WCWS: Humble origins in OKC
But a couple of people I corresponded with in the last couple of days were there even before 1992, my first year at the event. And their stories of the roots of Oklahoma City’s hosting the NCAA softball championship are very interesting.
For example, did you know OKC’s first bid to the NCAA suggested hosting the tournament at city-owned Wheeler Park, just south of downtown and the North Canadien River? Wheeler Park includes several softball fields for recreational leagues but also a stadium that, frankly, is pretty cool, with old wooden bleachers and an overhang and a large wooden fence surrounding the outfield. Looks like an old-fashioned baseball park. Something out of The Natural.
I played a few games in the 1980s at Wheeler Park’s stadium, and while the notion of playing the World Series there now seems quaint, it’s all relative. In the early 1980s, the AIAW — the forerunner of NCAA women’s athletics — staged its national softball championship at Reaves Park in Norman, and Wheeler Park is a huge upgrade from Reaves.
Glen Boyer, president of the All Sports Association in the 1980s, said two of OKC’s bids included Wheeler Park. The WCWS was played in Omaha at the time, and Boyer said Wheeler Park was a better venue than where the women played in Omaha.
Boyer said the All Sports staged an autumn tournament at Putnam City Optimist Park in 1987 that included reigning NCAA champion Texas A&M, plus OU, OSU, Kansas and others. “That helped break the Omaha lock,” Boyer said.
Alas, the NCAA took the tournament from Omaha to Sunnyvale, Calif. But in 1987, Don Porter’s great project, Hall of Fame Stadium, was built at the Amateur Softball Association headquarters, and suddenly no one in America had a better venue for softball.
Boyer said Porter and All Sports executive director Stanly Draper Jr. “were the two men that made it possible.”
Marita Hynes, former associate athletic director at OU and WCWS tournament director for many years after the tournament moved to Oklahoma City, recalled going to Sunnyvale to check out the competition after OKC secured the 1990 event.
“In California, they attracted large crowds,” Hynes said. “When we opened the gates in 1990 at the Hall of Fame Stadium, it was very disappointing to see the sparse attendance.”
The first championship game in Oklahoma City drew about 1,100. The average session was less than 2,000. But OSU drew some big crowds in 1993-94, ESPN’s expanded coverage created new fans, OU’s 2000 NCAA title produced another explosion and the tournament now is a huge box-office success. Hall of Fame Stadium has undergone repeated expansions.
“Ten years later,” Hynes said of the period from 1990-2000, “our biggest challenges were how to increase the seating capacity, how to increase parking, increase bathrooms and how to serve more ballpark food.
“It is wonderful now to see every game on television, read several articles in numerous publications and hear the sports talk show chatter.”
No great event — sporting or otherwise — is fantastic at takeoff. They all have sweat equity. People who put in time and effort to go along with the vision. From humble beginnings, the Women’s College World Series is paying off for Oklahoma City.
Emails in on Michael Vick
The new emails are in, and Michael Vick draws the most attention this week.
Steve: “You make a lot of valid points about Vick. But you made the point that maybe we don’t want ex-cons working airport security or teaching … that is kind of my point. Why should you get one of the most selective, highest paying, elite jobs in the country for being, as Coach Jones said, ‘pure evil’? I agree that a guy should certainly have the chance to attain gainful employment after serving time, just not within the fantasy world of pro athletics.”
Oh, I don’t know, maybe because it’s America, and Vick has done his time, and the NFL has nothing to do with national security or the welfare of our children. The idea that Vick shouldn’t be in the NFL because a whole lot of people just don’t want him to be, well, that doesn’t hold water.
Dick: “Give Vick another chance? Don’t think so. How can you compare him to drug users? The people will never forgive kid killers and animal killers. I will give most criminals a second chance if there is not kids or animals involved. Should he be signed by another football team and actually play, he will be booed out of the stadium. I don’t believe there is that many stupid team owners out there. Now I have vented.”
Dick, how can you compare a kid killer to an animal killer? That’s what you just did. And I didn’t compare Vick to drug users. I pointed out that sports has allowed all kinds of ex-cons back into their leagues. None were in because of drugs.
Joe: “Listened about Vick on radio till I’m sick of it, but to me, the deal is this. If the NFL wants to reinstate him, fine with me. He’s done his time. If a team signs him, that’s their decision. The court of public opinion – the fans who buy the tickets and jerseys, etc. will decide if the decision to sign him was correct and the wrath that he receives (or doesn’t) will determine if he can endure and continue with his career. I don’t understand why every Tom, Dick and Harry think it’s all in the Commish’s hands. I think it’s in the hands of the fans when he returns as to how he is received and how he reacts.”
I agree completely. At the heart of this is the market economy, or what’s left of it in America. Would I keep my job if convicted of dogfighting and animal abuse? Probably not. But that’s because the readers likely wouldn’t stand for it. Will football fans stand for Vick being in uniform again? Who knows, though my guess is yes.
Connie: “Many people have brought up issues of players who were allowed back in the NFL after, for example, having been convicted of vehicular manslaughter. ‘After all this was a person and not dogs!’ goes the argument. Well, people don’t wake up one morning and say, ‘Oh, I’m going out to get drunk tonight and kill someone.’ These were tragic mistakes. Michael Vick, however, woke up every day for years and said, ‘Oh, I’m going to kill several dogs today.’ Vick’s was NOT a mistake. It was a way of life for him for many years. I do believe he deserves a second chance, just not in the NFL.”
This is actually an interesting discussion. A debate between intent of a criminal act and result of a criminal act. In other words, if I shoot a gun at you and miss your heart by an inch, I’m guilty of attempted murder and won’t die in prison. If I shoot a gun at you and strike you dead center in the heart, my goose is cooked. What’s the difference? Being rewarded for being a bad shot? But that’s what we do in the justice system. We are primarily result-oriented. If I drive drunk, hit a car and the other driver walks away, I get a DUI and a slap on the wrist. If I drive drunk, hit a car and the other driver dies, everything is different, though my actions were exactly the same. As for Connie’s last statement, that Vick deserves a second chance, just not in the NFL, what detractors really are saying is this: They want to cap Vick’s money and fame.
Karan: “A good column and very thought provoking, even for a canine lover like myself who originally thought he should’ve been stoned. I think you made a valid argument.”
Huh? This is no place for civility.
