Big Question: Can OU Defend Its National Championship?

No less than four books on Oklahoma’s championship will be out as the new season begins in two weeks.

But coach Bob Stoops is ready for a new edition, one he hopes will end with the Sooners becoming the first school to win back-to-back titles three times.

“We’ve proven we can win them all,” Stoops says about last season’s 13-0 record, “and I think we should be a better team this year.”

And they just might, although being better certainly doesn’t guarantee a repeat of last season’s championship, Oklahoma’s seventh national crown but first since 1985.

“I’m not saying we will win it, but we have so much added experience coming back,” Stoops says. “Plus, we’re faster and stronger than we were a year ago.

“The important thing going into this season is the fact the players know how to win.”

The Sooners return 16 starters, including All-American linebacker Rocky Calmus. Nate Hybl moves in for Heisman runner-up Josh Heupel, but Stoops says his new quarterback can be just as good.

“He’s an incredible worker, has an excellent arm and has strength and quickness,” Stoops says. “We just have to find out how he handles pressure.”

It’s been years since there have been such brazen boasts coming out of the SoonerNation. Not since the Barry Switzer era, which ended ignominiously after the 1988 season with the school being rocked by NCAA sanctions, has there been so much confidence in Norman. The Sooner Caravan is rolling through the state to overflow receptions.

Last week in Oklahoma City, for example, about 800 OU fans hung on every word Stoops said at a fund-raising auction--the last of dozens of stops around the state.

After chowing down on ribs, chicken and sausage, fans lined up for Stoops’ autograph, handing him teddy bears, Orange Bowl souvenirs and even a cell phone to sign.

The top item on the block was a Heupel-signed jersey, which went for $2,800--an autographed football from the ’85 title team went for $600.

The fans also saw a video called “Great Expectations,” with OU president David Boren proclaiming, “We have no small dreams ... We dream of national championships,” and Stoops ending with, “It is easy to see Oklahoma is back.”

Stoops, too, is back for his third season. He was wooed by the Cleveland Browns in the offseason, but signed a contract extension boosting his annual salary to $2 million--second to the top figure in college football, the $2.1 million earned by Florida coach Steve Spurrier.