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POSSE MAGAZINE SPREADS

Cowboy hurler makes a comeback STORY BY

42 APRIL 2013

CLAY BILLMAN

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Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction

—not the most commonly used phrase in the vernacular.

Baseball fans know it as “Tommy John surgery.”

Jason Hursh simply calls it a second chance.

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The right-handed hurler is Oklahoma State’s ace, and what he’s got up his sleeve is a scar.

The surgery was pioneered by Dr. Frank Jobe in the 1970’s and named after his most famous patient, Los Angeles lefthander Tommy John. John went under the knife midseason in 1974 and made an unexpected Major League comeback in 1976, winning 10 games for the Dodgers.

More than half of John’s 288 career wins came post-surgery, and he retired in 1989 a three-time All-Star.

Prior to the procedure, damage to the UCL (the main elbow ligament connecting the humerus and ulna) was a careerender, particularly for pitchers. Dr. Jobe’s solution was to take a donor tendon (ideally harvested from the patient’s opposite forearm) and literally lace it through holes drilled in the bones to create a figure-eight pattern. The result is a restabilized elbow, as strong—if not stronger—than before.

Injured arms now had hope, and “Tommy John” was its name.

In the spring of 2011, Hursh was a promising pitcher in the Cowboys’ bullpen. He saw limited duty on the mound as a frosh (throwing only 29.2 innings in 10 appearances), but showed signs of the potential that made him a 6th round MLB draft pick out of Trinity Christian Academy (Carollton, Texas) a year earlier.

After a summer honing his skills for the Santa Barbara Foresters of the California Collegiate League, Hursh was expected to be a regular in the OSU rotation as a sophomore.

“I was playing out in Santa Barbara, and my arm felt great that day,” Hursh recalls. “After one particular pitch I felt a little tweak in my elbow, but I shook it off. The very next pitch I felt a pop. I knew at that point I did something serious to my elbow and immediately walked off the mound.”

An MRI confirmed the worst.

“I talked to the team doctors, and they said I’d probably need to go ahead and get surgery.”

In the nearly four decades since Tommy John had “Tommy John,” the procedure has become almost commonplace, and thousands of baseball careers have been extended. As many as 10 percent of current

professional pitchers bear the trademark scar, as do a number of Hursh’s own teammates.

“We have a lot of those scars on our squad, that’s for sure,” he says. “Randy McCurry. Mark Robinette. Phillip Wilson.

Rick Stover, a catcher.”

The post-op rehabilitation process is long (up to a year or more), but the surgery’s success rate was encouraging to Hursh.

“I just thought of it as a second chance for me,” he says. “The doctors do it in their sleep these days. My surgery

only took like 45 minutes. I knew if I rehabbed and

did my throwing program and everything, I could come back stronger.”

Back in Stillwater, John Stemm serves as OSU’s director of athletic training and rehabilitation. The first thing Stemm tells his student-athletes is they can’t pick up a ball for six months.

“This might be the first time since they were probably 11 or 12 that they haven’t thrown a baseball for six months,” Stemm says. “Kids these days are becoming onesport athletes. Some throw year-round.

That’s why we’re seeing a huge increase in this number of these injuries, even at younger ages. It’s just a lot of throwing.”

Several years ago, a panel of physicians studied the success rate of Tommy John surgery, Stemm says. Their conclusion was unanimous.

“They all said the reason why there are failures is that people do not stick to the rehab program. They looked at Major League guys who didn’t get back and found that they may have tried to come back too soon or started throwing too quickly. They didn’t do things by the book.

“The doctors all have their own protocol,” he adds, “So Jason’s doc came up and said, ‘This is what I like to follow,’ and we just went from there. I like to do certain things, and we just married that together.”

Hursh says it helped to have a teammate at his side while going through the rigors of rehab.

“Mark (Robinette) had the surgery three days after me, so we were pretty much on the same page throughout all of it. It definitely helps having someone right there with you, to make sure you’re accountable and doing all your reps. We just followed the program and did what it said. We got in the weight room and got after it.”

“They would come to rehab four times a week,” Stemm says. “The other days they are lifting, working on abdominal strength, working on legs, those kind of things. Once they’re cleared to start running, they start working on conditioning.”

Stemm says the key to a strong throwing arm starts at the shoulder.

“There are some mechanical things that certainly play a role in elbow injuries,” Stemm says. “In the throwing motion, the arm is kind of like a whip. All your force and all your torque come from your legs and your core. Your arm is just going along for the ride, and the shoulder’s only job is to slow itself down as it throws. Everything else is generated from what we call ‘beach muscles.’ If you’re not using those big muscles, you tend to use your shoulder more. What ends up happening is your shoulder gets tired. Now you drop your elbow because your rotator cuff is getting tired or weak or inflamed, and that puts your elbow at risk.

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“In my experience, every kid that comes in with elbow problems has shoulder weakness,” he adds. “Hursh is a classic example.”

“Obviously I was doing something wrong beforehand that ended up with me injuring myself,” Hursh admits. “So I just focused on the proper throwing mechanics and kind of learned how to throw again. I really focused on keeping my shoulder up high and using proper form.”

Once he was cleared to throw, Hursh was still brought along slowly.

“THE SKY’S THE LIMIT FOR THIS KID. I THINK HE’S GOT A CHANCE TO PITCH IN THE BIG LEAGUES AT SOME POINT.” —ROB WALTON

“In our return-to-throwing program, they usually start at 45 feet, throwing at about 80 percent,” Stemm says. “We play catch.

I describe it as being in the backyard throwing with your dad. We’d do 25 throws and take a break and then do 25 more. That’s day one. The whole thing is a 16-step process. In order for them to go to the next step—60 feet, 90 feet—they have to have 80 percent of the throws inside the box, hip to shoulder. As the distance increases, we still want them to be able to control the baseball.

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“He can wing it.”

At that point, it was time for Stemm to put Hursh’s health in the capable hands of graduate assistant Eli Williams, athletic trainer for baseball. Assistant coach Rob Walton, a standout OSU pitcher from 1983-86, arrived last summer as part of Josh Holliday’s new staff.

“I didn’t get to be here through the rehab process, but Eli has done a nice job making sure all of our guys were doing the things necessary to stay healthy,” Walton says. “The elbows aren’t a big concern for me, but when guys are sitting out, that’s when you worry about them, because mentally they’re not competing. I think it’s more of a mental anguish than it is a physical one.

“When a guy comes off an injury, there’s always some doubt that comes into play,” he adds. “But there’s been so much coverage of Tommy John over the past several years, knowing so many guys have had it and come back, I think it alleviated much of the pressure. Those first times they get to throw a ball and it’s free and easy and they don’t feel anything, their trust starts to come back, and they can start getting back into a normal workload.”

It’s the journey back to the mound, and there are no shortcuts.

“It kind of takes a toll on you because you’ve played this game your whole life,” Hursh says. “They say you can’t throw or anything, but you’ve still got to practice every day and see all your teammates playing and getting better. You wish you could be out there, but at the same time, you don’t want to cheat it, because you don’t want to mess it up. You just have to dig deep and find that inner will and get after it once you’re released.”

The extra effort has been worth it, Hursh says.

“Honestly, it probably benefited me more in my career. I feel stronger than ever. It’s a great feeling of satisfaction, knowing that all your hard work paid off.”

The early season stats testify to that.

Through his first six starts, Hursh had a 3-0 record with a 1.23 earned run average.

Despite Hursh’s relative lack of experience, Walton is relying on the redshirt sophomore to be the leader of the Cowboy rotation.

“We didn’t have a whole lot of returning arms,” Walton says, “so he’s got to take on a role that he might not necessarily be in. Obviously you like your Friday night guy to have experience, but so far, he’s competed very well. It’s still pretty new for him, but he’s understanding how to get hitters out. He’s understanding the value of getting ahead in the count early.”

Hursh has embraced the role as the Pokes’ No. 1 starter.

“It’s nice to know that you get the first game to start the series and hopefully get your team off on a good foot and get a game in the win column,” he says.

“It’s a big responsibility to have, and it’s a great privilege.”

With a growing number of Major League

scouts in attendance at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium for each of his appearances, radar guns consistently clock his fastball in the mid-to-upper 90s. But it’s not just his velocity that turns heads. Walton says Hursh is a more complete pitcher now.

“He had trouble throwing strikes as a freshman. That was kind of the M.O. He’s always had a good arm, but now he’s commanding his stuff. He has late movement on his fastball. For him it’s about being able to repeat the locations, being able to set up hitters.

“Jason was always a kid who had a good arm, but pitchability was an issue for him as far as being a strike thrower. Really the credit goes to Jason. He’s cleaned up his delivery, and he’s worked hard, week-in and week-out.

Walton worked with Hursh in the fall to add some new weapons to his arsenal.

“He really didn’t have a breaking ball, so we got him a slider going. That’s becoming a really good pitch, and he’s developed a changeup to go along with it. Now he’s got a legitimate three-pitch mix. In the beginning he could only throw one pitch around the zone. Now he’s throwing three pitches for strikes.”

“I just try to hit my spots and let my stuff work,” Hursh says. “As a starter, you’re not trying to strike out every guy. You want to be out there for as many innings as you can. If you punch a lot of guys, it’s nice.

But if you pitch to contact and throw one pitch to a guy and get an easy out, that’s great too. If I’m getting ground ball outs and cruising through the game, that’s fine with me.

“I just want to keep improving,” he adds, “keep learning a lot about myself with each start, keep getting better and give my team a chance to win. I haven’t had a lot of experience in college, and I really only threw my senior year in high school, so I’m still learning the game, still learning how to pitch. I’m only a sophomore so I could be here a while. It’s been awesome with the coaches so far. Coach Walton has helped me tremendously.”

“Jason just continues to grow each week,” Walton says. “The sky’s the limit for this kid. I think he’s got a chance to pitch in the big leagues at some point, but right now I think he’s just embarking on the beginning of how to learn how to pitch.

His upside is unlimited.”

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“People have to understand it’s a process,” Stemm adds. “It takes some time, but the athletes that are patient and do what they’re supposed to do have tremendous success here. Jason is a great kid and he works hard.”

He also throws hard, Stemm says, even when playing catch in the backyard.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY GREG BULLARD

2 SEPTEMBER 2012

LITTLE EFENSIV

POSSE caught up with defensive coordinator

BILL

YOUNG the day before players reported for fall practice, and like most of us, he seemed

excited to get the

season started.

S T O RY

CONTINUES

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WE GOT HIM FIRED UP almost immediately by bringing up the buzz about the ‘improvement’ of the defense this season, the implication being that the defense wasn’t good a year ago.

“The problem I have with that is we’ve been maligned so much about how bad we are on defense, and let me ask you is question… If you look at the top 13 teams in the country offensively, we played seven of them.

“It’s bad for your stats, but the problem with our stats is that in the third quarter, we’re putting in our fours. They haven’t been lined up with us. They’re just on the scout team. They don’t know our defensive calls. They don’t know our game plan.

They don’t really know much of anything.

A bunch of them are just walk-ons who’re just trying to get on the field and play some football.

“Some guy on ESPN who doesn’t know football from a pumpkin makes a comment that we’re not very good on defense, and then all of a sudden, all anyone can say is ‘oh, they’re not very good on defense.’”

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“We played Oklahoma, which is one of the top five teams offensively in the country. They scored a touchdown with a minute or something to go in the ballgame. We played Texas Tech, which was like fifth in the country in offense and we shut them out. They got a touchdown on defense, but we blocked the extra point.

We played Baylor, they had the Heisman winner, and there are three minutes to go in the third quarter, and we had them down 43-3. We put in a bunch of downthe-liners, and they threw a couple three touchdowns on us.

“Are we a bad defense? That’s three of the top offenses in the country. Some guy on ESPN who doesn’t know football from a pumpkin makes a comment that we’re not very good on defense, and then all of a sudden, all anyone can say is ‘oh, they’re not very good on defense.’

“I’m saying this more for the players than the coaches. We’ve got thick skins, it’s our job. As players, they just get maligned all the time about how bad they are. Well, shoot, that’s not the case.”

While the Pokes D did give up plenty of yards last season, they didn’t give up a lot of points, which is the more important number in the equation. The Cowboys were first in the Big 12 last year in scoring defense and red zone defense, and led the country in turnovers with 44.

You can even use stats to make the case that the Pokes D in 2011 was not just good, but very good. If you look at the Fremeau Efficiency Index (FEI), which factors in almost 20,000 possessions, and filters out things like “first-half clock-kills and end-of-game garbage drives and scores,” the Cowboys were great.

