Bob Stoops' latest Joe Mixon comments lead to question on whether the RB should play in the Sugar Bowl
On Thursday, Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops addressed the situation surrounding star junior running back Joe Mixon.
Mixon was arrested in 2014 for punching a woman in the face and breaking several of her bones. The video recently surfaced in the last few days (Warning: It is graphic). The California native was suspended for one season, and has since established himself as one of the best running backs in the entire country.
There’s been a mass amount of conversation stemming from the released surveillance video. Stoops first saw the footage back in 2015.
Here are some of Stoops comments from earlier on Thursday:
"He's been really down. He's been deeply affected by and knew he would be. We all have been."
Stoops on Mixon since the release of the video— Adam Cooper Kemp (@Adam_WK) December 21, 2016
"It was horrible. I hated it. I hated it as much as anybody did." – Bob Stoops on viewing the Joe Mixon tape for the first time.
— Adam Cooper Kemp (@Adam_WK) December 21, 2016
Stoops: “I wish (the video) had been released immediately."
— George Schroeder (@GeorgeSchroeder) December 21, 2016
Bob Stoops says "world has changed” in 2.5 years. “Dismissal (now) is only thing that’s possible…There’s no recovering from these anymore."
— George Schroeder (@GeorgeSchroeder) December 21, 2016
Stoops “believed an 18 y/o w/o prior history in an altercation w a horrible wrong response might have the opportunity to redeem himself."
— George Schroeder (@GeorgeSchroeder) December 21, 2016
Bob Stoops presser finished. Said 2.5 years later world has changed—meaning how society reacts. If happened now, said he’d dismiss Mixon.
— George Schroeder (@GeorgeSchroeder) December 21, 2016
"I don't know if any of us know that. I'm sure that's something he'll consider after the bowl game." – Stoops on Mixon going pro.
— Adam Cooper Kemp (@Adam_WK) December 21, 2016
"I thought we had a significant penalty and strong penalty." Stoops on Mixon's suspension at the time.
— Adam Cooper Kemp (@Adam_WK) December 21, 2016
Some of these comments are highly fascinating in a number of ways. Stoops admits that he would’ve dismissed Mixon had this altercation occurred in the present. Since he saw the video in 2015, why didn’t he dismiss the running back at that point?
The narrative also opens up Mixon’s availability for the Sugar Bowl versus Auburn. Will OU be forced to suspend Mixon (for a second time) for an event that happened two years ago? Will Mixon ultimately be jettisoned from the program?
Based upon his comments on Thursday, Stoops did not handle this situation very well. He’s currently sitting in Norman with a great deal of egg on his face.
