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5 reasons Lincoln Riley is the perfect coach for Oklahoma Sooners

By Akash Anavarathan

Nov 28, 2015; Stillwater, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley watches a replay during the second half against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at Boone Pickens Stadium. Oklahoma won 58-23. Mandatory Credit: Rob Ferguson-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 28, 2015; Stillwater, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley watches a replay during the second half against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at Boone Pickens Stadium. Oklahoma won 58-23. Mandatory Credit: Rob Ferguson-USA TODAY Sports /
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After Bob Stoops announced his retirement from Oklahoma, it was also announced that Lincoln Riley would take his job. Here are five reasons why he’s perfect for it.

Don’t start on the “Chip Kelly to Oklahoma” rumors. It seems that Oklahoma’s offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley will take over as the head coach after Bob Stoops’ retirement.

After 18 seasons, 10 conference titles and a National Championship at Oklahoma, Bob Stoops will retire from his duties. It seems as if Stoops is stepping down because he wants to go and “live life” after coaching football for all these years.

So who’s taking over one of the most prestigious college football coaching jobs in the country? The offensive signal caller for the Sooners for the past two seasons will now step into the head role.

Riley, 33, was a quarterback for the Texas Tech Red Raiders in 2002 as a walk-on, behind Kliff Kingsbury. He moved on from that role to become a graduate assistant and wide receivers coach. His first role as offensive coordinator came in East Carolina between 2010-14.

The new Sooners’ head coach was hired by Stoops in 2015 to run the offense, where he’s done a spectacular job. With the surprising retirement of Stoops, — to the fans, at least — here are five reasons why Riley is the perfect man for the job in Norman.

5. Continuity is key for a College Football Playoff contender

Oklahoma was seventh in the CFB rankings last year, finishing the season 10-2 and just outside of the playoff. The previous season, Oklahoma finished 11-1 and found themselves in the top four.

The Sooners will be knocking on the door again this upcoming season, so why completely blow up a good situation and bring in a new head coach? In college football, when there’s a changing of the guard, it usually means that a rebuild for the program will ensue.

In this case, there’s no need for a rebuild. Oklahoma will return QB Baker Mayfield and a lot of other defensive stars. With Stoops stepping down, the Sooners should try and win this group while maintaining as much continuity as possible.

It’ll be difficult for Mayfield and the offense to learn a new scheme under a different coach. So the best thing for the team moving forward is just to maintain the continuity and chemistry of the offense under Riley.

Riley will have more responsibility than last year and it’s still unknown if he will keep the same staff, but the smartest thing for Oklahoma to do is to run with the same crew for the future. Oklahoma is knocking on the door of the CFB Playoff, so there’s absolutely no reason to blow it up now. “Next man up” mentality with Lincoln Riley and let’s keep chugging along.

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