Bob Stoops

Robert Anthony Stoops (born September 9, 1960) is an American football coach who is the head coach for the Arlington Renegades. He was the head football coach at the University of Oklahoma from 1999 through the 2016 season, and on an interim basis during the 2021 Alamo Bowl. He led the Oklahoma Sooners to a record of 191–48 over his career. His 2000 Oklahoma Sooners football team won the 2001 Orange Bowl, which served as the BCS National Championship Game, and earned a consensus national championship. Since 2020, Stoops has been a head coach with the XFL, coaching the Renegades in 2020 and has been re-signed for 2023.[2] Stoops' Renegades won the XFL Championship in 2023.

Bob Stoops
refer to caption
Stoops in 2021
Arlington Renegades
Position:Head coach
Personal information
Born: (1960-09-09) September 9, 1960
Youngstown, Ohio, U.S.
Career information
High school:Youngstown (OH) Cardinal Mooney
College:Iowa (1979–1982)
Undrafted:1983
Career history
As a coach:
  • Iowa (1983–1984)
    Graduate assistant
  • Iowa (1985–1987)
    Assistant
  • Kent State (1988)
    Assistant
  • Kansas State (1989-1990)
    Defensive backs coach
  • Kansas State (1991–1995)
    Co-defensive coordinator
  • Florida (1996–1998)
    Defensive coordinator / assistant head coach
  • Oklahoma (1999-2016)
    Head coach
  • Dallas Renegades (2020)
    Head coach & general manager
  • Oklahoma (2021)
    Interim head coach
  • Arlington Renegades (2023–present)
    Head coach & general manager
Career highlights and awards
Championships

Awards

Head coaching record
Regular season:
  • 191–48 (college)
  • 6-9 (XFL)
Postseason:2–0 (1.000)

Stoops played college football at the University of Iowa as a defensive back from 1979 to 1982. Prior to his tenure at Oklahoma, he held various assistant coaching positions at the University of Iowa, Kent State University, Kansas State University, and the University of Florida. Stoops was awarded the Paul "Bear" Bryant Award in 2000 and the Walter Camp Coach of the Year Award in both 2000 and 2003.[3] Stoops has been nicknamed "Big Game Bob" by both supporters and detractors.[4]

Stoops was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 2021.

High school and college

Stoops is one of six children born to Ron Sr. and Evelyn "Dee Dee" Stoops in Youngstown, Ohio. He is a 1978 graduate of Cardinal Mooney High School, where his father was the long-time defensive coordinator of the football team. Bob and his three brothers (Ron Jr., Mike, and Mark) were all coached by Ron Sr. at Mooney. During a game in 1988 against the team coached by Ron Jr., Ron Sr. began experiencing chest pains. He was placed in an ambulance following the game and died en route to the hospital.[5][6]

While at Iowa, Stoops was a four-year starter, and one-time All-Big Ten selection at defensive back at the University of Iowa. He was named Team MVP in 1982.[7]

Coaching career

Assistant coach

After graduating with a marketing degree in 1983, Stoops began his coaching career as a volunteer coach and graduate assistant in the Iowa Hawkeyes program under Hayden Fry. He next was an assistant at Kent State University under Dick Crum in 1988, and then joined the coaching staff at Kansas State University the following year. Stoops was named co-defensive coordinator at Kansas State under Bill Snyder in 1991 and assistant head coach and co-defensive coordinator in 1995. During his tenure on the Wildcats staff, Stoops played a key role in their impressive turnaround, helping take what many considered to be the worst program in Division I-A to national contention. During his final four seasons there, Kansas State was 35–12 with three bowl appearances.

Stoops then left for the University of Florida, serving three years as Steve Spurrier's defensive coordinator. Hired after Florida allowed 62 points to Nebraska in the 1996 Fiesta Bowl,[8] he was granted authority over the Gators defense; the team responded by winning the national championship over Florida State in the 1997 Sugar Bowl.[9]

Due to his success leading defenses at Kansas State and Florida, Stoops was mentioned as a future head coach.

Oklahoma
Stoops paces the sideline in 2006

The University of Oklahoma named Stoops its head coach in 1999. OU won seven games in Stoops' first year, taking the Sooners to their first bowl game since the 1994 season.

