Remembering Wayman Tisdale
Like most Oklahomans, I was saddened yesterday to hear of the death of Oklahoma basketball great Wayman Tisdale. I’d like to thank my colleagues at The Oklahoman for providing such moving tributes to the man in the form of their words and pictures in today’s newspaper.
Wayman was the first OU basketball player I remember following or really knowing anything about. As many people could say, Wayman Tisdale is the reason I started paying attention to OU basketball. His amazing post game and million-dollar smile were part of growing up a Sooner fan in the 1980s.
I was the sports editor at The Sooner yearbook at OU in 1997 when Tisdale returned to campus to be the first athlete in any sport to have his jersey retired at OU. Fans were just as crazy about the man in 1997 as they had been in the 1980s.
He’d carved out a second life for himself as a musician once his basketball career ended. Natasha Mitchell ran down that part of Tisdale’s career here for NewsOK. Eight top-ten jazz albums and an honor as jazz bassist of the year were even more accolades for a man who had a life full of them.
We lost him too soon, but we were lucky to have him.
– Matt Price
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Comments
My prayers go out to the Tisdale family, from the time I meet Wayman back in high schoool, when his Booker T Hornets came my high school Ponca City, he always had that SMILE and was a VERY good person all the way around.
Lov ya man
R.I.P
Take your rest my brother from a life well live and job well done. My heart felt prayers go out to the entire Tisdale family for your lost.
my sincere prayers to family of great music legend wayman tisdale. a great artist with talent that is uncomparable.