The excitement over Oklahoma University Offensive Coach Lincoln Riley’s job promotion spread quickly in his hometown of Muleshoe, Texas.
Friends of the family had a long list of stories about time spent with young Riley.
Bob Graves keeps Sooners memorabilia hanging on his walls. He’s been a fan of the team for years, but also a fan of Riley’s.
“My two sons called me and they said, ‘No you’ve got to believe me, they said Lincoln’s going to be the new head coach at Oklahoma University,” Graves said.
Graves play-called Riley’s high school football games and coached his father in junior high.
“Lincoln called me in the summer after he took the job at Oklahoma. And he said, ‘I’m on a recruiting trip, and I just wanted to talk to you a little while because I knew you were a big OU fan,'” Graves said.
Riley’s fans in Muleshoe said they knew the football star would one day become a head coach, but didn’t expect it to happen so soon.
“As you know, he’s just 33 years old, and he’s really moved up the coaching ranks,” Graves said, “And I think Coach Leach discovered quickly how smart he was and how quickly he picked up the spread offense.”
The family-friend attributes some of Coach Riley’s success to his family values.
“I think Lincoln’s one of those, no matter how successful he is, he’s always going to be down to earth.”