Stoops in 2009

In his 18 years as head coach of the Sooners, Stoops had a combined record of 190–48 (.798). On November 16, 2013, Stoops notched his 157th win as Oklahoma's head coach with a victory over Iowa State, tying him with Barry Switzer for the most wins in Sooners history.[10] A week later, on November 23, 2013, he surpassed Switzer's record with a 41–31 victory over Kansas State. Stoops accumulated a home winning streak of 39 consecutive games from 2005 to 2011. The streak was ended on October 22, 2011 when Texas Tech defeated Oklahoma 41–38. He also had the most wins of the decade of any BCS school with 110 (2000–2009). Along with Switzer, Bud Wilkinson and Bennie Owen, he is one of four coaches to win over 100 games at the University of Oklahoma; no other college football program has had more than three coaches accomplish such a feat. Overall, Oklahoma was 4–6 in BCS games and 9–9 in bowl games under Stoops. Stoops, along with Bill Snyder of Kansas State, were among the first to use the JUCO systems of their respective states to help their programs progress.

Stoops led the Sooners to the 2000 BCS National Championship and finished the season undefeated, outscoring thirteen opponents by a combined 481–194. His Oklahoma teams again earned the opportunity to play in the BCS National Championship Game in 2004, 2005 and 2009, losing to LSU, 21–14, in the 2004 Sugar Bowl, and to USC, 55–19 in the 2005 Orange Bowl, and Florida, 24–14, in the 2009 BCS National Championship Game. Under Stoops, Oklahoma had four BCS National Championship Game appearances, a record shared with Florida State.

Stoops' teams finished the season ranked in the Top 10 of the polls for 11 of his 18 seasons, seven times finishing in the top five.

Stoops led his team to bowl games in each of his 17 years at Oklahoma, ten of which were Bowl Championship Series (BCS) bowls, including the Big 12 Conference's first Rose Bowl victory as the Sooners upended Washington State, 34–14, in the 2003 Rose Bowl. With Oklahoma's victory over Alabama at the 2014 Sugar Bowl, Stoops became the first and only coach to win all four BCS bowl games and a BCS National Championship.

Stoops' penchant for winning big games early in his career earned him the nickname "Big Game Bob", From 1999 to 2003, Oklahoma under Stoops was 18–2 (0.900) vs. ranked opponents and 3–1 (0.750) in bowl games, with one national title and three Big 12 titles.[4]

Late in the 2003 season, however, Bob's brother Mike Stoops left his position of defensive coordinator and associate head coach at Oklahoma to accept the head coaching job at Arizona. The Sooners promptly lost two games in a row against ranked teams after Mike's departure that season (a 35–7 loss against #13 Kansas State in the Big 12 Title Game, and a 21–14 loss to #3 LSU in the BCS National Title Game). Since then (2004–2016), Stoops' teams went 17–13 vs. ranked opponents, and 3–4 in Bowl Games with no National Titles (although they played for 3 more), and five Big 12 Titles. Stoops' teams did finish with two Heisman Trophy winners during this time, however, and two runners-up.

Under Stoops, the Sooners won ten Big 12 Conference championships, the most of any Big 12 team. Oklahoma is also the only Big 12 team to win back-to-back-to-back Big 12 championships. Stoops posted a 121-29 (.807) conference record during his career, and was named the Big 12 Coach of the Year six times.

In his 18 seasons as Sooners' head coach, Stoops was 11–7 against the Texas Longhorns in the Red River Rivalry. During a five-game winning streak in that rivalry from 2000 to 2004, his Sooners handed the Longhorns two of their worst defeats in school history, 63–14 in 2000[11] and 65–13 in 2003.[12] Since then, he led the team to additional large-margin wins of 55–17 in 2011[13] and 63–21 in 2012.[14]

On July 11, 2007, Oklahoma was placed on probation for two years by the NCAA for a rules violation involving quarterback Rhett Bomar and offensive lineman JD Quinn, whom the university had previously suspended from the team due to the players' efforts to obtain payment for hours not worked.[15] While the students who violated the rules were reinstated by the NCAA and allowed to play for other schools, the university, which had self-reported the violations, was initially directed to vacate all wins during the 2005–06 season, which included a 17–14 win over the University of Oregon in the Holiday Bowl.[16] Oklahoma appealed the NCAA's ruling of a "failure to monitor" the employment of players in the program, as well as a reduction in scholarships and probation lasting until May, 2010.[17] On February 22, 2008, the NCAA reversed part of the decision and reinstated the vacated wins.[18]

