Jenni Carlson » Uncategorized

Yes, Bradford will

jennicarlson — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:04:22 +0000

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?

jennicarlson — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 15:01:10 +0000

Perception is an interesting animal.

Earlier this week, Sam Bradford made his first public comments since injuring his shoulder in Oklahoma’s opening game. He talked about his rehab, his recovery and his possible return. Everyone heard the same answers from the Sooner quarterback, but not everyone came to the same conclusion about what he said.

One website headline: Bradford close to return.

Another one: Bradford eyeing return, but surgery still possible.

And another one: Bradford hopes to play vs. Baylor.

And one last one: Surgery remains possibility for Oklahoma QB Bradford’s shoulder.

Technically, every one of those headlines is correct. Bradford is close to returning, or at least he’s closer now than he was a few weeks ago. He is eyeing a return, but surgery is still possible. He does hope to play Saturday. It is interesting, though, how the same nine-minute question-and-answer session can be perceived so differently.

Some saw the good in what Bradford had to say. Some saw the bad. But the truth is, what he had to say was both good and bad and everything in between.

The guy is clearly frustrated and not healing the way he’d hoped, but he is also better now than he has been since he injured his AC joint against BYU. Then, there are also the things that you find reading between the lines, that his shoulder is better and his pain is minimal but that his arm isn’t as strong as it used to be. He is struggling to put the same zip on the ball and to do it for as long as he used to. But wait, that’s a perception, too, isn’t it? The truth is, everyone who heard what Bradford had to say earlier this week made a judgment about it.

When questions abound but answers are as scarce as they have been in Bradford’s case, everyone is left with only one thing — their perception.

A.D. and Co. know how to have fun

jennicarlson — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 17:18:50 +0000

I’m going to let you in on a little secret — being a sportswriter can take the fan right out of you.

At least, it has for me.

Cover teams long enough, deal with athletes and coaches long enough, and slowly but surely, the fandom drains right out of you. I don’t cheer for any teams. I don’t pull for any programs. I just don’t have it in me anymore.

But the Minnesota Vikings are doing their darnedest to change that.

You probably think this is all about Brett Favre, and while it’s true that the old guy is really something special, I’ve never been a big fan of his. He isn’t the reason why I’m on the verge of cheering for the purple and gold.

No, the reason I’m really coming around to the Vikings is because they play fun. Some teams play fast. Some play hard. The Vikings play fun.

They just seem to be out there having a great time. Now, I suspect that’s because they take what they do very seriously. They put in the time at practice. They put in the effort in film. They do all the grunt work behind the scenes so that when they hit the field, they can let it fly.

It’s like Olympic gymnasts. What they do looks effortless, like any of us could do it if we just try. But the truth is, most of us can’t even do a cartwheel.

Listen, I’m not saying the Vikings are the best team in the NFL. Heck, they might not be among the three or four best teams. But after watching the Vikings beat the Packers on Monday night, I realized how exciting they were. Watching Jared Allen and Percy Harvin, Adrian Peterson and Kevin Williams, Bernard Berrian and the rest of those guys is fun.

This is a fun and exciting bunch, fun enough to make a fan out of anyone, even yours truly.

Big Blake getting a taste of Clippers Curse

jennicarlson — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 16:30:51 +0000

Wonder if Blake Griffin is starting to believe in this Clippers Curse idea.

The former Oklahoma standout has officially been a member of the Los Angeles Clippers for all of three months, and already he’s had not one but two injuries.

Perhaps you remember that Griffin was sidelined earlier this summer. He strained his right shoulder during a summer league game in July. He was on track to return to action when the Clippers opened training camp earlier this week.

That injury just seemed like a blip on the Clippers Curse radar. After all, the team best known for futility has had far worse incidents. Take Danny Manning, for example. The slam-dunk, No. 1 pick in the 1988 draft went to the Clippers, and 26 games into his pro career, he suffered a knee injury. He was never the same after that.

So, that shoulder could’ve been worse for Griffin.

But then last week, he was participating in an informal workout session at the team’s training facility. He had a knee-on-knee collision with teammate Craig Smith.

Smith was completely and totally unscathed.

Griffin injured his left knee, bruising his patella and leaving his patellar tendon sore.

That meant that when the Clippers opened camp Tuesday, Griffin could only watch from his elliptical machine.

Maybe we should’ve seen this coming. On draft night, after all, news about the biggest day of Griffin’s life was dwarfed in Los Angeles by the death of Michael Jackson. What should’ve been big sports news in Southern California became an afterthought.

Clippers Curse? Alive and well? Strong as ever? It sure seems that way.

There is no doubt that Blake Griffin is a strong, strapping young lad. He can carry a lot on those broad shoulders. Adjusting to the NBA and living up to expectations should be no problem for Big Blake.

This Clippers Curse might be a whole other story.

From The Ford Center

jennicarlson — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 01:49:25 +0000

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

jennicarlson — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 01:22:30 +0000

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

jennicarlson — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 02:52:42 +0000

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

jennicarlson — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 18:33:35 +0000

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

jennicarlson — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 23:11:05 +0000

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.

Thompson not warming up

jennicarlson — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 22:27:37 +0000

The Oklahoma women’s basketball team is doing its pregame warm-ups on the floor of Carver-Hawkeye Arena, and Amanda Thompson is nowhere to be seen.

Looks like the junior forward will not play tonight against Prairie View A&M.

She has been sidelined since last weekend with a tendon injury in her left. Tests revealed that she had a malformation, the possible result of an aggravation of an old injury.

If Thompson pulls a Willis Reed and runs onto the court at tipoff, we’ll let you know, but chances are good, the Sooners are going to sit her tonight. No need to risk her health against 16th-seeded Prairie View A&M.