An OKC hockey nickname, please!
I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not a public relations genius.
But still, it’s pretty clear that the good folks with Prodigal Hockey and the new Oklahoma City minor-league hockey franchise need a little refresher in how to build on momentum.
Back on Feb. 9, we learned that Prodigal Hockey had struck a deal with the Edmonton Oilers for the NHL franchise to place its American Hockey League franchise in Oklahoma City. It was a great day for a city that has grown to love minor-league hockey. The Blazers enjoyed great success during their decades in our city, so this new franchise created quite a buzz among the city’s hockey faithful.
That same day that the agreement was announced, Prodigal Hockey announced a name-the-team contest. Fans would be able to submit their ideas for a name.
The deadline: Feb. 20.
The belief was that a team nickname would follow shortly thereafter. There’d be gear to buy. There’d be jerseys and T-shirts and hats. There’d be people wearing the stuff all over town. What better way to market this new Oklahoma City team?
But Feb. 20 came and went without any announcement about the team’s nickname. So did March 20 and April 20.
Don’t look now, but May 20 is just two weeks away, and still, we have no idea what this team will be named.
There are strong hints that it will be the Barons. A Twitter account has even popped up claiming to be the team’s official account. It’s handle — okc_barons. Two days ago, it proclaimed that an official announcement about the team name was still a couple weeks away.
Who knows if the site or the announcement is legit?
The truth is, the franchise blew a great opportunity to build on the momentum of February. Why not get the name out there quickly? Why not build the brand? Why not get people thinking about buying tickets and coming to games and being a part of hockey in Oklahoma City again?
I’m sure what happened, in part, was that the team got delayed in the announcement — these sorts of things have to be vetted by the parent organization, the league and all sorts of other folks – and suddenly, everyone looked around and realized that Thundermania was in full swing. Rather than try to compete with the NBA team, they decided to sit on the announcement. Wait until the season was over. Refuse to let the Thunder steal their, well, thunder.
It was a bad decision, and after the Thunder made the playoffs, it became an even worse one. The franchise has lost weeks and weeks that it could’ve been out there building on the momentum that came with the announcement in February. Hockey fans were on fire then. Even the casual fans were feeling the heat. But the franchise stood by and let the flames die out.
Maybe there are still some embers that can be stoked, but it’s sure going to take more work than it should’ve for the franchise to get the fire rekindled.
Yes, Bradford will
News is out that Sam Bradford will start against Baylor.
That turns a potentially ho-hum day into an afternoon packed with intrigue. I suspected that Oklahoma would throttle Baylor and turn the second half into a second-stringer’s dream, and even though I think the Sooners are still the heavy favorite, this game has all sort of interesting questions.
What will Bradford look like? How will he play after more than a month off?
How will his arm look? Will there be signs of fatigue?
Will Kevin Wilson’s playcalling change? Does Bradford’s presence make that much of a difference?
For so long, the biggest question surrounding OU football was, “When will Sam Bradford play?” Now that we have the answer to that, we have plenty more questions that need answering.
Saturday can’t come fast enough.
Slingin’ Sam: Will he play or not?
A.D. and Co. know how to have fun
Big Blake getting a taste of Clippers Curse
From The Ford Center
Oklahoma took to the Ford Center floor about 15 minutes ago.
And the cheers were deafening.
The arena definitely isn’t full for tonight’s regional semifinals in the NCAA women’s basketball tournament. The curtain is pulled on about two-thirds of the upper deck, and the seats that are open upstairs aren’t full. The lower bowl, though, is almost at capacity.
Honestly, I thought there might be more folks than this.
Considering the paltry crowds at some of the other regionals, this is a fantastic turnout. But the advance sale numbers were big — nearly 10,000. It’ll be interesting to see what the attendance number ends up being tonight.
Might not break the all-time record for NCAA women’s basketball regionals, but I suspect it will easily be the biggest regional this year.
Stay tuned for more from The FC.
