If you didn’t know this already, you know it now: Lincoln Riley and Alex Grinch have both coached against Tulane, its current head coach, and its current quarterback. Yes, this really did happen.
On Sept. 4, 2021, Tulane and Oklahoma opened the college football regular season in a game originally scheduled to be played in New Orleans. A hurricane moved the game to Norman, Okla. Riley went up against Willie Fritz. Alex Grinch tried to contain Tulane quarterback Michael Pratt.
The Sooners roared to 37 first-half points and a 37-14 halftime lead. However, Oklahoma hit the snooze bar and relaxed in the second half. The Sooners scored just three points after halftime. Tulane posted 21 points. The score was Oklahoma 40, Tulane 35, entering the final two minutes. Tulane had a 4th and 1 in Oklahoma territory. Lincoln Riley and Alex Grinch were sweating in a game they previously led by 23.
Oklahoma was able to get a fourth-down stop and survive, but the game revealed Alex Grinch’s inconsistency as a defensive coordinator, and the tendency for Lincoln Riley-coached teams to let opponents back into games.
It’s certainly worth a watch because you’ll see the chess match between Riley and Willie Fritz, and the battle between Michael Pratt and an Alex Grinch defense:
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