🔴 Oklahoma Sooners 2024 ⚪

[Mr. P]

53 minutes ago, Coach Rab said:

ESPN’s way too early poll has Texas pre-season ranked at #2 behind Georgia.  Thoughts?

They've got OU at #15...   which is fair, all things considered. 

[Valhalla]

1 minute ago, Mr. P said:

They've got OU at #15...   which is fair, all things considered. 

Sounds about right to me.

[Lion7000]

3 hours ago, Mr. P said:

They've got OU at #15...   which is fair, all things considered. 

Lot of room for improvement. 

[Mr. P]

Interview with Taylor Tatum: 

Quote

For those that aren’t aware, could you clear the air on why you’re sitting this game out?

“I hurt my wrist, had surgery on my wrist during the football season. And I just started rehab, so there’s really no point in rushing rehab.”

 

With that said, why did you decide to make the trip down for this game anyway?

“Just to get to see the guys, come down here and get some gear, get some free lunch, just get to chop it up with some of these guys I knew from camps and recruiting. Some of us are pretty close-knit. So it’s kind of like a vacation.”

 

How much does it mean to you to be an All-American?

“Oh yeah, it’s a great feeling. Even though I didn’t get to play, I still feel like an All-American at the end of the day. I really wish I would have got to play in the game, though. But it’s a great feeling, to just know all my hard work [rewarded], and I can say I was an All-American in high school. I succeeded in one of my goals.”

 

You’re one of seven OU signees that won’t get to campus until the summer. What’s your focus this spring before you enroll at Oklahoma in June?

“It’s really just all about my rehab right now coming off this injury, and then playing the best baseball [while] training for football as much as I can. Hopefully I can get back in shape before I get to Schmitty. So I think just working on all that kind of stuff is what I keep my focus on right now.”

 

What gets you excited about playing for DeMarco Murray?

“DeMarco Murray is probably one of my favorite coaches in the country. Obviously, I had some [other] favorites, but I picked Oklahoma for a reason. I’m just ready to get up there and have that full experience with him for the next 3-4 years.”

 

You mentioned that you picked Oklahoma for a reason. Can you dive a little deeper on why you chose the Sooners?

“It was really just how Coach V, Coach Murray, even Coach Lebby treated my family. How they brought us in like family. It felt like a second home to my mom and my dad. They were like, ‘Okay, this guy is not just gonna get better at football and get better at baseball, but also become a better man and be comfortable where he’s at. So I was really kind of set on that, and after that, obviously, I took no more officials. I had a couple set up, but I cancelled. So I was just pretty locked in with Oklahoma.”

 

How instrumental was Skip Johnson in the Sooners’ pitch to you?

“Very crucial. My first day of my official, I got to spend most of my day with him, actually. Just being able to talk to him about his process with Kyler [Murray] and my teammate James — 

James Nesta

, he’s going to be doing the same thing I’m doing. So just him letting me know he’s done it before and he plans to keep on doing it. So I’m just looking forward to being with him after what he’s done with Kyler and just learn from what he did with him.”

 

What’s the tangible plan as to how you’ll balance both sports?

“They let me know that when they’re in spring, you’re all baseball. As a running back, you don’t really have to make every single spring practice. So if you have a baseball game, just go ahead and go to your baseball game. It’s fine. As long as you’re excelling in the classroom and on the field, you’ll be perfect.”

 

Having watched Oklahoma make major strides offensively in 2023, how confident are you in the unit’s future, even with a change at offensive coordinator?

“Very confident. Obviously, we had a good defense this year too, so all around the team — offense, defense, O-line, D-line — everything looked better than it did last year. So now that we’re headed off to the SEC, we got a good recruiting class this year and I know Coach Venables is gonna bring in some guys from the transfer portal. So I’m just ready to get to that SEC and show that Oklahoma can compete with some of the big dawgs.”

 

What do you aim to accomplish as a true freshman?

“I’m not asking to be a starter or anything, but I really want to get some playing time. A couple touchdowns, some rushing yards — I really just want to get myself in the rotation. And then on the baseball field, hit a couple home runs or something. Have a good batting average, a batting average above .300.”

 

Can you speak to the sense of camaraderie that exists in this 2024 signing class at Oklahoma?

“We’re all pretty tight. We all have the same goals. We’re all hungry for the SEC. Being the first recruiting class in the SEC, it means something to us. We want to go and take it over. And you know, it’s obviously going to be hard. There’s no more easy games. You’re in the SEC; every team’s pretty good. So we’re just ready to go in and be competitive as soon as we get there.”

