The Fake Lonnie Finch

Houston hired one of OU's offensive coordinators, Kevin Sumlin (with Stoops, they can't seem to have just one offensive or defensive coordinator). In turn, he hired Dana Holgorsen, Texas Tech's offensive coordinator. So, they'll run something like what OU had last year - just with more passing. Besides, with Darrell Dickey gone, I didn't think we were recruiting Houston as much as before. And, as running back coach, Sumlin hired Yates head coach Clarence McKinney, a fellow who assisted at Booker T. Washington and North Shore for about ten years down there before taking the Yates job. So, if the Cougars win, Houston will be hard to beat in recruiting players in that area. On the defensive side of the ball, Sumlin hired former Iowa State defensive coordinator John Skladany. The Cyclones fared pretty well in his 10 years there. They were basically a suck program that had a few good years. The interesting hire for the Cougars was former Dallas Cowboy Jim Jeffcoat for the defensive line. It strikes me as odd that Jeffcoat wold leave the Dallas Cowboys to go coach in college, but...again, here's where a longtime college coach with longtime coaching connections at the highest levels made what will probably be a great hire. I think Jeffcoat has a son that's a top prospect at one of the Plano schools. Wonder if Houston is on his short list, eh? Anyway, we're not supposed to worry about Houston. Dodge says he'll build it with Metroplex kids, right?

Hmmm. So, what it really shows is that we passed and fumbled more than Kansas State. They'll be happy to see those stats.

Adding on to these thoughts - this is a make or break year for the program. Despite all of Dodge's noise about recruiting the Metroplex, if Jones at SMU and Briles at Baylor have bowl seasons and we faulter again, we're toast in February 2009. We need serious wins this season and for SMU and Baylor to keep losing. As much as some fear Jones at SMU, Briles succeeding at Baylor would be the killer - big conference, bowl game, within easy driving distance of DFW...it will be a big problem if the Bears take off in a big way this year. And, with experienced spread offense players already in the fold from the previous coach, they've got a real shot at doing it. Our problem is that some folks here focus so much hate on SMU, they don't realize the killshot could come from Waco.

Don't diss Montana State - they have a stadium plan that includes no student fees: http://www.msubobcats.com/news.php?sid=fb&nid=2665 http://www.msubobcats.com/upload/pdf1_200805151210883323.pdf

"Duke's argument on this point cannot be reasonably disputed by Louisville." This type of lawyering makes me proud to have earned a law degree! Finally, we have an out of the thrash-for-cash games. And, we now have legal precedence in our corner. Our athletic department should be banging out cancellations left and right today and seeking more suitable opponents for us...Duke, perhaps?

I agree with the media angle and SMU. We didn't get a ton of play when we went to the four straight bowl games. But, when SMU wins...you get stuff like the Pony Express from the media. As far as Dodge getting scooped up, I think that's a card that's way overplayed here. He hasn't done anything spectacular in the eyes of the national folks. For example, Jim Harbaugh at Stanford knocking of USC in Los Angeles in his inaugural year. The Cardinal wasn't great. But, they improved from 1-11 in 2006 to 4-8 last season, and knocked off bowl teams USC and Cal in the process. When Dodge was hired, I said it, and I'll say it again - alot of teams throw the ball around at this level. They've been doing it out west since the 1960s. It spread across the country in the 1980s. And, really became the norm in the late 1990s and into this century. So, you don't meet many defensive coordinators who haven't defensed a spread offense. So, there's nothing more outstanding about Dodge than any other coach who runs the spread. What he'll have to do is win. And win. And win. And, not just Sun Belt games. He's got to find a way to hunt down the big game. Based on last year, I don't know if he has it in him. TCU's Patterson and June Jones have a history of skinning some of the big boys. Briles got a downtrodden Houston program to a conference title and four bowl trips in five years. He also took down BCS conference teams (Mississippi State - twice, and Oklahoma State). Patterson's the one that got to be happy. While everyone's out getting receivers, he'll be snapping up running backs and run-pass option QBs. He basically has no other competition for that anyone locally. He's skinned big boys and had teams on the brink of BCS bowl seasons. TCU pays him over $1 million a year. I think he's probably happy where he is. But, I digress. Dodge is, to some, a local hero. But, he's have to climb a big hill before anyone is chomping at the bit to snap him up.

Well, not exactly. Success in the Big 12 by Briles will be difficult to overcome. SMU...I just don't see it yet, but some will go for Jones. I think Jones will be more of a national sell than local. I suspect he'll draw alot of West Coast kids. If he doesn't do any better than Phil Bennett, I wouldn't fear him. On the other hand...a bowl game for SMU and Baylor in Jones' and Briles' first year combined with another losing season for us would be bad. I've posted that before. But, since Briles is in the bigger conference, I fear him more at this point. He also has the smallest peak to climb - the coach before him was running the same type of offense; so, they're not starting from scratch on it the way SMU is this year and we were last year.

