Alabama is losing its offensive coordinator. Mike Locksley has accepted the Maryland head-coaching job. But Locksley will remain on the Bama job through the College Football Playoff.
That is nothing new for Sooner football. Twice in the 2000s, OU has played national championship games against outgoing offensive coordinators headed for their own programs.
In the 2000 season, OU beat Florida State 13-2 in the Orange Bowl, nine days after Seminoles offensive coordinator Mark Richt became the head coach at Georgia. Richt stayed on with Florida State through the bowl game.
In the 2008 season, OU lost to Florida 24-14 in the BCS national championship game in Miami Gardens, Florida, about three weeks after Gators offensive coordinator Dan Mullen became the head coach at Mississippi State.