The Oklahoma Sooners have won eight Big 12 titles in Bob Stoops’ 14-year tenure in Norman. Three of those championship seasons included wins in tough road trips to College Station, Texas, home of the Texas A&M Aggies. On any given Saturday in the fall, Kyle Field is one of the loudest stadiums anywhere. A&M's vociferous, towel-waving fans have earned the reputation of “The 12th Man.”

The Sooners had climbed atop the college football summit in 2000 with an 8-0 record after defeating top-ranked teams in Texas, Kansas State and Nebraska. The Sooners rolled into College Station that November to meet the No. 23 Aggies (7-2). OU had never won at Kyle Field in five previous trips.

The Aggies carried a 24-13 lead into the fourth quarter. Quentin Griffn scored on a 21-yard run on the first play of the final period after All-American safety J.T. Thatcher intercepted an A&M pass. Quarterback Josh Heupel fired a two-point pass to Matt Anderson to close the gap to 24-21. The Aggies, however, moved quickly down the field for a 31-21 lead. Fullback Ja’Mar Toombs lumbered 27 yards for the score, dragging three Sooners on his 275-pound frame.

What did we think/hope would happen?

Senior defensive tackles Jamarkus McFarland, Casey Walker and Stacey McGee would finally play up to their potential and give Oklahoma consistency up front on defense. OU would be able to work young DTs Jordan Phillips, Marquis Anderson, and Torrea Peterson into the rotation to get them ready for 2013.

Landry Jones is bringing a 3-0 bowl game record as Oklahoma's starting quarterback to the fight against Texas A&M at the Cotton Bowl on January 4. In those three bowl games combined, Jones completed 80 of 125 pass attempts (64 percent) for 1,008 yards with 7 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. That computes to a passer rating of 145.4.

Texas A&M’s defense is about on par with the other defenses that the Sooners played in each of those three bowl games. Below is a comparison of defensive statistics prior to meeting OU in a bowl game.

Defenses faced by Oklahoma in bowls (2009-12)

What did we think/hope would happen?

It looked like in early August that OU finally had quality OL depth that would go ten deep allowing OU to keep their OL fresh.

Starting tackles would be Darryl Wlliams and Lane Johnson with Tyrus Thompson providing depth. Starting guards would be Tyler Evans and Gabe Ikard with Bronson Irwin, Adam Shead and Nila Kasitati providing depth. Starting center would be Ben Habern with Ikard as the primary backup Derek Farniok would get some reps at tackle during blowout time. Freshman center Ty Darlington would redshirt.

What did we think/hope would happen?

There was no position that had more uncertainty for Oklahoma than receiver in the preseason. Kenny Stills was the only returning contributor. The roster was in flux: Courtney Gardner turned out to be ineligible; Jaz Reynolds and Trey Franks were still suspended; and transfer Jalen Saunders from Fresno State was going to have to sit out a year.

Justin Brown transferred in from Penn State and immediately seized a starting spot. The Sooners also had a young trio of Trey Metoyer, Sterling Shepard and Durron Neal hoping to crack the rotation. Metoyer had a big spring and August camp, and he looked like a star in the making.

“If ifs and buts were candy and nuts, wouldn’t it be a Merry Christmas?”

I remember Don Meredith making that quote on Monday Night Football years ago when explaining how the outcome of a football game might have been had certain plays been made. The same quote pertains to the 2012 Oklahoma Sooners, as a handful of plays could have produced an undefeated season and a bid to the BCS Championship.

Some may ask why am I drudging up some stuff to piss fans off about the two losses this year, but if not for a few “straws that broke the camel’s back,” the Sooners had a damn good year.

What did we think/hope would happen?

JUCO transfer Brannon Green and freshman Taylor McNamara would provide enough of a threat to keep a tight end on the field.

For the fullback position, OU would finally use Trey Millard consistently as a weapon in the running and passing games.

Expectations were high for the Sooners to repeat as national champions 11 years ago even though Josh Heupel’s graduation had left a vacancy at quarterback. Nate Hybl and Jason White shared duties under center to lead OU to seven straight wins before dropping a 20-10 decision to Nebraska. White injured his knee in that game and Hybl took over the rest of the season.

The Sooners won the next three but were upset by Oklahoma State in the season finale. This put No. 10 Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl to meet unranked Arkansas on New Year’s Day with a 10 a.m. kickoff. OU had never played in the Cotton Bowl Classic in the bowl’s 66-year history.

The defense was suffocating that year—the best of the Bob Stoops era—with guys like Rocky Calmus, Teddy Lehman, Tommie Harris, Jimmy Wilkerson and Roy Williams. The D allowed 13 points and 246 yards per game.

We've been counting down college football's biggest dumpster fires week by week. With the season now over, the time has come to take stock of all the flaming piles of garbage and figure out who left the largest smoldering heaps of refuse.

1. Colorado football (and coaching search)

No program has sustained the level of awfulness that CU has been able to achieve this year. The descent truly began with a 69-14 loss to San Jose State and was maintained through a five-game conference stretch where the Buffaloes lost by an average of 52 to 10.

What did we think/hope would happen?

The RB position would be shared by a healthy Dominique Whaley and newcomer Damien Williams. Brennan Clay would be used primarily in a third-down role. Roy Finch would be used primarily as a slot wide receiver.

If any injuries issues occured, Oklahoma could pull the redshirt off of impressive freshman Alex Ross.