I'm not so much worried about the 199 linbacker/safety that committed to Rice. It's the receiver/athlete that chose Baylor that bothers me somewhat. As posted before, Art Briles selling the same offensive idea at a school in a bigger conference is worrisome.

Was that cussing? I thought it was "re-directing." I get the two confused these days. I do like us being on FM, whether there's cussing or re-directing. Clearer.

I just hope people are patient with Gary DeLoach. He arrived at UNT in 1998 as the secondary coach. It took awhile to build up the defense. And, we were still blown out on OOC road games while he was DC (2000-2002), In 2000, his first year as DC, Kansas State hung 55 on us, and Boise State put up 59. In 2001, OU hit us up for 37, Texas Tech for 42, and Colorado State (NO Bowl) for 45. It wasn't until 2002 that the defense held OOC opponents (relatively) down. Texas scored only 27, Alabama 33. We almost beat one of John Mackovic's crappy Arizona teams in Tucson, losing 14-9. The point is, in 2002, guys had been working in DeLoach's scheme for three season. The senior secondary guys in 2002 had never played for another coach in their entire collegiate careers. The scenario in 2008 is vastly different. There's weird mix on defense without a ton of experience. The going back to 2006, this will be the third different DC in three years for the older players on defense. Ditto the young guys who went from high school coaching in 2006, semi-college coaching in 2007, to DeLoach in 2008. There's alot of work to be done, much to be learned by these guys. Just be patient if the thing doesn't click immediately. It took a couple of years for DeLoach to shore things up a few years back. I think some people here are expecting a miracle turn around based on "Old Days Syndrome." But, the good "old days" of 2002 took awhile to work up to.

How could the face of Tulsa's program not be Steve Largent? When he retired, the was the NFL's all-time leading receiver. Who writes these things?

I guess the deal is, you draw the line in the sand a some point. The question for us is, when is that point going to come? Helwig? RV? Who will do it? As demostrated during the scheduling thread a few weeks back, some schools are already drawing the line in the sand...and getting more home games against better opponents. The eternal question for all thing related to North Texas football since the day I stepped on campus back in 1990 seems to be " When?" When, when, when...?

I love this quote from MUTS' AD! He's out there hustling for the best games he can get. He's been on both sides of the fence with scheduling and doesn't take it personally. My guess is that OU's AD is taking heat from season ticket holders who are ponying up money for tickets to what will be, in effect, another Spring Game for OU. Serve him right, though. To me, if all of the midmajors would stop playing "pound us for cash" road games and insisting on guaranteed return home games, the playing field would level out some. Not totally, but some. Congrats to MUTS on their AD sticking up for them and hustling a better, and more regional, series for them and their fans.

