Oklahoma football: Bob Stoops taking over as interim coach with Lincoln Riley leaving

Oklahoma football was stunned by Lincoln Riley leaving for USC. Who could step in as the interim head coach for the bowl? A former player says Bob Stoops.

Just when it looked like Oklahoma staved off an attempt by LSU to poach Lincoln Riley, USC swooped in and grabbed the Sooners head coach instead.

Now Oklahoma is left with the unexpected task of finding a new head coach. First, they need to name an interim to see them through the bowl game.

Could they make a splash by turning to a familiar name? Dusty Dvoracek of ESPN Radio expected Bob Stoops to take over as the interim.

Bob Stoops is a possible choice for Oklahoma interim head coach

Dvoracek played under Stoops at Oklahoma, so he might have a good read on the situation. However, his tweet plays more like speculation than knowledge at this point.

There is some smoke to that fire.

Jason Kersey of The Athletic later confirmed that Stoops would be the interim coach and that the longtime Sooners head coach was in the meeting when players were informed of Riley’s departure.

Stoops has been the subject of coaching rumors this year, including being linked to the USC job. He’s spent the fall actively cheering for OU on the set of FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff and if any job would coax him away from the broadcasting booth it might be the Sooners one.

If Stoops does come in as interim, there will be plenty of calls for him to get the full-time gig again.

No matter what, this should be a wild ride for the Sooners over the coming weeks.

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