Lincoln Riley OU Introductory Presser

Let’s skip the presser from last night and move back five years ago when Lincoln Riley took the OU job.

I would guess OU didn’t want to match the USC offer or the LSU offer and I’d also guess that Lincoln knew it was going to be much tougher being the OU coach in the SEC than the Big 12 or the PAC-12.

From his own financial standpoint this was the time to do this with his value still high as he was the fifth highest paid coach in the country heading into this season.

Here’s what I wonder though because I heard Bob Stoops doing an interview last week on Lincoln possibly leaving for another job. Bob said he was convinced Lincoln Riley would be the coach taking the Sooners into the SEC.

And on this video here’s Lincoln crying just in appreciation of his relationship with Bob Stoops as his mentor.

I’ll be interested to hear from Bob Stoops at his presser if Lincoln confided in him as he contemplated taking the USC job.

Lincoln was a cryer back then that’s for certain. I may have to put my William Hurts Broadcast News fake crying scene back up on here.

You know…Mike Gundy for all his faults except when he was trying to leverage Boone with the Tennessee and Arkansas jobs stayed the course with his school. Which is kind of cool when you think about it.

Chris Jackson asked me a great OU trivia football question the other day. That being, Dad, in your lifetime has an OU football head coach quit the OU job to take another head coaching job at another school?

And the answer is no. Gomer Jones was fired. Jim McKinzie died of a heart attack. Chuck Fairbanks left in 1972, but that was to become the head coach of the New England Patriots. Barry Switzer after sixteen glorious seasons was forced to step down. Gary Gibbs was fired. Howard Snellenberger and his party animal wife Beverly were fired after one year. John Blake lasted four years before being fired. Bob Stoops after eighteen great seasons gracefully passed the torch to a then 34 year-old Lincoln Riley who was so moved by this he had to halt his press conference due to crying.

I’m not stunned he’s leaving, but I am a little stunned he wasn’t more accomodating to both Joe C and Bob Stoops. Boren was the president then…so I don’t blame Lincoln Riley there, but still these guys went out on a huge limb for a young Lincoln Riley. They in essense had to reassign Josh Huepel to make this work at OU for Lincoln. And as I recall Boren’s niece was married to Josh Heupel.

And now what we’ll probably see is OU’s roster and recruiting class of 2022 assaulted by the departure of Riley to USC.

That’s why there has to be a hire fairly quickly. And a splash hire which shows OU is still a top six job….which it is for the right coach.

I even wonder at this point if Matt Ruhle with the Carolina Panthers would have any interest in leaving the pros and coming back to the college game like Nick Saban did before taking the Alabama job.

I wonder if Matt Ruhle and Joe Brady if in any way could be persuaded to take a look at the OU job as a package deal.

That would be a splash hire. That would be what is called winning the press conference cycle and making a statement.

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