This is rich...but, I love it if it's true! Recently, we discussed MUTS' out of conference schedules and their ability to land home games with BCS-level schools. In this Tulsa World article, OU's AD claims MUTS screwed them by backing out of this year's game with OU to enter a home and home series with Mississippi State. As a result, OU had to schedule Tennessee-Chattanooga. I love it. In reality, if OU (and schools like it) would do more home and homes, or two for ones, with the little guys, they wouldn't have to end up scrambling. Props to MUTS for messing with one of the "Big Boys." If you read the article, you'll see that Arkansas State also screwed OU a couple of times. Good for the little guys! At least some AD's at "Small Programs" are standing up and trying to get better home games for their fans instead of continually signing up for road fodder games. Hard spot means soft OU opener By DAVE SITTLER World Sports Columnist 6/8/2008 Last Modified: 6/8/2008 3:09 AM It's not always fun being No. 1. For example, Rivals.com recently ranked the Tennessee-Chattanooga at Oklahoma contest as No. 1 on its list of "the 12 most embarrassing games," during the 2008 football season involving teams from BCS conferences. "I wish they'd do their homework," said OU athletic director Joe Castiglione when informed of the Sooners' unwanted top billing. Castiglione knows the matchup looks like a mismatch on paper and could turn out that way on Owen Field when the Sooners and Mocs meet in the Aug. 30 season opener. But he takes issue with this Rivals.com question: "What in the world is Oklahoma doing playing Chattanooga, which has had just four winning seasons since 1988?" Had they done their homework, the Rivals.com folks could have answered their own question: Chattanooga was a late addition when Division I-A Middle Tennessee State dropped the Sooners in favor of a home-and-home deal with Mississippi State. Welcome to the wonderful world of scheduling, which can drive even the most sane athletic director bonkers. Getting dropped without warning and being forced to pay a king's ransom to visiting teams are just a few of an AD's headaches. Castiglione didn't find out until last November that Middle Tennessee State had decided not to sign off on a written agreement it had with OU. And it wasn't anyone in the Blue Raiders' athletic department that broke the news. "They didn't even have the courtesy to call us back," Castiglione said. "We had to find out about it in a third-party way. "They apparently were using our agreement to leverage something else, which they were able to do when Mississippi State committed to play on (Middle Tennessee State's) home field." Castiglione said he doesn't begrudge any school for seeking the best deal for its program. He didn't, however, appreciate the run-around from Middle Tennessee State officials. "We had an agreement for a long period of time, and there was a contract that was written," he said. "What happens is they play games with it and won't sign it. "You get one excuse after the other. And then they just flat out refuse to even answer your call, or return your call. So you know something is up." Left holding an open date on the first weekend of the season, Castiglione scrambled to find a replacement. In 10 years at OU, Castiglione had signed only one contract with a I-AA school as he attempted to ensure OU's strength of schedule worked as a positive in the complicated BCS poll. "We have purposely tried to avoid playing I-AA teams, but not because we don't respect I-AA football," Castiglione said. "Believe me, we tried every I-A option we could." Several factors go into making a schedule work, including corresponding dates, availability and the exorbitant amount of money BCS powers like OU are forced to pay I-A teams to play in Norman. "Let's face it," Castiglione said. "There are some (I-A) schools that just don't want to play you regardless of the opportunity or the offer." When he ran out of I-A options, Castiglione turned to I-AA schools. The other time he signed a I-AA school was Indiana State in 1999 (coach Bob Stoops' first game), when Arkansas State "discovered" at the last minute that it had also signed to play Mississippi on the same date. "They (Arkansas State officials) learned so much from that experience," Castiglione said, "that they did it to us again in 2003." While some Web site might find OU's season-opening game "embarrassing," Castiglione considers the Sooners' first opponent a schedule-saver. Chattanooga AD Rick Hart, who worked seven years for Castiglione at OU, came to his former boss's rescue. Chattanooga had an Aug. 30 open date when Alabama dropped the Mocs after the Crimson Tide was offered a chance to open the season on national television against Clemson at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. "There were several I-AA schools that told us no in more than emphatic terms," Castiglione said of the schools in the division that offer 63 scholarships, versus the 85 Division I-A teams are allowed. "So you have to give (the Mocs) a lot of credit; they didn't have to play us." OU isn't the only Big 12 Conference team with a I-AA opponent on its 2008 schedule. Nebraska, Texas and Texas A&M are the only league schools playing 12 I-A teams. Texas Tech has two I-AA foes, as do several national powerhouse programs like Florida State, Clemson and Georgia Tech. Even with the addition of a I-AA team, OU's schedule is ranked the nation's 30th toughest by Phil Steele's preseason magazine. Seven of the 11 I-A teams the Sooners will play in 2008 played in bowl games last season, and three won at least 10 games. "We have taken major steps to ensure we have one blockbuster matchup each season, which is unique these days in college football," Castiglione said of future OU schedules. "There are not many schools playing teams like Florida State, Tennessee, Notre Dame, Ohio State and LSU. "A lot of schools are going the other direction." It's the easier path to the only No. 1 that matters in the end. By DAVE SITTLER World Sports Columnist

Tulsa has been a slippery place for OU, re: recruiting. Many of the top athletes from Tulsa area schools do not go to Oklahoma. Tulsa's Booker T. Washington is a good example. Former Booker T. stars that didn't go to OU - Arkansas' Felix Jones (Dallas Cowboys), Tennessee's Robert Meachem (New Orleans Saints), Oklahoma State's R.W. McQuarters (New York Giants), Alabama's Mark Anderson (Chicago Bears) are recent examples. Past examples are Marcus Nash (Tennessee/Denver Broncos, Baltimore Ravens), Reggie Brooks (Notre Dame/Washington Redskins, Tampa Bay Bucs), Kevin Lockett (Kansas State/Kansas City Chiefs, Washington Redskins, Jacksonville Jags, New York Jets) OU even loses out on guys from Tulsa's suburban giant Jenks: Sean Mahan, Jenks (Notre Dame/Tampa Bay Bucs, Pittsburgh Steelers) Jerry Wisne, Jenks (Notre Dame/Chicago Bears) Garrett Mills, Jenks (Tulsa/New England Patriots, Minnesota Vikings) Even Josh Brown, from nearby Foyil, chose Nebraska (Seattle Seahawks/St. Louis Rams) over OU. Also former longtime Detriot Lion Tracy Scroggins from Foyil-like Checotah slipped through OU's grasp to Tulsa. Northern Illinois/Green Bay Packers, Arizona Cardinals, New York Giants running back LeShon Johnson was from Haskell High in Muskogee County just outside of Tulsa County as well. OU's recruiting of Tulsa area schools was pretty dry during Gary Gibbs' tenure as their head coach. It was a big criticism of Gibbs. Former coach John Blake and current coach Bob Stoops have reopened the pipeline to some degree. However, recruits from Booker T. Washington sometimes don't even list OU. Bob Stoops has made it a point to schedule games in Tulsa to shore up recruiting there. It seems to me that if we had the facilities, OU might come to Denton for the same reason. Both Tulsa and Denton are roughly 90 to 100 miles away from Norman. And, believe me, OU fans would travel to Denton. The OU Club of Dallas says it has the largest OU alumni group in the nation. All that is missing for us is a stadium...and such.

