It was a surreal moment when the University of Oklahoma had a press conference announcing the transition from then-head coach Bob Stoops to his offensive coordinator and current head coach Lincoln Riley.
Bob Stoops was having a ton of success. The Sooners had just won the Big 12 title, a Sugar Bowl win over Auburn, and Baker Mayfield was coming back for another year. Stoops’ defense wasn’t playing well, but that didn’t slow down the Sooners. Even with all of the success, Stoops thought it best to step away from the game and pass the torch to Lincoln Riley.
Though it’s safe to say that the Sooners would have remained contenders had Stoops stayed, there’s no telling how long Riley would have stuck around. Bob Stoops, stepping down paved the way for the Sooners to hold onto their young offensive coordinator and the results have been pretty, pretty good.
So good that David Kenyon of Bleacher Report put Lincoln Riley first in his ranking the top head coaching hires of the last five years.
Through four seasons, Riley posted a 45-8 record with a Big 12 title in each year. Oklahoma made the College Football Playoff in the first three campaigns and has annually reeled in a top-12 recruiting class during Riley’s tenure. – Kenyon
Though they haven’t been able to win the national championship (yet) under Lincoln Riley, the results have been fantastic nonetheless. His ability to produce high-powered offense every year, despite now five different quarterbacks is incredible.
That production has helped him on the recruiting trail as he’s helped the Sooners become one of the best recruiting schools in the country. The Sooners currently are seventh in the nation for the 2022 recruiting cycle and hold the No. 1 recruiting class for 2023.
Lincoln Riley took over a fantastic program that one of the best coaches in college football built and somehow made it even stronger. And he’s done that amidst rumors of NFL head coaching jobs circling Norman.
Lincoln Riley’s proven to be one of the best head coaches in college football in his first head coaching job. He’s got the conference championship and Heisman hardware to back it up. With the Sooners 7-0 and looking for their seventh-straight Big 12 championship, the only thing missing from his resume is College Football Playoff success.
With his change at quarterback, Riley’s shown he’ll do what’s necessary to give his team the best chance to win football games. It’s the tough decisions that can often separate the good from the great.