The Oklahoma Sooners made a big mistake.
They made waves last summer alongside fellow Big 12 alpha, Texas, when they shocked college football with the news they were making the move to the SEC. The move east will net them a substantial sum of money on an annual basis, but then the Sooners received some shocking news of their own when head coach Lincoln Riley announced he got on the plane heading the opposite direction. Aaron Torres from Fox Sports Radio joined College Football Gametime to discuss the move.
"When you start lining up Oklahoma with the jobs in the SEC, what are they fourth, fifth, sixth?" Aaron Torres said. "It was the wrong tactical move for Oklahoma!"
The Sooners were in a perfect spot in the Big 12. Before this season, Oklahoma had won four straight conference title games and most with relative ease. In fact they have played in won more of those titles than anyone else in that conference had even played in. The program, while not having emerged from the semi-final, had a clear-cut path to the College Football Playoff on an annual basis.
"This was a 'down year' for Oklahoma and they went 10-2 and were a play or two away from playing in the Big 12 Championship and potentially going to another College Football Playoff," Torres said. "I don't care how much more money you're making I never thought it was the right move."
They were the big fish of the conference, but now their pond just got a lot bigger.
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Lincoln Riley saw the writing on the wall. What happens when your top competition coming from Oklahoma State and Baylor turns into Alabama and Georgia? Torres stopped just short of comparing this move to that of West Virginia, one of the hottest Group of 5 program in college football before their move to the Big 12 rendered them an afterthought of sorts, but the potential is certainly there. Winning in the SEC is very hard and Riley knows this. It's why he got out when he could.