ShareThisBefore Kevin Wilson called his first play as Oklahoma's offensive coordinator in 2006, he faced immediate crisis.
A month before the season opener, Wilson's starting quarterback (Rhett Bomar) was booted off the team, forcing him to move a wide receiver (Paul Thompson) to the position. Later, midway through the same season, his superstar running back (Adrian Peterson) went down with a broken collarbone.
But neither of those obstacles, nor having to start a freshman quarterback (Sam Bradford) the following season, have impeded Wilson.
In fact, coach Bob Stoops recently pointed out, Wilson's ability to adapt is a big reason why the Sooners have averaged more points (41.2 per game) than any other team since Wilson began calling plays three years ago.
"Kevin has been so smart in adapting to our personnel," said Stoops, who along with athletic director Joe Castiglione rewarded Wilson with a 35-percent raise last month to increase his annual salary to $385,000 and make him one of the highest-paid assistants in the Big 12. "Kevin has so much experience in so many different ways of moving an offense, and he understands it."
Instead of molding players to fit his scheme, Wilson has been successful in molding his scheme to fit around the strength of his players.
In 2006, with Peterson in the backfield, Wilson employed a run-heavy attack while also utilizing quarterback Thompson's athleticism by getting him out of the pocket on play-action rollouts.
That year, despite moving Thompson from receiver to quarterback to compensate for the preseason removal of Bomar, and losing Peterson for half the season due to injury, the Sooners still ranked No. 20 in the nation in scoring and won the Big 12 title.
In 2007, with record-setting freshman Bradford under center, Wilson transformed his offense into a drop-back, spread attack that capitalized on Bradford's strengths and all of Oklahoma's weapons at the other skill positions.
That year, the Sooners were fifth nationally in scoring and won another Big 12 title.
Finally in 2008, with a host of talent and experience back at every position, Wilson coordinated one of the most prolific offenses ever, as Oklahoma became the first team in college football history to boast a 4,000-yard passer, 1,000-yard receiver and pair of 1,000-yard rushers.
The Sooners also led the nation in scoring and became the first team in the sport's modern era to put up 60 or more points in five straight games as Oklahoma made it all the way to the national title game before falling to Florida, 24-14.
Said Stoops, "In the end, he has adapted to our personnel as well as you could do it."
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
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