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Posted
8 minutes ago, Chili dog said:

I hope that team is the disaster I expect them to be. I’m thinking 6-7 again. 

Would be nice for them to do to LSU what they did to Alabama, given LSU's light schedule

As long as they lose all the rest

Posted
Just now, BurgleBro said:

Would be nice for them to do to LSU what they did to Alabama, given LSU's light schedule

As long as they lose all the rest

I’d rather they lost every game. 

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Posted
13 minutes ago, statsman said:

Seriously- Fasusi was in ice one week ago, and then hooked up to IVs. Is he practicing? What is the standard of care, post heat episode?

"Put some tusin' on it!"

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Posted
22 minutes ago, statsman said:

Seriously- Fasusi was in ice one week ago, and then hooked up to IVs. Is he practicing? What is the standard of care, post heat episode?

EAT YOUR PUKE, YOU PUKE

~ Jerry Schmidt

Posted
53 minutes ago, Chili dog said:

I hope that team is the disaster I expect them to be. I’m thinking 6-7 again. 

Doubt that.  They will win 8 or 9.  The delta in QB play is significant.  They do lack talent to be a real threat and their talent is only getting worse due to their poorness.

Posted (edited)
10 minutes ago, Frank Drebin said:

Doubt that.  They will win 8 or 9.  The delta in QB play is significant.  They do lack talent to be a real threat and their talent is only getting worse due to their poorness.

Texas (in Dallas)

@ South Carolina

@ Tennessee

@ Bama

LSU, Missouri, Ole Miss, Michigan, Auburn at home

Tough schedule to avoid 5 losses if things do not come together. 

I see at least 3 losses away from home, so you're already at 9-3, and i would be shocked, SHOCKED, if they swept those 5 teams at home to avoid a 4th loss or 5th loss. 

They're not healthy and they lack talent. 

Edited by Js1
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Posted
9 minutes ago, Frank Drebin said:

Doubt that.  They will win 8 or 9.  The delta in QB play is significant.  They do lack talent to be a real threat and their talent is only getting worse due to their poorness.

The problem for them is that, even if the QB is a big step up in talent, that's all they have on offense unless Ott is in 2023 form. The WR and TE rooms are absolute dogshit. Mateer had better WRs to work with last year. Seriously, look it up. With them benching Ott, and look, we all know Murray is capable of ruining a season for someone out of damned near mere spite alone, they have nothing at RB to really plan around when you face them. They've convinced themselves that their shitty OL from last year, the worst in P4, is somehow going to be better because ... they're all back. We were in that spot for 13 years. 

Depth is shit as well. I have tried to convince myself that they're better than folks might think and I can't get there. 8-4 is their absolute ceiling and that includes injury luck, which they already aren't having. 

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Posted
4 minutes ago, closetojumping said:

The problem for them is that, even if the QB is a big step up in talent, that's all they have on offense unless Ott is in 2023 form. The WR and TE rooms are absolute dogshit. Mateer had better WRs to work with last year. Seriously, look it up. With them benching Ott, and look, we all know Murray is capable of ruining a season for someone out of damned near mere spite alone, they have nothing at RB to really plan around when you face them. They've convinced themselves that their shitty OL from last year, the worst in P4, is somehow going to be better because ... they're all back. We were in that spot for 13 years. 

Depth is shit as well. I have tried to convince myself that they're better than folks might think and I can't get there. 8-4 is their absolute ceiling and that includes injury luck, which they already aren't having. 

That sounds good to me.  I was assuming their WRs would come back at some point.  I think the O/U on wins probably should be 7.5.  Michigan is a mess right now.  Auburn is a mess right now.  If they lose either of those, 7 wins is probably their ceiling.

Posted
5 minutes ago, closetojumping said:

The problem for them is that, even if the QB is a big step up in talent, that's all they have on offense unless Ott is in 2023 form. The WR and TE rooms are absolute dogshit. Mateer had better WRs to work with last year. Seriously, look it up. With them benching Ott, and look, we all know Murray is capable of ruining a season for someone out of damned near mere spite alone, they have nothing at RB to really plan around when you face them. They've convinced themselves that their shitty OL from last year, the worst in P4, is somehow going to be better because ... they're all back. We were in that spot for 13 years. 