Stoops' 2008 team went down in the history books as the highest scoring team in college football history, scoring a total of 716 points, averaging 51 points per game. Over five consecutive games, the Sooners scored 60 points or more, another record (in the game prior to the streak, the Sooners scored 58 points). After a four-week layoff, the offense was held in check against the nation's best defense of the Florida Gators in the National Championship game, scoring only 14 points and committing two turnovers near the Florida goal line. The Sooners were without one of their star offensive playmakers in DeMarco Murray, who sat out with an injury.[19] However, the Sooners' 2008 defense, which was much maligned during the season for allowing a Stoops'-worst 25 points per game average, held the Florida Gators' high-powered Tim Tebow-led offense to only 24 points, 21 points below their season average.

Stoops' success at Oklahoma made him the frequent subject of head coach searches by NFL teams and college programs alike, which he repeatedly turned down.[20] He was reportedly the top-paid coach in Division I-A football with annual compensation in excess of $3 million until Nick Saban was signed by the University of Alabama for $4 million per year in 2007. However, Stoops did receive a "longevity bonus" of $3 million at the end of the 2008 season (his 10th), making his annual salary in 2008 approximately $6.1 million (equivalent to $8.3 million in 2022) .[21]

In the 2012 season, he led the Sooners back to the top 25 and went to the Cotton Bowl, losing to Heisman Trophy-winning Johnny Manziel and the Texas A&M Aggies, 41–13. In his career at Oklahoma, several of Stoops' assistants became head coaches at other Division I-A programs, including his brother Mike Stoops (Arizona), Mark Mangino (Kansas), Mike Leach (Texas Tech, Washington State and Mississippi State), Chuck Long (San Diego State), Bo Pelini (Nebraska and Youngstown State), Kevin Sumlin (Texas A&M), Kevin Wilson (Indiana), and his eventual successor, Lincoln Riley (USC, Oklahoma).

Stoops is the only head coach in the BCS era to have won the Rose Bowl, Orange Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, and Sugar Bowl.[22]

On June 7, 2017, Stoops announced his retirement from college coaching. He was succeeded by Lincoln Riley as Oklahoma's head football coach.[23]

XFL

On February 7, 2019, Stoops announced his plans to come out of retirement, as he was named head coach/general manager of the upcoming Dallas Renegades in the XFL.[24] He served in this role until the league ceased operations on April 14, 2020 due to bankruptcy stemming from the COVID-19 outbreak.[25] On April 13, 2022, Stoops re-signed with the XFL.[26] In 2023, the Renegades finished second in the XFL South Division despite the fact the Renegades finished the regular season with a below .500, 4–6 record, and advanced to the XFL playoffs. In the South Division championship game the Renegades defeated the Houston Roughnecks to advance to the XFL Championship Game where the Renegades defeated the DC Defenders 35–26.

Oklahoma (interim)

On November 28, 2021, Stoops was named interim head coach for Oklahoma's bowl game after Lincoln Riley took the USC Trojans head coaching job.[27][28] The head coaching position was filled by former Stoops assistant Brent Venables.[29] Stoops coached the Sooners in the 2021 Alamo Bowl; the Sooners won 47–32.

Personal life

Stoops is married to Carol Stoops, a Mary Kay National Sales Director.[30] They have three children: a daughter, Mackenzie, who now attends the University of Oklahoma, and twin sons, Isaac and Drake. Drake Stoops plays wide receiver for the Oklahoma Sooners.[31] Isaac Stoops has coached at the high school level as a wide receivers coach for Moore (OK) High School [32] and took a position as a volunteer analyst with the University of Oklahoma Sooners for the 2021-22 football season.[33]

Stoops' younger brother, Mike, is the former defensive coordinator for the Sooners and was previously head football coach at the University of Arizona. He currently serves as inside linebackers coach for the football program of University of Kentucky. Another brother (the youngest), Mark, became the head coach at the University of Kentucky in November 2012. Stoops' older brother, Ron Jr., was an assistant football coach at Youngstown State University in Youngstown, Ohio.[34]

