Mike Stoops regrets controversial comments on Manziel
Published: 1/11/2013 10:37 PM
Last Modified: 1/11/2013 10:37 PM
NORMAN — Oklahoma defensive coordinator Mike Stoops regrets the controversial remarks he made Friday about Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel on an Oklahoma City radio station.
Stoops reached out through an OU athletics department spokesman late Friday to indicate he regretted his radio comments and has the “utmost respect for Texas A&M and Johnny Manziel.”
During an interview with WWLS radio personality Al Eschbach and co-host J.D. Runnels on Friday afternoon, Stoops spoke glowingly of the Heisman-winning Manziel, who completed 22-of-34 passes for 287 yards and two touchdowns and rushed 17 times for 229 yards (an FBS bowl record for a quarterback) in the Aggies’ 41-13 victory over Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl last week.
“I’ve seen a lot of football players play a lot of different styles with guys, but never seen anything like that in my whole life,” Stoops said. “I mean, I’ve never felt as defenseless as we were the other night, that’s for sure.
“You know, any time you can go for 500 yards against a team like Alabama (a 29-24 A&M win in Tuscaloosa on Nov. 11), what (Alabama) did to Notre Dame (a 42-14 triumph in Monday’s BCS national championship game), that tells you. You don’t need to say anything else. On the road at Alabama, that guy was phenomenal that night.
“He just creates so many problems for your defense, and he knows what those problems are. And he understands them very well.”
But then Stoops cut loose a different kind of critique.
“They’re gonna be tough to deal with,” he said. “If they can keep him out of jail or keep him eligible, he’s gonna be pretty good.”
Eschbach started to laugh at this point, and Stoops chuckled, too.
“If they can keep him off the Twitter, he might win three or four Heismans,” Stoops continued. “He’ll have that type of ability.”
Stoops’ remarks, seemingly made as a joke, took a shot at the notoriety with which Manziel has enjoyed his post-Heisman and post-Cotton Bowl celebrity. He has been featured in various photographs posted on Twitter in an Oklahoma casino with a handful of cash, at a Dallas bar with a fireworks sparkler held in his mouth and allegedly holding a bottle of expensive champagne.
Stoops also may have been offering commentary on Manziel’s arrest on misdemeanor charges last summer.
After the conversation was posted at TulsaWorld.com via Twitter, Stoops’ comments quickly went viral. Within an hour, USA Today, ESPN, Sporting News, Deadspin and others had published the remarks, and Twitter users from both schools were weighing in by the hundreds.
Written by
John E. Hoover
Sports Columnist
