What Lincoln Riley’s contract extension means for Sooners

The Oklahoma Sooners and head football coach Lincoln Riley agreed on a new contract extension last year, including a two-year deal that will retain his services through 2025, per The Athletic.

It is no secret that Riley is a heavily sought after commodity for his success with the headset at Oklahoma. Over the past three seasons at OU as head coach, he has compiled an overall record of 45-8 and has led the Sooners to a Big 12 title every year since he took over the program. The Crimson and Cream’s explosive offense has helped both Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray win the Heisman Trophy and move on to becoming the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft. Jalen Hurts finished second in Heisman voting and became a second-round draft pick.

The offensive guru maximizes the strength of each man under center with a quarterback-friendly system in his spread attack in Norman. With a play-action, RPO, and screen-centric offense, Oklahoma has remained atop the Big 12 hierarchy and across the nation. He is an offensive mastermind and to no surprise the NFL has come knocking.

His new extension reportedly came in February 2020 after he turned down the opportunity to coach at the NFL level. Riley’s name was linked to the Dallas Cowboys after the club parted ways with Jason Garrett. Owner and general manager Jerry Jones had expressed being “impressed” with OU’s coach and the narrative began. However, many teams reportedly vied for his innovation.

Riley ended up staying with Oklahoma and has openly vocalized his desire to stay at the college ranks. Coaching in the NFL does not seem to be on his wish list and for the foreseeable future, it won’t be. That is imperative to Oklahoma’s success moving forward. Spencer Rattler is the first quarterback fully developed under Riley and the team is poised for a national championship in 2021.