NORMAN – There was an energetic atmosphere on the OU campus Friday morning.
Large semi-trailers lined the streets. The South Oval was transformed into a construction site where ESPN’s “College GameDay” set was being filmed. Campus Corner was bustling with activity. Pat McAfee roared by on the back of a golf cart on his way to filming his show at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.
ESPN’s Steve Coughlin, better known as “Stanford Steve,” and “College GameDay” host Rece Davis took some time to discuss the various storylines surrounding No. 13 OU vs. No. 7 Tennessee.
Here is an excerpt from their statements:
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ESPN “College GameDay” host Rece Davis
On Josh Heupel’s return to Norman:
“After my conversation with him on Tuesday, he’ll be fine putting it aside. Because as you probably know, Josh (Heupel) is not the most effusive, publicly thoughtful guy. He keeps a lot of it to himself, but he’s human and this has to be extraordinarily meaningful to him, not only because of what he accomplished here, but because of how it ended here. And he wouldn’t be human if he didn’t want to come back and turn it up a little bit.”
How he thinks OU fans will react to Josh Heupel:
“I don’t know the answer to that. I hope like Brent said this week, they give him a really warm welcome. They should. I mean, look, man, they’ve won Heisman trophies, they’ve made playoffs. They haven’t won at all except when No. 14 was there. This is a new era for Oklahoma, the undisputed highlight of the previous era was those Big 12 championships, which are great. All those College Football Playoff appearances are great. They haven’t won at all except when he was there. So I think they should welcome him back with open arms and show great appreciation for what he’s done. And then they can yell at him as soon as kickoff starts, then he’s like any other opposing coach. But when he gets on the field, I hope he gets a huge round of applause and a standing ovation because he deserves it.”
On his expectations of the atmosphere:
“They’re going to be really pumped up. I think when you have the tradition of Oklahoma, the fan base is always good. But there’s also the ‘Hey, we’re Oklahoma, entertain me. Cover the spread, win the game, score a lot of points.’ I think the novelty will give them a little energy boost. I think it’s going to be loud. I think it’s going to be intense. And hey, you remember when Oklahoma beat Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, and (Bob Stoops) talked about it for a really, really, really, really long time, so I’m sure Oklahoma fans would enjoy being able to talk about the SEC thing a little bit.”
About Brent Venables:
“Great. The biggest surprise I’ve had about Brent Venables in his entire career is that he’s just now a head coach. That’s a true story. I covered their national championship game when he was basically a position coach. I had a chance to talk to him a couple nights before the game. I got up from the meeting. That was in 2000. This guy is going to be a head coach. And that’s the only surprise that surprises me about Brent: that he waited so long and had opportunities but waited so long to find the right spot. I have extraordinary confidence in him. I think he’s a great leader. I think he has great vision. I think he demands excellence. And look, there’s always a little bit of a learning curve, growing pains or whatever. He’s going to get there. If there’s anybody whose confidence in Brent Venables is wavering, I think that’s wrong. I think he’s a really, really good coach.”
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“Stanford Steve” Coughlin
On the line from 7.5 to 6.5:
“It’s crazy. I mean, gamblers who bet know, given how much money was put on Tennessee and the fact that the line hasn’t moved all week and now it’s finally moving. I think that shows there’s confidence in Oklahoma, which again is a scary thing. In college football, you don’t know what you’re going to get from week to week, especially playing on the road for the first time. And that’s in a place like Memorial Stadium, there’s a lot of intangibles and that’s why I think there’s confidence in Oklahoma. I think Oklahoma’s defense is going to play phenomenally. I really think knowing how versatile they are, how talented they are, the coaches they have and the crowd that’s going to be behind them, I think that’s the right matchup.”