According to the site (footballoutsiders. com/stats/feidef2011), “A scoring rate analysis of the remaining possessions then determines the baseline possession efficiency expectations against which each team is measured. A team is rewarded for playing well against good teams, win or lose, and is punished more severely for playing poorly against bad teams than it is rewarded for playing well against bad teams.”

OSU’s FEI rank at the end of last season: 3.

S T O RY

CONTINUES

PHOTO/GARY LAWSON

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Castleman.

PHOTO/GARY LAWSON

SEPTEMBER 2012

But the number that really explains just how good OSU’s defense was last year was the team’s final record: 12-1. You don’t win 12 games with a bad defense, and wins are more coveted than gaudy stats.

“Now, could we be better? Heck yes, we could be a whole lot better,” says Young. “We have a lot of ways to improve.

We gave up a ton of yardage, but sometimes, that was the first-teamers, sometimes, that was the fourth-teamers. We just shrug it off if it’s the fourth-teamers.

Those young guys, they deserve a shot to play some football. They are out there working their tails off simulating our opponent. They have a responsibility to get in the game and get lined up right and give us a chance.

“You can’t survive in college athletics without these guys. Coach Gundy has said it a thousand times, but he’s proud of these guys. They are truly collegiate athletes. They’re not getting paid. They don’t get dining room privileges. They don’t get the scholarships. They’re playing for the love of the game.”

So we’ve established the fact that OSU’s defense was, in fact, pretty good last year.

This year, it could be even better. The Pokes graduated four defensive ends (Joey Blatnick and Richetti Jones, in particular) NFL draft pick Markel Martin, and turnover machine James Thomas. But that’s about it. The rest of the D returns.

“We have a lot of depth at linebacker, which is important in the Big 12,” says Young.” And we’re five deep at defensive end. We’re really solid in those two positions. And then all of our tackles are back. Anthony Rogers and Chris Littlehead will alternate every four plays at nose guard. At tackle, we’ve recruited a Junior College All-American in Calvin Barnett. He gave us the flexibility to move Nigel to the end, which is originally where we recruited him. Then we have David L. Collins and James

“We have some depth. We have more quality depth at defensive line than we’ve had here since I’ve been back. We don’t have a bunch of number one draft choices.

What we have is a tremendously solid college football team. The big deal is staying healthy.”

The only area Young feels the Pokes are lacking significant depth is at cornerback.

“We have two of the best corners in college football, but after that, we have some young guys who’ve hardly stepped on the field. So what they can do and what they can’t do, that’ll be huge for us to try to correct and strengthen during two-a-days.”

Young says there’s no substitute for experience at cornerback.

“Not that or ability. It takes a phenomenal athlete in this day and time to play defensive back because all the receivers are six-foot three and four and five and run faster than the wind.”

The odds say the Pokes probably won’t have another 44 takeaways this year, either.

The unit’s production surprised Young, but it wasn’t an accident.

“It’ll be difficult (to improve),” he says.

“I’ve never been around a team that was able to get that many turnovers. Obviously, it’s a point of emphasis for us. We do everything we can as a defensive staff. Our head coach does a great job of being down there with us on defense. He blows the whistle to stop the play. He waits until the last instant until we’ve exhausted every effort to get the ball before he blows the whistle.

How “lucky” the Pokes can get depends on a number of factors, but none more important than staying healthy. Young expressed hope that the team can make it through fall practice with no significant injuries. Gundy’s policy of lighter, shorter, faster practices increases the odds of that happening. Young praises the head coach’s risky, against-conventional-wisdom decision.

“Having lighter practices has helped our whole football team immensely. We don’t scrimmage in the spring, and we don’t scrimmage in the fall. You run the risk of not being great tacklers, but we need our players for the ball game. We need to protect them as much as we can.

I’m fired up about that.

“It’s a risky decision, but I’m all for it. We practice really, really fast, and in turn we play the game really, really fast. It carries over. You don’t have to spend 10,000 hours on the field. Get out there, get your work done and get off.

That’s his philosophy, and I think he’s done a tremendous job.”

Young thinks the pieces are all in place for the Cowboys to have another good season.

“We have the potential, but we have a lot of work in front of us. We have to get it done, and stay healthy.”

“We don’t have a magic wand. It’s just been hard work.”

“The more you practice something, the more it becomes automatic. That’s kind of where we are. We don’t have a magic wand. It’s just been hard work. Some of it is luck. Sometimes, the ball just pops out and bounces off someone. You have to be realistic with it. We count the number of turnovers in each practice and put it in the window of our meeting room, so when they walk in, they see it. After practice, if we haven’t had a minimum of five in team situations, then we run. It’s not a punishment, it’s just a reminder: you didn’t do as well as you needed to.

“It’s just hard work and a little bit of luck. The harder I work, the luckier I get.”

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A MAN OF ALL SEASONS WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

2 STORY BY RYAN CAMERON AUGUST 2013

Dick Soergel had his future mapped out before he ever played a game for Oklahoma State and that blueprint did not include becoming perhaps the most versatile athlete in Cowboy history. Instead, his focus rested solely upon the famed white maple floor inside Gallagher-Iba Arena.

“One of the major reasons I really went to Oklahoma State was Mr. Iba. I had made the high school All-America team and I thought I was a basketball player,” Soergel said.

“I had listened to Mr. Iba’s Oklahoma Aggies most of my life. I used to read my dad’s scrapbook and everything indicated Mr. Iba was one whale of a coach, which he was. So, I was going to play basketball for him.”

The plan was even calculated for life after college for Soergel, who had ambitions of continuing his playing career on the AAU circuit with the Phillips 66ers out of Bartlesville, Okla.

“It was an era when pro basketball wasn’t very prominent.

AAU basketball was really good back then,” Soergel explained.

“Various companies had a basketball team and it provided the opportunity to continue playing basketball, but you also got a real good job.”

“The pros didn’t pay anything back then. It was a whole different world. My objective was to play basketball for Mr. Iba, then go on to work for Phillips and then play AAU ball for a few years and have a good career.”

However, a couple of

coaches in Stillwater had a different set of plans in mind.

The football team was coached

by Cliff Speegle, who just happened to be the brother of Soergel’s high school coach.

Toby Greene handled the coaching duties for the baseball squad. Both coaches had their sights set on adding the talented multi-sport star from Oklahoma City’s Capitol Hill High School to their rosters as well.

“Cliff was pretty insistent in that he would like me to play football. He got together with Mr. Iba and Mr. Iba agreed that he would also let me play football,” Soergel said. “They agreed that I could have either a football or a basketball scholarship.

If I wanted to quit either sport at any time I would continue to have a four-year scholarship in whichever sport I continued to play, so that was the way we started out.”

Instead of whittling his workload back down to a single sport he increased it when Greene came calling. The longtime skipper didn’t so much issue a recruiting pitch as he did marching orders for Soergel.

“I really never had any contact with him about baseball until my freshman basketball season was just about over. I was walking down the hall of Gallagher Hall one afternoon and Coach Greene walked up in front of me and stopped me and he just told me very bluntly,

‘You go into the equipment

room and check out some baseball shoes,’” Soergel said.

“That is the way he recruited me, so I went in and checked out baseball shoes.”

Just like that, the wheels were set in motion for arguably the most versatile athlete in school history. When the dust had settled on his athletic career in Stillwater, Soergel had earned nine letters in those three sports and was ultimately inducted into the Oklahoma State Hall of Honor as well as the Oklahoma Sports Hall

of Fame.

“It just kind of came naturally. I had done it all my life.

My dad was a great threesport athlete. He was always an encourager to me. I had two older brothers that were also encouragers,” Soergel said. “I really did not plan to play three sports. It just kind of came about because I found out I could. I enjoyed them and I didn’t want to quit them, so I continued.”

While enjoyable, trying to juggle a three-sport schedule, much less excelling in all three arenas, would prove to have its challenges.

“My freshman year, it was really a grind. I was playing freshman football and the way the basketball team would

practice, the varsity would practice in the afternoons about every other day and then would practice at night every other day. The freshman team would do the reverse of that,” Soergel said. “What I really did my first year was I would practice football and on those nights the freshmen practiced at night, I would go get something to eat then I would practice basketball at night,” Soergel said.

By the time his sophomore season rolled around, Soergel navigated a modified schedule that kept basketball and football practices from being stacked on top of one another.

“I worked real hard at it, but then the next year when the varsity season started I didn’t go out for basketball until football was over. As soon as football was over, I got my basketball gear and made the team,” Soergel said.

Along the way, Soergel learned shifting gears from fall to winter was more difficult than moving from winter to spring.

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“The transition from football to basketball was pretty tough because the conditioning is so different. The transition from basketball to baseball was a lot easier. Particularly being a pitcher.”

Challenges aside, Soergel embraced the differences that came with changing seasons.

“THEY ARE ALL DIFFERENT. BASEBALL IS A FUN GAME. IT WAS A GREAT TIME. FOOTBALL IS A THRILLING GAME. YOU HAVE THE BIGGER CROWDS AND THE NOISE AND ALL THAT SORT OF STUFF. BASKETBALL IS ALSO THRILLING AND TH E Y A RE A LL J US T A LITTLE DIFFERENT,” SOERGEL SAID. “I DIDN’T REALLY HAVE A FAVORITE. I ENJOYED THEM ALL.”

Not only did Soergel enjoy all three, he experienced successes in each, whether it be pitching the baseball team to victory in the national championship in 1959, helping the basketball team to a top-five finish at the NCAA Tournament in 1958 or leading a victorious bowl campaign for the football team.

In 1958, Soergel quarterbacked the Pokes to a 15-6 victory over Florida State in the Bluegrass Bowl that was memorable for several reasons.

“There weren’t very many bowl games when I was in school and they tried to start the Bluegrass Bowl,” Soergel said. “The conditions were very difficult. The week before the game a blizzard hit. It was cold when we got into Louisville and the field was ice, so they had to use bulldozers to scrape the

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AUGUST 2013

field off. We played in tennis shoes because our cleats wouldn’t go into the ground.”

To top it all off, the game was played in front of a national television audience w ith an up -andcom i ng p er sonality by the name of H O WA R D CO S E L L providing the commentary for what would be the first and last edition of the game.

The fol low i ng — DICK SOERGEL year, Soergel capped a brilliant pitching career as the winning pitcher for the Cowboys’ in their 5-3 victory over Arizona in the championship game of the College World Series.

“For me to get to come in and get to pitch the final game was particularly sweet. I hadn’t lost a game in college until we got to the College World Series,” Soergel said.

“We won our first two games and we were playing our third game and I was pitching against Arizona and they beat me. That was a bitter loss. We got to work our way back through the loser’s bracket and Arizona got beat and we got to play them.”

The rematch provided a chance at revenge for Soergel, who tossed the final 5.1 innings to earn the victory.

On the hardwood, a 62-49 victory against Kansas in Allen “When I was a senior, we Fieldhouse during his final had a very average basketball season in 1960 softened the team, but I remember going to disappointment of a sub-par Lawrence and beating Kansas season. The win included the up there,” Soergel recalled. “We 6-foot-2 Soergel giving the got ahead of them and Mr. Iba Jayhawks’ 6-foot-8 WAYNE put us into his delay game. I HIGHTOWER fits with was bringing the ball down the the future NBA draft pick evenfloor all the time and Wayne tually fouling out.

Hightower was chasing me and

“Wayne Hightower was chasing me and I just wore him out.”

I just wore him out.”

Soergel credits a trio of factors for his ability to achieve success on multiple athletic fronts—coaches, competition and mental approach.

The coaching tree at OSU was filled with hall-of-fame talent and is something Soergel says Mr. Iba deserves the credit for building.

“I think the coaches were very important. A lot of people don’t realize how good a coaching staff we had across the board. Ralph Higgins in track, Toby Greene was the baseball coach, Myron Roderick was the wrestling coach, Mr. Iba was the basketball coach and Labron Harris was the golf coach,” Soergel said. “Mr. Iba did a great job of hiring coaches and he had people that were very loyal to him. All of those men were really loyal and it was a big family. They helped me.”

“The coaches were very, very significant in inspiring and directing me,” Soergel continued.

As for competition, Soergel insists good athletes were present throughout the respective sports, raising the production level for everyone involved.

“We had some good athletes. They pushed you and you had to perform,” Soergel said. “Competition, in my opinion, doesn’t do anything but make you better. We had a lot of competition and I always liked competition because it made you better.”

Success on the playing field had as much to do with the mental aspect of the game as the physical side, according to Soergel.

