Standing on the opposite sideline Thursday night will be Meyer’s Sooner counterpart, Bob Stoops. And if Stoops had time to read this, as opposed to figuring out how he will possibly replace tailback DeMarco Murray, he might smile knowingly.           

Back in 2004, when Meyer was at the advent of his legend, Stoops was at the zenith of his. Four years older than Meyer and also an Ohio native, Stoops had, in his first five seasons in Norman, produced an undefeated season, a national championship, two BCS bowl wins and a Heisman Trophy winner. Sound familiar? Stoops, then 44 years old himself, was Big Game Bob.           

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Then Stoops lost a national championship game to LSU. The following season Oklahoma returned to the BCS Championship game — a career achievement for most — but Stoops’ Sooners were humiliated by USC, 55-19. Two years later the prized blue-chip quarterback Rhett Bomar was sent packing and then the Sooners became the foil for Boise State’s Fiesta Bowl heroics, while most of us forgot the epic fourth-quarter comeback OU made just to tie that contest and, ever so briefly, take the lead.           

Bob Stoops was Urban Meyer, and while he need apologize to nobody — this will be his fourth national championship game this decade — he understands that Meyer has yet to experience the second act of his career. The fall from grace, or from immortality.           

Urban Meyer will lead the Florida Gators into Dolphin Stadium on Thursday night with an opportunity to advance the legend. Young, rich, handsome, successful, with another crop of five-star recruits on their way to Gainesville next month, Meyer is on the cusp of building an empire that is the East Coast’s answer to USC — many would argue that he already has.           

His counterpart will be a man who has tasted that nectar, who is not so far removed from recalling when his coaching record was without a blemish. Bob Stoops has the opportunity to welcome Urban Meyer to the club of truly great coaches who, at some point, came up short when it mattered. Heck, even Carroll lost a national championship game once.           

“Do you know how many truly great coaches there are?”           

We’ll have a more definitive answer by Friday morning.

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