Bob Stoops to serve as Oklahoma's interim coach for bowl game after Lincoln Riley departs
Lincoln Riley was Bob Stoops' successor at Oklahoma
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Bob Stoops will coach the Oklahoma football team for its final game of 2021 after Lincoln Riley decided to bolt the school to take over at USC.
Oklahoma finished the regular season with a 10-2 record after losing to Baylor and Oklahoma State in its final three games. Riley made the shocking move to jump to USC hours after losing the Bedlam rivalry game against the Cowboys.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Head coach Lincoln Riley of the Oklahoma Sooners talks to players during warmups before taking on the Kansas Jayhawks at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium Oct. 23, 2021 in Lawrence, Kan. (Kyle Rivas/Getty Images)
The Sooners named Bob Stoops the interim head coach for the final contest, a bowl game. It’s unclear which bowl game Oklahoma will play in.
"First and foremost, I’m a program guy, and whatever I can do to help OU and to support the players, of course I’m glad to do it. I’ll do everything I can to help them finish the season in a strong and successful way and I look forward to that," Stoops said in a statement.
Head Coach Bob Stoops of the Oklahoma Sooners poses for pictures with the team after a game against the Oklahoma State Cowboys Dec. 3, 2016 at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Okla. (Brett Deering/Getty Images)
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Stoops was Oklahoma’s head coach when the team won the 2000 national championship. He retired from coaching in 2017, which allowed Riley to take over.
Head coach Bob Stoops of the Oklahoma Sooners looks on against the Auburn Tigers during the Allstate Sugar Bowl at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome Jan. 2, 2017 in New Orleans. (Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)
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Stoops, 61, was 190-48 overall as a head coach. He led Oklahoma to a bowl game in each of his seasons as head coach. He was 9-9 in bowl games.