OU mailbag: Who will replace Joe Castiglione when he retires?

Every week, SoonerScoop.com and On3’s George Stoia will be answering your questions in his weekly OU mailbag. This week, Stoia answers questions about who will replace athletics director Joe Castiglione, Porter Moser’s future at OU and who is standing out in winter workouts.

Below are Stoia’s answers for Monday, Feb. 5.

How big of a role does JP Losman now play with the QBs with the new OCs?

He definitely will help out and has been the last few years. But Losman doesn’t just help with quarterbacks. He has helped the staff in a lot of areas, including being an integral part of recruiting. It will certainly help though having someone with his experience helping with the quarterbacks since Seth Littrell has never coached quarterbacks. Can’t hurt, right? 

What is the status of Troy Everett’s injury and will he participate in Spring practices?

It’s a lower leg injury — I think ankle, but I’m not totally sure. I’d bet right now that he’s limited in spring practice and doesn’t play in the spring game. Kind of like Walter Rouse a year ago. He will participate in some capacity, but no need to rush him back, especially considering the lack of depth they already have.  

How big of a baseball prospect is Taylor Tatum? Would he rank amongst current commits? Same for James Nesta.

This is an Eddie question. He told me he expects both to be eventually drafted, but not out of high school. And he thinks both could end up being multi-year starters. I know Nesta has already impressed the coaching staff and I bet he’s in the rotation in the next couple of years. Tatum’s potential is higher and could be a starter next year in the outfield. 

But the one to watch is 2025 target linebacker Jonah Williams. Apparently, he is quite the prospect and could be drafted out of high school. 

Do we have an understanding as to how the revenues from playoff games are going to be distributed for the 5-8 seeds home games?

Those numbers have not been released yet. But I know last year, conferences were paid $6 million for each team that made the semifinals. I’d assume that it would be around that same number for the 5-8 seeds, considering the CFP is about to make a lot more money thanks to the expansion. I’d guess it will be between $4-6 million per team. 

Prior to expansion, conferences were paid approximately $103 million per year. With the expansion, that number is expected to increase to $323m per year. 

If we move to a 9-game SEC schedule, can you even envision us playing anyone above the Houston/SMU level?

The SEC currently has a rule that every school has to play at least one Power Five opponent in non-conference. I don’t expect that to go away. OU also already has dates set with Michigan, Nebraska and Clemson. They pride themselves on scheduling good non-conference opponents. I don’t anticipate that changing. Obviously, Houston and SMU are not the biggest powerhouses in the Power Five, but they were the only ones available for those dates. 

OU is playing three of the biggest portal spenders next year. Would an 0-3 mark vs. Mizzou, Tennessee and Ole Miss prompt the program to reassess its approach?

I think not only would OU have to take a look at its approach, a lot of other schools would also need to. If Ole Miss makes the playoff next year and legitimately has a shot at winning a national title, I think you’ll see a lot of schools change their approach. But if OU goes 0-3 in all of those games, they have a lot bigger issues than just their NIL approach. 

Who is coming for a job and standing out in winter workouts?

Every player looks great in the weight room right now… Jokes aside, the one name I think we’ve all heard is Lewis Carter. I’ve also heard Logan Howland’s name several times. Danny Okoye is the freshman that we consistently hear a lot. Other than that, it’s a lot of the same — “(insert player’s name) looks great in workouts.”

How many more seasons is Porter Moser the coach of men’s basketball? Will he be coaching at OU next year? If so, how much longer before Joe C. makes a change?

As of right now, I expect Moser to be back next season. They’re still on track to make the NCAA Tournament and unless that changes, I’d anticipate him having at least two more years. Things should be a little easier in the SEC. But if they stumble down the stretch here and don’t make the tournament, who knows what they will decide to do. I still think Moser would probably be back just because you don’t want to enter the SEC with a brand new coach, but you also don’t want to fire a coach one year into the SEC. 

It’s a difficult situation. But I still believe in Moser. His team is better this year than last year and if they make the tournament, it would be a big step in the right direction for the program. 

Who replaces Joe Castiglione as AD when the time comes?

Zac Selmon is the obvious choice. He would have more SEC experience than Castiglione and knows the university as well as anyone. He’s also close friends with President Joe Harroz. Unless things go horribly wrong at Mississippi State in the next few years, I expect him to be the first call for Oklahoma to replace Castiglione when he retires. 

Will Andrel Anthony simply hit the portal in the spring window?

