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No. 7 Oklahoma

Everyone knows the Oklahoma Sooners are from Norman. God knows, this year, they don’t do business in Dodge City. Whoa,…

Everyone knows the Oklahoma Sooners are from Norman.

God knows, this year, they don’t do business in Dodge City.

Whoa, look at what they’re busting right out of the barn: Houston, UL Monroe, Ohio State, Texas Christian, Texas, Kansas State.

Their schedule maker sounds more like a widow maker. [membership level="0"] The rest of this article is available to subscribers only - to become a subscriber click here[/membership] [membership]

This is no way for “Big Game” Bob Stoops to win his second national title 16 seasons after he won his first in 2000.

“It’s what college football fans from all around the country want to see,” Stoops said at Big 12 media day through clenched teeth as he mumbled something about strawberries while staring daggers at athletic director Joe Castiglione. “I know it’s what our fans want to see, as long as you win.”

Case in point: Oklahoma fans were overjoyed when their Sooners made it to last year’s College Football Playoff, then not so much after getting tire-ironed by Clemson.

Yet, the Stoops’ troops are back to give it another Boomer Sooner go. They are an interesting bunch, led by a headstrong quarterback, Baker Mayfield, who seems to have an enemies list longer than the one Al Davis kept at his bedside.

Mayfield has a chip on his shoulder bigger than anything Bevo has put down and seems to think the world is out to get him.

He’s still miffed over being a star quarterback from Texas, via Lake Travis, yet having to walk-on at Texas Tech. He transferred to Oklahoma, sat out a year, and then proved last year the people—and he knows where all you live—who underestimated him were as wrong as eating fish tacos with mustard.

Mayfield is the kind of quarterback you can’t stand unless, maybe, he’s in your huddle. To some he’s a whiny, petulant, child of privilege who had grapes fed to him while being fanned. For more on this check out Tim Keon’s excellent ESPN profile on the punk (some say) who could also lead Oklahoma back to the playoffs.

Getting through Houston and Ohio State will be a chore, but one’s a neutral site and the other is at home. Oklahoma should benefit from a Big 12 weakened by the collapse of Baylor and continued struggles of Texas.

If everything goes right, the season should come down to another epic, back-end Bedlam face-off against Oklahoma State.

The loser of that may have to get out of Dodge.

Rankman's countdown so far:No. 16 Boise State, No. 15 Washington,No. 14USCNo. 13UCLA, No. 12Stanford, No. 11 Oregon, No. 10 Ohio State, No. 9 Michigan State, No. 8 Tennessee [/membership]