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
NOTE: The 2004 season includes a No Contest;  the Orange Bowl loss to Southern California was subsequently vacated because of an ineligibility issue.

1999
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. 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.

Stoops was able to build on the solid defensive recruiting of his predecessor (who signed future All-Americans Rocky Calmus and Roy Williams) and brought in junior college quarterback Josh Heupel to run the offense. The 1999 team went 7–5 after starting the season with three wins. They won at home over and Baylor and pulled off the road upset against Louisville. The Sooners lost the next two games at Notre Dame in South Bend and to Texas in the Red River Shootout and ended the season with a 25–27 loss to Mississippi in the.


 * Captains: Cornelius Burton, Josh Heupel, Matt O'Neal, Rodney Rideau, Mike Thornton

2000
In 2000, the Sooners opened the season ranked number 19, the first time they had broken into a pre-season poll in five years. Heupel was expected to have a good season with a year of experience in Stoops's system and an improved defense would help the Sooners be "a headache for the opposition" all season. The team started with four straight wins, cruising over early opponents by a combined score of 176–51.

The Sooners entered the annual Red River Rivalry game ranked 10th in the nation while Texas had a 3–1 record and was ranked number 11. In what was then the most lopsided game in the history of the rivalry, Oklahoma beat Texas by the score of 63–14. Sooner running back Quentin Griffin set a single-game school record with six touchdowns while Heupel had 275 yards through the air with one touchdown and no interceptions. Texas was held to an all-time low –7 rushing yards on the game. They went on to narrowly beat second ranked Kansas State 41–31 and then defeat the number one ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers 31–14, taking over the number one ranking in the process. The Sooners held on to it through the rest of the season and earned a spot in the Orange Bowl and the right to play for the national championship.

The Florida State Seminoles were selected as the Sooners' opponent in the BCS National Championship Game and were favored to win by 10½ points. Extra tension was laid on the game by the results of the Heisman balloting where Florida State's Chris Weinke beat out Heupel for the award by only 76 points. The Sooners won the game 13–2, the second lowest scoring Orange Bowl ever and the first time all season that Weinke did not throw a touchdown pass, to claim the Sears Trophy and Oklahoma's seventh national title.

2001

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

The 2001 Oklahoma Football season started off with a bang. On the first play from scrimmage against North Carolina, highly touted defensive tackle recruit Tommie Harris, now an All-Pro with the Chicago Bears, brought down the ball carrier for a three-yard loss. The Sooners wanted to make a good impression after winning the National Championship the season before, and through the first few games of the season, they did just that. The Sooners took care of North Carolina (41–27), Air Force (44–3), and North Texas (37–10) with very little resistance. However, in the fourth game of the season, an aggressive blitzing scheme kept Sooner QB Nate Hybl on his back and the Wildcats in the game before OU finally pulled out the victory over Kansas State, 38–37. This set up another Cotton Bowl Classic battle against OU's most-hated rival&mdash;the Texas Longhorns. This year's version of the battle would turn into a game that fans from both teams would never forget thanks to Sooner defensive back Roy Williams. Late in the game, Williams launched himself over a blocker and into Sooner lore by batting down the Chris Simms pass into the arms of linebacker Teddy Lehman. This play has since come to be known as the "Superman" play, and was the play that launched Roy Williams' Heisman Trophy candidacy. (He would wind up finishing seventh in Heisman voting.) The OU/Texas game is also remembered for another reason... it was the day that future Heisman Trophy winner Jason White came into the game to replace starter Nate Hybl after he was injured. White played incredibly well in backup duty, exciting Sooner fans for both the immediate and long-term future of the QB position.

After the Texas win, the Sooners went on to dominate two more conference foes (Kansas 38–10, Baylor 33–17) before a battle against rival Nebraska. And, as so many games in the past were, this OU/Nebraska game was a battle of #1 vs. #2. This time, however, the Sooners would suffer their first setback of the season, losing 20–10 on a late trick play that launched Nebraska quarterback Eric Crouch's Heisman campaign. Crouch would go on to win the Heisman, largely on the strength of his performance against the Sooners that afternoon, which looked even better after now-starter Jason White went down with an injury and a cold Nate Hybl was brought back in, this time against Nebraska's hard-hitting defense.

Following that loss were three more blowouts (Tulsa 58–0, Texas A&M 31–10, and Texas Tech 30–13) the Sooners would play their final regular season game at home against rival Oklahoma State, losing the game 16–13.