I have not heard anything about Anthony transferring. He’s still recovering from his ACL injury and I anticipate him being limited during spring ball. I’d be surprised if he portaled. 

Any further clue on the baseball renovation timeline? Status update on the Norman/basketball arena situation?

I believe the plan is to start on the outside renovation immediately following this season. The hope is to have it all done before the 2025 SEC season. As for the basketball renovation, there should be a meeting this month and hopefully, a city council vote to approve it before the summer. But we all know how those things work. 

What in the world happened to Michael Tarquin in 2023? By all accounts, he was a good LT for Florida in 2022 according to both PFF and a lot of his tape, then just fell off a cliff.

I can’t say I’ve watched a lot of Tarquin’s tape at USC. But I know he had a bit of a nagging leg injury that didn’t help. I also do think there’s something to be said about the training program at USC, as we all know. I’m also convinced he should be playing guard, not tackle for OU. He doesn’t have the best footwork, which is not a great recipe at left tackle. I think he will be a utility player for the Sooners. 

What are we hearing about Samuel Franklin? With Gavin Sawchuck‘s injury history going to need a No. 2 that can go.

DeMarco Murray really likes Franklin. I think his role will largely depend on two things: Jovantae Barnes’ health and how good Taylor Tatum is. Franklin is a good player, but I think right now, his ceiling isn’t as high as those other two. He’s an insurance piece, which you absolutely need. And maybe I’ll be wrong and he’ll be a superstar, but I think Barnes or Tatum will end up being RB2 behind Sawchuk. 

With Jeff Hafley leaving BC for a DC job in the NFL and his comments on the way out do you think we’ll see more coaches take lesser roles in the NFL to avoid the NIL and fundraising that coaching has turned into?

Hafley is an interesting case because he did spend seven years in the NFL as an assistant from 2012-18. So I think he always wanted to get back to the NFL at some point. But I do think you will see some coaches jump to the NFL. The college game has increasingly become harder, especially recruiting. I think that somewhat played into Nick Saban’s retirement. But I don’t think it will be a mass exodus. There are still a lot of coaches who prefer to coach younger players and not to mention the money is often better for assistants at big schools than with NFL teams. 

Could you see Bill Bedenbaugh taking an NFL OL job? I could see him getting frustrated with the current NIL/Recruiting situation and just wanting to coach ball somewhere. 

I understand the thought, but no, I don’t see it. And I think he loves the college game and the players. I also think the recent developments in NIL and the portal have opened his eyes. And I think he loves the college game so much that will start to embrace the change. 

From what you guys have seen so far, what are the keys to a good collective for OU, P5s outside the bluebloods, and G5 schools? How can those second two keep up?

Well, the first thing is having boosters who will donate any amount of money to help the team win. I think the second is a head coach and athletic department that wants to work with the collective. And third, is promoting the collective — that’s especially huge for the non-bluebloods and G5 schools. Ole Miss has had tremendous success because they have all three. I think OU originally struggled with the second point, but have since approved. And now need to be better at No. 3. As for the how non-bluebloods and G5 schools keep up, the reality is a lot of them will not keep up. 

Will the 2025 class be better than this pretty good 2024 class in your opinion and why?

I think the 2025 class will end up producing more quality than the 2024 class. And it could end up ranked higher than 2024, despite taking less players. The 2025 class is loaded with in certain spots, like receiver and offensive line. It also helps the in-state class is going to be the best its been in maybe 20 years. OU is also already off to a great start. It has top 5 potential. 

I was really high on Jayden Rowe and thought he could be special with some development. Is he one if the guys who may hit the portal after spring or will he make some noise in 2024?

I haven’t heard anything about Rowe wanting to transfer, but it wouldn’t surprise me if he got in the portal. He’s faced several obstacles. The first being that he hasn’t been healthy. And the second being he’s played multiple positions. Is he a corner? A safety? Cheetah? I think he can play a role somewhere, but he needes to stay at one spot and stay healthy. He’s certainly falling behind and with the depth in the secondary, it might be hard for him to see the field. 

Where is OU Mens BBall seeded in the tournament? How deep do they go? How hot is Moser seat going into next season?

I’m guessing they end up a seven-seed and win one game before getting bounced in the tourney. If they lose both games this week, I’m changing my prediction to missing the tournament. I don’t think Moser’s seat is hot if OU makes the tourney. If they somehow miss it, it’s pretty hot.