Depth is shit as well. I have tried to convince myself that they're better than folks might think and I can't get there. 8-4 is their absolute ceiling and that includes injury luck, which they already aren't having. 

9-3 with that schedule and their issues in talent, depth and injuries is borderline impossible.  Hell, if they managed it, give BV SEC COY, because damn. 

Posted
1 minute ago, Frank Drebin said:

That sounds good to me.  I was assuming their WRs would come back at some point.  I think the O/U on wins probably should be 7.5.  Michigan is a mess right now.  Auburn is a mess right now.  If they lose either of those, 7 wins is probably their ceiling.

The total as of yesterday is 6.5. 

Some of the injured players will surely come back, but what you have to remember is that Venables runs full contact practices all year. He's going to get guys hurt based on that alone. They had like 5 serious injuries in the spring. How many did we have? I feel like maybe 1 or 2. Maybe that makes them tougher, I don't know. It didn't last year. 

I don't agree about Michigan, either. Yes, they'll be starting a true freshman at QB. Yes, that probably leads to a few losses on its own even if the dude is as good as advertised. However, they bring back most of their OL, which was good by season's end. They bring back a good HBack, they portaled in Justice Haynes from Bama as well. They have dogshit at WR but highly ranked guys at TE. Defensively, Will Johnson quit on them shortly after the Texas game last year. They lost their NFL DTs and a DE. They return almost everyone else who started on defense from midseason on, and they get back Rod Moore from injury. Moore was an AA candidate for 2024 after his 2023 season. 

I expect the Michigan game to be a rock fight. Maybe OU picks that one up, but it's no gimme.

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Posted (edited)
27 minutes ago, Frank Drebin said:

Michigan is a mess right now. 

I don't know if they have the right coach or a QB worth a shit but by all accounts Michigan is shoving money down kid's throats right now. 

They had an "off" year last year and still wound up being pretty fucking salty. I think in the current landscape it's going to be hard for them to not be one of the best 20 or 30 teams in the country every season. Meanwhile it seems like it is fairly easy for this current OU regime to field teams significantly worse than that. 

Edited by ztejas
Posted
3 hours ago, closetojumping said:

In catching up on the sooner thoughts regarding the depth chart, Ott at the 3rd RB spot is really polarizing. Guys are saying he's getting paid $800k and has been bragging about that in the locker room, that he's had a bad attitude and hasn't put the work in at practice. Some guys are using the move to rationalize that this is finally going to be Barnes' big year. It's all just outstanding. 

Venables indirectly shit talked Ott and several other guys on his call-in show, stating that "the best ability is availability" and they weren't just going to trot guys out for games who aren't able to push themselves in practices. This shit is great. 

$800k-ish is the number I heard on the Cal side re: OU.  Cal was going to overpay him at close to $1M because of the brand recognition and legacy stuff.  They reinvested that money and brought in extra OL, ILB and Edge because they didnt pay Ott.  Good fucking investment I say

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Posted
1 hour ago, closetojumping said:

The total as of yesterday is 6.5. 

Some of the injured players will surely come back, but what you have to remember is that Venables runs full contact practices all year. He's going to get guys hurt based on that alone. They had like 5 serious injuries in the spring. How many did we have? I feel like maybe 1 or 2. Maybe that makes them tougher, I don't know. It didn't last year. 

I don't agree about Michigan, either. Yes, they'll be starting a true freshman at QB. Yes, that probably leads to a few losses on its own even if the dude is as good as advertised. However, they bring back most of their OL, which was good by season's end. They bring back a good HBack, they portaled in Justice Haynes from Bama as well. They have dogshit at WR but highly ranked guys at TE. Defensively, Will Johnson quit on them shortly after the Texas game last year. They lost their NFL DTs and a DE. They return almost everyone else who started on defense from midseason on, and they get back Rod Moore from injury. Moore was an AA candidate for 2024 after his 2023 season. 