 

You were at every OU home game this past fall. Why? That’s not the shortest of trips.

“A lot of people don’t know, but my sister goes to OU. So I’m pretty tight with her, and it’s only a five-hour drive. I live in Longview. So it was really very convenient, and I always had a place to crash. So I [didn’t] have any reason not to go to every home game.”

 

Does having your sister in Norman help enhance the family atmosphere at Oklahoma?

“Oh yeah, for sure. My mom and my dad, my aunts, uncles, everybody — because of OU, the whole family be OU with my sister there. So just kind of having that as a guidance… my sister is one of my best friends, so her being there really helped me out a lot.”

 

What’s your message to Sooner Nation as you and the rest of the 2024 class get ready to make your impact in crimson?

“I’m ready. I’m ready for whatever challenges it comes with. I’m ready to go out there and play the LSU’s, the Georgias, the Alabamas. I’m ready for all of it. I’m just coming in to be better than I am now. I’m nowhere near as good as I want to be, so I’m just ready to compete as soon as I get there.”

 

What’s the ultimate ceiling for this program under the leadership of Coach Venables?

“The sky is literally not even the ceiling. We’re going to go above and beyond. This is no SEC championship [program]. This is a national championship [program]. We want national championships over here. So we’re ready for it.”

[Valhalla]

Casey Thompson commits to Oklahoma today to be QB#2.

[Coach Rab]

36 minutes ago, Valhalla said:

Casey Thompson commits to Oklahoma today to be QB#2.

https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/39289344/qb-casey-thompson-commits-oklahoma-4th-school-7-years
 

You guys going the senior citizen route a la BYU

[Mr. P]

Competitive depth at QB. It's gonna be important with a youngster at QB1. 

On 1/11/2024 at 8:13 PM, Coach Rab said:

https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/39289344/qb-casey-thompson-commits-oklahoma-4th-school-7-years
 

You guys going the senior citizen route a la BYU

Apple doesn't fall far from the tree. His daddy won a D-II natty as a 25-year-old RB. 

[JustAFan11]

On 1/10/2024 at 10:06 AM, Mr. P said:

Interview with Taylor Tatum: 

I’ve seen him pretty highly rated on the baseball side of things. Is there any concern he’ll go that route if he leads the Lobos on another run? 

[Mr. P]

4 minutes ago, JustAFan11 said:

I’ve seen him pretty highly rated on the baseball side of things. Is there any concern he’ll go that route if he leads the Lobos on another run? 

Go that route? How do you mean? He's already committed to the Sooner baseball program. 

[Valhalla]

4 minutes ago, Mr. P said:

Go that route? How do you mean? He's already committed to the Sooner baseball program. 

Drafted high enough to skip college.

[Mr. P]

18 minutes ago, Valhalla said:

Drafted high enough to skip college.

Well, anything's possible, I guess...  but outside of being a very high pick, I don't think it's likely. I mean, Kyler was a Top 10 MLB pick, and he still stuck with football. 

Taylor doesn't strike me as someone chasing a big payday, or in a hurry to play pro ball. But of course, anything's possible. 

[JustAFan11]

4 hours ago, Mr. P said:

Go that route? How do you mean? He's already committed to the Sooner baseball program. 

I thought you may have a little insight into Tatum as a person. Kyler wanted to play football more than baseball so him not choosing football isn’t surprising.

I guess my question was more do you know if Tatum prefers football to baseball or if he were a high draft pick would that sway him.

Baseball is my true love so just interested. 

[Mr. P]

On 1/12/2024 at 3:32 PM, JustAFan11 said:

I thought you may have a little insight into Tatum as a person. Kyler wanted to play football more than baseball so him not choosing football isn’t surprising.

I guess my question was more do you know if Tatum prefers football to baseball or if he were a high draft pick would that sway him.

Baseball is my true love so just interested. 

Ah, gotcha...   yeah, I dunno.

From the outside, I don't really know what MLB money is compared to RB money in the NFL (especially with how the league seems to be phasing out the position). So sticking with baseball could be the wise long-term decision. 

However, on the other hand, Tatum hasn't exactly been a dominant baseball player for the Lobos. I love the kid, and I love that he's finishing out his baseball career for Longview, but I don't know that the MLB hype is quite there.

Our baseball program has improved significantly thanks to the hard work of Coach Goldman, his staff, our baseball families, and our great kiddos. But I just don't know enough about the nuances of professional baseball to say what kinda prospect he is. 