Don't forget to watch Briles down at Baylor as well. He runs a spread offense and already has an OL committed for the Bears' 2009 class. If Briles and Jones get Baylor and SMU into bowl games this season, and we stumble around again, Dodge will not see the end of his five year contract. At that point, any local kid wanting to play in the spread will be able to sign with nearby schools perceived to be "better" or "going places." I've said it before, and a la The White Stripes, it bears repeating now - we must win this year. And, if we don't, someone in the administration needs to have the balls to kick Villareal and Dodge out and get some real college football people in here. Real about fundraising. Real about scheduling. Real about what works on the field at the highest level of college football. Cry about Vito all you want. But, he's not the one pulling the strings. He merely reports. And, since we don't exist in a vacuum, there are other teams and factors that work into our big picture. SMU and TCU are two of them. Add in Baylor as well, I say, since they're not far from DFW and they have a Spreadhead as a head coach now.

I agree with the folks who say we should prove we can fill 30k regularly before we take the leap over 40k. I mean, let's not get ahead of ourselves. It's folly to think that a school that has averaged less than 20k for years is going to all of the sudden get more than 40k because of a new stadium. Or, maybe we should ask SMU about their experience - and, they're in the heart of Dallas, just a few seconds off a major freeway that cuts through the middle of it! I'm just sayin'....

Apparently, coach Dodge's vast amount of high school "ties" mean nothing in Nederland. Seriously, though, aren't most of you in the "let's target DFW first" camp. If so, you should be able to see why Dodge hasn't offered the kid. Be consistent. In the end, the kid lists favorites and already has several schools bigger than UNT looking at him. So, suppose this kid gets an offer from UNT, but then waits until signing day to make his decision. Where is Dodge then? If the kid does what it looks like he'll do, take his best BCS-school offer, Dodge would be scrambling to get some other kid on signing day to fill his offer. You can't have everybody. Dodge wants guys from the DFW area first. Nederland isn't in that area. So, it's doubtful he'll chase players who haven't shown any early interest from far flung areas. Winning. Winning changes things to a great degree. We're not doing that yet.

I've been to three or four TCU games over the past two decades, and I can honestly say it's a pretty good place to watch a game. They're doing the right thing in renovating instead of building a completely new stadium. The location of the current stadium is fine. That's the thing about Fouts. The location is fine. It's on campus. But, on or off, here or on Bonnie Brae...it doesn't make a difference unless you are putting butts in the seats. And that, my friends, only comes through winning consistently. TCU has done it. And, they've done it amidst quite a few conference changes. Their athletic director(s) are to be applauded for seeing the big picture.

Who dumped a whole truckload of Fizzies into the swim meet?

Line of the week? Try best line of all-time!

Maybe the upshot of high gas prices is that universities will consider closer, more regional schedules. Although I've preached it for years going with the "alumni in the area" angle, maybe the travel cost angle will be the thing that brings everyone to the table again (kind of like Nixon authorizing the bombing of the North Vietnamese sanctuaries in Laos and Cambodia).

It may not technically be a necessity, but everyone is doing it. Texas played Sam Houston State two years ago. Oklahoma opens this season hosting...drum roll please...Tennessee-Chattanooga (T.O.'s alma mater). Everyone is doing it, we should do it for a win and another weekend of gate receipts.

I would pay crack-ho type bucks to see that.

The Trophy for a UTEP or NMSU series could be the Pecos Bill Trophy or something. Something from our state folklore that ties in the west. Maybe a trophy between us and Houston could be the Davy Crockett Trophy or Davy Crockett's Coonskin Cap with his immortal words emblazoned on it "You may go to hell; I will go to Texas." Something along those lines.