I expect the Michigan game to be a rock fight. Maybe OU picks that one up, but it's no gimme.

I don't think it makes players tougher. I've never seen proof of that, only opinions. It definitely takes a toll on the body. Either they get injured or their bodies are worn out by the end of the season, or both.

Posted
2 minutes ago, Hard Times said:

I don't think it makes players tougher. I've never seen proof of that, only opinions. It definitely takes a toll on the body. Either they get injured or their bodies are worn out by the end of the season, or both.

Why did Ott come to OU for $200K less than Cal offered him to stay? 

Posted
2 minutes ago, statsman said:

Why did Ott come to OU for $200K less than Cal offered him to stay? 

Hell if I know. The only thing I know about him is he's a RB from Cal and he's had some pre-season injury issues.

Posted
18 minutes ago, statsman said:

Why did Ott come to OU for $200K less than Cal offered him to stay? 

Cal is like the rich, intelligent big brother to Auburn. They are both wildly dysfunctional as institutions when it comes to sports and, specifically, football. Cal has Justin Wilcox as their HC. He consistently gets bowl-invite quality outcomes from his teams, especially on defense. Meanwhile, he's underpaid, he has little help for his staff, his facilities suck, their NIL sucked until lately, etc., etc. What does he get as a reward for keeping Cal competitive in spite of all of that? They bring in NFL numbnuts Ron Rivera to be his boss and meddle in shit. That dude is a fucking clown. 

Wilcox shuffled his staff around after last season and hired Harsin as his new OC. A bunch of offensive guys that went through the spring bailed afterwards, so something happened there with Harsin. Ott was one of the guys who left. Given everything around Cal's general football dysfunction, maybe the OU offer looked like a deal. 

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Posted
8 minutes ago, GabrielsHorn said:

Inject this into my veins

 

He just needs another four years for it all to come together!

Already trying to scrounge up momentum as to why he shouldn't get fired after a disappointing 7-5-type of season.

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Posted
32 minutes ago, MuellerHorn said:

Already trying to scrounge up momentum as to why he shouldn't get fired after a disappointing 7-5-type of season.

Any time a coach has to brag about team GPA and attending class 4 years into his tenure, you just know he's absolutely crushing it. 

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Posted (edited)
59 minutes ago, GabrielsHorn said:

Inject this into my veins

 

He just needs another four years for it all to come together!

I wish ESPN would move Dari off of SECN. If OU has a single ounce of hope, Dari is going to pound his chest every time they come up. Replace him with Dusty. I don’t care, just get him out of there. 

Edited by billfromlaketravis
Posted
10 hours ago, closetojumping said:

Cal is like the rich, intelligent big brother to Auburn. They are both wildly dysfunctional as institutions when it comes to sports and, specifically, football. Cal has Justin Wilcox as their HC. He consistently gets bowl-invite quality outcomes from his teams, especially on defense. Meanwhile, he's underpaid, he has little help for his staff, his facilities suck, their NIL sucked until lately, etc., etc. What does he get as a reward for keeping Cal competitive in spite of all of that? They bring in NFL numbnuts Ron Rivera to be his boss and meddle in shit. That dude is a fucking clown. 

Wilcox shuffled his staff around after last season and hired Harsin as his new OC. A bunch of offensive guys that went through the spring bailed afterwards, so something happened there with Harsin. Ott was one of the guys who left. Given everything around Cal's general football dysfunction, maybe the OU offer looked like a deal. 

Ott left because his RB coach got shitcanned and that guy was a father figure to him.  He also coddled him.  New RB coach came in, took no shit from Ott and punished him for sloppy play which he had gotten away with for years.  Didn’t like it and left.

Ott has always had an ego that needed stroking and has had to be talked into staying off and on several times over the years.  He’s also susceptible to people in his ear telling him how great he is.  OU was tampering for a while and he was going to bail before spring but he got a raise.  Then his coach got shoved and he did a lot of up downs and running and when OU came back, he listened to the Cal sux, OU rules shit he was fed and bailed.  Got his degree so cool, good for him.  Bad biz decision IMO.