“I learned to play all of the sports with my mind and not my feet. There is a lot of thought process in playing sports. My coaches always emphasized that. You have to think, you have to anticipate, you have to be ahead,” Soergel said.

When he exhausted his college elig ibilit y, it was

professional football, not basketball, Soergel pursued.

“I signed a football contract and tried to play for the Patriots in the first year of the American Football League. I stayed there for two months and got cut after the exhibition season. I was so disappointed I didn’t try anywhere else,” he said.

The reasoning behind giving football a shot was simple.

“YOU EITHER MADE IT OR YOU DIDN’T. THERE WA S N ’ T A N Y M I N O R LEAGUE and I probably would

have done things differently with hindsight, but at that time I also had a wife and a kid and I needed to go to work and make a living,” Soergel said.

With that in mind, Soergel remained in athletics and simply shif ted gears. He returned to Oklahoma State and once again juggled responsibilities, becoming the athletic department’s first-ever business and ticket manager.

As an administrator, Soergel had a hand in laying the foundation for several practices that remain in place today.

“Mr. Iba was not a real business man. He had a man that was doing some of that kind of work. There really were no business procedures. I remember the bills were in a drawer in a box. When it came near the end of the year you pulled those bills out and tried to pay them. Hopefully, you had enough money to do it and the budget was really tight,” Soergel recalled.

At a time when gate receipts provided minimal revenue and donations were virtually nonexistent, Soergel was tabbed

with the task of getting the department’s finances in order.

“It was a real growing process to develop different kinds of procedures, to put together a set of books and it was an interesting challenge. I enjoyed that.

We had some success and put together a pretty good operation,” Soergel said.

“I made a lot of proposals to Mr. Iba and we got approval to take over the concession operation. That first year we more than tripled our revenue. There were a lot of innovations that we implemented with student tickets being another.”

For someone who has seen Oklahoma State athletics from multiple aspects, Soergel can appreciate the transformation that has taken place in Stillwater in recent years.

“I never envisioned anything being as nice as those facilities are now. It is wonderful to have them. What a recruiting benefit it is to have those kind of facilities,” Soergel said.

“I thin k Terry Don Phillips did a great job of starting things with the renovation of Gallagher-Iba Arena and getting involvement and funding for that. Mike (Holder) has taken over and just done a phenomenal job of raising money.”

“C er t a i n ly we a r e a l l beholden to Boone Pickens for his generosity and his vision and all of the things he has done. Also, the other people that have come to the forefront and pitched in make it heartwarming for me. I commend all of the people there that are responsible for that.”

Even with the significant athletic success across the board

OSU is currently having, a three-sport participant may very well be a thing of the past, keeping Soergel in the rarest of company.

“I was very fortunate. I don’t think you have any coaches today that would allow an athlete to play three sports. I think they would insist, you know, if you are a football player I have to have your time and that is probably the way it is now,” Soergel said.

Having retired from the banking business in 1997, Soergel’s competitive spirit won’t allow for him to sit still and you could say has even driven him to expand his athletic endeavors.

“I play tennis about three days a week. I play golf maybe once a week. I thoroughly enjoy it and I still love competition. I am not interested in going out and hitting balls.

I am interested in competing against somebody.

A 1998 inductee into the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame, Soergel is also still active with the Jim Thorpe Association as a member of the selection and finance committees.

Coupled with his committee duties, Soergel’s church and five grandchildren keep his plate full.

DO YOU REALLY THINK THE MAN WITH NO OFFSEASON WOULD HAVE IT ANY OTHER WAY?

5

6

AMERI DRE CLAY BILLMAN PHIL SHOCKLEY

STORY BY

PHOTOGRAPHY BY

DECEMBER 2012

Joe Manilafasha and Girma Mecheso have run for championships at Oklahoma State University.

As children, they literally ran for their lives.

ICAN EAMERS

7

THE TWO WERE KEY COMPONENTS ON COACH DAVE SMITH’S NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP CROSS COUNTRY SQUAD. The Cowboys claimed their third NCAA title in four years with a decisive 63-point margin of victory over last year’s champ Wisconsin.

A fifth-year senior and four-time All-American, Mecheso was the first Cowboy to cross the line in the men’s 10K race (fifth overall in a time of 29:14.8). Manilafasha, a redshirt-junior, was 24th (29:48.8), earning his first All-America honors with a top 40 finish. Teammates Tom Farrell (9th), Shadrack Kipchirchir (18th) and Shane Moskowitz (53rd) also turned in career-best performances to claim the victory.

8 DECEMBER 2012

“I’m so happy for Coach Dave and all the work he did and all people that supported us,” Mecheso says.

“It shows that our hard work has paid off.”

There’s a vast difference between hard work and hardship. Mecheso and Manilafasha are well versed in both.

Theirs is a tale of triumph in the face of tragedy.

“The odds were not in their favor,” Smith says. “Fifteen years ago you wouldn’t have bet they’d be in the situation they are now.

If you look at where they started as children and the things they went through, and you ask yourself what are the odds these guys are going to make it to the United States, get a high school diploma and then come out and get a college education, I think the odds would be really, really slim.

“There are so many little forks in the road where things could’ve gone the other way for both of them, but they didn’t. They ended up here.”

To understand just how far they’ve come, one has to go back to the starting line.

Their stories each begin in East Africa, nearly two decades ago: Manilafasha in the tiny Republic of Burundi; Mecheso in the crowded capital of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa.

“Shortly after I was born, the civil war started in Burundi,” Manilafasha recalls.

MECHESO

PHOTO / BRUCE WATERFIELD

The youngest of nine children, Manilafasha was only three years old when his father was killed during the genocidal massacre of the Tutsi people by the Hutus.

Manilafasha’s family shares both ethnicities, which had fought for control of the country and were engaged in bloody conflict for decades.

“It’s something I didn’t understand,” he says. “It especially makes things harder, because if you’re a part of two things you’re not a whole of one thing.”

The grieving family sought refuge in neighboring Tanzania, along with an estimated half-a-million others.

“We had to flee the country.

I lived in a refugee camp from about 1994 to 2001,” he says. “I was very young. Most

of my childhood memories are comprised of my time spent in refugee camp.”

Mecheso was also a childhood refugee. Unlike his teammate, Mecheso is old enough to remember life before the camps.

It was a comfortable life.

“The way life was for us when we were there, we had everything we needed. My dad was educated, with a good job. We lived in a large house. My grandfather had several farms and grew coffee. When I was small, I didn’t have any problems.

I didn’t have that problem of not having enough food or family or anything. But all of a sudden things changed.”

Mecheso’s father was a high-ranking government official, but was politically opposed to Ethiopia’s dictatorial prime minister.

“In Africa, especially in my country, people like to fight,” Mecheso says. “There was a war happening in our country. The government was not helping people. Instead of helping people, educating people, the prime minister was just getting the power for himself. He was even killing people to

and you think your dream cannot come true. It’s completely confusing.

“I had hope that there is a better life than here, better than camp,” he adds, “because I saw that life was better when I was small. I used to wish I could live the life I was born with, and I was wondering if it was ever going to change. We were hoping for someday for a good life.”

Manilafasha experienced similar struggles at his family’s encampment in

Tanzania, which shares its northern border with Kenya.

“It’s harsh,” he says. “It’s really hard to paint a picture for somebody who’s never been in that kind of situation. There is no sanitary drinking water, things of that nature. You’re just exposed to the elements. It was very harsh in the beginning, a survival-type of thing. You just had to scratch a living as best you could.

“A lot of people would die from malaria and other disease,” he adds. “Some people

PHOTO / CLAY BILLMAN

extend his power. My dad’s party tried to organize, but that government wanted to put him in prison. So he took me and my brother, and we had to leave the country, leaving my mom in Ethiopia.”

The trio traveled toward Kenya, often on foot, sometimes riding in the backs of trucks among cattle.

“We got to Kenya after many days,” he says. “When we reached Kenya, we had to cross the border with no passport. If you do not have ID you cannot stay in town.

We didn’t have anywhere to live.”

Their only option was one of many growing Kenyan refugee camps. Mecheso was only six years old at the time. It was a struggle for survival, he says.

“It’s hard for (Americans) to understand how it is. There’s no electricity.

We use candle for light. There’s no water.

We maybe have to go a mile or two to get water. And maybe it’s not clean. If we’re sick, it’s hard to see the doctor. Food-wise, they provide us some stuff. But sometimes maybe we don’t get enough. I don’t know how to explain compared to now.

“The camp is the size of Stillwater, but it’s in the bush. We were often displaced.

Everything kept changing. Life is not constant there.”

The refugee camps were Mecheso’s home for the better part of a decade.

“Being there, it’s depressing all the day, and you think any goal you have is not reachable,” he says. “At night, you think the sun is not going to come out. It’s a dark life,

9

starved. You got a ration of food, but it was like once a month and so small. It was just corn or beans, so from there you had to find whatever else you could get.

We got a little help from organizations like UNICEF. After a while it became sort of its own little community. People would do a little farming and exchange food and stuff just to make a variety.”

In time, life as a refugee became the new normal.

“Other than the United States, it’s the longest I’ve ever lived in one place,” he says.

“My whole idea of what the world looked like was really encompassed in my experience in the refugee camp. It was really

hard to see a future from there,

says. “There was a lot of running around, swimming in the river, spending all day spent in the woods, whatever—just being kids and doing all kinds of stuff.”

Education was also a priority in the camps, even if resources were scarce.

“When we first got in refugee camp, there was no actual structure, so we would just hang out under trees and the teachers would try to do the best they could,” Manilafasha says. “There were no pens, pencils, things like that, classrooms, but in Africa education is very emphasized.

Also, a teacher can spank you, so you learn to do your multiplication tables quickly.

When I got here, in terms of math I was actually way ahead of my classmates. They

Their new life in Denver, Colorado, provided quite a culture (and climate) shock for the 10-year-old.

“I had never seen snow before I came to the United States. It was kind of weird.

I think the first time it snowed we were all outside touching the snow, and people were looking at us weird.”

After a decade in Kenya, Mecheso and his family were afforded a similar opportunity in 2006.

“The United Nations Human Rights Watch saw that we can’t go back to Ethiopia because our country is not at peace over there,” Mecheso says. “They asked us if we could go to a different country. Some of my friends in the camp went to Canada, Australia, Netherlands … We got a chance and ended up in the United States.”

The teenager landed in Atlanta, Georgia, with his father and brothers.

“Life was much better,” he says. “When we came from Kenya to America I started living a comfortable life.”

“Once they got to the United States, if they hadn’t found running yet, they did when they got here,” Smith says. “I think they both had high school coaches that were really important in their lives in helping see running as an outlet for becoming successful and an avenue toward a college education.”

“My brother was the first to start running in high school,” Manilafasha recalls.

PHOTO / CLAY BILLMAN

but it was not the place where I wanted to be. It was rough. Being a kid and not being able to eat as often as you would like, and having your mom explain to you why you can’t do whatever you want … those type of things make you mature real fast.”

Despite their circumstances, there were some happy times in the camp, they say.

“The whole African culture is a lot different than the United States, in the sense that they let kids be kids,” Manilafasha

10

DECEMBER 2012

were amazed that I could multiply threedigit numbers in my head … but I couldn’t speak a word of English.”

In 2001, after nearly seven years in the camp, Manilafasha’s family was granted refugee status and brought to the United States by an international aid organization.

“It was unbelievable,” he says, “ just going from that kind of condition where you have nothing to having food and a bed and warm shelter.”

“I was still in 8th grade. I was playing basketball, just being a normal, average American kid. They tried to convince me to join the cross country team, but I kept finding excuses not to do it. I think that what finally got to me was that I’m the youngest kid, so you always feel like you have to prove something. So I finally did try it, and I’ve got to say it was probably the toughest thing I’ve ever done.”

Manilafasha’s interest in OSU began in 2007 as the Cowboy program was starting to emerge as a perennial podium contender.

“The first time I thought about OSU as a possibility was when they took third at nationals. As a high school kid you pay attention. I’m a big fan of running—

when Oklahoma State took third, I was like, who are these guys?

I’m sort of a nerd about it—so

At that point, I didn’t think I would end up here, but that was the starting point.

I thought maybe this could be a place I want to be.”

The runner appeared on OSU’s recruiting radar after winning Colorado Runner of the Year honors and a second state championship his senior season.

“I wanted to run in college, but I didn’t want to have that as my only option,” he says. “I had a high GPA and was third in my graduating class, so the education part and the running came together really well.

