5 Things Bob Stoops Must Do to Get Oklahoma Back to Elite Status

Oklahoma Sooners head coach Bob Stoops knows 8-5 isn't going to cut it, especially when expectations are closer to a national championship than a pre-New Year's Eve/Day bowl.

Outside of the program, preseason expectations for Oklahoma could be tempered for 2015. TCU and Baylor should be, perhaps interchangeably, No. 1 and No. 2 in every Big 12 preseason poll out there. Where the Sooners fit in after that remains to be seen.

However, as Jake Trotter of ESPN.com noted Tuesday, Stoops' team actually isn't that far off of the pace. Yes, staff changes needed to be made, and they were. Yes, there are positions (and players) that must improve. We'll get to those in the following slides. 

But remember—2013 was probably Stoops' best coaching job in Norman. It's not like he forgot what he's doing. If he can orchestrate a turnaround in the following areas, Oklahoma could surpass those lower-than-normal expectations.

Get More out of the Quarterback Position

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Trevor Knight didn't take the leap he needed to in 2014. Part of that was developmental; part of it was health problems.

All that matters is, heading into spring, the quarterback competition is reopened. Knight will go up against Texas Tech transfer Baker Mayfield and sophomore Cody Thomas.

New offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley will oversee the quarterbacks as well, so how much, or how little, of an improvement we see next season will fall on him. Riley did a nice job developing Shane Carden at East Carolina, so the background is there.

Every quarterback brings something different for the Sooners. Knight is intriguing because he fit the run-based, zone-read and option attacks Oklahoma experimented with over the past two years, but he showed flashes that he can be a proficient passer.

Mayfield comes from an Air Raid system at Tech, so he's already familiar with what Riley wants to do. For that reason, Mayfield is starting to get some pub from guys like Travis Haney of ESPN.com as a possible starter.

Regardless of who starts, Oklahoma has to get more out of that position throwing the football.

Find a No. 2 Wide Receiver

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Sterling Shepard returns for his senior season, meaning Oklahoma has one of the best wide receivers in the Big 12 on its sideline.

Beyond him? The offense has to find a legitimate second option in the passing game.

Missouri transfer Dorial Green-Beckham sat out his only year in Norman and has since moved on to preparing for the NFL draft. According to Albert Breer of NFL.com, Green-Beckham might have stayed another year if wide receivers coach Jay Norvell hadn't been fired.

In that hypothetical situation, Green-Beckham wouldn't have been a No. 2 guy—he would have likely been the top receiver.

With Green-Beckham out of the equation, though, there are a couple of options to complement Shepard.

Durron Neal was the team's second-leading receiver last year with 42 grabs for 513 yards and three touchdowns. However, the guy to watch will be sophomore Michiah Quick. The freshman came on strong toward the end of the season, catching at least six passes in three of the final five games.

Running back Samaje Perine gives the offense a permanent weapon, but the Sooners are capable of having more balance than that. Quick can have a breakout year.

Take a Page from Ohio State's Offensive Line Book

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There's good news and bad news for Oklahoma at offensive line.

The good news is Academic All-Big 12 center Ty Darlington returns to anchor the Sooners up front. The bad news is pretty much everyone else around him is gone.

To be clear, Oklahoma isn't completely lacking in experience. Guard Nila Kasitati made six starts last season and played in 12 games, while tackle Derek Farniok played in all 13 games. Additionally, 3-star junior college transfer Jamal Danley should provide some immediate help.

Still, Oklahoma is going to have a fairly new-look group up front with four seniors graduating. That's a similar situation to what Ohio State faced a year ago. Early on during that season, the Buckeyes had a hard time keeping J.T. Barrett's jersey clean. Over time, though, Ohio State's O-line came together and played as well as any group in the College Football Playoff.

The Sooners have a great offensive line coach in Bill Bedenbaugh. He'll have his work cut out for him. The key for this offense lies in how well the O-line develops over time.

Find a Pass Rush Outside of Eric Striker

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Outside linebacker Eric Striker is also returning, so Oklahoma still has one of most terrifying pass-rushers anywhere in college football. In 2014, Striker lived up to his name by leading the team with nine sacks and 17 tackles for loss.

However, Striker accounted for nearly 30 percent of the team's sacks and 21 percent of team's tackles for loss. Those are outstanding numbers for him, but they also indicate someone else in the defensive front seven has to step up. Oklahoma ranked fifth in the Big 12 in sacks a year ago, so there's room to improve.

Since outside linebacker Geneo Grissom is graduating, the next logical name to point to is defensive end Charles Tapper. Tapper had a somewhat disappointing year after being named to the All-Big 12 first team as a sophomore, so staying for his senior season is a chance for redemption.

"Thanks you Sooner nation for these great years! I'm sorry this one did not end like we wanted," Tapper tweeted in January (h/t Ryan Aber of The Oklahoman). "Some people have been wondering if I will stay or go. But after a hard thought out decision I will be back in Norman, Oklahoma for my senior year to win a national championship!"

Charles Davis of NFL.com named Tapper as one of the potential NFL prospects who would benefit from another year in school. His return is a boost to the defensive line, but it's also an opportunity for Tapper to put up more impressive numbers and balance out Oklahoma's pass rush.

Win Back the Turnover Margin

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The term "forcing turnovers" can be misleading because turnovers aren't a one-size-fits-all category. There are forced turnovers and then there are lucky turnovers, a matter of a guy being in the right place at the right time.

In any case, Oklahoma didn't get nearly enough takeaways in 2014. The Sooners had 19 takeaways, less than half of what Big 12 leader TCU recorded (40). Making matters worse, Oklahoma gave the ball away 24 times, meaning it was minus-five in the turnover margin.

The last time Oklahoma dominated the turnover margin was in 2010, when it finished second in the Big 12 with 32 takeaways and gave the ball up 18 times. It has to return to those better times.

That responsibility is twofold. It falls on defensive coordinator Mike Stoops and whoever Oklahoma's quarterback is. Last year, 17 of Oklahoma's 24 turnovers were interceptions. While not all interceptions are created equal, it's undeniable that quarterback Trevor Knight made some poor decisions and throws that resulted in numerous pick-sixes.

Ben Kercheval is a lead writer for college football. All stats courtesy of cfbstats.com.