The Stoops brothers will soon be reunited at Oklahoma.
Mike Stoops confirmed to The Oklahoman on Thursday that he will be re-joining the staff of his brother, head coach Bob Stoops at Oklahoma.
"I'm on my way to Oklahoma this afternoon," Mike Stoops told the newspaper. "It's just going through some formalities at this point."
Mike Stoops was fired in October after eight seasons as head coach at Arizona. Prior to that, he had been the associate head coach and co-defensive coordinator at Oklahoma for six seasons, 1999 to 2004, including the Sooners' 2000 national championship run.
During that time, Oklahoma's defenses ranked in the Top 10 nationally for four straight years.
Mike Stoops handled defensive backs while co-defensive coordinator Brent Venables, who is still on the Oklahoma staff, handled linebackers. Mike Stoops called the defensive plays at Oklahoma, a job that Venables has handled since he left.
Venables, meanwhile, has talked with West Virginia about becoming the lead defensive coordinator there, according to a report in the Tulsa World. However, that job has reportedly been given to Oklahoma State assistant Joe DeForest, who worked alongside current Mountaineers coach Dana Holgorsen when both were on Mike Gundy's staff in Stillwater.
It is expected that Mike Stoops will again direct the defensive backs at Oklahoma. That's no easy task considering the Big 12's well-earned reputation for featuring some of the most prolific passing offenses in the nation.
If Mike Stoops can't get the Oklahoma defense back in top form, Bob can turn to two other brothers in coaching. Mark Stoops is the defensive coordinator at Florida State and Ron Stoops, Jr. is the linebackers coach at Youngstown State.
Follow Keith Whitmire on Twitter: @Keith_Whitmire