You never really know what’s going on with sports. You might get injured or a school that’s interested might not work out. So I had to take care of business both in the classroom as well as running.”

The team atmosphere at OSU was a deciding factor, he adds.

“I picked the team basically. My whole high school career was running by myself, because nobody really had the same abilities. You never get to test yourself. For me, my thinking was go with the team.

You have people to train with, you will get pushed a little bit more, and maybe you will develop as a runner and as a person.

You can see how far you can go from there.

So that was a big part of it.”

Manilafasha also saw a championshipcaliber program in Stillwater.

“The timing was perfect. I knew this team was going to be good, and I want to be a part of it. I can win two national championships or more. I also liked the coach, and that’s what it came down to.”

Mecheso was a high school junior when he first ran competitively.

“All the people you see running in college or the Olympics from my home country of Ethiopia or Kenya, they don’t start out like here,” he says. “Parents don’t think, ‘My boy needs to be a runner or a basketball player or a football player.’ Nothing like that. Running just starts out like a game. And sometimes, even if we wanted to run, there were no shoes.

“When I came to U.S., I told someone I could run, and they said join cross county.

They took me to the regional race in high school, and I end up winning. I broke the record. Someone told me if you keep running, I think you can get a scholarship.

MANILAFASHA “THE TIMING WAS PERFECT. I KNEW THIS TEAM WAS GOING TO BE GOOD, AND I WANT TO BE A PART OF IT.”

— Joe Manilafasha

S T O RY

CONTINUES

PHOTO / BRUCE WATERFIELD

11

PHOTO / CLAY BILLMAN

I didn’t even know what a scholarship was.

I ended up winning the state, then some coaches started calling me.”

Coach Smith courted Mecheso, but lost the recruiting battle to Auburn. He earned All-America honors his freshman year, finishing 16th at Nationals. A year later, however, Mecheso landed in Stillwater when his college coach took another position.

“Both of those guys have been really coachable,” Smith says. “Every time Girma’s run at the National Championships in cross country for us, he’s done exactly what I’ve asked him. He’s never gone for the win. I’ve said we’ve got to sit back and run as a group and win as a team. And he’s done that … and we have three trophies to show for it.

12

DECEMBER 2012

“In 2010 as a redshirt freshman, Joe was the highest placing 6th man we’ve ever had. This year he ran an incredible race and finished in the top 25. I think Joe slips under the radar because he doesn’t have great track times. If you look at his PR’s (personal records), you think this guy is barely a good high school runner. But you go watch him in a cross country race where it’s kind of neutralized on a soft surface, Joe catches those faster runners.

He’s really strong aerobically and extremely tough mentally. And the wetter, the nastier, the sloppier the conditions, the better Joe is. That’s his game.”

“During the race, honestly, I felt okay, but I didn’t feel great,” Manilafasha admits.

“But it doesn’t matter. When you’re at the National Championship, you don’t get to

decide whether you feel good or not. You have to show up to run.”

Smith says both runners are extremely competitive and driven.

“Girma will work himself to death,” Smith says. “He’s got an incredible mental toughness, and he’s got a belief that no one can out work him, that he can run with anybody, that things where he may be limited physically he can overcome just by sheer force of will. Unfortunately, he probably does too much at times, and it can be a weakness if he doesn’t harness it.”

Manilafasha shows some of the same tendencies, Smith adds.

“Joe kind of has a little bit of that stubborn, sometimes illogical belief in himself, and I think all great athletes must have that. They don’t care what the data shows,

they don’t care what training indications are, they’re going to get it done. You love guys like that.”

“I think we all over-train—that’s the idea,” Manilafasha says. “You put your body through hell and then see what comes out at the other end. I have a hard time quitting. Even if I should quit, I don’t quit. I’m stubborn, and I’m always fighting. That’s my approach to racing.”

Both runners came into the 2012 season focused on reclaiming the top spot on the podium, after finishing second a year ago.

“I put in more mileage over the summer,” Manilafasha says. “Just putting in so much time in something and seeing the result, especially in a sport where you put in so much and not so much is always returned, it’s great to see something good come out of it. It was awesome. I can’t explain it really. It’s amazing.”

philosophy, which is to listen to our coach.

That’s what made us a winning team. That’s what put us at the top. For me, I don’t call myself a leader, but I know that I contribute something to my team.”

“A lot of what they’ve gone through in their lifetime has shaped who they are,” Smith says. “I think they’re old souls. They’re

“Every time we would train since the day we lost last year, I said that was unacceptable, and we have to win,” Mecheso says. “In order to win, I have to be part of it. So I did everything I could—training, strategy, asking my team to train and stay strong— everything we needed to prepare ourselves for that day. And you can see the result. It turned out exactly like it should happen.

I was so happy.”

Mecheso emerged as a leader on a squad that graduated three All-Americans from a year ago, but says his teammates shared that role.

“This team is not something you can lead by one person. With the program we have here, everyone needs to contribute. Everyone needs to go with the same

trying to figure it out. But the ultimate plan is to hopefully give back.”

“I’m so happy to be here,” Mecheso says, “but every day when I run or when I go to school or when I study, I wish good things like I’m enjoying for my friends and the people over there. If I get the chance, I will try to help one or more to assure that life is better, just to give them hope. I will try my best to do that. But they cannot just come to America unless they are willing to work hard and do the right thing.”

mature beyond their years. They both have fun and have a sense of humor at times, but they’re very serious about most of the things they’re doing.”

As for post-graduate plans, both students say they want to try and help others from their homeland.

“First of all, I think my plans have to start with school,” says Manilafasha, a political science major. “I plan to finish my undergrad and go beyond. I would like to pursue maybe a doctoral degree and work with NGO’s (non-governmental organizations) or something like that. I’m still

Manilafasha and Mecheso both became U.S. citizens since arriving at OSU and were proud to exercise their newfound right to vote in November’s general election.

“It means a lot,” Manilafasha says. “Not a lot of people around the world get that opportunity, so it is very special. This is

the longest time I’ve stayed in one place.

This is my home.”

“In 2008 I wanted to vote, but I didn’t have that chance,” Mecheso says. “Now I feel so good to have that chance. I’m proud of my culture, but I obviously didn’t get to live in my country. Living in the United States, I have a chance now. I think, here in this country, it’s up to you. The people around you are the ones who are going to make you who you are.

“In order for me to move forward—even getting to this place, getting to run—I didn’t just take a flight here,” Mecheso adds. “There are people who have encouraged me, starting with my family, coaches, teachers, advisers ... They got me here.

And I’d like to thank my teammates for working hard and contributing to everything we have accomplished for Oklahoma State University.”

Despite strikingly similar stories, Mecheso and Manilafasha are unique individuals. Yet both will continue to be defined

Refugees.

Runners. Students. Athletes.

Champions. Citizens.

Or simply, Cowboys. by their commonalities.

13

Oklahoma State’s deputy director of athletics is DAVE MARTIN. He has a very clean desk.

So clean, in fact, it looks like he could change offices at a moment’s notice.

THE ART OF

Sche STORY BY KEVIN KLINTWORTH

BUT IN ONE OF THOSE DESK DRAWERS HE HAS A THICK FILE. It’s the home of football schedules past, present and future. It holds contracts, cancelled contracts and general correspondence in regards to Cowboy football opponents. It’s sort of messy.

In short, it’s not nearly as neat as the desk. And neither is the business of scheduling for college football administrators. In the era of conference realignment, power ratings, made for TV games, skyrocketing game guarantees for opponents, strategically placed open dates and football games played on just about every day of the week, the task of assembling college football schedules has never been more

2

AUGUST 2013

difficult. It is an ironic development considering the number of non-conference games that need scheduling is dropping in just about every power conference.

And just to add to the degree of difficulty, a college football playoff is coming – with some version of a yet-tobe-determined selection committee and moving targets for future criteria.

The variables are many and that doesn’t include the target audiences. Fans want entertaining games – preferably at home.

Coaches look at the big picture and the wear and tear of a season that continues to grow longer. Athletic directors have to look at budgets, and the Dave Martins of the

world have to be thinking years in advance when home games have to be reciprocated and what that means to future schedules.

In just the past two years, OSU’s nonconference schedule has dropped from four opponents each year to three with the Big 12 Conference’s decision to play nine league games annually instead of eight. As a result, Martin had to unload contracted non-conference matchups by cancelling games or by moving them to future dates.

“One of the series that was cancelled was a home-and-home with PURDUE,” Martin said. “We tried multiple dates in multiple years, but the Big 10 was changing

its league schedule as well. Both schools wanted to keep the contract, but we couldn’t coordinate dates – even several years out.”

In that regard, Martin might as well be a teenage boy. He’s always looking for dates, and he sometimes has a commitment problem.

But there are extenuating circumstances in Martin’s case. He might be too nice.

Several years ago, Oklahoma State was approached by fellow conference member TEXAS A&M, which needed a favor. The Aggies were about to sign a non-conference series with Arkansas to be played in Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, but they needed OSU’s help by moving a game, or two, or more.

In an effort to help out a fellow Big 12 member, OSU acquiesced and moved several games.

“I know we moved three to help them, and I think it may have affected two more games,” Martin said.

As it turns out, Texas A&M left the Big 12 for the Southeastern Conference, and OSU got caught in a schedule squeeze for its troubles. Not only did OSU have to play at Texas two straight seasons, but the Cowboys had trouble filling an open date to start the 2012 season as an indirect result of the A&M-Arkansas series.

After making contact with approximately 25 schools, OSU finally had a taker in

But just maybe OSU got the last laugh in a deal that wasn’t so funny after last season’s 84-0 win over Savannah State. The Cowboys sent the Aggies off to the SEC with a 30-29 Kyle Field loss in a game that changed both seasons and helped catapult OSU to the Big 12 title.

And as an added benefit, new league member TCU inherited Texas A&M’s schedule. That means a second-straight visit to Stillwater for the Horned Frogs in a year in which OSU and TCU are considered top contenders for the Big 12 title. The home field advantage in that matchup could be critical in 2013.

SAVANNAH STATE.

duling 2013 COWBOYS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE 8/31 VS. MISSISSIPPI STATE ADVOCARE TEXAS KICKOFF, HOUSTON 9/7 @UTSA 9/14 VS. LAMAR 9/28 @WEST VIRGINIA 10/5 VS. KANSAS STATE 10/19 VS. TCU HOMECOMING 10/26 @IOWA STATE 11/2 @TEXAS TECH 11/9 VS. KANSAS 11/16 @TEXAS 11/23 VS. BAYLOR 12/7 VS. OKLAHOMA HOME GAMES IN ORANGE

3

Oklahoma State has an unwritten goal of seven home games each season, but that target is a little harder to hit in the newlook Big 12 with its unbalanced schedule, which includes four home games and five

road games every other season.

“We had eight home games a couple of seasons ago (2009), and we really think there was a bit of fan fatigue by the end of year,” Martin said. “So we always have six and we would like to have seven home games each season.”

As the facilities around Oklahoma State athletics have changed, so has the blueprint for football scheduling. During the years of Boone Pickens Stadium construction, OSU’s home-field capacity shrunk to approximately 44,000. With the

4 AUGUST 2013

loss of seating comes a drop in game-day revenue, which leads to smaller guarantees for the visitors. A guarantee is the amount of money a visiting team receives for making the trips and it is one of the tools used to balance a budget year. Quite simply, schools that pay smaller guarantees often have trouble attracting non-conference opponents who might be seeking a bigger check.

To help offset this particular scheduling dilemma, Martin began a 2-for-1 phase.

Most teams outside of the “power conferences” have trouble landing marquee home opponents.

OSU struck deals

that resulted in smaller guarantees for opponents in exchange for a visit by OSU to their stadium — the infamous 2-for1. Oklahoma State played one game at TROY and Troy visited Stillwater twice, thus 2-for-1. As a result, OSU saved money with a smaller guarantee for the Trojans when they visited Stillwater, and Troy got the rare chance to host a Big 12 opponent.

OSU’s stadium capacity has now climbed to more than 60,000 and 2-for-1 deals are very nearly a thing of the past. The only one currently remaining in Martin’s messy schedule file is with CENTRAL MICHIGAN.

In four of the next five seasons, OSU has seven home games scheduled with a 10-member Big 12 seemingly set. But sometimes things change. And oftentimes those

“WE HAVE CERTAIN OBLIGATIONS THAT COME WITH BEING A MEMBER OF THE BIG 12 CONFERENCE,” MARTIN SAID. “WE ALWAYS LISTEN

changes are television driven.