Harsin is all business and brought in coaches who are similar.  Some guys didn’t like it and bailed… whatevs, the pussies left… Endries not among that number, he left for a shot at a national title. But Cal’s offense will be significantly better this year.

Rivera is changing the football culture at Cal.  CTJ is correct that historically, Cal is a clusterfuck for revenue sports.  Rivera is raising big money quickly though and adding in staff and working on facilities they have lacked previously.  Wilcox, an average at best HC, is now focused on defense and doesn’t have to deal with booster shit anymore.  Harsin has the offense.  Cal will be a lot better this season and have a ridiculously easy schedule.  Easiest money of the year is this weekend in Corvallis.  OSU -1.5?  Cal will win by 3 tds+.  They have huge advantages on both lines and will run over the Beavs and Murphy will get pummeled 

 

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Posted
20 hours ago, Js1 said:

Texas (in Dallas)

@ South Carolina

@ Tennessee

@ Bama

LSU, Missouri, Ole Miss, Michigan, Auburn at home

Tough schedule to avoid 5 losses if things do not come together. 

I see at least 3 losses away from home, so you're already at 9-3, and i would be shocked, SHOCKED, if they swept those 5 teams at home to avoid a 4th loss or 5th loss. 

They're not healthy and they lack talent. 

That schedule looks like potentially 6 losses easily. As pointed to, depth is thin and they got a bunch of weekly dog fights.  

Posted

Spoilered below is a hagiographic paean written about Ben Arbuckle and his "culture of joy" that he's installed for the offense at OU. This guy hasn't called a play yet and they're celebrating him as the second coming of Lincoln Riley. They've taken to apparently wild celebrations in the end zone after each time they score in practice. I'm sure there will be plenty of that against the Salukis, but we'll see how much "joy" is rearing its head on the rest of the schedule.

Spoiler

Inside Oklahoma’s offensive culture shift under Ben Arbuckle: ‘We score now, and it’s a freakin’ party’

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(Photo: BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images, USA TODAY Sports)

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    NORMAN — Something felt off to John Mateer during his first practice at Oklahoma.

    It was the first day of spring practices back in March, and Mateer delivered a deep ball to Javonnie Gibson for a long touchdown down the right sideline inside the Everest Training Center. As Gibson glided into the end zone, Mateer raced down the field behind him, holding his index finger high in the air as he went to rejoice with his new wide receiver.

    Except Mateer was the only who met Gibson in the end zone, as the two chest-bumped mid-air to celebrate the touchdown.

    "When we got here, (celebrating like that) wasn't the norm," Mateer said this week. "And it really surprised me…. I kind of ran down there like, what's going on?"

    That's not the case anymore for Oklahoma's offense, which has made a concerted effort to celebrate its on-field wins — both big and small — as part of cultural shift under first-year offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle. Since being hired in December, Arbuckle — along with Mateer, who followed him from Washington State — has instilled a culture of joy, which has helped cultivate a newfound confidence that has the Sooners' belief soaring heading into the season.

    "I always say you got to remember that football's a game, and whenever good things happen — whether big or small — they're worth celebrating," Arbuckle said. "If you don't celebrate the small victories, you're going to let the minute inconveniences during a practice really start to hamper you. So, you have to go out there — the ball finds energy; positive things find energy whenever you're out there at practice, so building that in those guys every single day and celebrating others' success, celebrating your teammates' success, that's part of our culture here."

     

     

    Arbuckle has been at the forefront of that charge, even if he's not in the huddle with his players. The 29-year-old offensive coordinator exudes energy and confidence when he's on the sideline or the practice field, and he doesn't hesitate to celebrate his players' big plays.

    There was another instance in the spring when Mateer threw a fade to the end zone for Gibson, who hauled in the pass in the back corner. Arbuckle roared from the sideline and broke out the "Zombieland" celebration — the hand-over-mouth gesture with the other arm extended forward while limply shaking that hand in the air — which started at Western Kentucky and continued at Washington State with quarterback Cam Ward in 2023 before gaining popularity with Ward at Miami last fall.

