2008 Oklahoma Sooners football team

The 2008 Oklahoma Sooners football team represented the University of Oklahoma in the 2008 college football season, the 114th season of Sooner football. The team was led by two-time Walter Camp Coach of the Year Award winner, Bob Stoops, in his 10th season as the OU head coach, and played their homes 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 in Waco, Texas on October 4th, and ended with a win over Missouri in the Big 12 Championship Game on December 9th.

The Sooners finished the season 12-2 (7-1 in Big 12) while winning their 6th Big 12 title and their 42nd conference title overall. They were invited to the BCS Championship Game, where they lost to Florida, 14-24.

Following the season, Phil Loadholt was selected in the 2nd round of the 2009 NFL Draft, Juaquin Iglesias was drafted in the 3rd, Nic Harris and Duke Robinson were chosen in the 5th, and Manuel Johnson in the 7th.

Recruiting
On March 6, 2008, 4-star wide receiver Joshua Jarboe, who was deemed to be one of the recruits who could start playing immediately in the fall, was arrested for receiving stolen property and possessing a weapon at his DeKalb County high school. Jarboe could have faced expulsion under school policy for these felony charges, but did not. Already on thin ice for the weapons possession, he was kicked off the team in June for making a violent rap video on YouTube that described him carrying and using a gun.

Coaching staff
Prior to the season, several changes were made to the Oklahoma coaching staff.

Co-offensive coordinator Kevin Sumlin took the head coaching position at the University of Houston. Before accepting this job, he also interviewed for the opening at Washington State University.

Defensive coordinator Brent Venables was mentioned as a candidate for the opening at the University of Arkansas before it ultimately went to Bobby Petrino.

Offensive Coordinator Kevin Wilson interviewed and was considered a finalist for the opening at the University of Southern Mississippi. That opening ended up going to Wilson's couterpart at Oklahoma State University, Larry Fedora.

The coaching staff for the 2008 season were as follows:



Chattanooga
Oklahoma came into the 2008 season ranked #4 nationally in the Coaches and AP Poll. Sam Bradford threw for 183 yards and two touchdowns, and Chris Brown ran for three scores. Only an hour long rainstorm could slow down the Sooners in a 57–2 victory against Chattanooga. The Sooners converted their first seven possessions into touchdowns and led 50-0 before a thunderstorm caused a lightning delay that extended halftime by 1 hour and 12 minutes. UTC, which would go on to earn only one win in the entire season, scored only 2 points on a safety from an errant hike on a punt play. Chattanooga was held to an astonishing two first downs the entire game, a rarity no matter how big the talent gap.

Cincinnati


Oklahoma came into the game ranked 4th in the country. Redshirt freshman Ryan Broyles, playing his first game as a Sooner, had the most productive receiver debut in school history, with seven catches for 141 yards and a touchdown. OU gave up a kick return in the 3rd quarter for a touchdown that closed the gap and made the game 28-20 OU, but Oklahoma eventually pulled away from Cincinnati, winning 52–26.

Washington
The game against the Huskies in Seattle was the third meeting between the two storied programs. The series was tied 1–1.

Oklahoma came into the game ranked #3. On Oklahoma's first drive, QB Sam Bradford threw a touchdown pass to Juaquin Iglesias. Oklahoma dominated from then on. Continuing to roll, OU, inside their own 35, used Sam Bradford to throw a touchdown pass to WR Ryan Broyles. Washington scored only twice in the game, losing 55–14. Sam Bradford was 19 of 21 on his passing. Oklahoma never turned the ball over and Washington fumbled it 3 times, Oklahoma recovering it all 3 times.

TCU
Oklahoma met TCU for the 1st time since 2005. TCU had beaten Oklahoma the last two times they had met, the most recent being in 2005, where had Oklahoma come into the season opener ranked in the top ten in the polls, and lost to TCU 17-10. This game was a totally different story. The game started with Sam Bradford throwing two touchdown passes in the 1st quarter. Manuel Johnson scored three touchdowns, all which were 20+ yard receptions.

Baylor
Baylor had never beaten Oklahoma going into 2008. It wasn't about to change. #1 Oklahoma got off to a quick start. A touchdown pass to Manuel Johnson got Oklahoma a 7-0 lead. Oklahoma didn't stop there. 3 more rushing TD's by Oklahoma made it 28–0 at the end of the 1st quarter. Only 2 TDs and a field goal for Baylor made the final score 49-17.