Clay: “Which is worse, Vick’s charges or what Pete Rose did to be banned from baseball?”
Oh boy, here we go again. At least this is an easy one. What Vick did to society is worse. What Rose did to his sport is worse. NFL owners and administrators, and baseball owners and administrators, are not charged with policing society. They are charged with policing their sport.
Terry: “I found your article to be interesting but sad to think that anyone including yourself could support this man. You are right when you say no one was born with the right to quarterback the Atlanta Falcons, but on the same hand, no one was born with the right to choose whether the dogs lived or died in that manner. I say give him the same chance he give the dogs.”
There are people who would say that putting a man in Leavenworth is about the same chance as those dogs got. You come out of medium-security prisons, federal or state, a changed man. Most worse, but some better. We’ll see on Vick.
Dee: “To insinuate that the justice system hands out fair and just sentences is quite naive. Vick is pure evil – the other examples you gave in your article did not equate with Vick’s pure evil. The NFL will probably give him another chance. However, he has not and never will pay the just price for the evil he has done.”
Maybe so. But why is the NFL been designated as the star chamber that must hand out the just punishment? What if Vick wants to make movies? Are we going to demand Hollywood ban him? What if he wants to design T-shirts? Are we going to demand the garment industry tell him to get lost? Asking private enterprise to get involved in dishing out justice is a dangerous endeavor.
Larry: “Your argument is that torturing animals is not immoral, but rather simply a mistake that causes some people an emotional reaction. And logically, if torturing animals is not immoral, then it must be moral. Is that what you intended to say? Vick would still be happily torturing animals today if he had not been caught, so I’m not sure that you can say that even he believes what he did was wrong. Berry, torturing animals is immoral. What do you think Jesus thinks about dogfighting and the training sessions that involve throwing pet Beagles into the pits to be ripped to shreds by pit bulls? I suspect that He would agree with Pat Jones that it’s an evil act. I’m sure you will receive lots of emails from dog fight lovers supporting your position, but this time you are not on the side of the angels. However, you are correct that he’s paid his debt to society and by law he’s entitled to return to pro football.”
I didn’t say dogfighting wasn’t immoral. I didn’t come close to saying that. The only thing I said about morality is that we seem to want the NFL to take up enforcement when we feel our justice system has fallen short. By the way, I heard from NO dogfighting lovers and didn’t expect to. I also didn’t expect any of the Vick detractors to bring up Jesus, who encountered many people with rocks in their hands. He invited them to throw the first stone.
OK, enough Michael Vick. Let’s move on. Greg wrote about baseball managerial changes: “I’m mainly just venting here, but how can Colorado, albeit suffering this year, fire the manager (Clint Hurdle) that took the team to the World Series two years ago when it rid itself of its best players – namely Holliday? I just don’t understand teams that act so swiftly after great success when they themselves failed to retain or obtain World Series caliber talent. And the first thing the Rockies do is name Jim Tracy as interim – a guy who already failed at LA and Pittsburgh. Baffling news.”
Look at it this way. The same treadmill that brought Jim Tracy back will bring back Clint Hurdle.
Michael wrote about my Birdman column: “Anderson definitely won’t be coming to OKC, but not because of the reasons mentioned in your article. He signed with Denver specifically because he felt that was the safest place for him to avoid all of the temptations that plagued his life a few years ago. It’s where he cleaned himself up and it’s where his support group (friends and family) is located. He will give the Nuggets a huge hometown discount in order to resign with them. All this from the halftime piece ESPN showed the other night.”
Hometown discounts are the kinds of things people say before contract negotiations. When the summer arrives, it’s generally, show me the money.
John wrote about my designation of Hall of Fame Stadium as softball heaven. “Great article. Too often too many of us take for granted the special things right in front of our faces. I took my kids to the tournament last year for the first time and truly enjoyed the experience. While I am not a die-hard softball fan, I recognize the fortune bestowed on Oklahoma City as host to the women’s softball elite. More of our local citizens – fans or not – ought to take time to see one game during the tournament each year.”
Not too many people go to the games and don’t become huge fans. I don’t recommend going unless you don’t mind getting hooked.
Chris wrote about my jeer of OSU making the NCAA baseball tournament: “First, let me say I think you are a great writer. I have no ill will towards you at all. That said, I wanted to pose a question. I saw you slammed the OSU baseball team for getting in the NCAA tourney. I have no problem with that if you slammed OU for the same. Remember their record last year was worse than ours. We stand at 9-16 this year. OU was 9-17 last year and they got in as well. Please tell me that you ripped them too for their inclusion. I’ll be honest and say last year I thought it was absurd that OU got in, so I have to be fair and say the same about OSU this year. I guess fair is fair cause we both made it in when we probably didn’t deserve it.”
Request granted. I did indeed smack OU the same way I smacked OSU. In fact, virtually identical. I gave both teams jeers on my Thursday Page 2, and I blogged extensively about the absurdity of both decisions. Here’s what I wrote about OU in 2008. Jeer: “To the NCAA baseball committee’s inclusion of OU. No one really can get a grip around college baseball, but this much everyone in the state of Oklahoma knows, including the Sooners: OU didn’t deserve an NCAA bid. A 9-17-1 conference record? An eighth-place Big 12 finish? Is it possible the committee just doesn’t pay attention?” And here was my blog: “OU’s baseball team made the NCAA Tournament, and no one in crimson – literally; not one person – thought it possible. Baseball coaches are just like basketball coaches. They politic for their team’s inclusion and they list all the reasons why they should be in the 64-team field and they never publicly give up hope. But Sunny Golloway, who in years past has shown himself quite capable of making a pitch for his on-the-outside-looking-in Sooners, didn’t even put up an argument before the NCAA selection announcement. Golloway said what everyone else believed. That OU had to win the Big 12 Tournament to make the field. You wonder if anyone in crimson even was watching when the final four-team regional was revealed, and there was OU, a No. 3 seed sent to Tempe, Ariz., to play Vanderbilt. Amazing. A team that finished 34-24-1 and in eighth place in the 10-team Big 12 was placed in the field. ESPN analysts made a big deal of defending NCAA champ Oregon State’s exclusion, and when you compare the Beavers to the Sooners, well, there’s really no comparison. Oregon State won series from Arizona, Arizona State and Georgia; all three are among the national top eight seeds. OU’s best series wins? Baylor, Kansas State and Texas Tech. None made the NCAA field. Barely a week ago, OU seemed destined to not even make the Big 12 Tournament field. The Sooners made it only by beating OSU on the final Sunday of the regular season AND with Kansas State rallying to beat Kansas. Then OU beat Texas A&M and Missouri in the Big 12 Tournament and almost beat Texas in the game that determined a Big 12 finalist. But no one believed OU had done enough to get in the NCAAs. Which makes you wonder what the NCAA committee saw. OU’s strength of schedule was decent, and it had some quality non-conference wins. But what is there’s another answer. What if the committee just doesn’t know any better? I’m serious. The NCAA basketball selections are made under a mighty glare. If the committee screws up, everybody knows it. But who knows enough about college baseball to claim expert status? Should be, just the committee. And that’s what makes me wonder about the inclusion of the Sooners. We don’t know who belongs in the NCAA Tournament. But people here in Oklahoma know who DOESN’T belong. OU. The Sooners were not a good team. They placed eighth in the 10-team Big 12 and were a lot closer to ninth than to seventh. The Sooners themselves knew they didn’t belong. The committee thought otherwise. Maybe it’s the committee that doesn’t have a clue.”
