Traveling down memory lane
The Jayhawks visiting Lloyd Noble Center Saturday afternoon is a trip down memory lane for me because of Kansas coach Bill Self.
The legendary KU coach helped me learn an invaluable journalism lesson early in my career — people read what you write and will let you know if they have issues with your story.
Self was a senior at Edmond High School when I was a young 22-year-old sports editor at the Edmond Evening Sun. Self ended up being The Oklahoman’s Player of the Year, known for his late-game heroics.
But in a loss at Midwest City, Self, double-teamed, fired up a long shot at the buzzer that missed. I wrote a column that Self should have passed to an open teammate in the paint, that he was trying to do too much.
In those days, e-mail didn’t exist. But the phones rang off the hook at our office the next few days. Most wanted to know why the local paper would criticize the local star.
The team threatened to boycott interviews with me the remainder of the season. Following a meeting with the team, players slowly understood it was just my opinion.
That lesson always stuck with me. Write what you believe is the truth but know there will be some who disagree with you.
Years later, when Self was coaching at Tulsa and I had been at The Oklahoman for 15 years, I covered the Golden Hurricane’s run to the Elite Eight. I asked Self if he recalled the column I wrote years earlier.
“No,” Self said. “But I bet my parents do.”
Robinson named Academic All-American
Oklahoma senior point guard Danielle Robinson was named to the Capital One Academic All-America Women’s Basketball Team announced Thursday by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
Robinson, who maintains a 3.50 GPA in sociology, was named to the second team and is the seventh OU women’s basketball player to earn the distinction of Academic All-American.
The senior from San Jose, Calif., leads the Sooners with 18.7 points and 4.8 assists per game. Robinson is also a Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award finalist and candidate for national player of the year honors, including the Naismith Trophy, Wade Trophy, Wooden Award and Nancy Lieberman Award given to the nation’s top point guard.
UConn’s Maya Moore led the first team as Academic All-American of the Year. Moore was joined by Erin Anthony (Army), Kathleen Berry (Columbia), Amanda Johnson (Oregon) and Liz Repella (West Virginia).
Robinson was joined on the second team by Angie Bjorklund (Tennessee), Jacqui Kalin (Northern Iowa), Kaihla Szunko (Central Michigan) and Jasmine Thomas (Duke).
The third team consisted of Jenna Barsokas (Lipscomb), Amanda Best (New Mexico), Rachel Clancy (Cal Poly SLO), Alyessa Karel (Wisconsin) and Kayla Tetschlag (Wisconsin-Green Bay).
Sooners report secondary violations
Oklahoma’s football team has been required to give players a week off from athletic training during the offseason after reporting a series of secondary NCAA rules violations related to offseason workouts.
The Sooners reported to the NCAA that four assistant coaches had improperly questioned players about their lack of participation in voluntary offseason workouts, and that some players had been working out more than the allowed eight hours per week.
-JT
Jarboe getting another chance
Remember Josh Jarboe, the former 4-star WR who lasted only a few weeks in Norman?
The 6-3, 195-pound Jarboe was dismissed from Oklahoma before ever playing a game after he was arrested on felony gun charges (later reduced to a misdemeanor via first-offender laws) and followed that by posting a controversial rap video on YouTube.
Jarboe transferred to Troy, where he was also dismissed for undisclosed team rules violations. He ended up at Northeast Mississippi Community College. Now, he’s at Arkansas State.
“I am just convinced that he has matured and wants to put that past him,” Arkansas State coach Hugh Freeze told The Jonesboro Sun. “I’ve never had a recruiting meeting like that before where a kid is as emotional, breaking down and crying just thinking that somebody is willing to listen to his story. We all have a past. He made a mistake, and he is the first to confess ‘I made a mistake.’ . . . It’s up to him to rewrite his story, and we want to help alongside of that.”
Perhaps if anyone can help Jarboe turnaround his life it’s Freeze. He was the high school coach in Memphis who helped Michael Oher (of The Blindside) succeed at Briarcrest Christian.
-JT
DT McGee cited for marijuana possession
OU defensive tackle Stacy McGee was cited and released for misdemeanor possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia Sunday, according to Norman police spokeswoman Jennifer Newell.
McGee was pulled over by police on East Lindsey Street a little after 5 p.m. A police officer spotted one joint of marijuana and a marijuana grinder. Because he was a Norman citizen, McGee was allowed to do a sign and release.
McGee, a native of Muskogee, started 10 of 13 games at last season defensive tackle, and finished the year with 26 tackles. He will be a junior this season.
-JT
Power Lunch Chat Recap: Mike Baldwin
Podcast: SoonerScoop.com’s Josh McCuistion talks 2012 recruiting
Jake Trotter talks with SoonerScoop.com’s Josh McCuistion about OU’s 2012 recruiting prospects, including QB Gunner Kiel, WR Dorial Beckham-Green and WR/DB Sterling Shepard.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Texas-Texas A&M to join Bedlam in December?
Earlier this week, I mentioned the probability of Oklahoma-Oklahoma State, and at least one other game, being moved to the first week of December to give the Big 12 some pop without a championship game during the final week of the college football season.
That one other game could in fact be Texas-Texas A&M.
Texas prefers to keep its annual game against Texas A&M on Thanksgiving Day but has agreed to move the game to Dec. 3 “if it’s critical to the television deal,” a Texas source familiar with the talks told the American-Statesman. The source believes A&M feels similarly.
Staging the Big 12′s two biggest instate rivalries the first week in December would keep the the Big 12 in the national limelight and draw significant TV ratings, even while other conferences like the SEC, ACC and Big Ten would be playing their conference championship games.
Should the UT-A&M grudge match be shifted to December, neither team would presumably play on the Thanksgiving week.
However, in Oklahoma’s case, school officials are pushing to have a replacement Thanksgiving game if Bedlam is moved. OU has a tradition of playing Thanksgiving Weekend dating back to its storied rivalry with Nebraska.
-JT
Davis on All-Academic team
Oklahoma senior gaurd Cade Davis was named to the 2011 Academic All-Big 12 Men’s Basketball Team, one of 12 total student-athletes recognized as a first-team selection, and one of 16 overall honorees.
First-team members have recorded a 3.20 or better GPA, while second-team honorees are those with a 3.00 to 3.19 GPA.
A human relations major from Elk City, Okla., Davis ranks second on the team in scoring (12.3 ppg), rebounding (5.0 rpg), assists (2.0 apg) and steals (1.0 spg). Davis also ranks third in the Big 12 with his 35.2 minutes per contest. He has made 166 career 3-pointers and needs four more to move into the top five on OU’s career list.
To qualify for the all-academic team, student-athletes must maintain a 3.00 GPA or higher (either cumulative or over each of the two previous semesters) and have participated in 60 percent of his team’s scheduled contests.
Freshmen and transfers are not eligible in their first year of academic residence. Seniors who have participated for a minimum of two years and meet all the criteria except 60 percent of participation are also eligible.
Which game should OU substitute for Bedlam if it moves?
The Big 12 is considering moving the Oklahoma-Oklahoma State football game off Thanksgiving weekend and back to Dec. 4. If that happens, an OU official has said the Sooners will push for another holiday weekend game against a conference rival. Which should it be?