    "He brings a great energy to it, but I think it's also the players are feeding off of it, and we know we got right now, and so guys are excited," center Troy Everett said. "There's an excitement in there. Arbuckle, he comes in and he pushes us, and he'll bring that energy all the time."

    Instilling that mantra — of celebrating the victories, big and small — was a process. It didn't just happen overnight, as Arbuckle worked to reinvigorate Oklahoma's offense and rebuild the confidence of the players who endured last season's trainwreck on that side of the ball. After all, Oklahoma finished last season 97th in the country in scoring (24 points per game) and was even worse against SEC opponents (16.5 points per game) — a concerningly low number that was buoyed by four defensive touchdowns and one on special teams.

    The Sooners were also tied for 130th in the FBS in explosive plays of 20 yards or longer, with just 36 on the season (half of which came in conference play, as only four teams had fewer such plays against conference foes last year). Arbuckle's offense at Washington State, by contrast, was tied for 10th in the country with 76 plays of 20-plus yards.

     
    13247852.jpg?fit=bounds&crop=620:320,offset-y0.50&width=620&height=320

     

    "It's hard to celebrate when there's nothing to celebrate and be excited about," coach Brent Venables said regarding last year's offense. "And so again, I think when you have passionate people coaching. It's going to resonate. But you recruit passion. You recruit that too. You nurture it. You demand it. You display it as a leader again. But you also can recruit the fire, the passion, the energy. And I think they (Arbuckle and Mateer) did a great job of setting being a tempo-setter, tone-setter, if you will, from the jump.

    "And having some success obviously helps promote that and nurtures that, as well. And I think it brings out the best in everybody around you as leaders. So, super consistent that way. And you have competitive people that like to win, like to compete. You know, that's the byproduct of that."

    The celebrations have become second nature for Oklahoma's offensive players at this point, with the season opener now on the horizon. There's no hesitation about finding joy in the little things — a broken tackle, a contested catch — or the big things like an explosive play or red-zone conversion. That has been especially true in practices, as the unit has relished its successes during its preseason back-and-forth with an Oklahoma defense that's projected to be among the nation's best.

    As Everett explained, whenever Oklahoma's offense scores, they collectively "make it known that we scored on y'all." The Sooners plan to carry that attitude into the season, which begins Saturday at home against Illinois State (5 p.m. on ESPN+/SEC Network+).

    "We score now, and it's a freakin' party out there," Everett said. "And that's what it's going to be Saturday: We score, it's going to be a party in the end zone, so that's what we're excited to do, and everyone looks forward to doing that, so it's exciting."

    It's a trickle-down effect from Arbuckle and Mateer to the rest of the Sooners' offensive players that has bordered on contagious.

    "One thing that I did know whenever I did come in is these kids want someone to follow," Arbuckle said. "They want someone to lead them. Because our kids, one thing I've learned about them, if you ask them to do something, they will fly around, they will do it to the best of their ability. So, whenever they can consistently get that every day, then for me, I take it personally, because I feed off Coach Venables in that respect of I'm going to bring it every single day, because I want these kids to bring it every day. 

    "Feeding off the energy that I can bring every day, feeding off the consistency that I can bring every day, kids can sense it…. That was the thing on that side of the ball that I thought I could bring the most value to, just for them, and in terms of getting them to pull the rope in the same direction."

    The process of nurturing that culture of joy has brought a completely different vibe to Oklahoma's retooled offense, even since the start of spring. Some of that, of course, comes from players being more familiar with a new offensive system, but there has been more to it than just a better understanding of the X's and O's.

    Mateer noted this week just how much more enjoyable the preseason was compared to spring practices, when he was still getting to know his teammates and building those inroads with them, not only because he's confident in the offense's growth since then but because the players are finding delight in their successes on the field.

