SoonerScoop.com broke the news this morning that Calvin Thibodeaux will replace departed defensive line coach Diron Reynolds on Oklahoma’s staff.
After spending the last four seasons at Tulsa and Kansas, Thibodeaux doesn’t have the sexiest coaching pedigree. The news probably won’t sit well with Sooner fans hoping for splashier hires such as Michigan State’s Ron Burton or Mississippi State’s David Turner, who accepted the open gig at Texas A&M this morning.
On the other hand, Thibodeaux does offer youth for the coaching staff and a connection to the program as a former player who worked his way up the coaching ranks to land a spot at his alma mater. He also has experience on the recruiting trail in Texas and Oklahoma, so Bob Stoops must expect that he can do some damage when backed by the OU brand. (My guess is that his salary also fits in line with what athletic director Joe Castiglione thinks is appropriate for position coaches; you probably couldn’t say that for Turner.)
Kansas ran funky stuff on defense last season, including some 2-4-5 and 3-3-5. In the near term, Thibodeaux’s coaching responsibilities will presumably end up directed toward technique rather than scheme. Honestly, whether or not his background from a teaching standpoint meshes with what Mike Stoops has been doing on defense lately isn’t entirely clear to me. One would hope Mike and Bob feel comfortable with what Thibodeaux brings to the table, though.
All in all, this strikes me as a very solid hire, albeit not necessarily one that will generate a ton of headlines. Bob has hit his recent hires out of the park, however, so Sooner Nation can take comfort in that.
-Allen Kenney