Doing Oklahoma proud
An Oklahoma native is making major waves in the sports world.
Wes Welker?
Think again.
Watch my latest video commentary or read below:
He was a local sports standout, born and raised in the Oklahoma City area.
He was expected to be a decent college player but emerged as a team leader.
Now, he is playing for one of the best teams in the land.
Yep, Darnell Jackson is having one heck of a season.
Oh, you thought we were going to talk more about New England Patriots receiver Wes Welker? We’re not ruling it out, since the Super Bowl is this week, but for now, let’s talk about Jackson.
The power forward played high school ball at Northwest Classen, then at Midwest City. He was a solid player, averaging 12.6 points and landing third-team Big All-City honors as a senior. Really, though, that isn’t the resume most players take to Kansas. The Jayhawks usually build around guys who are All-Americans, not all-city third-teamers.
Jackson had three decent years at Kansas, but this season, he has blossomed. He is second on the team averaging 12.8 points a game. That’s more than Brandon Rush, who considered leaving school early for the NBA. It’s more than Mario Chalmers or Russell Robinson, the talented guards who make the team go. Only Darrell Arthur is averaging more points than Jackson.
What’s more, Jackson is shooting 65.8 percent from the field.
He has become the Jayhawks’ most consistent player and just made their best player. Kansas has a star-studded bunch. You don’t make it to the final week of January with an undefeated record without some serious talent.
Thing is, Jackson’s play might be the difference between the really good Kansas teams of the past few years and this year’s team, arguably the best in the country.
No doubt Wes Welker is getting lots of love these days, but Darnell Jackson is every bit as important to his team and its championship hopes.
Another Oklahoma athlete doing well. Doing us proud, too.
Football throwback
Another weekend in January. Another game for Paul Smith.
This has been a busy month for the Tulsa quarterback. After leading the Golden Hurricane to a GMAC Bowl victory, Smith jetted out about two hours after the game, bound for Hawaii and the Hula Bowl. He returned to Tulsa after that senior-showcase game, and a few hours later, he was off again, this time for Houston. Smith will play there in the East-West Shrine game on Saturday.
College football could have no better ambassador.
Sure, Smith is now focused on NFL aspirations and dreams. But the truth is, Smith embodies what’s good about college football. He genuinely seems to have enjoyed the experience, the camaraderie, the campus lifestyle. Frankly, he’s a throwback.
I had a chance to talk to him last week before the Hula Bowl, and here are a few of his comments from our conversation:
About the GMAC Bowl: “Couldn’t draw it up much better. To end it the way we did, you couldn’t have really planned it any better or written it any better in a book. I did as much as I could to soak it in.”
About his emotions playing his final college game: “It was bittersweet for sure. My situation’s been so perfect. I’d love to come back and play some more.”
No matter what happens with Smith in the NFL Draft and beyond, his college legacy will remain. He enjoyed the game, relished the experience and soaked in the life. College football could stand a few more players like Paul Smith.
Locks of love
It’s not every day you get to opine about sports figures and their enviable hair.
Today, I have.
Watch my latest video commentary or read below:
I am in awe of Kurt Budke’s hair.
Really. I am.
I came to this conclusion Wednesday night at his post-game press conference. His Oklahoma State women’s basketball team had just defeated Missouri and pushed its record to 15-1, the best start ever in program history, and yet, I found myself mesmerized by Budke’s hair.
Part down the middle. Feathered back from there. The comb marks above his ears visible.
It makes Budke look a little bit like a televangelist, but in a good way. If that’s possible. It is Budke’s signature look.
All of this got me thinking about other sports types in our fair state with distinctive hair. Let me tell you, it’s amazing what you find yourself thinking about on a late-night drive back from Stillwater. And heck, it’s never bad to pull occasionally from the off-the-wall file for a video commentary.
So, without further ado:
Sherri Coale. Could you imagine her with anything other than her curly blond hair? What if she dyed her hair black or straightened it out? That’d just be weird.
Mr. Spiky Hair. Mike Gundy could fund a small country with what he spends on hair product.
Doug Sauter. It’s not the hair on his head, but rather the hair on his face. The Blazers coach has a beard that Rip Van Winkle would’ve died for.
