New Sooners Basketball Coach

The rumors leaked Monday night, and the University of Oklahoma made it official on Tuesday with a press conference. 31 year old Jeff Capel is the new men's basketball coach for OU, replacing the Indiana-bound Kelvin Sampson.

A player under Mike Krzyzewski at Duke in the 1990's, Capel was hired as the Head Coach at Virginia Commonwealth at the young age of 27. After leading them to NCAA and NIT tournament appearances the last two seasons, Capel became the somewhat surprising Sooners pick.

There were a number of big names mentioned during Oklahoma's coaching search, but Capel was not thought to be a leading candidate. Joe Castiglione, OU's Athletic Director, was said to be looking for a coach that could "think outside the box." By all accounts, Capel is a talented coach with a bright future. And at yesterday's press conference he said all the right things. "I really feel this is a place - the University of Oklahoma - where you can win the whole thing, and I'm not just talking about Big 12 Championships."

Next season will certainly be a transition year of sorts for the Sooners. They'll have a new coach and several new players. Gone are the familiar faces of Sampson, Bookout, Everett and Gray. In is Capel, and he'll do his best over the next few weeks to keep the top recruiting class Sampson had assembled in place.

So what do you think of the hire?

POLL: Is Jeff Capel a good choice for the Oklahoma Sooners?
1) Yes. Great pick.
2) No. They could have done better.
3) Not sure yet.

Also, stop in to discuss the issue at the Oklahoma City forum.