BOB STOOPS

Any time you experience adversity, whether you lose a game or maybe have an official who makes a poor call that costs you the game, you've gotta handle yourself properly. Just like in life, not everything will go your way.

No matter how angry people on the outside were when you don't perform well, a coach is 10 times what anyone else is feeling. Nothing digs at you more. But that's part of our business.

If you're winning and can stay on the field offensively and move the ball, that's what we want.

Big 12 Championship is, to me, it's always your primary goal to start with because it's not easy to do.

Sometimes with these big long guys who are really athletic, you don't know when they're going to stop growing.

This game we play is the ultimate total team game. Quarterback by himself isn't winning it. You got 11-12 coaches, you've got a lot of people that have a hand in it.

I think proximity in recruiting matters the most.

I just love to play football and enjoy it.

They said 'the SEC this, the SEC that.' I said, 'You talk like all 14 teams are this, that and the other thing.' I said, 'You have to give credit to the first one or two that have won the national championship, but don't act like they're all doing that.'

I'm thankful that my career at Oklahoma was marked with consistent leadership in president David Boren and director of athletics Joe Castiglione.

Surely, AP or the coaches are all aware everybody has agendas. Anybody who's on TV has one. You know, that's viewership and ratings and those kinds of things.

Sometimes people want change just to change. It doesn't mean it's going to be better.

I'm big on that: In life, everything has its time.

I love college football. I love the game.

I think every league is good. Every league is pretty much the same: You got your top teams that are all very good, you got middle of the road teams that are really good and then you got your bottom of leagues that are all kind if fighting to get really good. I think it's pretty much the same across the board; I've said that for a long time.

Coaches around the country are influencing the next generation of men in a positive way.

I've always believed if a young guy has a chance to play, why would you explain where his weakness is? The only reason would be to help the other team, or to help a gambler.

You've got to put the work in every week. You can't take anything for granted.

Yeah, I've never tailgated.

I thought one of the best things I ever did in my career was getting my first staff together at OU... That's exciting to me. The opportunity to put it together and help it grow.

Every now and then a little bit of change never hurts.

Stepping down after 18 years as the head football coach here at Oklahoma, and I feel like I've absolutely been the luckiest, most fortunate guy in the world.

We could fill up a whole hour's television show talking about coach's recruiting stories, I love them, they're the best.

There has to be measures for players to know the consequences for their actions.

In the end, everybody's life's different. Some things fit certain ways for people, and it's right, and maybe it isn't for others.