AND THEN WEIGH THE POSITIVES

Oklahoma State is often approached by the Big 12 Conference’s TV partners about potential matchups or date changes. OSU at times responds with a “no thanks” to the league. But sometimes the answer is yes, which was the case with Thursday night games in 2009 and 2010 (vs.

COLORADO and Texas A&M).

AND NEGATIVES. THE NETWORKS ARE PAYING US (THE BIG 12) FOR OUR GAME INVENTORY SO THEY CERTAINLY HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO MAKE REQUESTS. THERE ARE A LOT OF FACTORS INVOLVED.”

And this is where the art of scheduling comes into play.

I n 2013 , O SU a g r e e d t o pl ay MISSISSIPPI STATE in Houston on Aug. 31. The game will be held in Reliant Stadium and televised by ABC. It is billed as the Advocare Texas Kickoff. In 2014, Oklahoma State will open the season in AT&T Stadium in Arlington against sure-to-be-highly- rated FLORIDA STATE. It could well be the best matchup of the opening weekend of the college football season.

Those matchups have been the source of some debate. They both provide high-profile season-openers and big guarantees (the amount of money the participants receive by playing in the off-campus games), and they help Oklahoma State maintain a healthy relationship with the deal makers of sports television.

A VICTORY IN EITHER GAME COULD BE THE JUMP START TO A TERRIFIC COWBOY SEASON. And on the balance sheet, OSU figures to clear more in the neutral site games than a typical home game, especially when subtracting the bills that come with hosting events.

But the early-season matchups certainly don’t come without risks as the

2011 OREGON DUCKS can attest. Oregon, ranked fourth in the Associated Press poll, opened that season in Dallas against No. 3 LSU. After suffering a 40-27 loss to the Tigers, it took an eight-game winning streak for the Ducks to get back to their preseason ranking. They eventually finished the year as Rose Bowl champions.

And there you have the dichotomy of scheduling.

For conference officials, fans and TV execs, what’s not to love? Great non-conference matchups within driving distance for OSU fans to open a new season in the national spotlight against marquee opponents with a healthy payday.

But for coaches, Labor Day Weekend takes on an entirely different feel with a high-quality opponent on the agenda after just four weeks of practice.

“Coaches and athletic directors and administrators always look at scheduling from different perspectives,” said OSU head coach Mike Gundy. “It’s just the nature of our jobs.”

Perhaps the toughest aspect of scheduling is the moving target that is the future.

A football schedule constructed as recently as 2008 has probably been made obsolete by realignment and the looming playoff.

Back in the day, the Big 12 Conference and the Southeastern Conference helped place conference football championship games front and center.

Today, the Big 12 is the only power conference without a championship game.

THINGS MOVE FAST. THINGS CHANGE. AND AS A RESULT, EVEN DAVE MARTIN HAS A MESSY FILE OR TWO.

5

2 SEPTEMBER 2011

3

STORY BY

Clay Billman

PHOTO BY

Gary Lawson

BIG MAN ON CAMPUS

ADCOCK EMERGES AS BIG 12’S TOP TACKLE

LEVY ADCOCK IS HARD TO MISS. STANDING 6-FOOT-6 AND TIPPING THE SCALES AROUND 320 POUNDS, HE IS LITERALLY A BIG MAN ON THE OKLAHOMA STATE CAMPUS. And yet, with a superstar tandem like wide receiver Justin Blackmon and quarterback Brandon Weeden garnering the lion’s share of the headlines, one can see how an offensive lineman might be overshadowed.

Despite not being a household name (yet), No. 73 stood out among his peers last season, earning unanimous All-Big 12 honors. Heading into the 2011 campaign, the senior is being mentioned as an All-America candidate and potential early-round NFL draft pick. He has also been put on the watch lists for the prestigious Outland Trophy and Rotary Lombardi Award, presented annually to the NCAA’s best linemen.

The impressive list of accolades belies the fact that Adcock has only one full season of starts under his belt.

His position coach thinks he is just beginning to realize his potential.

“He can get a whole lot better,” says Joe Wickline. “Nobody wants a guy who has topped-out. You want a guy with a big upside. Levy is continuing to grow and get better. He’s still learning.”

Recruited out of Northeastern Junior College in Miami, Okla., Adcock was an intriguing prospect.

4

He turned down scholarships offers from the likes of Alabama and Arkansas to play for the Pokes.

“Levy was a great addition to our program — a big, gifted guy who obviously has a lot of athletic skills. Coming from NEO, he had three years of eligibility and was someone we felt could help this football program at some point in time, whether immediately or not.”

After a season spent as a backup behind a veteran line, Adcock was in competition for a starting tackle spot in 2010. But few could predict the country boy from Claremore (Sequoyah High School) would emerge as one of the league’s best blockers so quickly.

“Levy came in at a time that we had some pretty decent players,” Wickline says. “He was behind a group of five guys who signed contracts: Brady Bond, Andrew Mitchell, Andrew Lewis, Noah Franklin and obviously Russell Okung. It was a little bit of a slow adjustment – it’s a different deal coming from a junior college – but he made the adjustment and got some playing time. He learned in that first year, and he got better.

“THEN HE SAW HIS CHANCE WAS THERE AND TOOK ADVANTAGE OF IT.”

Adcock says the turning point came in practice prior to last season.

“During two-a-days, it just clicked,” he says. “We were out there about the third or fourth practice, and I said to myself, ‘I don’t want to be moved ever again. I want to be on the starting

SEPTEMBER 2011 PHOTO / GARY LAWSON

line.’ I had to work extra hard to get there, and then once I got my shot I had to try my hardest to keep it.”

“There was a confidence issue there,” adds Wickline. “When he first got here he was kind of waiting his turn and not understanding why, but he turned the corner. It was such a big adjustment, just learning a new offense and playing at a different speed, compared to teammates who’d been around it for five years at that point. But he saw his time was coming and accepted the challenge. He buckled down. He took the bit. He said, ‘It’s my time.’”

“All the hard work paid off finally,” Adcock says. “It was a long road, but it was a fun road.”

Football is definitely fun for Adcock, Wickline says.

“He’s kind of a throwback,” Wickline says. “Back in the day, when I played, football was really important to you at that age, and a lot of other stuff didn’t matter. It’s refreshing to see. Football is almost brand new to him again.”

“I love football,” Adcock says.

“It’s life.”

“I’m not saying Levy’s a scholar, but he’s a sharp guy,” Wickline says. “He’s going to graduate. He’s got a good balance. School’s okay, but he wants to be a good player and have fun.”

“I’m serious on game day, but I try to have fun at practice,” Adcock admits.

“Sometimes it gets a little bland.”

“He does like to have fun,” Wickline agrees, “but there are times when I’ll have to tell him I’m not interested in him having fun, you know what I mean? He can go to the apartment and have fun if he wants to. Levy likes to have fun, but he knows when to

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

shut it off. There’s not a bad bone in his body. He’s a big teddy bear.”

“Coach Wick isn’t too bad,” Adcock says of his coach. “Everything he says is for a purpose. He isn’t going to be saying something just to be saying it.

But he yells a lot and takes off sprinting everywhere. It’s pretty funny.”

Wickline is an equal opportunity drill sergeant.

“I try my best to bark at all of them and get in everyone’s face,” Wickline says. “That’s my deal.”

As the Cowboys’ offensive line coach since 2005, Wickline has seen a number of talented tackles in orange.

It’s difficult to compare Adcock to other players, he says.

“He’s a little bit different. Most of those other guys were here for all five years, I really got to see them through their fifth year and through their best year. I don’t really know that I can do that right now with Levy. That’s probably a comparison you want to do maybe in January once he finishes.

When you’ve really only played one season, it’s just not enough of a portfolio to really build a career on.

“He has the talent and the size and love for the game to be one of the best to come through here, but it will depend on what kind of year he has. I’ll do the best I can to work with him in camp and throughout this season … I just hope it’s not me holding him back.”

According to his coach, Adcock possesses several key attributes that make for a top-flight offensive lineman.

“I think it’s a combination of three things,” Wickline says. “First, football is important to him. To me, that’s the biggest aspect. Does his passion level match the game? I think that’s critical for guys to really separate themselves. ALSO, HE’S ATHLETIC. The guy can throw a football a mile.

Athletically, he can pick up a racquet or a golf club and be good at it. He played a lot of sports in high school.

He can run and catch the football like a tight end, so he’s got natural athletic ability, and I think that makes him a better player. Finally, he’s a big kid.

He’s got the basic measurables that me and you or my mom could figure out. He’s obviously a big guy who looks like a player.

STORY CONTINUES

5

B.M.O “That’s the start of it. I don’t think he’s matured yet. I think he can get a lot stronger, a lot more powerful. I think he can do more things.”

“I’m wanting to work on everything,” Adcock says. “I have a few strengths but many more weaknesses, so I JUST

WANT TO GET AS GOOD AS I POSSIBLY CAN THROUGH THIS FINAL SEASON. I don’t know how good that is, but I don’t want to leave any doubt out there.”

Adcock anchored an offensive unit that was among the nation’s best in protecting the quarterback, giving up only 10 sacks on the year in 13 games.

“They kept me off my back,” Weeden says. “As a quarterback, that makes it a lot easier if you’re not worried about getting hit in the mouth every time you let it go. You can kind of sit in the pocket and deliver and make more accurate throws. Those guys up front, really and truly make

Wick’s Line

our entire offense go. It all starts with those guys.”

Individually, Adcock didn’t allow a single sack during the season. His performance graded out at 100 percent during OSU’s 33-16 victory over Texas in Austin.

“I’ve graded the same way since day one,” Wickline explains. “The bottom line is, did you get your job done on that snap? Did you get your guy blocked? Did he make the play? Did

COWBOY COACH DISCUSSES HIS PHILOSOPHIES ON THE GUYS UP FRONT

Entering the 2011 football season, Oklahoma State is ranked in the Top Ten. A major reason for the Cowboys’ lofty status is a veteran offensive line returning from last year’s 11-2 squad. The always-quotable JOE WICKLINE was asked about his squad recently, and his answers didn’t disappoint.

PHOTO / GARY LAWSON

POSSE : As a unit, what is your outlook on the upcoming season?

JW: “Our only charge is to be the best offensive line that Oklahoma State can be. That’s really our first line of business, to play to the best of our ability. Don’t do anything that will, either by penalties or pre-snap (mistakes) or missed assignments, downgrade what we could bring to the table.

Obviously, the second thing is, we want to win the national championship. That’s our goal as a team. I see us taking one game at a time and saying, ‘Okay, who’s up next?’ Don’t look down the road, and don’t look back. Just take it one game at a time and win that game. Now LouisianaLafayette is really the only thing on our mind. Can we be a good enough line to help our football team beat Louisiana-Lafayette or not? That’s where we’re at.”

6

SEPTEMBER 2011

POSSE : You have an experienced group coming back. How do you feel about your starting lineup?

JW:“I think you have to feel better than you felt last year. Prior to last year we had a lot of question marks.

I don’t think there’s any substitute for experience. I don’t think there’s any substitute for having been to the dance, for having been put in scenarios (down and distance, areas of the field, whether it be an overtime or a last kick or a 3rd-and-14 or a 4th-and1) over and over again. There’s just no substitute for that. That makes you feel a little better. Next year we’ll lose three good players. So we’ll have to replace them. What are we going to do? It’s a cycle. If you’re in it long enough, you bounce back and forth. I kind of like those years where everybody doubts you. What are you going to do now? You’re up a creek, you

know … but it’s a whole new year. We have a whole new challenge.”

POSSE : Talk about the depth chart and how you’ll plug in your best guys up front.

JW: “The bottom line, to me, is that every player on the offensive line should know what every other guy is doing. The only catch is, is it right or left? That’s more of a factor than guard and tackle to me. Right and left can be a little bit weird. Switching between guard and tackle, we do it all the time. In the meeting rooms, they hear it over and over again. It helps you when you have one concept: get your best five on the field. When you have the luxury, which is very rare, to have everything about evened out, and guys can stay put, you would like to do that. Because the chemistry and continuity and all the stuff I might say wasn’t important (when we don’t have it) actually is important. But they

O.C. you get it done or not? That’s really all that matters. For a guy who was a first-year starter in the Big 12, there weren’t a lot of guys that came free from his side.

“In this offense, 80 percent is a winning grade. Ninety percent to me is an extra effort. It’s a great game.

One hundred percent is outstanding.

It means everything just fell together.

Either he got it done every time or had enough bonus points by knocking a

guy down or doing something downfield that put him in the plus bracket.”