The Sooners would end their season in the Cotton Bowl Classic against the Arkansas Razorbacks, winning a defensive battle 10–3 and getting Sooner fans excited about the team's prospects for the next season.

2002 NFL Draft
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
Oklahoma came into the season tied for #1. They went into the Texas game 5–0. Coming back from a 14–3 deficit, Oklahoma won 35–24. Then blowing out Iowa State and Colorado. Then, the Sooners, undefeated and ranked #1, entered what looked to be an easy matchup against unranked Texas A&M at Kyle Field, but were embarrassed by the Aggies, led by freshman quarterback Reggie McNeal.

They rebounded the next week by beating Baylor 49–9. Then blowing out Texas Tech on Senior Night in Norman, 60–15. Oklahoma, then ranked #3, came into the Oklahoma State game with hopes of making in to the BCS National Championship at the Fiesta Bowl. Trailing 35–6 at one point they tried to come back, but OSU eventually won 38–28. The 2nd loss in as many years to Oklahoma State ended their hopes of playing for the national title. The Miami Hurricanes and Ohio State Buckeyes both finished undefeated and faced each other in Tempe, AZ. Oklahoma blew out Colorado again in the Big 12 Championship 29–7. Then winning Oklahoma's 1st ever Rose Bowl, the Sooners defeated Washington State 34–14. They finished the season ranked 5th.

2003
Stoops' teams continued to excel. He brought his 2003 and 2004 teams back to the BCS title game, but lost both contests. His 2003 team was the highest scoring team in OU's history to that point, with the 2008 team passing the record, putting up 601 points while only allowing 214 by opponents. This season included seven games of 50 points or more, a 77–0 win over Texas A&M and a 65–13 victory against Texas, both schools' biggest loss. The team was beaten 35–7 in the 2003 Big 12 Championship Game by a Kansas State Wildcat team that all the experts thought had no chance against what some were calling one of the greatest teams in college football history. The Sooners eventually lost to LSU in the BCS title game. That year, Jason White became OU's fourth Heisman Trophy winner.

2004
In 2004 the Sooners opened up as pre–season number 2. They went 12–0 during the regular season and went on to play USC in the BCS National Championship game. USC and Oklahoma were ranked #1 and #2, respectively. The game received an immense amount of build up. Both teams featured a Heisman Trophy Winner, in quarterbacks Matt Leinart and Jason White, and both teams featured a Heisman Trophy candidate at running back in Reggie Bush and Adrian Peterson. The game was claimed by some to be "the game of the century." Despite considerable hype for the game, however, it ended up being completely one-sided: USC defeated Oklahoma 55–19. However, on June 10, 2010, USC was forced to vacate two wins from the 2004 season including the National Championship game, effectively turning the match into a no contest.

This has led to a dispute with undefeated Auburn and Utah over the 2004 season's national championship. Some believe Oklahoma has the title for being in the championship game. Some have Auburn as the champion.

2005

 * Captains: Dusty Dvoracek, Clint Ingram, Davin Joseph, J.D. Runnels

The Sooners finished the season with an 8–4 record, the worst season since 1999. In 2005, redshirt freshman Rhett Bomar beat out Jason White's backup quarterback, Paul Thompson, for the starting job. Thompson was moved to the wide receiver spot for the rest of the season. They lost their opening game against TCU and went on to open the season 2–3 with additional losses at UCLA and against Texas.

During the second quarter of the game against Kansas State, a nearby bomb exploded that was heard at the game.

The team won their next four games before losing at Texas Tech. Tech's running back Taurean Henderson scored as time expired. The play was reviewed by replay officials who confirmed that Henderson broke the plane with possession of the football.

The Sooners finished third in the Big 12 behind the Longhorns (who went on to win the 2005 BCS National Championship) and the Texas Tech Red Raiders (Oklahoma and Texas Tech both had conference records of 6–2, but Texas Tech won the heads up match and thus held the tie-breaker). The unranked Sooners would represent the Big 12 in the Holiday Bowl where they would play the sixth-ranked Oregon Ducks. OU defeated the Ducks 17–14; Bomar was named the Bowl MVP and the Sooners finished the season ranked #22. 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, however, on appeal, those wins were reinstated in early 2008.

2006
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. 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. Following the game, all officials were suspended for one game but replay official Gordon Riese said he would take the year off; later in the year, he would quit completely. Gordon Riese later acknowledged that he knew OU recovered the onside kick but replay rules prevented him from correcting the on-field officials. 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 but by the end of the regular season, they were ranked 17th.

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
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. 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.

Legacy
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.