Comment on How the 2010 Alamo Bowl prepared Lincoln Riley to be a head coach

How the 2010 Alamo Bowl prepared Lincoln Riley to be a head coach

By Brooke Pryor Staff Writer bpryor@oklahoman.comNORMAN — Ruffin McNeill has a favorite Lincoln Riley story. It's one he's repeated dozens of times in the last couple months since his mentee ascended to the Oklahoma head coach position. And it's one that foreshadowed Riley's ability to seamlessly handle a chaotic situation long before Bob Stoops' June decision that unexpectedly elevated his assistant to Oklahoma's head coach in mere minutes. Days before Texas Tech was slated to play Michigan State in the January 2010 Alamo Bowl, Red Raider head coach Mike Leach was suspended, creating an immediate vacancy at head coach and play-caller. McNeill, then the defensive coordinator, took over as interim head coach and immediately brought 26-year-old Riley out of the coaching box and onto the field as TTU's offensive coordinator and play-caller. It was to be a one-night-only event, a chance for each to audition for big-time positions and salvage a season that was overshadowed by Leach's suspension and ultimate firing. While Leach and ESPN commentator Craig James publicly fought over Leach's treatment of James' son Adam, Riley threw himself into the poring over game plans to avoid the chaos. “I'd been in the box for two years, I think, so it was a little bit different getting down on the field,” Riley said.Read more on NewsOK.com

 

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