Time is now for a BCS committee
Do you remember that old George Will quote, about how football combines the two worst elements of America: violence punctuated by committee meetings?
Maybe Will was just mad that some baseball game was pre-empted by the NFL, or maybe he was responding to football pundit Beano Cook’s classic quote about the Iranian hostages receiving lifetime passes to Major League Baseball: “Haven’t they suffered enough?”
Anyway, Will’s football committee referred to huddles. But another kind of gridiron committee is gaining more and more momentum. And should.
Last November, I suggested a seven- or nine-member, basketball-like committee for football replace the kooky Harris Poll in college football’s BCS. Then last winter, the Mountain West Conference’s storm-the-bastille proposal, creating an eight-team playoff, included a 12-person committee to replace the current BCS system.
Whether we tinker or whether we revolt, a committee’s time has come, particularly in the wake of the American Football Coaches Association’s decision to return its poll to star-chamber status. The coaches voted to again make their final ballots secret beginning with the 2010 season.
The coaches’ argument is that some coaches don’t feel the freedom to vote as they wish, because of the public nature of that final ballot. Of course, skeptics would argue that secrecy allows them to vote not as they believe they should, but as they would like to to produce a more desired result, either for their own team, a friend’s team or an enemy’s team.
Time was, the coaches’ vote was the weaker poll. The stately Associated Press ballot, especially after went it went 100 percent public but even before, was much more stable and consistent. The coaches generally followed the AP, only a week later, as if the coaches got their leanings from their fellow poll.
When the AP asked to be removed from the BCS process, and the train-wreck Harris Poll staggered in, the coaches moved up in status. Compounding the problem was the earlier decision to trim the computers’ imput from roughly 50 percent of the BCS to 33 percent.
So what we have now is a colossal mess. Two dysfunctional polls have most of the power in determining the two teams for college football’s national championship. Time for a committee.
Select a cross-section of administrators. Athletic directors, coaches, I don’t care who, just pick well-respected people the same way we fill out the basketball committee. For all the basketball problems, no one really ever has questioned the hoops committee’s integrity. Go with an 11-person committee, one representative from each of the Division I-A conferences.
The committee can take all the relevant information, from polls and computer ratings and strengths of schedule, and select two teams to play in the title game. We would lose some of the weekly drama of the BCS standings release, but we would also lose most of the indigestion when scanning the Harris and coaches polls.
Softball players bring us Okies back to Earth
A Women’s College World Series tradition for The Oklahoman is a quiz we give players every May. Our man Mike Baldwin asks them pop-culture questions to gauge their likes and dislikes, but we also ask them about the Oklahoma sports scene. It’s one of my favorite things we do all year, because we learn how little a cross section of America knows about us.
Some people have accused us of making fun of the players’ lack of Oklahoma knowledge. Completely false. We’re making fun of our own status as flyspecks in the sports universe. Here are some things we learned yesterday from the eight players (one from each school) and ESPN analyst Michele Smith, who played at Oklahoma State.
1. The Thunder has a long way to go to build name recognition. Only Florida’s Kristina Hilberth accurately named “Thunder” as the OKC team’s name. The closest guesses were “Sonics,” from Michigan’s Teddi Ewing, and “The Mike Baldwins,” from Missouri’s Chelsea Thomas. Georgia’s Kristin Schnake responded, “Didn’t know they had a team.” I promise you, ask these same nine women to name Detroit’s NBA team, and no one is guessing “49ers,” like Smith did.
2. College basketball coaches aren’t the rock stars we think they are. Nine panelists, nine whiffs on “Who is Travis Ford?” I think it would have been 0-for-9 on Jeff Capel, too. Smith, who played softball for OSU, didn’t even identify the Cowboy basketball coach. But we did get a couple of interesting answers. Michigan’s Ewing said, “Owns the Ford Center,” which is telling in and of itself. A Michigan Wolverine doesn’t know the name of our basketball team but knows the name of our arena. That’s got to be pleasing to the marketers from Ford. My favorite other answers were from Washington’s Danielle Lawrie (“country singer”) and Georgia’s Schnake (“famous Indian”). Travis Ford does sound like a country singer, and Schnake’s answer is interesting because it shows awareness that American Indians don’t all come with names like Moses Yellowhorse.
3. Sam Bradford has some Q rating going on even among non-football fans. Only two players adequately ID’d Bradford. Michigan’s Ewing called him “cute Oklahoma quarterback,” and Missouri’s Thomas said “quarterback.” True story. Some high school kids from a small town in the Texas Panhandle came to our office a couple of weeks ago spend a couple of hours and shadow individuals to get an idea about their jobs. A girl, a junior in high school, spent two hours with me. And she raved the whole time about Sam Bradford and what a dreamboat he is. Who knew? Anyway, Bradford’s rock-star status was confirmed that day and this, with Ewing’s answer. And some of the other answers seem to show at least some awareness of Bradford. Alabama’s Kelly Montalvo answered “OU president;” (no, but more popular). Georgia’s Kristen Schnake answered “16th president;” (no, that was Abraham Lincoln, but give Bradford time, maybe 48th). ESPN’s Smith said “curly-haired wrestler;” (no, but you’ve got the curls right. Sammy B’s hair is becoming an iconic symbol).
