If Lincoln Riley was dissatisfied about his situation at Oklahoma, let’s be very clear: That was his own perception. It was his assessment of the situation with the Sooners, not anyone else’s.
Those who covered Oklahoma very closely did not agree with Riley’s view, but they did make the assessment that, from studying him and knowing how he thought, Riley was not fully content in Norman last year, especially after the announced move to the SEC along with Texas.
OU insider Kegan Reneau explained this point on The Riley Files, noting the ways other coaches viewed the Oklahoma job and what it meant to have that position of immense responsibility.
“Bob (Stoops) has made it very clear: The Oklahoma program has never been about Bob and I truly feel that way,” Reneau said. “I don’t feel Brent (Venables) is taking over Bob’s program. I don’t feel Lincoln was taking over Bob’s program. I think those guys were given the right to be the head coach at the University of Oklahoma. You have a standard to fulfill and uphold. That’s how these people think, that’s how they operate. Maybe that’s a little bit different from how Lincoln Riley perceived it. This is my job. This is my football program. It’s Oklahoma, but it’s not just Oklahoma.
“To me, that is the wrong way to look at it. I always say about the state of Oklahoma: I see it as a place of opportunity. You could be the head coach at the University of Oklahoma as long as you want. You don’t get fired unless you’re bad. Lincoln Riley was certainly not bad. He was gonna get an ample amount of time to be able to put a national championship (team) up.
“From my end, I definitely think Lincoln had a different perspective of the office he had and the role he had sitting at the end of the table. That’s a little bit different than how Brent Venables operates, as Bob operated, and you go back to (Barry) Switzer and those guys as well. It was always about Oklahoma. Oklahoma’s a job that if you put the work in, you are going to yield the results. That is probably the one thing I struggle with from Lincoln’s perspective, that he wasn’t given everything. It’s like, man, how much more do you want? That comes to my head at times when thinking about this conversation.”
Lincoln Riley cannot say he lacks what he needs at USC. The Trojans and Mike Bohn have set the table. Now it’s time for Riley and his staff to deliver results.
No excuses.
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