The last two weeks have not gone the way the Oklahoma Sooners would have wanted. The Sooners lost back-to-back road games to the [autotag]Kansas Jayhawks[/autotag] and the [autotag]Oklahoma State Cowboys[/autotag].
No matter how disappointing it is right now, there is still a lot to be encouraged about. Before the season, if I had told you the Sooners would be 7-2 through nine games, you would have taken it every single day. Especially after going 6-7 last season.
The goal of this season was to show improvement. Defensively, they were 122nd last season and are currently sitting at 75th. That’s improvement. They also rank 27th in scoring defense. It’s not perfect, and there is still a long way to go, but the improvement is there.
The College Football Playoff might have been a dream, but it’s off the table. The Sooners have a shot at the Big 12 title game, but they’re going to need help to get to Arlington.
Drake Stoops was asked if there is still something to play for this season.
“I come in here day in and day out, 10 hours up here every day and for me, there’s a lot left to play for,” Stoops said. “I bust my tail year-round for this, for six years now. So I’m not really listening to what people say… I don’t care if we’re 0-8 right now. I’m playing ball because I love to play football, I love my teammates, I love my coaches, I love the University of Oklahoma. It’s really that simple. I got a lot of pride for this place.”
That’s the mentality the players should have. It would be very easy for them to close up shop and count this season as a loss, but they have a chance to still right the ship and win 10 or 11 games. That would still be a major success.
Also, who knows, the Texas Longhorns could slip up, and then you end up making it to Arlington, Texas for the [autotag]Big 12 Championship[/autotag] game. But that’s only a possibility if you win out. That starts this weekend against the [autotag]West Virginia Mountaineers[/autotag].
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