Tag: John Blake

5 things to consider when thinking about Oklahoma’s future

Oklahoma has had a rough year but here are five things to consider when considering the Sooners’ future. From @thatmanbryant

Oklahoma fans have experienced a roller coaster for the better part of the last 500 days. There was optimism after the 2020 season about the possibilities for that 2021 team. That optimism was dashed when their on-field performance never came close to the lofty expectations. There was a mid-season QB change involving a pair of former five-star quarterbacks.

After picking up a win over Texas in one of the greatest comebacks of all time, the Sooners’ offense stalled in late-season losses on the road to Baylor and Oklahoma State. The day following that loss to the Cowboys, Lincoln Riley bolted for the University of Southern California after gaslighting an entire fanbase that he wasn’t leaving (for LSU).

In the week that followed, Oklahoma hired Brent Venables. Despite the attrition suffered by the 2022 recruiting class after Riley’s departure, Venables and his staff helped put together a group that was viewed as the No. 8 recruiting class in the cycle.

Offseason expectations were fairly high (quite possibly, too high) as we rolled into the summer. Summer practices offered extreme optimism, as did the first three games.

A confounding loss to Kansas State, a team notorious for how they’ve played Oklahoma as of late, made us take a step back. The next week, Oklahoma barely got off the bus before getting blasted by TCU. The Horned Frogs now look like the favorites to win the Big 12 and possibly find themselves in the College Football Playoff.

Oklahoma lost quarterback Dillon Gabriel in the TCU loss and would be forced to play without him in the Red River Showdown. The Sooners got their bell rung by rivals Texas, losing 49-0. They ran the wildcat offense for the vast majority of the game with multiple scholarship quarterbacks dressed. That felt like rock bottom.

Gabriel returned the following week for homecoming against Kansas. The offense would shine, and the defense made some plays. The Sooners beat Iowa State in a game where Gabriel and the passing game didn’t have to carry the load before dropping their latest contest to Baylor, where the defense couldn’t stop the run.

We sit days away from Oklahoma going on the road to Morgantown to face the West Virginia Mountaineers. Oklahoma is not only 5-4, but their biggest rival appears to be in a better spot going forward as both look ahead to their eventual departure to the SEC.

Looks can be deceiving, and things can change from year to year. With that said, here are five things to consider or reconsider about Oklahoma’s future.

How first-year Oklahoma head coaches performed since 1947

With Brent Venables taking the reigns for the Oklahoma Sooners, let’s take a look back to see how former OU coaches performed in year 1.

Though initially it came as a shock to see Lincoln Riley leave for USC, it feels like the Sooners might have ended up in a better situation with Brent Venables as the newest head coach of the Oklahoma Sooners. While there’s a lot of excitement about the future, there’s no guarantee it leads to the same amount of wins or more in Venables’ first year on the job.

The pieces are certainly in place and aside from the guys along the defensive front, the Sooners look to be in great shape to rebound in 2022 and get back to the Big 12 title game and contend for a spot in the College Football Playoff. It’s a tall task in year one, but Venables and the Sooners are in better shape than many first-year head coaches were when they took over at Oklahoma.

Let’s take a look at how former Oklahoma Sooners head coaches performed in their first season on the job.

How does every Oklahoma Sooners head coach stack up by win totals?

As the Oklahoma Sooners search for their next head coach, let’s take a look at how each of their former head coaches stacks up by win totals.

Lincoln Riley’s tenure as Oklahoma Sooners head coach ended in an auspicious manner as he bailed on the Sooners for USC Trojans. His tenure will go down as a blip in the big scheme of things. His 55 wins rank fifth all-time in wins behind legends of Norman. But those 55 wins are 67 wins behind fourth-place Bennie Owen.

He’ll be remembered for some of the individual awards his players achieved, but Riley will also be remembered for the underachievement of his teams and the way he departed the program.

