Earlier in his career at Oklahoma, Bob Stoops was often referred to as “Big Game Bob.” A Big 12 championship in his second season (2000) that led to a national championship, owning Texas and beating in-state rival Oklahoma State got Stoops that moniker.

Then came the losses.

After years in the wilderness, OU had become a power again. However, the Sooners weren’t going to win every game. Nobody is invincible.

The Sooners remain a top 10 power and have won five of the last eight Big 12 championships, yet BCS bowl victories have suddenly become hard to come by.

The Sooners have lost their last three.

It started with the 2003 Sugar Bowl, When LSU edged the Sooners 21-14 in the national championship game.

Then came the nightmare of the 2005 Orange Bowl. OU finished the ’04 season unbeaten. So did USC. It was supposed to be a game for the ages. Instead, it was a laugher: USC 55, OU 19.

Stoops’ reputation as a big game coach took a hit.

Last season, also at the Fiesta Bowl, the Sooners came up short, falling 43-42 to mid-major darling Boise State after one of the craziest finishes in the history of the sport.

OU’s last BCS victory was a 34-14 whipping of Washington State at the 2003 Rose Bowl.

The third-ranked Sooners get another chance at 7 p.m. Wednesday when they face No. 11 West Virginia in the Feista Bowl

How did the program get here?

From best to worst, here’s a review of the Sooners’ BCS performances since Bob Stoops’ arrival.



Jan. 3, 2001

Oklahoma 13,

Florida State 2

This is the obvious choice for No. 1. In just his second season, Stoops brought OU back from the dead. OU went unbeaten, won its first Big 12 championship and its first conference title since 1987. Quarterback Josh Heupel was shattering Sooner passing records and was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, losing to Florida State’s Chris Weinke.

Still, OU was a 10 1/2-point underdog to the one-loss Seminoles in the Orange Bowl. But the Sooner defense was too tough, holding Florida St. to 301 total yards — 248 under its average. Weinke threw for 274 yards, but was picked off twice and fumbled once.

The Sooner offense did just enough in what remains Stoops’ signature victory.



Jan. 1, 2003

Oklahoma 34,

Washington State 14

OU lost out on a chance to play for a national title when Oklahoma State whipped the Sooners in Stillwater, but still won the Big 12 title by topping Colorado and earned a trip to the Rose Bowl to face Washington State.

The question going in was how OU would handle the Cougars’ passing game, but the Sooners were dominant, holding Jason Gesser to 239 yards passing with two interception and sacking him six times. OU quarterback Nate Hybl threw for 240 yards and two touchdowns without being picked off and was named MVP. Quentin Griffin rushed for 144 yards, ending his season with 1,884. The Sooners finished 12-2 and put together one of their best performances of the season.



Jan. 2, 2007

Boise State 43,

Oklahoma 42

Even though the Sooners lost, this was a great game.

It was a storybook season for OU. Returning starting quarterback Rhett Bomar was dismissed from the team weeks before the season began for being a ghost worker at a car dealership. Former quarterback-turned-wide receiver Paul Thompson went back behind center and into Sooner lore, guiding OU to the Big 12 championship and a trip to the Fiesta Bowl.

The undefeated Broncos took control early, led most of the game and prevailed in overtime, using three trick plays at the end to thwart OU’s comeback. Boise State’s win was an all-timer.



Jan. 4, 2004

LSU 21,

Oklahoma 14

Quarterback Jason White was the feel-good story of the 2003 season. He set OU passing records and won the Heisman Trophy while coming off back-to-back season-ending knee injuries.

OU had been crushed by Kansas State 35-7 at the Big 12 title game, but was still the No. 1 team in the BCS after the computers worked their magic, creating a controversial national-title game against Nick Saban’s LSU Tigers in the Sugar Bowl. The Sooners could have killed the controversy with a win, but struggled to move the ball. An injured White wasn’t his normally stellar self and LSU held off a late Sooner comeback to win its first national title since 1958.



Jan. 4, 2005

USC 55,

Oklahoma 19

If the 2001 Orange Bowl was a no-brainer for the top, this Orange Bowl is a no-brainer for the bottom.

This much-hyped, much-anticipated match-up between the nation’s top two teams was a rout before the half. USC was No. 1 all season and OU was No. 2, but Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart threw for 332 yards, leading a 552-yard offensive outing.



The Sooners are favored Wednesday, but they were last season against Boise State and against USC in 2005. No national title’s on the line, but it’s a high-profile bowl game and the only game Wednesday night.

Maybe the next time OU’s BCS tilts are charted, so the Sooner Nation hopes, it will belong in the top half.

Scott Moore

366-3535

sports@normantranscript.com