    Mateer is no longer the only one racing to the end zone to celebrate when someone else scores, like he was at the start of spring. Now, according to Everett, when Oklahoma is nearing the end zone, there are some light discussions in the huddle about how the offense plans to celebrate a touchdown that it wholeheartedly believes is coming — though he and Mateer made sure to emphasize that it's never something choreographed that would incur a 15-yard penalty.

    "Celebrate each other, care about each other, love for each other; I think that's so — with the turnover of the transfer portal, it's hard," Mateer said. "So, celebrating each other has been huge."

 

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Posted

For the rest of us

 

 

hagiographic
adjective
   literary
 
us 
 
 /ˌhæɡ.i.əˈɡræf.ɪk/ uk 
 
 /ˌhæɡ.i.əˈɡræf.ɪk/
 
very admiring of someone and representing the person as perfect or much better than they really are:
The biography has been criticized for being too hagiographic.
Weinraub takes a hagiographic approach, portraying him as a historical hero first and a human being second.

 

 

Posted
55 minutes ago, closetojumping said:

Spoilered below is a hagiographic paean written about Ben Arbuckle and his "culture of joy" that he's installed for the offense at OU. This guy hasn't called a play yet and they're celebrating him as the second coming of Lincoln Riley. They've taken to apparently wild celebrations in the end zone after each time they score in practice. I'm sure there will be plenty of that against the Salukis, but we'll see how much "joy" is rearing its head on the rest of the schedule.

  Hide contents

Inside Oklahoma’s offensive culture shift under Ben Arbuckle: ‘We score now, and it’s a freakin’ party’

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(Photo: BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images, USA TODAY Sports)

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    NORMAN — Something felt off to John Mateer during his first practice at Oklahoma.

    It was the first day of spring practices back in March, and Mateer delivered a deep ball to Javonnie Gibson for a long touchdown down the right sideline inside the Everest Training Center. As Gibson glided into the end zone, Mateer raced down the field behind him, holding his index finger high in the air as he went to rejoice with his new wide receiver.

    Except Mateer was the only who met Gibson in the end zone, as the two chest-bumped mid-air to celebrate the touchdown.

    "When we got here, (celebrating like that) wasn't the norm," Mateer said this week. "And it really surprised me…. I kind of ran down there like, what's going on?"

    That's not the case anymore for Oklahoma's offense, which has made a concerted effort to celebrate its on-field wins — both big and small — as part of cultural shift under first-year offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle. Since being hired in December, Arbuckle — along with Mateer, who followed him from Washington State — has instilled a culture of joy, which has helped cultivate a newfound confidence that has the Sooners' belief soaring heading into the season.

    "I always say you got to remember that football's a game, and whenever good things happen — whether big or small — they're worth celebrating," Arbuckle said. "If you don't celebrate the small victories, you're going to let the minute inconveniences during a practice really start to hamper you. So, you have to go out there — the ball finds energy; positive things find energy whenever you're out there at practice, so building that in those guys every single day and celebrating others' success, celebrating your teammates' success, that's part of our culture here."

     

     

    Arbuckle has been at the forefront of that charge, even if he's not in the huddle with his players. The 29-year-old offensive coordinator exudes energy and confidence when he's on the sideline or the practice field, and he doesn't hesitate to celebrate his players' big plays.

    There was another instance in the spring when Mateer threw a fade to the end zone for Gibson, who hauled in the pass in the back corner. Arbuckle roared from the sideline and broke out the "Zombieland" celebration — the hand-over-mouth gesture with the other arm extended forward while limply shaking that hand in the air — which started at Western Kentucky and continued at Washington State with quarterback Cam Ward in 2023 before gaining popularity with Ward at Miami last fall.

    "He brings a great energy to it, but I think it's also the players are feeding off of it, and we know we got right now, and so guys are excited," center Troy Everett said. "There's an excitement in there. Arbuckle, he comes in and he pushes us, and he'll bring that energy all the time."