Stoops remains close with Steve Spurrier, his mentor from the University of Florida.[35]

Coaching tree

Head coaches under whom Stoops served:

Assistant coaches under Stoops who became college or professional head coaches:[37]

Head coaching record

College
Year Team Overall ConferenceStanding Bowl/playoffs Coaches# AP°
Oklahoma Sooners (Big 12 Conference) (1999–2016)
1999 Oklahoma 7–55–3T–2nd (South)L Independence
2000 Oklahoma 13–08–01st (South)W Orange†11
2001 Oklahoma 11–26–22nd (South)W Cotton66
2002 Oklahoma 12–26–2T–1st (South)W Rose†55
2003 Oklahoma 12–28–01st (South)L Sugar†33
2004 Oklahoma 12–18–01st (South)L Orange†33
2005 Oklahoma 8–46–2T–2nd (South)W Holiday2222
2006 Oklahoma 11–37–11st (South)L Fiesta†1111
2007 Oklahoma 11–36–21st (South)L Fiesta†88
2008 Oklahoma 12–27–1T–1st (South)L BCS NCG†55
2009 Oklahoma 8–55–3T–3rd (South)W Sun
2010 Oklahoma 12–26–2T–1st (South)W Fiesta†66
2011 Oklahoma 10–36–3T–3rdW Insight1516
2012 Oklahoma 10–38–1T–1stL Cotton1515
2013 Oklahoma 11–27–2T–2ndW Sugar†66
2014 Oklahoma 8–55–4T–4thL Russell Athletic
2015 Oklahoma 11–28–11stL Orange†55
2016 Oklahoma 11–29–01stW Sugar†35
Oklahoma Sooners (Big 12 Conference) (2021)
2021 Oklahoma 1–0W Alamo[lower-alpha 1]1010
Oklahoma: 191–48121–29
Total:191–48
      National championship         Conference title         Conference division title or championship game berth
  1. Stoops returned to coach the bowl game after Lincoln Riley departed for USC.

XFL
TeamYearRegular seasonPostseason
WonLostWin %FinishWonLostWin %Result
DAL2020 23.400Season canceled————
ARL2023 46.4002nd XFL South201.000XFL Champion
Total69.400201.000

