Oklahoma-South Florida game brings together longtime friends

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) _ Bob Stoops and Jim Leavitt worked together six years, helping build Kansas State's defense into the best in the country, before their coaching careers took far different paths.

Friday, September 27th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) _ Bob Stoops and Jim Leavitt worked together six years, helping build Kansas State's defense into the best in the country, before their coaching careers took far different paths.

Those paths cross again Saturday night when Leavitt leads his South Florida Bulls into Norman for a game against Stoops' No. 2 Oklahoma Sooners.

``Obviously, we're playing perhaps the best team in the country. Everybody knows that,'' Leavitt said. ``They're a very well-coached team, they're great athletes they play with a lot of confidence.

``We're over our heads as far as those things go, but we're excited about the opportunity to play Oklahoma.''

Stoops and Leavitt first worked together in 1990, as assistants to Bill Snyder at Kansas State. Leavitt coached linebackers, Stoops the secondary.

The following year, Snyder named them co-defensive coordinators. The Wildcats, who had been ranked 82nd nationally in total defense in 1990, were ranked No. 1 by 1995.

``We had a really good working relationship,'' Stoops said. ``I think we both had good respect for one another. Both of us were smart enough to leave our egos at the door. We hardly ever, if at all, butted heads.''

Leavitt remembers things the same way.

``The exchange of ideas during those six years was really a lot of fun,'' he said. ``We had our rough days, like anybody does. Some days we had to go back and call each other, maybe apologize. Everybody does. It was a great experience.''

Stoops said both men adhered to a simple plan.

``Our entire focus every day was, 'What is the best thing we can do for our team, for our defense, to give us an opportunity to win?' That's how we went about it every day and we had a lot of fun doing it.''

After the 1995 season, Leavitt returned to his Florida roots to accept the challenge of starting South Florida's football program. About a month after Leavitt left Kansas State, Stoops did the same, taking over as Steve Spurrier's defensive coordinator at the University of Florida.

After three years and one national championship at Florida, Stoops became head coach at Oklahoma. He led the Sooners to the national championship in 2000, just his second year on the job.

``He deserves everything he receives. All the accolades, he deserves every bit of it,'' Leavitt said.

South Florida (2-1) didn't play football in 1996 as Leavitt went about the task of building a program. The football office was in a trailer. There was no equipment to speak of.

The Bulls were a Division I-AA program from 1997 through 2000. They were 5-6 in their first season but have been above .500 every year since then. Last year, their first in Division I, they went 8-3 including a road victory against Pittsburgh.

South Florida beat Florida Atlantic and Northern Illinois this season before losing 42-3 at Arkansas two weeks ago. Their best player is quarterback Marquel Blackwell, a senior who is 23-11 as a starter and has thrown for more than 7,000 yards in his career.

South Florida will get a healthy payday for this game, and Leavitt figures it could help in recruiting because it shows the Bulls don't mind playing marquee opponents. But he is realistic about his team's chances of winning. Oklahoma (3-0) is a 27-point favorite.

For his part, Stoops said it will be all business against his longtime friend.

``You get prepared through the week like you always do, and when you get into the game you want to be as good as you can be,'' he said. ``You're focused on winning and doing whatever it takes to win.''