Unlike the coaches that have more than twice as many wins as he does, Riley won’t be remembered fondly around Norman and won’t have a statue built anytime soon.

But as Oklahoma looks for their next head coach, let’s take a look at how each of the 22 head coaches in Oklahoma’s history ranks in total wins from worst to first.

Note: SoonerSports.com lists no coach for the 1896 season.  

Where Oklahoma Sooners football coaches rank among the all-time Big 12 Conference hires

Three Oklahoma Sooners make The Athletic’s top Big 12 coaches of all-time.

The Big 12 Conference formed prior to the 1996 college football season. There have plenty of head coaches that have made their mark in the conference.

The Athletic’s Sam Khan Jr and Max Olson ranked 38 total coaches (subscription required) with three Sooners making the list, starting with John Blake.

John Blake (1996-98)

John Blake Oklahoma Sooners
(Image courtesy of Getty Images)

No. 31 Overall

What The Athletic Says…

Blake, who died in July, arrived after Howard Schnellenberger’s ill-fated 11-month stint as the Sooners head coach. A former OU player under Switzer, Duncan hired him from Switzer’s Dallas Cowboys staff. He was beloved by Sooners players, but it didn’t translate to on-field success. His record marked the worst three-year stretch in program history, and the Sooners didn’t have a winning record in any of those years. He was dismissed following the 1998 season. He is credited, though, with helping to recruit players who contributed to OU’s 2000 national championship team.

John Blake never saw the success that the other two Oklahoma coaches on this list were able to reach. However, his recruiting help pave the way for the last national championship for the Crimson and Cream. He finished with a 12-22 record during his three seasons at the helm with an 8-16 conference record.

Next, the brightest young offensive mind in college football

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Former Okahoma coach, Dallas Cowboys assistant John Blake dies at 59

Former Oklahoma head coach and Dallas Cowboys assistant John Blake has died of a heart attack at 59.

The news is sad out of the Southwest for football fans as former Oklahoma head coach and Dallas Cowboys assistant John Blake has died at the age of 59.

Another former Oklahoma and Dallas coach, Barry Switzer, confirmed the news of Blake’s death to the Tulsa World Thursday:

“I recruited him out of Sand Springs,” Switzer said. “He played for me and captained for me. He coached for me. “I was close to John.”

Cause of death was a heart attack, per former Oklahoma QB Dean Blevins, now a News9 sports reporter in the Sooner State. Blake was stricken when he was on a walk.

Prior to his tenure as head coach in Norman, Blake had served as the defensive line coach for the Dallas Cowboys, working alongside former UNC coach Butch Davis (2007–11) as well as former Sooner and then Cowboys head coach Barry Switzer. The Dallas Cowboys won two Super Bowls (1993 & ’95) during Blake’s stint. Blake also worked as a defensive assistant at Oklahoma in the early 1990s under Gary Gibbs.

Blake also had assistant coaching jobs at Mississippi State, North Carolina, Nebraska, and in the NFL, with the Buffalo Bills on his resume.

 

 

 

Former Oklahoma head coach John Blake dies of heart attack

Former Oklahoma football player and head coach John Blake has died at the age of 59, per a report from KWTV’s Dean Blevins. 

Former Oklahoma football player and head coach John Blake has died at the age of 59, per a report from KWTV’s Dean Blevins.

Blake served as OU’s head coach from 1996-98, taking over directly after Howard Schnellenberger’s lone season.

Despite his record of 12-22, Blake built a reputation as a gifted recruiter. He recruited more than half of the starters on the 2000 championship team, including both Rocky Calmus and Roy Williams.

Blake also served as a defensive assistant at OU from 1989-92, coaching defensive linemen and linebackers.

In between his stints at OU, Blake became the defensive line for the Dallas Cowboys from 1993-95. He won two Super Bowls during his time in Dallas.

Prior to his coaching career, Blake played nose guard at OU from 1979-82.

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