Stoops' jokes are on ESPN Bevo
Published: 8/30/2011 3:54 PM
Last Modified: 8/30/2011 3:54 PM
Bob Stoops had a little fun with Texas TV at his first press conference of the season Tuesday. That means two things:
1, He's feeling pretty good about the 2011 season (the looser he is, the better he feels about the state of his program), and
2, Texas is getting under his skin, too. Not as deep as it's getting under A&M's, but still…
Someone asked Stoops if he would subscribe to the Longhorn Network. Answer:
"There's a rumor the Longhorn Network is going to carry my coach's show. Don't know if that's true or not."
Someone asked if he understands the network's policy of showing highlights of high school players/Texas recruits instead of their full games.
"I don't understand it, but it seems like a good deal there," Stoops shot back. "They get to take out the boring parts of the game and just put in the good parts. I figured if they had to show the whole game, people might get disinterested and not see the good parts. We'll see."
By the way, Stoops let slip that recruiting played a hand in allowing ESPN access to the first five days of Oklahoma's preseason camp. You figured that had something (a lot?) to do with it, but it was interesting to hear the coach say it himself.
"For a young person in ninth or 10th grade watching it, they got a good insight into, 'Hey, this is maybe where I want to go,'" he said.
Stoops also relented to ESPN, he said, because it showcased the players and staff members he takes pride in. I buy that, too.
But as recruiting is the proverbial "lifeblood" of any program, and now that ESPNBevo has given his archrival what some consider the ultimate recruiting tool, Stoops played it shrewdly with "All-Access."
The Sooners didn't open the gates to the Worldwide Leader like Texas did. But their partnership might prove very beneficial as well.
-- Guerin Emig
Written by
Guerin Emig
Sports Writer
