We are again on the precipice of another glorious season of Oklahoma Football.
Only this time it’s different. A new conference. The big bad SEC. The toughest and greatest conference in all the land. Or so we’ve been told the last 20 years by ESpin.
“It just means more”…or something like that.
I get that they are promoting their brand, and ESPN is as well due to the large amounts of money they have spent on the TV rights for the conference.
But didn’t you all get sick of the constant line they were pushing? That the SEC was so much better than all the other conferences? I agreed with Bob Stoops when he said that the SEC was a top-heavy conference just like several other conferences.
They just so happened to receive a lot of attention because Alabama went on an historic streak of National Titles during that time. It’s not like Mississippi State won those titles too.
They would have said the same thing about the Big 12 if OU had won 3 or 4 titles in that span or the Big 10 had Michigan went on a hot streak.
And remember, Bob Stoops was 7-4 versus SEC teams, including 3-0 against vaunted Alabama.
This schedule is a lot to handle
I’m not saying the SEC doesn’t have access to very talented players in the southeastern part of the United States, which has very fertile recruiting grounds. But it’s not like other conferences are throwing out converted rugby players they had to find at the local YMCA. They recruit just has hard, and these days recruiting is a nationwide endeavor.
I will say that as of the past few years, the SEC has grown at the top with Georgia knocking off Alabama to become the leader of the pack, and Tennessee is coming on strong. Ole Miss and Missouri are also making waves.
And it just so happens 4 of the teams I just mentioned are set to square off against the Sooners in their first season in the SEC.
So there is no question that 2024 is going to be a tough schedule to navigate. And Oklahoma will be taking the field with a new quarterback, new offensive coordinator, new defensive coordinator and the aforementioned new conference.
That’s a lot of “new” for anyone.
But if anyone can handle these transitions, it’s Oklahoma with Brent Venables at the helm.
SEC lucky to have the Sooners
And let’s not forget. This is OKLAHOMA. One of the most storied and successful programs in the history of college football. The bluest of bluebloods.
The SEC knows this, and they know this was a huge get for their conference. They’re lucky to have us. But we will have to wait a few weeks to dip our toes in SEC competition, as a sacrificial lamb walks onto Owen Field this Friday night, (Friday..what?) in the guise of the Temple Owls.
Not much is going to be found out about the Sooners in what amounts to a glorified scrimmage. They will use the game to continue to work on any issues they have lingered from camp before going into SEC play.
So most likely we will see a very vanilla game plan on both sides of the ball. And even with that they should prevail by at least 40 or so points.
As such the Worry Meter is only at 5% this week. We get a cold front for the first game of the season with temperatures in the low 80’s. Let’s hope the rain is over by game time. With all that being said….BOOMER!!!
— Dave
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