    Instilling that mantra — of celebrating the victories, big and small — was a process. It didn't just happen overnight, as Arbuckle worked to reinvigorate Oklahoma's offense and rebuild the confidence of the players who endured last season's trainwreck on that side of the ball. After all, Oklahoma finished last season 97th in the country in scoring (24 points per game) and was even worse against SEC opponents (16.5 points per game) — a concerningly low number that was buoyed by four defensive touchdowns and one on special teams.

    The Sooners were also tied for 130th in the FBS in explosive plays of 20 yards or longer, with just 36 on the season (half of which came in conference play, as only four teams had fewer such plays against conference foes last year). Arbuckle's offense at Washington State, by contrast, was tied for 10th in the country with 76 plays of 20-plus yards.

    13247852.jpg?fit=bounds&crop=620:320,offset-y0.50&width=620&height=320

     

    "It's hard to celebrate when there's nothing to celebrate and be excited about," coach Brent Venables said regarding last year's offense. "And so again, I think when you have passionate people coaching. It's going to resonate. But you recruit passion. You recruit that too. You nurture it. You demand it. You display it as a leader again. But you also can recruit the fire, the passion, the energy. And I think they (Arbuckle and Mateer) did a great job of setting being a tempo-setter, tone-setter, if you will, from the jump.

    "And having some success obviously helps promote that and nurtures that, as well. And I think it brings out the best in everybody around you as leaders. So, super consistent that way. And you have competitive people that like to win, like to compete. You know, that's the byproduct of that."

    The celebrations have become second nature for Oklahoma's offensive players at this point, with the season opener now on the horizon. There's no hesitation about finding joy in the little things — a broken tackle, a contested catch — or the big things like an explosive play or red-zone conversion. That has been especially true in practices, as the unit has relished its successes during its preseason back-and-forth with an Oklahoma defense that's projected to be among the nation's best.

    As Everett explained, whenever Oklahoma's offense scores, they collectively "make it known that we scored on y'all." The Sooners plan to carry that attitude into the season, which begins Saturday at home against Illinois State (5 p.m. on ESPN+/SEC Network+).

    "We score now, and it's a freakin' party out there," Everett said. "And that's what it's going to be Saturday: We score, it's going to be a party in the end zone, so that's what we're excited to do, and everyone looks forward to doing that, so it's exciting."

    It's a trickle-down effect from Arbuckle and Mateer to the rest of the Sooners' offensive players that has bordered on contagious.

    "One thing that I did know whenever I did come in is these kids want someone to follow," Arbuckle said. "They want someone to lead them. Because our kids, one thing I've learned about them, if you ask them to do something, they will fly around, they will do it to the best of their ability. So, whenever they can consistently get that every day, then for me, I take it personally, because I feed off Coach Venables in that respect of I'm going to bring it every single day, because I want these kids to bring it every day. 

    "Feeding off the energy that I can bring every day, feeding off the consistency that I can bring every day, kids can sense it…. That was the thing on that side of the ball that I thought I could bring the most value to, just for them, and in terms of getting them to pull the rope in the same direction."

    The process of nurturing that culture of joy has brought a completely different vibe to Oklahoma's retooled offense, even since the start of spring. Some of that, of course, comes from players being more familiar with a new offensive system, but there has been more to it than just a better understanding of the X's and O's.

    Mateer noted this week just how much more enjoyable the preseason was compared to spring practices, when he was still getting to know his teammates and building those inroads with them, not only because he's confident in the offense's growth since then but because the players are finding delight in their successes on the field.

    Mateer is no longer the only one racing to the end zone to celebrate when someone else scores, like he was at the start of spring. Now, according to Everett, when Oklahoma is nearing the end zone, there are some light discussions in the huddle about how the offense plans to celebrate a touchdown that it wholeheartedly believes is coming — though he and Mateer made sure to emphasize that it's never something choreographed that would incur a 15-yard penalty.

    "Celebrate each other, care about each other, love for each other; I think that's so — with the turnover of the transfer portal, it's hard," Mateer said. "So, celebrating each other has been huge."

 

So you're saying Arbuckle had to change Brent Venables culture? Great sign. 