Texas
The game marked the 103rd meeting of the Red River Rivalry, which has been called one of the greatest sports rivalries. It is the second longest running rivalry for the Longhorns, behind the one with Texas A&M. Since 1929 the game has been held at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas typically in mid-October with the State Fair of Texas occurring adjacent to the stadium. Prior to the 2008 game, Texas led the series 58–39–5.

In the week prior to facing the Oklahoma Sooners, UT fans conduct their traditional Torchlight Parade and Rally. The rally first took place in 1916 prior to a game versus Texas A&M, but since 1986 it has been an annual event held exclusively during the week prior to the Texas–OU game. Another annual tradition is the running of game balls by the schools' Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) programs. Each school's ROTC program uses a relay running system to run one game ball all the way from their respective campus to Dallas. Once there, they participate against each other in a football scrimmage, with the winner taking home a rivalry trophy and bragging rights.

Texas won the game, 45-35. Colt McCoy performed brilliantly in the fourth quarter leading his team to 15 unanswered points. It was the highest scoring event in the history of rivalry, and it was seen by the most fans – a record 92,182.

Kansas
Sam Bradford had 400 plus yards passing in an offensive matchup. 24–17 at halftime, Oklahoma came out into the 3rd quarter and began to pull away. DeMarco Murray showed better talent in the game. Once OU led 31–24, it was all Oklahoma, pulling away to win 45–31 in Norman.

Kansas State
Oklahoma traveled to Manhattan, KS, to take on a struggling Kansas State team just coming off a tough road loss to Colorado. The Sooners and Wildcats played a wild first half that saw the two teams combine to score 83 points, the Sooners blow a 21-point first quarter lead, then charge back and score 27 more points in the final eight minutes before halftime. The Sooners’ 55 first half points set a school record for most points ever scored before halftime. Oklahoma QB Sam Bradford played what proved to be statistically the worst game of his career up to that point, completing only 40 percent of his passes (13-32) for 255 yards and 3 TDs. Kansas State QB Josh Freeman had a career-best 478 yards passing, but was sacked twice and had three interceptions against the Sooner's defense.

Nebraska
When Nebraska walked out under the lights at Memorial Stadium, the Cornhuskers were still in the race for the Big 12 North title, but after the Oklahoma Sooners completed its first drive for touchdown, intercepted Husker quarterback Joe Ganz's first pass for an 18-yard touchdown return, then tacked on three more scores, Nebraska's expectations for its bowl season had been lowered considerably. The second quarter went better for the Cornhuskers, backup tailback Roy Helu getting a touchdown and racking up 157 yards on the day, but the Sooner lead proved insurmountable. The Sooners' Sam Bradford stayed in Heisman race form, throwing for 311 yards and five touchdown passes. DeMarco Murray caught a 25-yard scoring pass from Bradford, and ran twice for touchdowns, finishing with 57 rushing yards. Despite the impressive win, the Sooners slipped from 4th to 6th in the BCS rankings.

Texas A&M
The Sooners scored three touchdowns in the first ten minutes, then never looked back as Sam Bradford passed for four scores to four different receivers and punched one across himself; Chris Brown added three more touchdowns. Aside from the impressive 261 kickoff return yards amassed by Texas A&M running back Cyrus Gray, including a 98-yard return for touchdown, the hometown Aggie fans had little to cheer about as the Sooners outrushed the Aggies 328–26, and outpassed them 325–252. The Sooner defense frustrated the A&M quarterback Jerrod Johnson, sacking him four times, intercepting two passes, stealing two of six Aggie team fumbles. The win set up a Big 12 showdown against undefeated Texas Tech on November 22, after a bye week.

Texas Tech

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Texas Tech and Oklahoma first played in 1992. Coming into the game, the Sooners led the series 11-4 though the Red Raiders had won 2 of the last 3 with the last loss coming in Norman in 2006. The only road game Tech had won in the series was during the inaugural season of the Big 12 in 1996. Under head coach Bob Stoops, the Sooners had lost only two games at home. The Sooners were 7-point favorites.