Adcock was a fixture at right tackle for most of the 2010 season, until an injury to teammate Nick Martinez necessitated a move to the left side, where he was equally effective. Entering the 2011 season, Adcock is back on the right side and Wickline is expecting him to pick up where he left off. Expectations will be high for the second-year starter.

“NOW LEVY’S GOT ANOTHER BIG CHALLENGE,” HIS COACH SAYS. “HE HAD A GOOD YEAR, BUT EVERYBODY’S SAYING, ‘WHAT’S NEXT?’” PHOTO / GARY LAWSON

still have to know what each person is doing, and I still move them around just for that reason.

This group I’m working with now, they’ve probably held more snaps at their position than any group since I’ve been here. I really have six starters. I have the five from last year (tackles Levy Adcock and Nick Martinez, guards Jonathan Rush and Lane Taylor and center Grant Garner).

Those are obviously proven players, they’re warriors, they’re good guys, and they’ll come in to camp in great shape. They’re proven winners, so we can win with them. I also have Michael Bowie, a talented left tackle who’s come in from junior college.

He’s got an upside and can do some things. So within the scheme of things, we really have six starters, in that Nick can play either tackle or either guard at any given second.”

POSSE : What’s the key to having success on the offensive line?

JW: “I think you get as many talented guys in the skill positions as possible and use as whatever smoke and mirrors you can to try and mask

the lack of coaching you have inside.

There is no question that is the philosophy I’ve always lived by. It’s why I recruited Dantrell Savage. It’s why I recruited Kendall Hunter. And that’s why I’m looking for more of those guys, because it takes the pressure off of me.

But seriously, there’s no question that a good sound scheme (no matter what it is) that can get the ball into those playmakers’ hands where it’s tough to tackle those guys in space, and a quality quarterback who can make the right decisions and not turn the ball over or have lost yardage plays … that’s probably the best thing to do. That’s what we try to do, and we’re pretty good at it.”

POSSE : With all the talk about OSU’s new offensive coordinator, Todd Monken, replacing Dana Holgorsen (now the head coach at West Virginia), how will things change up offensively for your group?

JW: “When that issue came up with Larry Fedora and Mike Gundy, even going back to Les Miles, I’ve always said this … Mike is Mike. Larry is Larry. Dana is Dana. And Todd is

Todd, as silly as it sounds. He’s going to coach his personality. Now within that, he’s going to take the playmakers at hand, the personnel we have, the concepts and the things we’ve done that have allowed us to be successful as a team, and continue to use those.

We’ve all talked about this as a staff. If there’s something we’re trying to get done and we can do something better, then it will change. There will be some things that alter, like it or not. It changed from Houston to Stillwater. It will change from Stillwater to Morgantown. It changed from Stillwater to Hattiesburg. It’s just the way it is. Offenses are moving all the time.

I would say, foundationally, just from an offensive line standpoint, Coach Monken has done a great job with it and he’s kept the same concepts in place. There will be tweaking and some alterations, and there may be some big things.”

7

BUILDING BL CKS STORY BY WADE MCWHORTER

As a Texas high school freshman, CARSON MICHALOWSKI

couldn’t have told you the Oklahoma State mascot, school colors or who COLIN CARMICHAEL was.

2

ALL THAT CHANGED ON A WEEKEND TRIP TO STILLWATER.

“A friend of mine invited me to go with her on her visit, and I just decided to go and get away for the weekend,” Michalowski recalls of her first trip to OSU. “I ended up having a great time and really enjoyed the atmosphere. I was able to go to a football game, soccer games and meet the coaches. I think just the early exposure and fun memory of OSU made it pop back into my mind when I starting looking for recruitment.”

That first impression proved to pay huge dividends for both player and program as several years later, Michalowski found her way back to Stillwater and into a Cowgirl uniform and embarked on a career that spawned three Big 12 Conference championships and saw the defender earn All-Big 12 honors three times.

AUGUST 2013 PHOTO / BRUCE WATERFIELD

Stories like Michalowski’s have become commonplace under Carmichael, who enters his 18th season at OSU and ninth as the Cowgirls’ head coach in 2013.

So how exactly has Carmichael built an OSU program from nothing into a national power, one that finished two of the last three seasons ranked in the top five of the final national rankings, despite having facilities that admittedly lag behind others in the Big 12? “(Carmichael) is good at what he does and great at selling it,” Michalowski said.

“And now with the success OSU has had in the past five years, INSTEAD OF HIM REACHING OUT TO THE RECRUITS, THE GIRLS ARE REACHING OUT TO HIM WANTING TO BE A PART OF SOMETHING SPECIAL AND MAKE HISTORY. Now it is Colin and the coaches

having to make hard decisions on who they want to be the next key players to keep the success of OSU soccer going.”

It certainly hasn’t always been that way, nor is Cowgirl soccer recruiting an overnight success, says Carmichael.

And he would know — Carmichael a r r ive d i n S t i l lwat er a long w it h K a r e n H a n c o c k in 1996 to start the OSU soccer program

from scratch.

Patience and hard work has paid off for that duo, who flip-flopped roles in 2007, with Carmichael taking over head coaching duties full time and Hancock taking on the role of assistant coach.

In OSU’s first three seasons (1996-98), the Cowgirls won just six Big 12 games combined. A decade later, the 2008 squad won seven conference games and claimed its first regular season league title.

That ’08 title marked the first of FOURSTRAIGHT BIG 12 CROWNS — two regular season and two league tournament titles — and along the way, OSU also became a fixture in the TOP 10 NATIONALLY and made BACK-TO-BACK NCAA ELITE EIGHT appearances in 2010 and 2011.

Eights in a row and won some Big 12 championships,” Carmichael said. “We’ve run the gamut. But as we found out last year, it’s very difficult to maintain that high level of success.

“WE ENJOY MUCH MORE BEING THE ELITE PROGRAM THAN THE ONE TRYING TO GET THERE, BUT WE ALSO KNOW HOW HARD IT IS TO STAY THERE. OUR JOB OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS IS TO CONTINUE TO BRING IN PLAYERS THAT ALLOW US TO COMPETE AT THAT LEVEL.”

Bringing in top-flight recruits is now a common occurrence for Carmichael’s program, with back-to-back recruiting classes ranked in the top 10 nationally, including a 2013 class considered the eighth best in the country.

And as the program has built and sustained success, the recruiting process has changed — for one, the Cowgirl coaching staff can be much pickier and more selective.

“Now we can recruit kids to play the way we want them to play,” Carmichael said.

“We’re able to watch players and not just say ‘She’s good, we’ll take her’ — that was the old philosophy. Now we can say ‘This

“Now we can recruit kids

to play the way we want them to play.”

— Colin Carmichael

“We’ve gone through the process of a new program. We have gone from just trying to find our way and get the best possible players to a program that was competing in the Big 12 and doing better to a team that people looked at regionally and thought ‘Wow! They’re getting good!’

—to a team that is on the map nationally by going to the NCAA Tournament and winning some big games to quite possibly an elite program that made two Elite

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

kid is good, and she has the attributes that we look for at that position and she’ll fit in with how we play.”

So what do Carmichael, Hancock and associate head coach Justin Elkington look for in future Cowgirls?

Carmichael said first and foremost, like in most sports, coaches look for speed and athleticism.

3

MICHALOWSKI WAS A KEY BUILDING BLOCK IN HELPING CARMICHAEL’S RECRUITING PITCH BECOME PROPHETIC.

“Every coach wants to make sure, in every sport, that you have some of the better athletes,” Carmichael said. “And for us, technical ability depending on position, is big. If you’re a forward, are you a good finisher? If you’re a midfielder, can you keep the ball? If you’re a defender, can you serve long balls?

“And mentality. That’s probably the hardest thing for us to gauge. ‘What is that kid’s mentality like?’ Because we only get to see them four to six times playing soccer so we try to get a gauge from their coaches on ‘A re they the first person at practice, the last one to leave?

Do they come for extra training? Do they do individual workouts? How motivated are they to play or do they just show up and go through the motions?’”

Of course, identifying potential contributors is only part of the recruiting process.

Once Carmichael has figured out whom he wants to see in a Cowgirl uniform,

he transforms from scout into salesman.

To do that, Carmichael focuses on a number of positives. The location of Stillwater is a great fit for the majority of recruiting bases that OSU hits —

Oklahoma, Dallas, Houston, Austin and Kansas City. OSU’s well-known

academic reputation also plays well for recruits, as does Stillwater being a great community for young women to feel safe and secure.

4 AUGUST 2013 PHOTO / BRUCE WATERFIELD

“Since we haven’t had the greatest facilities, we focus a lot on the people,” Carmichael said. “We try to sell OSU as a school, Stillwater as a community and the fact that the people here care about you and we’re going to look after you and give you the opportunity to compete at a high level.

“Recently, we’ve been able to sell the success of our program more than in the past, but the main things are still we’re going to be a very competitive program, we’re going to compete for championships and we’re going to take care of you and treat you the best way possible.”

Michalowski was a key building block in helping Carmichael’s recruiting pitch become prophetic.

As a freshman in 2009, she started on an OSU team that advanced to the second round of the NCAA Women’s Soccer Championship for the fourth-straight year.

Over the next two seasons, she helped break that streak, as the Cowgirls elevated to an elite level by topping the 20-win mark both seasons and advancing to within one win of the NCAA College Cup (soccer’s final four).

“The main idea that the coaching staff and Colin tried to sell when they were recruiting me was being a part of a growing program, and that is what sold me in the end,” Michalowski said. “Honestly, most people I played with in high school didn’t really think of OSU as a top collegiate program. I mean, it was on the rise right as I was entering school — OSU ended up winning the Big 12 that season (2008), and that was pretty cool to tell my friends. But other than that it wasn’t known as a Texas A&M, Texas, Notre Dame kind of program.

“But I looked at it like did I want to be a part of a great program and maybe not contribute as much or be with a bunch of talented, hard-working girls and possibly make Oklahoma State a top soccer program?

“Thankfully, I chose the latter and I was a part of something really special, making OSU a competitive household name.”

Carmichael reiterated that there is no substitute for winning when it comes to selling your program to a potential student-athlete.

“The more you win, the more kids want to be a part of it,” Carmichael said. “The success of the program is the biggest factor,

“The more you win, the more kids want to be a part of it.”

— Colin Carmichael and all of the other things are important along with that.

“One of our incoming freshmen this year, Niki McKnight, was at our Sweet 16 win against Duke (in 2010) and committed on the spot. There’s nothing you can do to simulate that — if you’re not having that success, that kid might look at it and go ‘I kinda like it, but…’ But when (McKnight) saw the 2,000 people in the bleachers, the atmosphere, us knocking off a ‘name’ program, she was sold.”

That atmosphere is something that has also become a source of pride in the program and something that has taken off along with the numbers in the win column.

Carmichael will be the first to admit that the home of OSU soccer, the Cowgirl Soccer Complex, leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to keeping up with the competition.

But as he and Michalowski both point out, the playing surface is as good as anyone has in the region, and when you can show recruits pictures of large crowds, along with a facility “dressed up for game day” with a video board, flags and banners, it does become a selling point. “ We really sell the atmosphere,” Carmichael said. “Although it’s not modern and the amenities aren’t great, we are able

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

to say that the atmosphere you’re going

the new indoor practice facility that’s gone

as opposed to the actual visual facility you see when you walk up there.”

Carmichael can also point to the OSU soccer locker room and the weight room in Gallagher-Iba Arena, the West End Zone of Boone Pickens Stadium, the OSU residence halls and the Sherman Smith Indoor Training Center to highlight the athletic department’s commitment to student-athletes.

And that commitment will soon benefit Carmichael’s program, as the Cowgirl Soccer Complex is on the to-do list in a big way.

“We’re starting to tell recruits, ‘Look there’s a lot of great plans here, look at

forward with our facility.

“And once (the new facility) actually comes into play, it’s a game changer. We still have all those other positives and now we have this state-of-the-art, beautiful facility where you’re going to train and play every day. I would guess that would be very appealing to a lot of kids.”

Michalowski agreed.

“Having great athletic programs with luxurious facilities overall will show recruits that our school cares and prides itself on being the best and having one of the prettiest campuses around,” Michalowski said.

“And I think it is about time soccer got the whole package!”

up, they’re building tennis and track and to play in is phenomenal. It’s a lot of fun. People are here and they’re yell- soccer is on the way,’” Carmichael said. ing and chanting. We sell that side of it “We’re using that now that we’re moving

5

CONDITIONED STORY BY

Matt Elliott PHOTOGRAPHY BY

Phil Shockley

OSU WENT INTO THE LOCKER ROOM AT HALF TIME AT KYLE FIELD DOWN 20-3. ON THE FIELD, THEY LOOKED SLUGGISH AND OUT-OF-SYNCH.

