Lincoln Riley says Sooners have "improved a lot as a football team" since Oct. 3 loss to Iowa State
As he addressed the media in his weekly Tuesday presser, Lincoln Riley reminisced on the unprecedented turmoil of the year 2020.
"The fact that we've been able to play [a season]," said Riley, "is pretty remarkable."
Four months ago, the 2020 college football season was in serious jeopardy. Yet today, after all the chaos of a season played amidst a pandemic, Riley and the Sooners are in a strikingly familiar spot. On Saturday, they'll defend their Big 12 crown once again, this time against a resilient and hungry Iowa State team.
“Great spot to be in," Riley said of the Sooners' fourth straight Big 12 championship appearance. "We know, obviously, the challenge lying in front of us. A lot of really tremendous players, a lot of future NFL players on this [Iowa State] roster right now.”
The Cyclones, currently No. 7 in the CFP rankings and likely to rise on Tuesday night, aren't about to back down from that challenge. They have the likely Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year in Jaquan Bailey, a stable and experienced quarterback in Brock Purdy, and one of the country's premier running backs in Breece Hall. Nevertheless, Riley maintains firm belief in his game plan heading into Saturday's matchup.
“We’ve, I think, prepared well. It’s certainly been different," he acknowledged. "I think our guys have done a really good job, and I know we’re certainly excited to head down to Arlington and play this game.”
For the first time in program history, Iowa State will play for a Big 12 championship, and to say this moment is a long time coming for Matt Campbell's program is a colossal understatement. Astonishingly, the Cyclones haven't won a conference championship since 1912.
However, with a win on Saturday, ISU can also achieve another first: no team has ever beaten Oklahoma twice in the same season. The Cyclones topped the Sooners 37-30 in Ames on Oct. 3, a contest that Riley says his team isn't putting too much stock into.
“We’ve improved a lot as a football team,” said Riley. “I think we’ve improved as a unit. We’re being very careful about trying to tie too much back to that first game, positive or negative. That’s a long time ago.”
Indeed, the Sooners are a different team today than they were at the beginning of October, and that isn't just due to the presence of Rhamondre Stevenson and Ronnie Perkins. The improved depth, confidence and unity within the Oklahoma locker room has galvanized a championship-caliber unit.
“I’m confident in our guys," Riley emphasized. "We’ve improved across the board. Our secondary’s improved, and we’ll get a great chance to prove it here.”
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