The Oklahoma Sooners have the potential to be the second-best team in college football. Few would argue that Alabama is the best. Most would point to Penn State, TCU, Wisconsin, or Georgia as the next best team because they’re also undefeated. Some may even say it’s still Clemson despite their loss. No, it’s Oklahoma, and the only thing holding them back is their defensive coordinator, Mike Stoops.
They have the talent on defense. As with previous Sooner teams, they have the rare combination of speed and size that should make them a top-10 defense to go along with their top-5 offense. It’s not in their defensive talent or defensive style but in their defensive play calling. It’s horrible. Stoops is the problem.
In previous years, we could point to nepotism from big brother Bob as the reason Mike is still around. Bob Stoops stepped down and made way for Lincoln Riley to take the helm. Keeping Mike was likely a necessary move to maintain a measure of stability while also paying homage to the Stoops brothers, but that goodwill should end after this season. It was poor defensive play-calling that made the Baylor game much closer than it should have been. It was poor defensive play-calling that kept Texas and Kansas State alive until the very end of the games. It was poor defensive play-calling that made the Sooners lose to Iowa State at home.
Yesterday’s Kansas State game was a perfect example. Somehow, every quarterback that plays the Sooners (with the notable exception of Ohio State’s J.T. Barrett) has the game of their career. Alex Delton nearly doubled his career passing yardage going 12/14 for 144 yards and his first career throwing TD while rushing for three scores on 142 ground yards. Is it because the Sooner lack defensive playmakers? No. Is it just poor match-ups that are conducive to an opposing team or two? No. We see them failing whether it’s a running quarterback, a pocket quarterback, or even a terrible quarterback.
No, the problem is that when it’s time to bring pressure, Stoops tells the defense to play conservative. When it’s time for max coverage or reads, he’s blitzing. If it makes sense to bring pressure form the right, he comes from the left.
The Sooners defense played admirably in spite of being given the wrong plays against Kansas State, yet the game was tied with less than a minute on the clock. A win’s a win so there’s no reason to panic, but with an offense as potent as theirs and a defense with the talent they possess, there’s no reason they shouldn’t be in an isolated conversation with only them and the Crimson Tide as the clear 1-2 and everyone else off in the distance.
Look at how much other teams have scored against them. Baylor’s 41 against the Sooners was only topped by the 45 they scored against Liberty. Heck, the UTSA Roadrunners kept them to 10 points. Iowa State scored 7 against Texas a week before putting up 38 on the Sooners. Is it all just bad matchups or bringing out the best in the opponent? No. It’s Mike Stoops.
There was an opportunity to see one of the best championship matchups in modern history between two incredible teams. Unfortunately, one of them has a coach who can’t figure out when to do what with his defense. Now, the Sooners are going to have a hard winning the Big 12, let alone earning a spot in the playoffs.
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Will America-First News Outlets Make it to 2023?
Things are looking grim for conservative and populist news sites.
There’s something happening behind the scenes at several popular conservative news outlets. 2021 was bad, but 2022 is proving to be disastrous for news sites that aren’t “playing ball” with the corporate media narrative. It’s being said that advertisers are cracking down, forcing some of the biggest ad networks like Google and Yahoo to pull their inventory from conservative outlets. This has had two major effects. First, it has cooled most conservative outlets from discussing “taboo” topics like Pandemic Panic Theater, voter fraud, or The Great Reset. Second, it has isolated those ad networks that aren’t playing ball.
Certain topics are anathema for most ad networks. Speaking out against vaccines or vaccine mandates is a certain path to being demonetized. Highlighting voter fraud in the 2020 and future elections is another instant advertising death penalty. Throw in truthful stories about climate change hysteria, Critical Race Theory, and the border crisis and it’s easy to understand how difficult it is for America-First news outlets to spread the facts, share conservative opinions, and still pay the bills.
Without naming names, I have been told of several news outlets who have been forced to either consolidate with larger organizations or who have backed down on covering certain topics out of fear of being “canceled” by the ad networks. I get it. This is a business for many of us and it’s not very profitable. Those of us who do this for a living are often barely squeaking by, so loss of additional revenue can often mean being forced to make cuts. That means not being able to cover the topics properly. Its a Catch-22: Tell the truth and lose the money necessary to keep telling the truth, or avoid the truth and make enough money to survive. Those who have chosen survival simply aren’t able to spread the truth properly.
We will never avoid the truth. The Lord will provide if it is His will. Our job is simply to share the facts, spread the Gospel, and educate as many Americans as possible while exposing the forces of evil.
To those who have the means, we ask that you please donate. We have options available now, but there is no telling when those options will cancel us. We have our GivingFuel page. There have been many who have been canceled by PayPal, but for now it’s still an option. Your generosity is what keeps these sites running and allows us to get the truth to the masses. We’ve had great success in growing but we know we can do more with your assistance.
Thank you, and God Bless!
JD Rucker
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