4. Kevin Durant is bigger than the Thunder. Three of the panelists named Durant as an “NBA player” or a “basketball player,” though none said Oklahoma City or Thunder play. Another panelist said “Texas basketball player.” Arizona’s Sam Banister suggested “OKC mayor” and Bama’s Montalvo said “Oklahoma senator.” I’d say no chance on the senator, but give him time on the mayor’s office, though he might have to move to point guard to follow in the footsteps of Kevin Johnson (Sacramento) and Dave Bing (Detroit).
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Parity comes to the NBA
The NBA playoffs are nothing short of fantastic, with incredible series and games. The playoffs also are nothing short of historic. Three of the four franchises left never have won an NBA title. And no matter which team wins the championship, it will give us four champs in the last four years: Miami, San Antonio, Boston and either the Lakers, Cavs, Nuggets or Magic.
That’s a rare level of parity in the NBA. The NBA is the most elitist of the major sports. Most every NFL franchise has Super Bowl hopes. This decade’s nine World Serieses have been won by eight franchises.
But in the NBA, the titles have been reserved for the few. Until Miami’s championship in 2006, the previous 26 titles were won by only seven franchises.
The four franchises-in-four years feat hasn’t been seen in the NBA since 1977-81, when Portland, Washington, Seattle, the Lakers and Boston won. The 1970s were the golden age of NBA parity. Six franchises won the six titles from 1975 through 1980: Golden State, Boston, Portland, Washington, Seattle and the Lakers. And five won the five titles from 1971-75: Milwaukee, the Lakers, New York, Boston and Golden State.
The only other stretch of parity came in 1954-57: the Minneapolis Lakers, Syracuse Nationals (who became the 76ers), the Philadelphia Warriors (who later moved to San Francisco) and Boston.
This is all great news for Oklahoma City. I don’t know if the current parity trend will hold. But better to have a young, blooming team now than in the 1980s, when every season was a race for fourth, behind the Lakers, Boston and Philadelphia. Or the ’90s, when Michael Jordan or Hakeem Olajuwon won eight straight titles. Or even the 200s, when the Lakers or Spurs won seven championships in a nine-year span (starting in ’99).
We’re seeing new blood, and if any of the four teams besides the Lakers win, that new blood will have scaled the mountain.
The Thunder is worlds away from an NBA championship. But there have been many eras in NBA history in which even talented, veteran teams had no real shot at challenging for the title. The league was too top-heavy. That is no longer the case.
Ridiculous: OSU baseball in NCAA field
Last May, when an obviously-undeserving OU baseball team made the NCAA Tournament, I suggested a plausible, yet scary, reason why the Sooners made it. Perhaps the NCAA baseball committee literally doesn’t have a clue. Doesn’t pay attention to details like record and schedule and conference standing.
I was wrong, of course. The committee knows what it’s doing. And this is what it’s doing: protecting the status quo in college sports.
We saw that this May, with the inclusion of Oklahoma State in the 64-team field. The Cowboys had no business being in the NCAA Tournament, yet here they are, on their way to Clemson as a No. 3 seed. OSU placed ninth in the 10-team Big 12.
Conference finish is the best indicator of a team’s strength. Everyone is on a level playing field. And the Cowboys checked in at the 20 percentile. OSU didn’t even make the Big 12 Tournament, and while some Southeastern Conference teams have made the NCAA without making the eight-team SEC Tournament, this was an even goofier inclusion, because all 12 SEC teams play baseball. SEC teams that don’t make its tournament are in the bottom third of the conference; Big 12 teams that don’t make its tournament are in the bottom fifth.
OSU beat out Nebraska, and only Nebraska, in the Big 12 standings. That’s why most people were surprised when the Cowboys received a bid. But we shouldn’t have been surprised.
This is what NCAA committees do. The exact same thing the BCS system does in football. It protects the powers. We see it in basketball all the time, with the omissions of the mid-majors. We see it in baseball, too.
College sports are not run by some shadowy men in Indianapolis offices. College sports are run by the power brokers in six conferences. Commissioners of those leagues and presidents, athletic directors and coaches at their member institutions.
Committees are not stacked with those power conferences. Only four of the 10-person baseball committee comes from a power league. But everyone knows the protocol. Everyone knows the system is meant to yield positive results for the power conferences.
RPI, for example, the ratings index used in baseball and basketball, which is based on record, opponents’ record and opponents’ opponents’ record. But RPI is flawed from the outset, since the power conferences control scheduling and determine who they will play and where. The RPI is designed to boost the status of the teams from the Big 12 and SEC and Big Ten.
College sports, big-time college sports, exist not for those lofty reasons you see on commercials. Big-time college sports exist to maintain the status and revenue streams of the power conferences. That’s why OSU is headed to Clemson this week.
Timeout for Memorial Day & cemeteries
On Sunday morning, in an ancient country cemetery hard by Lake Hudson, we snapped one of my favorite photos of all time. My granddaughter, who will be three in July, stood next to the gravestone of Lucy Hutchison.
BORN Aug. 15, 1819
DIED May 22, 1905
Lucy Hutchison is my great-great-great grandmother, which makes her Riley’s great-great-great-great-great grandmother.
This post won’t be much about sports. I actually took two days off and didn’t much in the sports world. Watched the Orland0-Cleveland game late Sunday night with heavy eyes, but I didn’t even know who won the Indy 500 until about 3 p.m. Monday, when I got around to reading the paper.
I hit five cemeteries over the weekend. Visited my dad’s grave at IOOF in Norman, my in-laws’ at Resthaven in south Oklahoma City, my brother-in-law’s at Memorial Park in north Oklahoma City, my aunt’s and uncle’s at Ross Mayes in Salina and Bryan Chapel in Boatman, a community just west of Salina, in Mayes County.
I love cemeteries on Memorial Day weekend, all the flowers and all the colors, which represent all the memories. You see opulent headstones and you see little footstones. Memorial Park has a belltower in the middle, and Saturday afternoon a man stood sentry playing bagpipes. Cool. Very cool. Resthaven has statues and mausoleums and ponds. IOOF is huge, and though it’s not all that well maintained — which chaps me — on days like this you can see someone you know. We went out Monday evening, and I ran into two old friends. Jack Herron is a former OSU basketball player from Norman, later became Guthrie’s superintendent of schools and now helps Guthrie’s Oklahoma Sports Museum. He married the daughter of Dr. Henry Easterling, my dentist the first 25 years of my life and a delightful man. I also ran into Eddy Collins, an old friend from high school, who was with two of his brothers and their dad, State Rep. Wallace Collins. The Collins family is just good folks from way back in Norman history; my dad taught Wallace in the 1950s. Small world.