Posted
1 minute ago, SydneyCarton said:

So you're saying Arbuckle had to change Brent Venables culture? Great sign. 

Inside the article, they talk about the offense shit-talking the defense when they're playing well also. So, no, the dude isn't changing Venables' culture across the board, he's just creating a fissure within the program.

Idiots forgetting that fall camp is a zero-sum game and building division within their org is a new one for me. When things start to fall apart, I'm fully expecting to hear reports of Venables doing some sort of blindsided Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka maneuver in which he knocks Arbuckle into a coma via a mid-air assault. The aftermath will include the entire OU defense and its staff doing some sort of jungle dance circling Arbuckle's limp, nearly lifeless body. Mateer, in crutches on the opposing sideline, begins to slowly and quietly tear up while pining for Pullman.

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Posted

Reminds me of the absolute blood feud between the Imperial Japanese Navy and Army in WW2. They despised one another and constantly bickered over resources. By late 1944 the US Navy had ground the Japanese Navy into powder. Before Leyte Gulf, the IJN, knowing it was done for, practically begged the army for a chunk of their last bit of oil so they could sail gloriously to their deaths against the combined US fleet at their pinnacle of power. The U.S. Navy obliged them in the biggest one sided naval battle ever.

 

Sure would be great if Venables sent out Mateer on a naked bootleg agains our Nascar line at the end of a 56-0 game for one first and last score.

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Posted

Even if Underwood can’t fully deliver on the hype, I’m pretty sure he’s not going to be worse than what Michigan had at QB last year. 
 

 

Posted
15 minutes ago, MrX said:

Even if Underwood can’t fully deliver on the hype, I’m pretty sure he’s not going to be worse than what Michigan had at QB last year. 
 

 

He also gets a game against UNM to get his feet wet, instead of starting off with OU.

I bet Sayin wishes he got a tune-up game first.

Posted
42 minutes ago, WashHorn said:

Sure would be great if Venables sent out Mateer on a naked bootleg agains our Nascar line at the end of a 56-0 game for one first and last score.

Kind of like Denethor sending Faramir to attempt to retake Osgiliath. 

I guess that makes Texas the forces of Mordor but I don't hate it. We could stand to lean into the villain angle. 

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Posted (edited)

I see where Venables is using Ott as a KR, to get more explosiveness. Awesome!

Stoops did that with AD Peterson in the 2006 RRS. He returned the first kick 59 yards. The next three went for a combined 35 yards. If you want to let our special teams gunners tee off on your all American RB, we’re fine with that. 
 
(edited: Wow! Joe Jon Finley had two catches for three yards in that game!)

Edited by statsman
Posted
27 minutes ago, ztejas said:

Kind of like Denethor sending Faramir to attempt to retake Osgiliath. 

I guess that makes Texas the forces of Mordor but I don't hate it. We could stand to lean into the villain angle. 

Of course you're a Nerd of the Rings guy. 

Posted
32 minutes ago, ztejas said:

Kind of like Denethor sending Faramir to attempt to retake Osgiliath. 

I guess that makes Texas the forces of Mordor but I don't hate it. We could stand to lean into the villain angle. 

We're already the Stormtroopers when we're away. At least the Uruk-Hai could shoot straight.

boromir.jpg

Posted
9 minutes ago, texifornia said:

We're already the Stormtroopers when we're away. At least the Uruk-Hai could shoot straight.

boromir.jpg

You and zTejas sitting in a tree. That was painted by Hayes Fawcett. What a day this is...

Posted
On 8/26/2025 at 3:13 PM, Burt Macklin said:

Any time a coach has to brag about team GPA and attending class 4 years into his tenure, you just know he's absolutely crushing it. 

To be fair, ours just did the same, except he’s been to the semifinals two years in a row. 

Posted
17 minutes ago, texifornia said:

We're already the Stormtroopers when we're away. At least the Uruk-Hai could shoot straight.

boromir.jpg

The Uruk-Hai were part of Saruman’s army. They weren’t at Osgiliath. 

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