spend long with Eric Striker to get a sense of his magnetic personality. The senior linebacker is a vocal leader and a key piece to the Sooners' identity.

“He is the fire and the gasoline,” Stoops said. “He does it all, and does it with a smile on his face. He is always ready to go.”

“He lights up a room,” Shepard added. “He is a guy who is a sparkplug. He is always going. He says he doesn't get tired and that is his slogan; that's what he goes by. It is true.

“You can never catch him sleeping. If someone is down, he is always that guy to lift you up. He brings that humor to the locker room, too. He is a funny guy and that helps.”

Even players on the offensive side of the ball know the important role Striker plays in lifting the team with his infectious energy.

“He always brings energy and you have to have that,” Knight said. “There are days when you don't want to be doing what you are doing. You get up super early and then you hear Eric and he is chirping and hollering. It gets you going and lights a fire. It is necessary. He makes you mad at practice. He fires you up. He is a guy who makes everyone around him better.”

Stoops isn't surprised at all to hear people tell him the impact Striker has on his teammates and peers.

“I am proud of Eric, but it doesn't surprise me,” Stoops said. “He is a very thoughtful and emotional person, and he is invested in everybody. He is a great student and is popular on campus, not just on the football team. He has an engaging personality and is not afraid to make a difference.”

Players Mentioned

Ty Darlington

Trevor Knight

Baker Mayfield

Baker Mayfield

Samaje Perine

Samaje Perine

Sterling Shepard

Eric Striker

Cody Thomas

Cody Thomas

Sponsors

University of Oklahoma Athletics