But my favorite cemetery is Bryan Chapel. My dad’s family meets there every Memorial Day Sunday, 10 a.m. sharp. Out of 11 kids, only five are left from my dad’s family. But my cousins (I think we have 30 in that generation, by my last count) and spouses and their kids and grandkids make it quite the gathering.
The first gravestone in Bryan Chapel is William Tramel, a relative of some sort, and two down from him is Joe Lee Tramel, my dad’s grandfather. Then sprinkled around the rest of the 4-5 acre cemetery are other Tramels, including my grandparents’ graves, which are adorned with so many flowers, you see them driving up the country road to the cemetery.
And near the back of the cemetery is my dad’s great-grandfather, the one who lived with my dad’s family. I grew up hearing stories of how mean was the old man; my dad had to share a bed with him at times. I know my dad loved him, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t mean.
I put a flower on Charles Durlin Tramel’s grave, and one on his wife’s, and one on the grave between them, Charles Durlin Tramel’s mother-in-law, who was born 190 years ago, died before Oklahoma statehood and has only a headstone left to bear witness to her life. Those with memories of Lucy Hutchison are long since passed, too. But that headstone remains, and while Riley Argyle, born July 5, 2006, leaned against it and smiled in the sleepy Bryan Chapel Cemetery on a pristine May day, I figured that headstone was enough.
Breen: Worst broadcaster in network sports
During the Laker-Nugget game Saturday night, ESPN showed banners hanging from the Pepsi Center rafters with names and numbers. Thompson (David) 33. Issel (Dan) 44. Moe (Doug) 432 (coaching wins). And Beck 40, with the years 1967-77.
I immediately thought of Byron Beck. I have no idea who Byron Beck was, but I had a vague recollection of someone named Byron Beck, and it seemed like he was connected to the old ABA. That would make sense. Denver was in the ABA, and 1967-77 would have been from ABA days.
Then Mike Breen, ABC/ESPN’s lead NBA broadcaster, said the Beck was in reference to hockey player Bubba Beck. OK, I thought. I guess I was imagining some of that Byron Beck stuff. Denver and hockey? Made sense. Except Denver didn’t have a National Hockey League franchise in 1967-77; I was sure of that. Maybe at some point in the 1970s, but not in the 1960s. No way. So I was confused.
A couple of minutes later, Beck corrected himself. The Beck in question indeed was Byron Beck, from the old Denver Rockets of the ABA.
I know, anybody can make a mistake. But how can ESPN’s lead NBA broadcaster make that mistake? How do you produce a name like Bubba Beck?
I googled Bubba Beck. I found a stock car driver by that name. And a sportscaster. And a water skiing writer. And a horse trainer. But no hockey player.
Barry Beck was a hockey player, drafted by the Colorado Rockies in 1977. He played two-plus seasons for the Rockies, who eventually became the New Jersey Devils. But I can find no evidence Barry Beck ever was Bubba Beck.
Sorry, but Mike Breen is the worst play-by-play man in network sports. This wasn’t even his biggest crime of the playoffs. The other night, when ESPN showed Jerry West’s quote about LeBron James having overtaken Kobe Bryant as the NBA’s best player, and analysts Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy were discussing the subject, Breen asked something like, “Why does someone have to be No. 1?”
Oh, I don’t know. Why do fans have to even watch the games? What kind of nonsense is that? That’s a smug, elitist attitude. That kind of talk hacks me off.
I love Van Gundy on the air, and Jackson is solid. But Breen is awful. TNT, which is doing the Eastern Conference Finals, has Marv Albert and Doug Collins, which is a potent combo. What is ESPN thinking, trying to make Breen the voice of the NBA?
The voice of Major League Baseball is Joe Buck. When you hear Buck’s voice, you think, it must be October. The voices of the NFL are Buck and Al Michaels and Jim Nantz. Authoritative, respected voices that tell you this is a big, big football game. The voice of the NBA is Mike Breen, who will call the Finals in June. You hear Breen’s voice and you think, is this a Charlotte-Milwaukee local broadcast?
Breen actually is a Knickerbocker broadcaster for New York’s MSG Network, and that’s even hard to believe. The Knicks once had Albert, who at one time also was the voice of the NBA and frankly should be again.
Emails in on Wayman Tisdale
Ed wrote about my claim that Tisdale was the most impactful athlete in state history: “I’m not sure I agree with you that Tisdale and Kurland had the greatest impact of players on any sport in Oklahoma, though I’m not certain at this point that those were your exact parameters. I thought about it for a couple of days, and here’s what, or whom, I came up with to challenge. Billy Vessels. Yes, one player can make more difference on a basketball team than on a football team. But football remains more important in Oklahoma than basketball is. Maybe it always was. But football really took off in Bud’s day, and Billy had a lot to do with it. He played on our first national championship team, 1950. He won our first Heisman. He wowed the nation on TV, even in defeat against Notre Dame. Football became really entrenched as numero uno in state. OU started winning national titles. And OU players started winning Heismans. OU had not been a powerhouse often before Vessels, but it has been more often than not since he played. I write not against Tisdale and Kurland, but on behalf of Vessels, admittedly my favorite Sooner football player.”
I’ll stick with Kurland and Tisdale, but I’ll grant you this. The television factor is worth considering. Vessels was OU’s first TV football star, and that packs a punch.
Jason wrote about Wayman Tisdale: “I read your piece on athletes of impact in the state of Oklahoma and looked through the photos of Wayman that were on the website and was reminded of how he changed my view of Oklahoma basketball. I loved Oklahoma football and watched or listed to every game I could. But when it came to basketball, I loved the Lakers and paid little attention to the Sooners hoops team. That is until Wayman showed up. Soon my interest in pro basketball began to wane and my love for college basketball grew. Also, as a young Christian kid, I was always looking for athletes who let their faith shine in a positive manner.”
Wayman Tisdale made basketball a big deal at OU. Pure and simple.