But inside the locker room all was calm. OSU had done it before. Last year the team was down 14-7 against A&M and still came back to win.

Except this time, the Cowboys were on the road, and A&M, the perennial media favorite over OSU, was ranked No. 8 nationally, just below the then-No. 7 Cowboys.

What happened in the second half set the tone for an 11-win conference championship season.

THE COWBOYS EXPLODED FOR THREE TOUCHDOWNS DURING THE THIRD QUARTER WHILE SHUTTING OUT A&M TO TAKE A 24-20 LEAD.

A&M pulled within three by the end of the fourth, but, as John Madden once said, the team that scores the most points wins.

70 DECEMBER 2011

FOR WINNING COACHING, THE TEAM’S UNCANNILY CALM COMPOSURE AND PLAY ON THE FIELD WERE HUGE FACTORS. But the Aggies looked physically beat in the second half. The notorious south Texas heat was baking Kyle Field when OSU, with its breakneck no-huddle offense, came out swinging at the top of the third.

A few A&M players were seen doubled over by cramps while the Cowboys seemed to be unfazed.

Cramps and heat exhaustion are caused by poor diet and dehydration.

With conditioning, it affects athletes’ performance on the field. It affects their decision-making and the chances they’ll be injured.

“We did have a few guys close to cramping, but we got lucky with them, got them out of the game so we could sub in another guy for a series or two,” says Kevin Blaske, OSU’s head football trainer. “As you become dehydrated, you don’t even have to be cramping for your physical performance to go down.”

The Aggies’ poor physical condition at the time wasn’t lost on their coach, Mike Sherman, as indicated during his post-game interview.

“We just couldn’t get there in the second half,” said Sherman, responding to a question about his team’s

difficulties keeping pace with OSU quarterback Brandon Weeden. “Kids lost their legs and were cramping.”

If a defense’s front line can’t pressure a quarterback, especially good ones like Weeden, then its defensive backs have to cover wide receivers for longer lengths of time. Meanwhile, everyone is more likely to get blown off the line-of-scrimmage during the running game. And it only gets worse, because by the time conditioning starts affecting performance on the field, it’s already too late to get players back to normal.

“I THINK IT WAS A DIFFERENCE IN THE GAME,” says John

Stemm, OSU’s director of athletic training.

It takes a huge effort to win the conditioning/hydration battle. It takes an organization-wide commitment to keep the 70 players hydrated, from the 315-pound offensive lineman down to the running backs with six percent body fat.

FOR A ROAD GAME, THE STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING, TRAINING AND EQUIPMENT STAFF LOAD ONE TRACTORTRAILER FULL OF GEAR. That includes everything from cooling hoods that use ice-cold water to cool players to beverages, including special products such as Pedialyte, a children’s

therapeutic drink popular among athletes, to fight dehydration.

That also includes five cases of bottled water. And 900 pounds of Gatorade. The famous sports drink endorsed by celebrity athletes all over the world is the only thing other than water OSU athletes can drink (unless, of course, they’re diabetic).

“WE CALL IT A PRODUCTION, LOADING UP THAT TRUCK,” STEMM SAYS. “IT’S LIKE YOU’RE A BAND GOING ON TOUR.” “You don’t need go to the weight room after that,” Blaske says.

There’s also a misting system and fans, as well as the entire training room, the equipment room, and trunks of prewash solution for the team’s uniforms (loaded by the equipment team). As it gets colder, the load changes to cold weather gear such as coats, and other items to keep players from getting too tight and chilled on the sidelines.

The truck usually leaves on Thursday along with seven student trainers (the ones who bound out on the field with green Gatorade bottles at each break in the action on the field). Meanwhile, coaches, trainers and others ride the players all week to stay hydrated.

They make sure players, whether they’re in team meetings or in class, are constantly surrounded by water STORY CONTINUES

71

and Gatorade. THE ATHLETES ARE ALSO DRINKING FLUIDS CONSTANTLY, watching what they eat and monitoring their urine color. The training table, where they get their meals each day, is stocked all week with Gatorade. Hydration is preached during practices.

The kids, staff, coaches and others travel Friday. Later that day, the players do a walkthrough in the stadium.

After walkthrough, they’ll check in, get settled, have a snack and another Gatorade.

Saturday starts with breakfast, more Gatorade and more water. If it’s a 2:30 p.m. game, within two or three hours they’ll come back to the hotel for their pregame meal. And two more Gatorades. This time, though, they mix their drink with Gatorlytes, a package of salts and electrolytes to boost what’s already in the drink (and make it taste like seawater).

“When they sit down for their pregame meal, they’ll have two bottles

72 DECEMBER 2011

of Gatorade at their setting,” Blaske says. “With it is a pack of Gatorlytes.

Coach Gundy starts them off, tells everyone to mix up their Gatorlytes and Gatorades and to make sure they drink both of them.”

Kyle Field is one of the toughest places to play in the Big 12 (well, was one of the toughest places to play in the Big 12). Not only because of the Aggies, but because of the crowd and the heat. College Station is just north of Houston. THE HUMID AIR FROM THE GULF OF MEXICO MIXES WITH THE SOUTH TEXAS HEAT FOR AN AWFUL MIXTURE OF SUFFOCATING HEAT AND HUMIDITY THAT MAKES OKLAHOMA FEEL LIKE PARADISE. That was in full force on Sept. 24, as the Cowboys took the field against the favored Aggies, who should’ve had the advantage due to playing regularly in that environment.

“We’ve certainly been hotter here,” Stemm says. “But, at A&M, they put this black rubber matting down where

it used to be just a path behind the sidelines that the ROTC soldiers there would walk on. It was just sucking up the heat that was then just rolling off of it. You could feel it.”

After the first half, several A&M players were cramping and had to receive IVs at halftime.

Not so for OSU. On the sidelines, a rack of tubes was set up for players on the bench that ran a system spraying a cooling mist over them. OSU’s student workers passed water bottles to them.

“Our students, they do a lot of the hydrating for us,” says Parker, OSU’s assistant football trainer. “They carry the six packs of water and Gatorade.

We take a very proactive approach.

Give the guys water. Don’t wait for them to ask. If a guy comes off the field, you have the water right in their face so they’re not looking around for it. YOU HAVE TO ALWAYS

TELL THEM, ‘HYDRATE, HYDRATE, HYDRATE, HYDRATE AND‘HYDRATE,’ while they’re sitting

on the bench. You have to walk by and say it. You’re constantly telling people, ‘I know you’re not thirsty. But if you’re thirsty, you’re already in trouble.’”

If players become dehydrated, OSU always has a volunteer paramedic from the Stillwater Fire Department there to rehydrate them intravenously.

“I think that’s really where the recognition comes in,” Parker says.

“We knew it was going to be hot. So that’s why we really stress ahead of time that they hydrate throughout the week, starting Thursday and Friday.”

AT HALF TIME, OSU HIT THE LOCKER ROOM AND THE PLAYERS DOWNED MORE BOTTLES OF GATORADE as coaches ran down their halftime adjustments. The trainers made their adjustments, too.

Parker says they started using Pedialyte in the second half, adding more

Gatorade laced with Gatorlytes and water that their student trainers gave to athletes on the field.

It’s ironic and probably just coincidental that this happened during the game against A&M. A&M’s famous former coach, hall of famer Paul “Bear” Bryant, was known for his brutal practices where he wouldn’t allow water breaks during the summer heat, a fact immortalized in the book The Junction Boys and an ESPN film starring Tom Berenger.

Many consider Bryant, who later coached at Alabama and won six national championships, the game’s greatest coach. OSU’s own Henry Iba, also known as “The Iron Duke,” wouldn’t allow water breaks during his basketball practices. The idea was to toughen players up.

It has taken years of sports science and sadly, deaths, to correct that, Parker says. In fact, DEHYDRATED PLAYERS PLAY MUCH, MUCH WORSE THAN THOSE WHO’RE IN BETTER CONDITION. “But, you have to remember the starting guard back then weighed 195 and didn’t have a lot of fat,” Stemm says. “The other thing is, those kids were a lot more acclimated because there wasn’t air conditioning. A lot of them were used to being out on the farm. So they were a lot more acclimated to the heat and they weighed half of what our guys weigh. Some of our O-line guys are 315. They’ve got a pretty good little amount of insulation on them that does nothing but cooks what’s inside if it gets too hot. Our safeties are 210. Back then, that was a defensive lineman.”

Blaske says MOST COACHES TODAY UNDERSTAND THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HYDRATION AND PERFORMANCE. It’s not rocket science.

Athletes need proper diets, fluids and

training to perform. So, if it’s not rocket science, then why do teams fail at it?

Because many don’t make the organization-wide commitment as head coach Mike Gundy has.

“I was here with Les Miles, and he never talked about it,” Stemm says.

“Our players today hear it from our head coach. Almost every single day they’re in front of coach Gundy, he says, ‘eat good food, drink lots of fluids.’”

When it became clear last summer was going to be a scorcher, trainers talked to Gundy and the coaching staff, who agreed to hold practices earlier in the day when it was cooler.

During those practices, coaches let players break for rest in the shade, take their pads off, drink plenty of Gatorade and had cool towels on hand for their heads.

Sounds sort of un-football-like. But as a result, last summer the team used the fewest number of IVs ever at OSU, Stemm says.

Gundy says it’s about emphasizing important things players can control to make them better. Players often can’t change their athletic ability, but taking care of themselves is one of the big things that can improve it.

He talks about hydration, as well as personal hygiene and nutrition, with players several times per week.

WAS IT THE DIFFERENCE IN THE A&M GAME, THE GAME THAT SET OSU ON THE PATH TO A CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP AND A FIESTA BOWL BERTH? Gundy isn’t sure.

“Against A&M, I don’t think there’s any question that we were in better condition and we were fresh,” Gundy says. “We push the importance of controlling the things that can make you a better football player.”

At times controversial for its sugar content, Gatorade is the only beverage other than water and Pedialyte, which tastes a lot like liquid chalk dust, OSU athletes are allowed to drink.

Today, it’s not just a sports drink. Loaded with the potassium, salt and electrolytes athletes lose when they work, its most popular line, the G Series, comes in pre-, during and post-exertion products tailored to keep athletes hydrated.

Other products, such as its packets of Gatorlytes, are becoming common in nutrition retailers. Gatorade, owned by Pepsi Co., also has all-natural and low-calorie product lines.

Gatorade was born in 1965 at the University of Florida when an assistant football coach there worked with doctors to figure out why his players were succumbing to heat-related problems. Drs. Robert Cade, Dana Shires, James Free and Alejandro de Quesada found Gator football players were losing fluids and electrolytes through perspiration. They also weren’t replacing the carbohydrates they were expending.

What’s an electrolyte? MedlinePlus’s website defines them as acids, bases and salts affecting the important processes that have to fire when we exert ourselves.

The Florida researchers devised a drink, laced with carbohydrates and electrolytes, to replace what the Gators were sweating out. They called it “Gatorade.”

Although it tasted a little funny at the time, the Gators started winning more games almost immediately and won the Orange Bowl after the 1966 season.

Today, Gatorade reports it’s used by more than 70 Division I college sports teams and dozens of professional sports teams all over the world.

OSU head football trainer Kevin Blaske says it’s not for every player, but it has been shown to help keep athletes ready to play. Diabetics, for example, can’t have Gatorade due to its sugar content.

Also, some players don’t lose as many minerals when they sweat, so water is all the fluid they need.

73

COWBOYS GET SMART-ER STORY BY MATT ELLIOTT

PHOTOGRAPHY BY BRUCE WATERFIELD

Men’s basketball coach Travis Ford decided he’d take his young basketball team to Spain for a 10-day tour in August.

The Cowboys played four games against solid international competition, many of which consisted of teams with professional players.

Plusses included the team had 10 extra days to practice, which gave Ford and his staff a head start on the 2012 season.

“It was fun for me as their coach,” Ford says. “They could have just complained the whole time. These guys loved every second. They wanted to see things.

They wanted the tours. They wanted to try the food. They were just a delight to be around.”

It was a welcome change. The Cowboys were recovering from an arduous and injury-filled 15-18 season, the first losing season by an OSU men’s basketball team since 1988. With injuries to a host of starters, the team at many times had only seven players available to play. Michael Cobbins, the team’s starting big forward, lost 15 pounds because he was playing so many minutes. Still, Ford says, they hung in the last 10 games of the season

6

DECEMBER 2012

and played hard, closing the year out on an upswing.

