I’ve been super critical of Stoops so I’m not a big fan of his. But last year ended poorly and the future looked bleak. Kinda where we’re at now. Stoops did a nice job of getting Coen, Leary, Cox, etc. He made enough changes to the point that a lot of folks thought we would finish 2nd in the SEC. There was a lot of excitement from the fan base. It didn’t pan out but it wasn’t ALL Stoops’ fault. Sometimes you just swing and miss. What went wrong?
1. Coen did not adapt his scheme to his players. We have good athletes at WR but they are not good route runners and they don’t catch the ball well. These guys are made for the short passing game. Leary is a spread QB used to playing tempo. Coen never adapted and played a slow, complex, pro style offense not suited for the personnel. No identity.
2. OL recruiting/development has not been good. We’ve been much better on the edges this year but our interior guys are not talented and are very inconsistent. Despite the improvement year over year, Yenser may need to go.
3. As mentioned above, our WR group, which was supposedly one of the best in the SEC, turned out to be one of the worst. No growth from this group from year to year. Tried to fit squares into round holes (Barion is not a deep threat for instance). Woodward should probably go but won’t.
4. The talented tight ends were under utilized as is typical of UK offenses.
5. Leary was not as good as advertised. Probably should have gone with the Florida kid. Not sure the coaches are to blame for this one.
6. Inability to apply QB pressure. Probably worst in the SEC. Guys who were supposed to be dominate like Weaver have been terrible. Very little help for guys like Walker. Couldn’t get off the field on 3rd downs. Anwar Steward should be fired.
6. Lack of talent in the secondary. Struck out in the portal. Poor coaching. This entire area needs major work. Must look at all coaches and hit the portal.
Some things we have to have in the offseason in no particular order:
1. Major changes in the staff and philosophy. Stoops finally needs to look in the mirror or walk away.
2. A good QB, WR, secondary players from the portal
3. Must keep guys like Walker, Wade brothers, Adair, Cox, Hairston, etc.
4. Must keep 2024 recruiting class intact
5. Somehow win back the fans after back to back poor seasons and comments like “pony up”
6. Improvements to NIL
7. Offseason development of players
1. Coen did not adapt his scheme to his players. We have good athletes at WR but they are not good route runners and they don’t catch the ball well. These guys are made for the short passing game. Leary is a spread QB used to playing tempo. Coen never adapted and played a slow, complex, pro style offense not suited for the personnel. No identity.
2. OL recruiting/development has not been good. We’ve been much better on the edges this year but our interior guys are not talented and are very inconsistent. Despite the improvement year over year, Yenser may need to go.
3. As mentioned above, our WR group, which was supposedly one of the best in the SEC, turned out to be one of the worst. No growth from this group from year to year. Tried to fit squares into round holes (Barion is not a deep threat for instance). Woodward should probably go but won’t.
4. The talented tight ends were under utilized as is typical of UK offenses.
5. Leary was not as good as advertised. Probably should have gone with the Florida kid. Not sure the coaches are to blame for this one.
6. Inability to apply QB pressure. Probably worst in the SEC. Guys who were supposed to be dominate like Weaver have been terrible. Very little help for guys like Walker. Couldn’t get off the field on 3rd downs. Anwar Steward should be fired.
6. Lack of talent in the secondary. Struck out in the portal. Poor coaching. This entire area needs major work. Must look at all coaches and hit the portal.
Some things we have to have in the offseason in no particular order:
1. Major changes in the staff and philosophy. Stoops finally needs to look in the mirror or walk away.
2. A good QB, WR, secondary players from the portal
3. Must keep guys like Walker, Wade brothers, Adair, Cox, Hairston, etc.
4. Must keep 2024 recruiting class intact
5. Somehow win back the fans after back to back poor seasons and comments like “pony up”
6. Improvements to NIL
7. Offseason development of players
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