Roger also wrote about the athlete-impact question: “The discussion most interesting to me concerned Mickey Mantle. Mickey’s success with the Yankees no doubt attracted many Oklahoma athletes to the idea of playing professional baseball – but I don’t think Mantle induced many baseball players to come to Oklahoma. In fact, outside the state of Oklahoma, I suspect that most baseball fans are no aware that Mantle was from Oklahoma. Certainly not many consider that fact important. Growing up in the late 1940s (in the city of Chicago), I was very aware that Joe DiMaggio was from San Francisco, but there was much less said about Mantle’s home state – or Ted Williams (San Diego). My best friend was a Yankee fan and Mantle was his favorite player, but I don’t think we ever discussed Mantle’s home state. Everyone knew Ty Cobb was from Georgia (the Georgia Peach) and that Babe Ruth was from Baltimore. I know Luke Appling was from Georgia. Certainly if Mantle had played for a Major League team in Oklahoma we would all be more aware of his Oklahoma roots.”
Well, first off, of course Mantle didn’t attract baseball players to Oklahoma, and that was never the issue. The issue was impact of an athlete on the state, and my point was that Mantle made a bunch of Oklahomans Yankee fans. I think that’s without question true. The Yanks had a big presence here before Mantle, because they’re the Yanks. As for where Mantle grew up, I can’t claim to know what the rest of America knew in the 1950s. But I know that New Yorkers’ image of Mantle was closely linked to his Oklahoma roots; it was part of the romantic notion of the Mick.
Jeff also wrote about Tisdale: “Great coverage on Wayman. His passing was, of course, tremendously sad and shocking. As you have artfully and accurately stated, Wayman was one of a kind. What a great ambassador and example for all of us. In December 1982, my family went to the Rainbow Classic. OU, North Carolina, Missouri, Arizona State, Virginia Tech were all entered. North Carolina beat Missouri in the finals and OU won the consolation after losing to North Carolina (a good game, by the way) in the semis. After the finals, the all-tournament team was announced. G-Jon Sundvold, G-Byron Scott, F-Michael Jordan, F-Sam Perkins, C- Steve Stipanovich. Quite an all-star team but no Wayman, no Dell Curry and no Brad Daugherty. However, the last award was for Most Outstanding Player. ‘Wayman Tisdale, freshman of Oklahoma!’ We were all thrilled.”
To quote Genesis, there were giants in the land in those days.
Steve: “Good job on the coverage on Mr. Tisdale’s passing. Very touching. To me he seemed like a great, great guy. And God blessed him with other talents as well. Out of the spotlight, was he pretty much the same kind of guy?”
Yes, Tisdale seemed to be, though that’s the thing. He so rarely was out of the spotlight.
Roadrunner wrote that my column about Tisdale’s impact was “on target. I graduated OU in 1956. Your analogy about basketball and wrestling was correct. While at OU I went to all wrestling matches. It helped that we had a very good team. After graduating and living in OKC, I never attended an OU basketball game, but I would drive to Norman for wrestling matches. That changed when Wayman came to OU. The whole attitude of the crowd changed, including me. If memory serves, OU gave a scholarship to brother William and a job to his father. I guess that is the price of recruiting. Kansas did likewise when it got Danny Manning.”
Well, OU did indeed give William Tisdale a basketball scholarship the year before; William was a good high school player at Tulsa Washington, though probably not Big Eight caliber. But there was no job for the Rev. Louis Tisdale. He was needed elsewhere, pastoring the Friendship Church.
On to other topics. Mike wrote about the Justin Chaisson case: “As you will recall, in 2008 a black high school football player named Josh Jarboe was recruited by Stoops. At the time, Jarboe already had two misdemeanor convictions. One was for receiving stolen property and the other for carrying a gun onto his school campus. Later Jarboe made a vulgar gangsta video of himself talking about guns and shooting people. He put it online at youtube. For this he was kicked off the team. Justin Chaisson is white and was recruited by Stoops in 2009. In contrast to Jarboe, he is guilty of a violent crime. He forced his ex-girlfriend into a car, punched her, assaulted her with a screwdriver and threatened to kill her. As of this moment (May 21, 2009) Chaisson has not been kicked off the team. Is racism a factor?”
Let’s see. Jarboe had two convictions, one for a gun offense on school grounds, and Stoops still brought him to campus. Sounds more like reverse racism, should Stoops decide to pull Chaisson’s scholarship.
Bob: “The experts are saying that a college football team can’t win the national championship without an experienced offensive line. Check out USC in 2004 (a team OU fans are all too familiar with). I believe their offensive line was pretty inexperienced that year. As a matter of fact, that USC had several other similarities to this year’s OU team – outstanding QB, dual threats at running back, new wide receiver core, talented tight ends, talented D-line, experienced linebackers. Just a thought.”
OK, I’ll bite. I looked it up. And you know what? Bob is exactly right. The 2004 Trojans started an offensive line in the Orange Bowl that entered the season with a combined seven starts. Left tackle Sam Baker and left guard Jeff Byers were freshmen. Center Ryan Kalil had been a backup the year before. Right guard Fred Matua made seven starts in 2003. And right tackle Taitusi Lutui was in junior college ion 2003. By comparison, OU’s expected O-line in 2009 is a bunch of graybeards.
John wrote about my ranking of the most suspenseful moments in Oklahoma sports history, off the court/field. You missed what should have been No. 1! After turning to the sports section and seeing the title of the story, I scanned the pictures and saw Randy Rutherford’s and James Dickey’s heads hung and thought to myself, huh No. 8, that story should have been much higher. After reading the caption and figuring out the picture represented the Eddie Sutton drunk driving incident, I was totally amazed that it meant the story I thought was misplaced at No. 8 didn’t even make the top 10. Without a doubt the most suspenseful story is the OSU men’s basketball plane crash. I challenge you to compare anything listed in your top 10 to the moments after hearing on the OSU postgame radio show that something may have gone wrong with one of the planes. No information was available as to if the plane crashed and if it did who was on the plane. I remember thinking to myself that we may have just lost our entire team and coaching staff. Awaiting the press conference late that night in Stillwater (either at the airport or GI Arena) created a feeling in me that I can’t really even describe.”
Oh, be assured we talked about the plane crash. But we didn’t think it belonged on this list. Ranking it alongside the NBA draft lottery or where a football recruit was going to school hardly seemed sound reasoning.