Now, from the perspective of the few OU insiders I'm still in touch with: there's a feeling that Tatum will get quality RB snaps as a true freshman, including the possibility of lining up in the slot. There's a lot of excitement about his versatility and skill set.

So, y'know...   there's that. 

[Valhalla]

1 minute ago, Mr. P said:

Ah, gotcha...   yeah, I dunno.

From the outside, I don't really know what MLB money is compared to RB money in the NFL (especially with how the league seems to be phasing out the position). So sticking with baseball could be the wise long-term decision. 

However, on the other hand, Tatum hasn't exactly been a dominant baseball player for the Lobos. I love the kid, and I love that he's finishing out his baseball career for Longview, but I don't know that the MLB hype is quite there.

Our baseball program has improved significantly thanks to the hard work of Coach Goldman, his staff, our baseball families, and our great kiddos. But I just don't know enough about the nuances of professional baseball to say what kinda prospect he is. 

Now, from the perspective of the few OU insiders I'm still in touch with: there's a feeling that Tatum will get quality RB snaps as a true freshman, including the possibility of lining up in the slot. There's a lot of excitement about his versatility and skill set.

So, y'know...   there's that. 

If Tatum is what he is supposed to be then He will be RB#1 by the end of the season.

Nobody in that RB room right now is special.

[Mr. P]

Just now, Valhalla said:

If Tatum is what he is supposed to be then He will be RB#1 by the end of the season.

Nobody in that RB room right now is special.

I'm trying very hard to take a "bear market" outlook of Tatum because I'm never gonna be able to not look at him through Lobo green glasses (I think Haynes deserved Heisman votes), so I'm gonna lean hard into typical cliches like "he's still young, needs to mature, get used to the speed of the game," etc. and etc.

But yeah, I feel you. I think he's RB1 material right now.

Sawchuck don't impress me. I think Tatum and/or Robinson have just as much a shot at getting quality snaps as the incumbent(s). 

[Valhalla]

34 minutes ago, Mr. P said:

I'm trying very hard to take a "bear market" outlook of Tatum because I'm never gonna be able to not look at him through Lobo green glasses (I think Haynes deserved Heisman votes), so I'm gonna lean hard into typical cliches like "he's still young, needs to mature, get used to the speed of the game," etc. and etc.

But yeah, I feel you. I think he's RB1 material right now.

Sawchuck don't impress me. I think Tatum and/or Robinson have just as much a shot at getting quality snaps as the incumbent(s). 

Honestly if he was coming in for Spring then I might say he had the chance to be RB#1 from the beginning.

I am not impressed with anyone in the RB room. I think the running game issues this year (which honestly was still better than average, but not what Oklahoma has been accustomed too) were 85% on the RBs and 15% on the O-line.

[Mr. P]

1 hour ago, Valhalla said:

Honestly if he was coming in for Spring then I might say he had the chance to be RB#1 from the beginning.

Agreed, especially if he hadn't hurt his wrist at the end of the Lobo season. A fully healthy Taylor Tatum getting on campus in January would be RB1 by August.  

1 hour ago, Valhalla said:

I think the running game issues this year (which honestly was still better than average, but not what Oklahoma has been accustomed too) were 85% on the RBs and 15% on the O-line.

I've certainly voiced my displeasure about Lebby's playcalling but considering: a.) the amount of jet sweeps we ran, and 2.) how often we had wideouts lined up in the backfield, and 3.) the fact that Venables did not step in and force a change in strategy...   well...   it's indicative of nothing if not a lack of faith in the RB room.

The line wasn't great this season, but they weren't godawful. Hell, even the QB rolled up 373yds and 12tds on the ground, averaging nearly 4 yards per carry (and that includes yards lost in sacks!). 

[Mr. P]

It's not an apples-to-apples replacement for what we lost, but every little bit helps. 

We still really need a gamebreaker RB1 to emerge. The line will be adequate, but our run game can not live and die by Jackson Arnold's legs. 

[Valhalla]

This is WWE superstar Mark Henry’s son. 

[Lion7000]

Thought this was classy by the Sooners.

[Lion7000]

[Valhalla]

 

[Mr. P]

50 minutes ago, Valhalla said:

 

Glorious. 

[Lion7000]

3 hours ago, Valhalla said:

 

Sec time but that schedule is extremely tough. If Oklahoma makes to the playoffs they will have earned it. 

[Red90fly]

4 hours ago, Mr. P said:

Glorious. 

I've honestly never hated the 11 am games, watch your team early and kick back and see others rest of the day.  But my kids have sporting events on Saturdays now, usually first half of day, see I'm liking the evening games.