The Red Raiders opened the game with a kickoff return to their 32-yard line. The Sooners forced a punt, and fielded their offense at their 27. The Sooners scored a touchdown with 8:59 left in the first. DeMarco Murray contributed 48 rushing yards in the drive. Tech returned the ensuing kickoff to their 22, and a Sooner personal foul after the return gave the Red Raiders 15 yards. Texas Tech lost 10 of those yards due to a delay of game and a false start. Starting at their 27, the Red Raiders were stopped at the Oklahoma 48, where they punted again. The Sooners got the ball on their 20. On the second play of the drive, Oklahoma was punished again with a 15–yard penalty. After three failed attempts to pass the ball for a first down, the Sooners elected to make their first punt. On the next Tech possession, Graham Harrell was sacked on two consecutive plays, once by Adrian Taylor and the other by Gerald McCoy. Coming into the game, the Red Raiders ranked second in the nation in sacks allowed, with only 5. The Sooners ended the first quarter with a 42-yard reception by tight end Jermaine Gresham and two rushes by Chris Brown for a combined 12 yards.

Once the second quarter commenced, both Brown and Gresham moved the ball for a touchdown on three different plays. Tech started their next drive at their own 38 and advanced the ball through the air to eventually get to the Oklahoma 15. Two incompletions caused the Red Raiders to face a 4th and 3. Tech decided to go for it. Woods was unable to catch a pass by Harrell to convert and Tech turned the ball over on downs. Murray rushed the ball for 23 yards on Oklahoma's first play of the drive. Murray followed with a 31–yard reception, which put the ball on the Tech 30. After two rushes by Brown, Gresham scored a touchdown on a 19-yard catch, and the subsequent extra point extended the Sooners lead to 21–0. Oklahoma's defense forced Tech to four plays on the next drive, with the fourth play being a 4th-and-4, Tech's second 4th down conversion attempt. With 9:31 remaining, Oklahoma completed a 1:44 scoring drive, which was capped by Juaquin Iglesias' 28–yard scoring reception. On the following possession, the Red Raiders reached the end zone, thanks to Harrell's 25–yard throw to Tramain Swindall. Matt Williams' extra point brought the score to 28–7. With 6:28 left in the half, Oklahoma began to drain the clock using their running game. The Sooners eventually scored on the 12th play of the drive. Once Tech got the ball, about a minute was left on the clock. On the second play, Harrell threw an interception to Travis Lewis, who returned the ball 47 yards. Tech offensive guard Brandon Carter, who stopped Lewis at the Tech 1, received a personal foul. Murray scored on a 1–yard rush to increase the Sooners' lead to 42–7. Tech got the ball again after the Sooner touchdown with 18 seconds remaining in the half. Harrell threw a shovel pass to Baron Batch, who ran 21 yards to the Tech 28. The half ended with Tech receiving a 15–yard personal foul. The Red Raiders left the field facing their biggest deficit of the season (35 points).

Tech attempted an onside kick to start off the second half, though the Sooners grabbed the ball at the Tech 34. OU ended the drive on a 33–yard field goal. Tech fumbled on their next possession, Oklahoma's Keenan Clayton recovered the fumble and return it 53 yards to the Tech 3. The Sooners added another 7 points to extend their lead to 52–7. Tech cranked up its passing game on its next possession, eventually scoring a touchdown and extra point with 5:39 remaining in the third quarter. On the subsequent drive, the Red Raider defense forced their first sack on Bradford, and also forced the Sooners to punt. The Sooner defense countered in the next drive by forcing a three-and-out. The Sooner offense then added another score on a 66-yard reception by Manuel Johnson. The Tech defense blocked the extra point, and the score remained at 58–14.

In the fourth quarter, Tech failed to convert another fourth down, producing another turnover. Oklahoma scored immediately afterwards, improving their lead to 65–14. On the next possession, Tech was able to make three pass completions of at least 12 yards, though on the final play of the drive, Harrell lost the ball to the Sooners on a sack. With 10:50 left in the game, the Sooners started to run out the clock. The Red Raiders stopped them from scoring on a 4th down from the 1. Tech got the ball back with 4:48 on the clock. After a few plays, Tech faced another 4th down, and this time was able to convert it with a 13–yard throw to Crabtree. Tech later score their third touchdown with 11 seconds left, and Williams tacked on the extra point to change the score to 65–21. Tech attempted an onside kick and recovered the ball. The final play was a short-yard catch by Woods.

Since the Sooners won, Tech, Texas, and OU all tied for first in the division at 6–1. If all three teams win their regular season finales to tie again at 7–1, the highest ranked team in the BCS standings will earn a spot in the Big 12 Championship game. Sports columnists have also stated that the quarterback of the winning team would be the front runner for the Heisman Trophy.

2009 NFL Draft
The 2009 NFL Draft was held on April 25–26, 2009 at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. The following Oklahoma players were either selected or signed as undrafted free agents following the draft.