Ed wrote about my reference to silly sports jargon: “I couldn’t agree more about the ridiculous sound of ‘score the basketball.’ Perhaps it will go away, like other ridiculous expressions have. One I remember when I was living in Alabama was ‘the ball kicks off the rim and is rebounded by…’ For a while, every announcer used it. Then it disappeared and hasn’t been missed, at least by me.”
I like them all better than “good golf shot.”
John wrote about New Orleans getting the Super Bowl: “In the aftermath of Huricane Katrina, you stated that it would be a good time to lure the Hornets from New Orleans because, and I am paraphrasing, New Orleans is not ready and may never be ready to host an NBA game or a major sporting event ever again. Since then, the Saints have enjoyed two sellout seasons, the Hornets have also enjoyed an increase in ticket sales, the city has hosted several Sugar Bowls, the NCAA Championship game, an NBA All Star game and now have been awarded the 2013 Super Bowl. Would you like to retract that statement?”
Sure. New Orleans has done a terrific job getting back in the big-event business. I still don’t know about the Saints or Hornets, but the big-event business seems solid.
Tamara wrote about my height column: “My son is 6-foot-6 in his barefeet and has been since he was 15 years old. When he was playing basketball in high school, his coach tried to get him to list his height as 6-8, saying that all basketball players exaggerate. I was surprised, but after reading your article, I guess he was right. My son was honest, though. His height was always listed correctly when he had any control over it. It’s not only basketball players who fudge their height. I’ve noticed that there are many men who fudge on their height; it becomes obvious when they stand next to my son and exclaim about his height, comparing to their own height. When he was 14 and was 6-4, we made a trip out of state to visit relatives. My niece’s boyfriend and my brother-in-law both have always said they were 6-4, but they were obviously several inches shorter than him (they said I had to have made a mistake in measuring him). I suggested they measure him themselves, but they changed the subject.”
Funny, funny stuff. But I think I’m going to pass on trying to come up with a witty comeback.
More great moments from Tisdale’s funeral
Wayman Tisdale’s funeral Thursday was the longest I’ve ever attended, three-plus hours, and it seemed like 30 minutes. Tisdale’s funeral also was the biggest I’ve ever attended, and I wish it had been bigger. I wish everyone could have attended.
We tried to adequately summarize the feelings and emotions that were in the BOK Center from about 10:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m., but in today’s Oklahoman we had only about 11/2 pages.
So I thought I would give you some glimpses of what Tisdale’s many friends had to say about the man who died last week at the age of 44.
Thirty-year love affair
Tisdale and his wife, Regina, were high school sweethearts who first found each other at the age of 15. They married in 1987.
Tisdale’s Sacramento pastor, Sherwood C. Carthen, officiated at the memorial service and said Tisdale, “Enrolled in the University of Regina. Majored in Reginaism and family.
“There were days he got called to the dean’s office and was put on academic suspension. But, Tisdale would say, ‘I flashed those big pearly whites, played my music and once again I was on the honor roll.’”
Believe it: Tisdale’s musical talents for real
This nugget comes from comrade John Helsley.
In his home state, Tisdale is best known for basketball, whether at OU or the Olympics or the NBA. But he made quite a career – and a name – for himself in the music world, too.
“That man was an unbelievable musician,” said Dave Koz, a popular jazz sax man. “Do you know hard it is to make a sound that is immediately identifiable from the very first note? That’s near impossible to do on any instrument, let alone the bass.
“But that’s what he had. He had a singular unique sound the minute you heard it, ‘That’s him.’ And there was so much love that was put into the music, you couldn’t hear it and not fall in love with the guy.”
Marcus Miller, another renowned jazz man, said Tisdale had to earn his way to success – his way.
“In terms of music, Wayman was very interesting, because he came to the game very late,” Miller said. “And there’s a lot of bass players in the world. Wayman said to me, ‘I want to make my mark in music. What do you think I have to do?’
“I said, ‘You’ve got to get your personality to come through your instrument. If you can get your personality to come through that bass, you’re going to be a success.’ And that’s what he did.
“When you hear his music, you start grinning like he grinned. You can feel it.”
Hornets brought them closer
Hornets assistant coach Kenny Gattison said getting to spend two years based in Oklahoma City brought him closer to his old pal Tisdale. They would see each other and talk more than ever.
During that time is when Tisdale was diagnosed with cancer.
“You call him, you’re waiting for the day he’s sad,” Gattison said. “You call him, and he’s trying to cheer you up. It’s just remarkable.
“I wrote him a note. ‘You are the strongest man I’ve ever known in my life.’ One of the rarest spirits that’s graced the Earth.”
Comedic talent I
Walker said forget music and forget basketball. Tisdale’s true gift was comedy.
“You talk about a funny guy,” Walker said. He said Tisdale might don a wig or a gold tooth, just to cut everyone up.
This past season, Tisdale would call Walker, who was an assistant coach with the Hornets during their Oklahoma City years but is now on the Detroit Pistons staff.
“Gol’ dog, y’all are sorry,” Tisdale would cackle when he called Walker. “I watched you guys. You’re horrible.”
Walker would just shake his head at the abuse Tisdale was handing out over Detroit’s struggling season. “You’d get off the phone, you’re like, ‘Doesn’t this guy have cancer?’”
Comedic talent II
Rory Sparrow, now the NBA’s vice president for player development and a Sacramento Kings teammate of Tisdale in 1990-91, relayed a story from their season together.
Their wives were pregnant at the same time, and Tisdale indicated a desire to go furniture shopping. He told Sparrow he had arranged for a private tour of a notable furniture store, one of those layouts that have segmented rooms of furniture.
They turned a corner and found two people in a bed, “passionately loving each other,” said Sparrow, who was embarrassed and mortified. Then the people rose up and yelled, “Candid Camera.”
Tisdale was falling down laughing at his prank.
Tell me more, tell me more
I had one disappointment from the service. I didn’t learn as much about the home of the Rev. Louis and Deborah Tisdale, Wayman’s parents. To me, that’s the great untold story about Tisdale. How did his parents produce such a man?
Only two nuggets came through the service on that subject. Former Tulsa Washington coach Mike Mims, who coached Wayman, William and Weldon Tisdale, said, “Mrs. Tisdale, thank you, thank you for these boys. They mean everything to me. Always will. Always have. Forever.”
And Tulsa mayor Kathy Taylor talked of how Tisdale said “carrying on the Tisdale name was a high calling … handed down from his amazing father.”
A section of a Tulsa freeway is named after Wayman’s father.