Phil Loadholt and Duke Robinson. The dreaded duo was more than a nuisance to opposing defense. The Oklahoma offensive linemen have some of the coolest dreadlocks around.
Larry Fedora. I know, I know. He is no longer in our fair state, having left OSU for Southern Miss, but his hair was a regular topic of conversation in our office. I chalk it up to jealously. Who wouldn’t want Fedora’s abundant locks?
At the end of the day, all those looks are good and fine, but the one that still gets me is Budke’s. I’m almost hoping that his team wins the conference or something so someone will muss up his hair like Arizona’s players did to Lute Olsen at the Final Four.
Talk about a hair-raising experience.
Heroes in sports?
There are heroes in sports.
Just not always where a spotlight shines.
Watch my latest video commentary or read below:
The word “hero” is thrown around often in sports.
A quarterback leads a late-game drive, and he’s called a hero. A guard knocks down a last-second shot, and she’s called a hero.
But really, a hero is so much more. It is someone who shows courage amid danger or adversity. It is someone who displays self-sacrifice. It is someone who is looking out for the greater good. Because of those definitions, there are plenty of folks who believe there are no heroes in sports.
I’ll say that a game-winning touchdown or a goal-line stand does not a hero make. But that doesn’t mean sports is without its heroes.
Sports has heroes.
Plenty of them.
Many of them, though, are unsung. Their work is celebrated by the people closest to them, but beyond that, they are largely unknown. Perhaps they coach little league but are as concerned about the rules of life as the rules of the game. Perhaps they officiate rec league with a smile. Perhaps they encourage folks to join the Tuesday night bowling league.
Heroes in sports come from all walks. There are up-and-comers and weekend warriors, coaches and teachers, officials and referees, fans and encouragers. Others work in the concession stands and take the tickets and run the chain gangs and prepare the fields.
So, do you know a hero in sports? Maybe it’s the golf course starter who always has a kind word for your son. Maybe it’s the coach who is always willing to bring your daughter home after practice. Maybe it’s that person you know changed your life through sports.
If you know an unsung hero in sports, I want to know about them, too. Soon, we will begin telling the stories of unsung heroes in our sports section. E-mail me about your sports hero at jcarlson@oklahoman.com.
Make no mistake, there are heroes in sports. Let’s just make sure the real ones are unsung no more.
Holiday fun, OKC style
This video speaks for itself.
Happy holidays!
Hidden treasure on sports scene
Everyone’s celebrating our fair state this week.
Here’s another reason to be proud of Oklahoma.
Watch my video commentary or read here:
One of the best kept secret in all of Oklahoma sports is hiding in plain sight. Right there on S.E. 29th Street, it sprawls for nearly a half mile. It has at least half a dozen buildings, probably more, and many are as big as an indoor practice football field.
Yet, even the staunchest sports fans in our fair state know little about Midwest Trophy.
Also known now as MTM Recognition, the company is an Oklahoma sports treasure. It started small three-plus decades ago. It’s big accounts then were bowling leagues and little leagues. You can still get a trophy there for your Thursday night league, but MTM now produces some of the best-known awards in all sports, too.
The NCAA championship trophies? MTM does those.
The Orange Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Sugar Bowl and Cotton Bowl? MTM does those, too.
There’s also the World Series MVP, the awards for the Big 12 and several other conferences as well as the trophies for more than a dozen NASCAR races.
Heck, turn over any sports award in your house. Your son’s baseball trophy. Your daughter’s high school plaque. I’d almost bet the sticker on the bottom says it’s from MTM.
The business is a dream world of awards. Just the other day, they were doing glass etching on a bowl for a Big 12 trophy in one room and the metal checkered flag trophies for 2006 Nextel Cup winner Jimmie Johnson’s crew in another.
Everywhere you turn is something cool.
Go into the office of sculptor Jack Nortz and you can see a picture of him with Johnny Unitas. That’s because Nortz created the trophy for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, given to the best college football quarterback. The Unitas family invited him to the awards ceremony when that picture was snapped several years ago, and he’s headed back next month for this year’s presentation.
Midwest Trophy has quietly become a giant in the land of sports awards. Thing is, more people may know it outside Oklahoma than inside the borders.
Want to know more about MTM and exactly how it became such a big-time operation?
