Oklahoma where the wind comes sweeping down the plains

[BigIslandSooner]

Since we have some time before the next meaningful football game, I thought I would ask a question that occurred to me during the TCU game. I preface my question(s) by typing, I started following OU in 1970, so my Sooner fandom was fed a heavy does of wishbone.

Aside from generations of Running Back talent, I remember one of the reasons OU ran the ball so much was because the winds sweeping down the plains made passing difficult. That was until Bob showed up with a pirate in his headset and began throwing the ball all over the lot.

My question(s) is what happened? Is it less windy? Is the ball a different shape? Why is passing now possible where before it wasn't? I know Barry planned to throw more with Aikman, but that didn't last and the wishbone returned OU to previous glory.

I could think of no better place to ask this question.

[SoonerGirl1201]

To be honest I don't think the wishbone had anything do with the wind in Oklahoma. I think OU - especially under Barry - implemented the wishbone and had tremendous success and then recruited into each year. In 85 with Aikman the goal I think was to move the offense to more of a west coast/pass offense at that time, but Aikman's injury quickly reverted the offense back to wishbone under Hollieway. Then, when all the sanctions hits and recruiting took a huge hit, I think Gary Gibbs did his best with the players he could get and started going to more of a west coast offense under Cale Gundy. After the debacles of Schnellenberger and Blake, we thankfully landed with Stoops who brought in Leach's air raid. Since then Bob always kept some form of the air raid and Lincoln continued it and you know the rest.

Having lived here my whole live and being an OU fan since the early 80s, I never heard that the wind played any role whatsover in the offensive identity. I think it was more that Switzer knew how to coach it and recruit great players for it - and we had tons of success with it so it stuck.

[inconnu]

I never heard nor read about the wind being much of a factor in coaching the Sooners. I was from 4-12 years old when Bud Wilkinson's teams were at their apex(1949-1957), and Bud's teams weren't very big in passing, although I remember they did pass a fair amount. Seems to me the shape of the stadium blocks a lot of the wind from sweeping down the plain of Owen Field, anyway.

[waddy's ghost]

Bud and Barry both ran the ball on offense almost to the exclusion of the pass but this had nothing to do with wind . They were both old school coacues who believed in the team that ran the ball and controlled the clock would win . In fact as little as Barry threw it ,Bud threw it less .

.Barry in fact had a saying that 3 things could happen when passing and two of them were bad .Never really understood the fear of turning the ball over through the air yet running a turnover prone Wishbone offense .The numbers don"t add up . Barry's teams averaged almost exactly 3 turnovers a game while spurning the pass while Bob's teams averaged 1.89 giveaways throwing the ball all over the yard .

[SwampSooner]

I believe that the wind had nothing to do with not passing. The wishbone is a very intricate offense requiring a lot of practice time to get the timing down on the pitch plays. That didn't leave much time to practice passing plays and it showed during the games.

There was one play ingrained in my memory. We were playing Missouri in Norman and I believe Cale Gundy was QB. Cale rolled out and threw the ball to the TE. Unfortunately, the TE was so used to blocking that he never turn around for the ball and the pass hit him on the helmet.

[TropicalSooner]

We only had one receiver back in those days---Tinker Owens.
There were a few times back in the wishbone days when we would launch one his direction and there wasn't anyone around him for 20 yards....

[Oklahombre]

Don't tou mean "The winds come sweeping down the RANGE"?

[inconnu]

We only had one receiver back in those days---Tinker Owens.
There were a few times back in the wishbone days when we would launch one his direction and there wasn't anyone around him for 20 yards....

Billy Brooks, too.

[BigIslandSooner]

Don't tou mean "The winds come sweeping down the RANGE"?

I might. My family left Tulsa in 1966 for Southern California and I never moved back. And as the musical goes, I am more of an R&B guy.

[OUBeliever56A]

I guess I thought the reason that OU moved away from the wishbone was two-fold.

One was that, I forget the year, when OU played Miami in Miami (it might have been the Orange Bowl) that a very good Miami team just stuff the wishbone back in the backfield for 4 quarters. Their size and quickness just prevented OU from getting the the corner and the power aspects of the wishbone was stuffed by the Miami front 7/8. I seem to remember the phrase that the players and their speed simply overwhelmed the wishbone principals.

The second was the Marcus DuPree experiment. He was a great recruit and OU wanted or needed to get the ball in DuPree's hands every chance they could. The triple option basically could not guarantee that DuPree would touch the ball 30+ times a game. Well the experiment with Dupree and the I-formation worked well for a while. In the Fiesta Bowl this freshman year, Dupree ran wild while being out of shape and overweight. The Fiesta Bowl WAS the Marcus DuPree Show for the good and the bad.

But DuPree faded too quickly for the Sooners and we were not in the I-formation very long either.

[TALSOONER]

When the stadium was an open U, it mattered a few times. With the 360 enclosure, not so much....Now when its raining/snowing, you better have a ground game, unless your under a dome.....