Hey, he has hair
Here’s how big was Wayman Tisdale’s funeral. Toby Keith went without headgear.
Keith never appears without a cowboy hat or a toboggan, the latter of which he wears to OU basketball games. But Thursday, Keith played hatless and even wore a coat and tie.
I wasn’t crazy about “Angels Flying Too Close to the Ground” as a song for Tisdale. The title seems to fit, but the lyrics don’t.
Converting Billy
Gospel singer Fred Hammond got the crowd rocking with a series of inspirational tunes and said he knows people go to all kinds of churches, but this is the way he does church.
Then Billy Tubbs took the stage and said, “One thing I’ve already learned, I need to change churches.”
Signing autographs
I wrote about bass guitarist Marcus Miller’s theory on the wall, the invisible wall that celebrities build to keep a chunk of themselves away from the public, and how Tisdale didn’t have that wall. He had a light.
An unwritten rule on autographs is no signing during dinner. Fans should know not to ask, and celebrities should know to not sign if asked.
But Miller said he’s seen Tisdale sign during dinner. “I’ve seen Wayman sign autographs with a chicken wing in the other hand,” Miller said. “He’d always sign. He’d keep eating, but he’d sign.”
Music Men
Miller, the jazz guitarist, repeated the oft-stated theory that all musicians want to play a little ball and all ballplayers want to be musicians.
That’s why, Miller said, Tisdale was so impressive. He actually could excel at both. Miller said he was excited when he heard Tisdale wanted to meet him; Miller had a bunch of basketball questions for an NBA player.
Took him three months to get to the basketball questions. Tisdale was too busy asking music questions.
Former New York Knick John Starks spoke at the service and said, “I tried to pick up music, too. Wanted to play the saxophone. Didn’t succeed. I always had dreams of getting good and doing a set with Wayman.”
Fierce competitor
Everyone always talks about Tisdale’s wonderful demeanor, and you will find basketball critics who say Tisdale never worked enough on his game. But never mistake Tisdale for a man who didn’t compete on the hardwood.
“Behind that smile was a great competitor,” Tubbs said. “A guy who wanted to excel on everything he did.”
Charles Smith, who played nine years in the NBA and now is director of the league’s retired players association, said that some people think being a Christian makes you passive. But no so.
“Wayman competed in the heat of the moment at all times,” Smith said. Tisdale would swing his ample backside around, sit on the defender’s thigh and post up. “He’d hit you,” Smith said, “in the name of Jesus and with a smile.”
Front & back
Strangely enough, Sidney Green spent 10 years in the NBA, eight of those while Tisdale was in the league, but they are linked by events before and after.
Green was present for one of Tisdale’s first appearances on the grand stage and present for one of his last. Both in Las Vegas.
Green was a Nevada-Las Vegas forward and a senior when Tisdale made his collegiate debut in November 1982, against the Runnin’ Rebs. Then two weeks ago, Green was at Tisdale’s Las Vegas concert and even helped him on stage with his prosthetic leg.
“He put on an exhilarating performance in Las Vegas,” Green said. “It was a captivating performance.”
Tulsa inspiration
Starks, who grew up in Tulsa a year younger than Tisdale, said he remembers trying to get into Tulsa Washington’s hot-box gymnasium to catch a glimpse of Tisdale.
“Trying to watch an incredible player,” said Starks, who was not scheduled to speak but gave a four-minute reflection on Tisdale. “Wayman was a person I looked up and admired. He was the first athlete to really put Tulsa on the map. You need someone to follow and aspire to be.”
Double Dare
Charles Smith said he really got to know Tisdale during the 1992 All-Star Weekend. They appeared on “Double Dare,” a Nickelodeon network children’s show known for its wild antics of getting everyone wet and covered with green slime.
Before the show, they talked for 30 minutes, and Smith said Tisdale told of him of his passion for his family, how blessed he considered himself to be.
Then Tisdale put on the show’s uniform, but the pants were so tight they looked like spandex, and both players roared in laughter. The show producer frantically tried to find another outfit, but Tisdale said no problem.
“I came here to get as messy as I could,” Tisdale said. “I want to show my kids their dad can be silly on national television.”
Smith said Tisdale had the children in the audience in stitches the entire show.
“I never experienced interaction with a player like that before,” Smith said. “Wayman taught me something that day. How important it is to be a God-fearing man and give of yourself and how your family and children are the most important things in life.”
Jazz concert supreme
The funeral, in addition to many other things, was a world-class jazz concert. Tisdale’s band played for 30 minutes before the service, and musicians like Dave Koz and Marcus joined along at moments during the day.
“I was playing stuff, I don’t even know how it came out of my instrument,” Miller said of his bass guitar. “I didn’t even know what key I was in. I was just letting it go. I think most of the musicians were feeling the same way.”
Talkin’ Wayman
Here are some quotes we collected but never found a place to use, both from Thursday and from last week, when Tisdale died.
OU athletic director Joe Castiglione: “A larger than life Oklahoma original provided us with some of our greatest lessons.”
OU teammate Darryl Kennedy: “He was my man. I played with him pretty much all my life, going back to AAU. He was the reason I went to OU. I wanted to play with one of the greatest players to ever come out of Oklahoma. He was a great person. He was always positive. He never let the negative bring us down. He always smiled and kept us together. I’ll miss him. He was one of my brothers.”
Kansas coach Bill Self, who played against Tisdale in high school and college: “He changed the whole landscape for basketball in our state, from a fun standpoint and from a production standpoint. We were football state until Wayman came on the scene.”
Long-time NBA star Sam Perkins, who played with Tisdale on the 1984 Olympic team and was best man at Tisdale’s wedding: “I was thinking, ‘I can’t believe this has happened.’ I was trying to think of our age difference, and I’m like, ‘This man is 44.’ I don’t know what’s old anymore.”
Former Yankee outfielder Bernie Williams, another aspiring musician: “He was truly an inspiration to me, paving the way for an athlete like myself to pursue a passion for writing and performing music. I had the honor and privilege of having Wayman perform on the title track of my new album and was looking forward to collaborating with him again in the future.”
Former college basketball coach C.M. Newton, manager of the 1984 Olympic team: “He was an all-American player and an all-American person. He lit up the day for us, I remember, at so many practices. We practiced long and hard, and Wayman’s smile and whole demeanor made those so much easier.”