Check out my story in Sunday’s edition of The Oklahoman. We’ll profile the people behind MTM’s success. We’ll also give you a look at the company’s 10 most recognizable awards as well as a look at some of the other places you may have seen MTM’s handiwork.
As the fall sports season winds down and champions are crowned, chances are good, many of the trophies they hoist over their heads came from right here in Oklahoma.
Sometimes, inspiration comes in the mail
Justin Chappell wasn’t so sure he wanted to tell his story.
The Guthrie High School linebacker has myasthenia gravis, a neuromuscular disease that has attacked his eyes and affected his vision. Unless he takes eight pills a day, he sees double in crazy, wacky ways.
But when Guthrie coach Rafe Watkins let him know that yours truly wanted to talk with him about his disease, Chappell didn’t want to do it.
Then his mother, Sharla, reminded him of the power of his story.
“Maybe someone has your signs,” she said.
Maybe someone, then, could draw inspiration from him.
Chappell, after all, got a big boost a few years ago when ESPN The Magazine profiled Auburn quarterback Brandon Cox. The Tigers’ starter has myasthenia gravis, too, and when Chappell saw his story, it made a huge difference in his battle with the disease.
“I was still having question marks here and there,” Chappell said. “I questioned even playing football and baseball.”
Seeing that Cox was not only playing but also playing at the Division-I level reassured Chappell.
“It kind of lifted my spirits a little bit,” Chappell said.
His mother said, “That was such a blessing for us. That was another uplift for us. When a doctor tells you that your son has this and he’s on 12 pills and you’re thinking, ‘Are we doing the right thing here for son?’, then … I get a magazine with Brandon’s story in it.
“There are kids out there still playing with it. Let’s don’t lay down and die here. Let’s roll with it.”
Chappell has. He is the second-leading tackler for Guthrie, who defeated then top-ranked Carl Albert on Friday night. The Bluejays have now taken over the No. 1 spot in Class 5A.
Chappell is helping them win ballgames, but who knows how many other folks he may be helping with his story?
Finally, some good news
Sports has been plagued by all sorts of bad news.
Scandals. Steroids. Scoundrels.
Feel like you need some good news, sports fans? Steve Kime is your guy. On Saturday, the Oklahoma City resident will run the Tulsa Run for the ninth consecutive year to raise funds for Special Olympics. And he doesn’t just run. He dresses up like Forrest Gump.
Plaid shirt. Khaki pants. White Nikes. The whole nine yards.
Kime even carries a suitcase and a box of chocolates with him. I don’t know about you, but just thinking about running a 15K while carrying those props wears me out.
But Kime does it, and he loves it. Other folks love it, too. Now, people are not only giving him pledges but also giving him goodies to use as incentive. Steve Owens, Pat Jones, Billy Sims, Jason White and others have donated autographed items that will be given away to a few lucky donors.
Want to get involved? Go to www.sook.org and click on the “Forrest Gump” link on the left.
Want to read more about Kime? Check out my column Thursday.
OU: Third nationally in what?
Oklahoma has added another top-three finish to its storied sports history.
In bass fishing.
Bass fishing?
You read right. Last weekend, two-man teams from 36 colleges competed in the Under Armour College Bass National Championship on the Arkansas River near Little Rock.
Who knows what’s more amazing, that there’s a bass fishing national championship or that it’s sponsored by Under Armour.
Of all the things for Under Armour to sponsor, it sponsors a bass fishing tournament. Maybe I’m wrong, but I don’t see a lot of fishermen revving up the boat and hitting the water wearing Under Armour.
Anyway, Virginia Tech won the national championship, but the team from OU finished tied for second with Louisiana-Lafayette. Chip Porche and Matt Pangrac represented the Sooners. (Are they technically called the Sooners? For our purposes, they will be.) They lost a tiebreaker to La.-Lafayette to finish third.
Again, I have questions.
What kind of tiebreaker are we talking about? For some reason, I imagine these two teams having a race to see who could bait a hook faster. Probably not the tiebreaker they actually used, but man, that’d be fun.
I’m poking fun, but the truth is, I have all sorts of respect for bass fishing aficionados since I don’t know the first thing about the sport. So, a hearty attaboy to Virginia Tech, Louisiana-Lafayette, OU and every other team that competed in the national championship.
Go, fight, fish!