References
  1. "Oklahoma Sooners' Bob Stoops and Sterling Shepard to Accept 2014 Disney Sports Spirit Award".
  2. "Stoops back in the coaching saddle". SoonerSports.com. February 7, 2019. Retrieved February 7, 2019.
  3. "Walter Camp's 2006 "Coach of the Year"" (Press release). WalterCamp.org. Archived from the original on October 10, 2007.
  4. Grathoff, Pete (December 31, 2015). "Clemson beats Oklahoma, and the 'Big Game Bob' jokes soon follow". The Kansas City Star. Retrieved November 10, 2018.
  5. Thamel, Pete (August 29, 2004). "College Football Preview 2004; A Family of Coaches Has Followed Its Leader". The New York Times. Retrieved October 18, 2007.
  6. Branch, John (August 28, 2001). "Legend in the making/ National title vaults Stoops into Sooner elite". The Colorado Springs Gazette. Retrieved October 18, 2007.
  7. "2007 Big Ten Media Guide" (PDF). pp. 93, 100. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-10-26. Retrieved 2008-07-11.
  8. "Gatorzone.com – Florida Gators Bowl Record". Archived from the original on August 8, 2007. Retrieved September 29, 2007.
  9. "Gatorzone.com – Florida Gators 1996 Season". Archived from the original on October 16, 2007. Retrieved September 29, 2007.
  10. Athletics Communications, University of Oklahoma (November 16, 2013). "Sooners Run Through Cyclones".
  11. "Oklahoma vs. Texas". USA Today. October 7, 2000.
  12. "Oklahoma vs. Texas - Box Score - October 11, 2003 - ESPN".
  13. "Oklahoma vs. Texas - Box Score - October 8, 2011 - ESPN".
  14. "Texas vs. Oklahoma - Box Score - October 13, 2012 - ESPN".
  15. "Bomar, Quinn Ineligible for Remainder 2006 and to Pay Money Back". SoonersBlog.com. Sooner News Wire. November 1, 2006. Archived from the original on June 28, 2013.
  16. "NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions Penalizes University of Oklahoma". National Collegiate Athletic Association. July 11, 2007. Retrieved November 10, 2007.
  17. "OU to Appeal NCAA Decision". OU Athletic Department. July 11, 2007. Archived from the original on July 13, 2007. Retrieved July 11, 2007.
  18. "NCAA gives OU back its wins for 2005 season". The Oklahoman. February 22, 2008. Retrieved February 22, 2008.
  19. "Murray to Miss BCS Championship". SoonesBlog.com. Sooner News Wire. December 16, 2008. Archived from the original on June 28, 2013.
  20. Ron Knabenbauer. "Will Oklahoma's Bob Stoops Become the Denver Broncos Next Head Coach?". Bleacher Report, Inc. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
  21. "Bob Stoops Cashes In". SoonesBlog.com. Sooner News Wire. January 1, 2009. Archived from the original on June 28, 2013.
  22. "Little-known QB lifts Oklahoma past 'Bama". Tampa Bay Times. Times wires. January 3, 2014.
  23. Silverstein, Adam; Kercheval, Ben (June 7, 2017). "Bob Stoops retires after 18 seasons with Oklahoma, Lincoln Riley to take over". CBS Sports. Retrieved November 10, 2018.
  24. Crosby, Jack (February 6, 2019). "Report: Ex-Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops will join Dallas XFL franchise as coach, general manager". CBS Sports. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
  25. "XFL files for bankruptcy after suspending league". 13 April 2020.
  26. "Phillips, Haslett, Stoops among XFL coach hires". ESPN.com. 2022-04-13. Retrieved 2022-04-13.
  27. "Bob Stoops issues statement after being named Oklahoma interim head coach". Saturday Down South. 2021-11-28. Retrieved 2021-11-29.
  28. "Bob Stoops retakes Oklahoma football helm after Riley leaves for USC" KATC. Retrieved 2021-12-03.
  29. "Brent Venables hired as OU's next head football coach". KOCO 5 News. 2021-12-05. Retrieved 2021-12-05.
  30. Brietzke, Luke (July 22, 2005). "USATODAY.com – Notes: Stoops' wife has national title of her own". USA Today. Retrieved October 29, 2007.
  31. "Drake Stoops Stats, News, Bio". ESPN. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
  32. Smith, Cam (June 10, 2017). "Bob Stoops' son Isaac joins Moore (Okla.) High as wide receivers coach". USA Today High School Sports. Retrieved January 10, 2019.
  33. "Isaac Stoops creates his own lane at Oklahoma". Pressreader The Oklahoman. December 27, 2021. Retrieved January 10, 2019.
  34. "Ron Stoops - Assistant Football Coach/Director of High School Relations".
  35. Schoch, Matt (June 18, 2019). "Steve Spurrier offers kind words in tweet to retiring friend Bob Stoops of Oklahoma". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  36. Kozlowski, Joe (February 9, 2020). "How Did Bob Stoops End Up Coaching in the XFL?". Sportscasting | Pure Sports. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
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  39. "MSU Bulldog family, college football community mourns the death of Coach Mike Leach". Mississippi State. Retrieved 2022-12-13.
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  42. "Colorado St. names Nevada's Norvell head coach". ESPN.com. 2021-12-06. Retrieved 2021-12-07.
  43. "Head Football Coach Bo Pelini". Youngstown State. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  44. "Mike Stoops hired as defensive coordinator at FAU | Kentucky Sports Radio". January 30, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  45. "University of Arizona hires Kevin Sumlin as head football coach". Arizona Sports. January 15, 2018. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  46. "Kevin Wilson - Football Coach". Indiana University Athletics. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  47. "Tulsa Introduces Ohio State Offensive Coordinator Kevin Wilson as Head Football Coach". Tulsa. Retrieved 2022-12-13.
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  49. "Josh Heupel". Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved February 4, 2021.
  50. "Jonathan Hayes Named XFL St. Louis Head Coach". www.xfl.com. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
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