Thursday, December 30 Sooners have shed the loser tag
Associated Press
SHREVEPORT, La. -- It wasn't too long ago that Oklahoma's
football team was so successful, its fans got bored with going to
Miami for the Orange Bowl every year.
Oklahoma has experienced a resurgence under first-year coach Bob Stoops.
No one associated with Oklahoma is complaining about traveling
to Shreveport, site of Friday night's Independence Bowl game
against Mississippi. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 25,000 to
30,000 Oklahoma fans are expected for the Sooners' first bowl
appearance since 1994.
"It just shows you that they love this team, these guys and
their love for football," coach Bob Stoops said Thursday. "They
have a lot of pride in this program."
Stoops and this team have helped restore some of that pride.
Oklahoma has won six national championships and has played in 32
bowl games, but hasn't been a national force since the late 1980s.
Before Stoops arrived, Oklahoma had gone five years without a
winning season and was particularly dismal the previous three
years, going 12-22.
Oklahoma went 7-4 this year and sold out every home game for the first time since 1987.
"This year has made me not think as much about last year,"
said senior receiver Brandon Daniels, who struggled at quarterback
in 1998 but this season led the team with 50 receptions and led the
nation in kickoff returns. "It's been a thrill this year."
The biggest change for Oklahoma has been on offense, where the Sooners installed a system that relies on the pass first and the
run a distant second. Quarterback Josh Heupel has set 13
single-season school records, including pass attempts (500),
completions (310), passing yards (3,460) and touchdowns (30).
"The scheme is never as big a difference as everybody makes it
out to be," Mississippi coach David Cutcliffe said. "It's
players, and putting your players in a position to make plays.
"The key is a coach being able to recognize the weapons he has
and being able to put those weapons to use. I think Oklahoma has
done a great job of doing that in one year."
Ole Miss (7-4) has its share of playmakers, starting with the
running back combination of Joe Gunn and Deuce McAllister. Gunn ran
for 951 yards and McAllister had 809, and each averaged more than 5
yards per carry.
They are complemented by quarterback Romaro Miller, who
completed 54 percent of his passes and threw 14 touchdowns. But
unlike Oklahoma, the Rebels try to establish their running game
first, then mix in the pass.
Ole Miss is unlike Oklahoma when it comes to bowl experience as
well. Only one member of the Sooner team -- sixth-year senior Jay
Smith -- has made a bowl trip. This is Mississippi's third straight
postseason game and its second consecutive visit to the
Independence Bowl.
The Rebels had a chance to play in a more high-profile game, but
finished the season with two straight losses, each by three points.
Cutcliffe said that once the bowl bids were extended, he talked
with his players about avoiding a letdown. Now he says he is
confident they will match Oklahoma's emotion on Friday.
"If you're a competitor and the whistle blows, you better be
ready to play," he said.
Both coaches said their players should be excited about playing
in the final bowl game of the millennium.
"It'll be one of those trivia questions 50 years from now, who
played in the last game," Stoops said. "And most importantly
everyone will ask who won the last game. Certainly, we're part of
history so it is special."
