I had planned on recapping OU’s heartbreaking 66-62 overtime loss to Butler this morning, but the news broke last night that O State’s defensive coordinator Jim Knowles is moving to take the same position at Ohio State.
I’ll push the OU loss to Butler back a day because Jim Knowles moving to Ohio State is a bigger deal.
I will say this without hesitation from the view of an OU fan, this year’s defense at O State was the best I’ve ever observed…not really even close.
When you examine what this defense did across the statistical board this season—it by far surpasses the O State defense in 2011.
If you take away the Spencer Sanders picks on Saturday in the Big 12 Championship Game in reality O State’s defense allowed seven points. In Bedlam this defense basically held OU scoreless the entire second half minus the two goal line fumbles which were turned into nine points.
I saw this video during Bedlam week, but didn’t play it on my blog. But with the news last night that Coach Knowles is leaving to become a Buckeye this seems like the appropriate time.
He’s an interesting dude. He graduated from Cornell and was actually their head football coach for six years. He was the defensive coordinator at Duke before taking the Oklahoma State job.
People around here thought Mike Gundy lost his mind when he hired a coordinator from Duke to coach in the point happy Big 12, but just last night Jim Knowles was a finalist for the Frank Broyles Award which honors the best coaching job by a coordinator in America.
He’s an interesting quirky dude. The kind of coach most players would embrace and enjoy playing for.
Keep this in mind about O State’s defense this season as we watch people lose their minds about four and five star college football recruits the next two weeks…this Oklahoma State defense didn’t have one four or five star player on it. Not one. The Big 12 Player of the Year Malcolm Rodrigues from O State probably won’t even get drafted by the NFL.
I want OU fans to read this in closing… Jim Knowles leaving Oklahoma State to coach at Ohio State isn’t a betrayal. It’s a coach moving along to take an opportunity he couldn’t pass on at the end of the day.
Jim Knowles got an offer. He thought about it and decided the challenge was something he couldn’t pass up. The guy loves new challenges and I will admit I don’t think Jim Knowles would ever run scared from the SEC if someone from that conference called with the offer of an interesting job.
But still…putting aside the fact Liincoln didn’t want any part of the SEC–I write this because I’m tired of hearing some of my fellow OU fans still whining about Lincoln Riley’s departure.
Some OU fans need to get over it and embrace the fact Joe C made a home run hire and everyone involved should have a happy ending.
Coach Jim Knowles…good luck in Columbus being an Ohio State Buckeye.