Live in Iowa City
Amanda Thompson looks good in warm-ups for Oklahoma’s game against Georgia Tech.
The Sooner forward has been battling a foot injury, but she seems to be running and jumping well. She might be in a lot of pain, but if she is, she doing a good job hiding it.
She could be big for OU tonight against Georgia Tech’s athleticism.
Couple other items:
* The crowd is paltry tonight. No surprise there. Once the hometown team, Iowa, got knocked out, numbers were expected to decline from Sunday’s games. And while the crowd count might struggle to get over 1,000, I thought it might actually be worse than it is.
* Georgia Tech has an interesting drill in warm-ups. The players toss high passes into the air to each other to simulate rebounds coming off the rim. I’ve seen teams do similar drills at the rim, but I don’t know that I’ve ever seen many do it at half court before a game. Tells you how much the Yellow Jackets value rebounding.
OU’s Final Four road well-paved
Oklahoma might not have a yellow-brick road to the Final Four, but for Sherri Coale and Co., the path looks more and more golden.
Already, the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds have been knocked out of the Sooners’ regional. Second-seeded Auburn got the heave-ho Monday night, losing to Rutgers, and third-seeded North Carolina lost to Purdue. The Tigers had the look of a team that could give the Sooners problem with their up-and-down style, and the Tar Heels were a team that had already given the Sooners problems, beating them earlier this season.
But now, neither will stand between OU and the Final Four.
And remember, this was a path that was already slated to take the Sooners through Oklahoma City.
(Also, the No. 4 seed, Pittsburgh, is locked in a battle with 12th-seeded Gonzaga. We’ll keep you posted, but if Pitt goes down, OU could be in a regional with the No. 6. No. 7 and No. 12 seeds remaining.)
There is the little matter, though, of the Sooners making to the Ford Center themselves. They still have to beat Georgia Tech tomorrow in Iowa City, and while this seems like a good thing — playing the Yellow Jackets instead of the hometown Iowa Hawkeyes — the Rambling Wreck has the potential to run the Sooners off their Final Four road.
The Yellow Jackets are athletic, lacking great shooters but beating teams with their ability to get to the basket as well as rebound and put back their misses.
Think of a poor man’s Texas A&M.
And everyone knows how the Sooners have struggled against the Aggies.
If the Sooners can survive the Yellow Jackets, their road looks straight and narrow. It’s up to them as to how well they navigate it.
Next up for Sooners: Texas A&M Lite
Georgia Tech is next up for the Oklahoma women’s basketball team, and after watching the Yellow Jackets last night, they definitely have a familiar look.
They play a bit like Texas A&M.
Georgia Tech is quick and athletic, playing a maddening style of basketball that frustrates opponents. Or least that’s what it did Sunday night against Iowa. The Hawkeyes could never get into a flow against the Yellow Jackets, losing in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on their home floor.
Next up for Ga Tech: Oklahoma.
The Sooners have had their struggles against athletic squads like this. A couple years ago, it was Mississippi in the NCAA Tournament. This season, it was Texas A&M, which beat OU twice the past month.
The good news for the Sooners is that the Yellow Jackets aren’t quite as talented as the Aggies. They aren’t as polished or refined, but they could cause problems.
We’ll have more from Carver-Hawkeye Arena, so stay with NewsOK.com, then be sure to check out all of our coverage Tuesday in The Oklahoman.
Thompson in uniform
Amanda Thompson appeared on the court a few minutes ago in her warm-ups, but I still don’t expect Oklahoma’s junior forward to play tonight against Prairie View A&M.
When the Sooners ran off the court after the National Anthem, Thompson walked off. If she’s not jogging to the locker room, it’s hard to think she’ll be running up and down the court later this evening.
Rest sounds like it’s been the best thing for her ailing foot. If the Sooners get into a dire situation, she could play, but I don’t see that happening against the 16th-seeded Panthers. I’m sure Sherri Coale is just making sure she has all her players available should she have need of them.