“Hopefully, that’s led into this season,” Ford says. “We got some freshmen and some young sophomores some very valuable experience that they might not have gotten otherwise.”

The trip to Spain shows much of that experience has carried over.

The Cowboys played four teams in Barcelona and Gran Canaria (the big island of the Canary Islands) and beat them all. While last year’s team never had the chance to showcase its chemistry, players showed it in August under freshman point guard Marcus Smart who had 15 assists. Markel Brown led the team in scoring with 18 points per game, and he showed an improved jumper, hitting 55 percent of his shots.

But what happened off the court was more important. Ford says his team had the experience of a lifetime. None of them except for Smart had ever been to a foreign country.

They toured Barcelona and saw sights including the world-famous

and perpetually under construction 19th century cathedral, the Sagrada Familia.

In between games on the Canary Islands, they rode wave runners in the Atlantic Ocean and took rides on a huge catamaran. They went snorkeling and parasailed.

Ford says the guys all got along well and embraced the trip, which was fun for his staff to see. They showed him a side that folks on campus don’t get to see.

“When they’re on campus, everybody’s stoic,” Ford says with a smile.

“While we were overseas, they let their hair down a little bit and had a great time. They enjoyed each other without the cell phones and texting and all that. It was so much fun to see.”

They enjoyed a few laughs while trying to figure out exchange rates and buying items such as food. They seemed to gel together. They showed big things may be in store this year for Cowboy basketball.

“This is a good group. I’d be lying if I said every team I coached would have embraced it like that … Their personalities one through fifteen are just enjoyable personalities. It’s not always like that.

Believe me.”

GETTING SMART

The addition of Marcus Smart changes this team.

Smart, a McDonald’s All-American, showed in practice and in Spain that he had the speed, quickness and hustle-ability to lead Ford’s run-and-gun offense.

He played shooting guard in high school, averaging more than 15 points, nine rebounds, five assists and nearly three steals per game while shooting an astonishing 66.9 percent from the floor.

two-time Gatorade Player of the Year in Texas and was a finalist He was a

for the company’s national player of the year award.

He’s the biggest to play the point guard position OSU has had under Ford, and he’s a big scoring threat. Scoring point guards can wreak havoc on defenses.

Defenders don’t know whether to play the pass or keep him from scoring. He’s the kind of guy who can change a game just being there.

“His first concern is making everybody else around him better,” Ford says.

“You can see that by his passing, in how he talks to his teammates, by his hustle.

By everything he does. It’s all about winning and making his teammates better.”

Smart shot 63 percent overseas and went 5-for-7 in threes. More importantly, with him at the helm, OSU averaged more than 80 points per game against what Ford calls “mid-major competition.” That’s great news for a team that struggled to find enough scorers healthy enough to play last season.

Smart, who led Team USA, which won the FIBA Americas U18 championship last summer, also does the little things that don’t show up on the scoreboard, Ford says.

He catapults his six-foot four-inch, 225-pound frame after rebounds, takes charges and is a vocal leader, beyond what a typical freshman shows.

Listening to Ford rave about him makes one understand why he had offers from

7

MARCUS SMART

North Carolina, Marquette, Kansas, Baylor, Texas and Oklahoma. Smart is, as Ford says, exactly what the doctor ordered.

S T O RY

CONTINUES

“I THINK WE’LL BE ABLE TO COMPETE WITH ANYBODY.”

COACH TRAVIS FORD

BROWN “You’re going to make any team a lot better when you add a guy like that,” Ford says.

Ford doesn’t expect anyone to average close to Page’s scoring game. He thinks it might be more likely to be accomplished by committee. Markel Brown is the

Brown has started more games than most juniors (36), so he’s a veteran. His dunks were highlight-reel fare last season. He managed just over 10 points per game on relatively few shots.

OSU needs him to take more shots this year and score more than he ever has, something he certainly has the tools and the mindset to do, Ford says.

“He’s never been asked to score his first two seasons like we’re going to ask him to do this year.”

Le’Bryan Nash, “LB” to his teammates, is another potential big-time scorer for the team who could take up for Page’s loss.

Cowboy fans will see No. 2 from Dallas has matured from the talented freshman he was last year. Nash had one of the best freshman years ever at OSU and was the first Cowboy to win the Associated

first name that comes to his mind when he thinks of who can take the biggest scoring role.

His 13.3 points per game were second only to Richard Dumas’s 17.1 points per game

WHO’S GOING TO STEP UP FOR PAGE? The Cowboys are without their leading scorer from last year, Keiton Page, who averaged more than 17 points per game. As a senior, he was also the team’s leader on the court. He graduated last May and returned this season as a graduate assistant.

“All the coaches have been telling me it seems like Keiton has been here forever,” Ford says. “He’s the classic overachiever. He’s what we want Oklahoma State Basketball to be about … We’re excited he’s still around helping us on the coaching staff.”

8

DECEMBER 2012

Press’s Freshman of the Year Award.

his freshman year. At times, he struggled with consistency and learning to play at the Division I level.

“I just think there were a lot of lessons he had to learn. Sometimes you’ve got to learn them the hard way … LB had a habit of turning it off and on. When he was playing hard. When he would rest. He understands now that he can’t do that.”

Coaches need him even more after the loss of sophomore Brian Williams and Jean Paul Olukemi. Williams remains out indefinitely after he fell and broke his wrist following a dunk. Williams was a strong scorer last year and committed few turnovers in addition to his status as a good rebounder.

After tearing his anterior-cruciate ligament in his right knee and missing most of last season, Olukemi injured his other knee at this year’s Puerto Rico Tipoff tournament, cutting short a promising senior season.

The Cowboys are fortunate to have other scorers on the team.

This year’s wild card could be 5-feet 11-inch freshman guard Phil Forte.

Ford says it will be tough to keep Forte, who was a high school teammate of Smart’s, off the court. Forte can shoot, which spreads defenses, and score points quickly. He could have a major impact on this season.

“A guy like that is a weapon I like to have on the court. He’s proven to us he’s one of the better on-the-ball defenders we have, too.”

REBOUND, REBOUND, REBOUND Rebounding was one of the biggest things Ford and his staff drove home during October practices. OSU was next to last in the league in the stat last year, getting outrebounded an average of almost six per game.

The teams who were the best at it had the most successful seasons, teams such as Baylor and Kansas. The Jayhawks played in the national title game against Kentucky.

“Rebounding is a mentality. It’s wanting to be aggressive and go get the basketball.”

The Cowboys are smaller in the frontcourt than most Big 12 teams. That means they have to be driven to rebound – beyond just using good technique. OSU practices it every day, Ford says, stressing that the entire team needs to get more boards. Michael Cobbins, the sixfoot eight-inch 220-pound forward, was the team’s rebounding leader while averaging 5.7 per game last year, and Ford stresses he needs to get at least 10 per game this year, something he has confidence in his player doing.

The team could get some help from freshman Kamari Murphy, whose long arms and six-foot eight-inch frame will see big minutes at forward. He averaged 6.5 rebounds per game during the team’s trip to Spain.

“We need him to continue to be aggressive,” Ford says.

Center Philip Jurick, at six-feet eleven-inches and 260 pounds, could be a big help in that department once he fully recovers from the Achilles tendon tear he suffered last year.

BANGED UP Ford shakes his head at how banged up his team has been. Smart was out with an unknown illness doctors thought was mono. Forte had pneumonia. Seven-footer

Marek Soucˇek was out with a sore

groin. Olukemi’s knee was swelling up. And Jurick was still recovering from his Achilles tendon tear.

Missed practice time means nonconference play is going to be more important than usual. Fans could see the team start to gel more during those early games.

Thankfully, Ford says, the nonconference schedule is set up better than last year, during which the team played tough teams such as Pittsburgh. He blamed it on taking too many good offers for TV exposure.

“I kept getting calls the summer before. ‘Hey, this is ESPN,’ we want you to play Pitt in Madison Square Garden on national TV.’ Phew. That’s pretty good. How do I pass that up?

Then, we got picked for the preseason NIT. It was just things that people just kept adding that they wanted us doing.

It was good exposure. But we weren’t as good as we thought we were going to be because of injuries and things like that. It was too much.”

This year’s schedule is much better and more balanced, he says. The team kicked off the season with games against Ottawa and UC Davis at home before heading to the Puerto Rico Tip-Off

(a tournament the Pokes went on to win with a decisive 76-56 victory over thenNo. 6 North Carolina State.). That tournament will be essential in helping the team cement after a helter-skelter preseason practice session.

Big 12 coaches picked OSU to finish at third place in the league this year behind Kansas and Baylor. Conference play won’t begin until Jan. 5. If the Cowboys get a few more rebounds out of key players and some points out of their scorers, then they could be on the verge of a big season.

“I think we’ll be able to compete with anybody. And I think we’ll be able to play the style of basketball that I enjoy coaching, have had a lot of success with and that fits this team.”

NASH

9

COWG RL P 6 DECEMBER 2012

The Cowgirls, off to a 7-0 start and an upward trending top-20 ranking, look to build off last year’s WNIT tournament victory.

STORY BY MATT ELLIOTT PHOTOGRAPHY BY BRUCE WATERFIELD

7

Winning the Women’s National Invitation Tournament was the best thing that could happen to OSU women’s basketball last year, says the team’s coach, Jim Littell.

The Cowgirls closed out last season with six-straight wins, including their first WNIT championship, a triumphant end to a season marred by the tragic loss of head coach Kurt Budke, assistant coach Miranda Serna, and donors Olin and Paula Branstetter to a plane crash, but one marked by a team pulling together as a family. This year, they’re older, hungrier and out to prove themselves in front of a fanbase inspired by their postseason run.

“The bar has been raised,” Littell says.

2012 is Littell’s first season as the Cowgirls head coach after taking over one game into last season. He returns all of his starters from the WNIT championship team, including that year’s conference freshman of the year, phenom forward Liz Donohoe, and point guard

Tiffany Bias, who shattered the school’s single-season assist record.

“We really like our group,” Littell says.

“It’s a team that has as good a chemistry as any team I’ve coached … I’ve been in this for 35 years. I’ve never seen a team that is highly successful without great chemistry.”

They’ll need it. The Cowgirls’ competition looks pretty tough. For five years the Big 12 has had the nation’s toughest women’s basketball ratings percentage index, or RPI (the most common way to gauge a team’s strengths using its wins, losses and schedule strength).

8

The Big 12 doesn’t get any tougher than the Baylor Lady Bears. That team went 40-0 and won the national championship last season on the play of Brittney Griner, who, much to the chagrin of nearly everyone outside of Waco, is back for her senior season.

The OU Sooners return their starting lineup from last season, including stars Whitney Hand and Aaryn Ellenberg, who finished that year one game short of the Sweet Sixteen.

Conference realignment has brought some strong new contenders as well, now that Texas A&M and Nebraska have left.

The West Virginia Mountaineers made the NCAA tournament in 2012. The other new Big 12 team, the TCU Horned Frogs, has been to the NCAA tournament nine times under head coach Jeff Mittie.

During a preseason poll this year, league coaches picked Baylor to finish at No. 1, while West Virginia came in at second in a tie with the OU Sooners. The coaches picked the Cowgirls to finish in seventh place.

Preseason polls are the worst kind of measure of a team’s worth. No one has yet played a game. They’re based on the previous year’s performance and returning starters. They can’t measure intangibles such as chemistry, poise and the toll of things such as injuries.

That’s why whenever a reporter asks a student-athlete what he or she thinks about the latest poll, this is what they say:

“Our ultimate focus is to win and be successful,” says Bias, who was seventh

in the nation last season and second in the Big 12 in assists. “Be successful

as a team. Individual stats aren’t going to help your team. If your team still loses, then that doesn’t really matter.”

DEPENDABLE EQUALIZERS AND TALENTED NEWCOMERS

Littell has reason to like this team, and it starts with its two leading scorers from 2011–12 back for more.

OSU had a remarkably balanced attack that year. Bias and Donohoe averaged more than 13 points per game. Young had 12. Few teams have as many scoring options.

“We have great shooters,” Bias says.

“Everyone can score.”

Few teams have as good of a “quarterback” as Bias. A tireless player, she runs like a cheetah and can put up Rajon Rondo-like numbers leading a motion offense.

She averaged nearly seven assists per game, which, when paired with her scoring, comes out to almost 30 points the Cowgirls could expect from her each night. Bias is equally skilled defensively with her quickness leading to a couple of steals per game.

This season will show Bias coming in to her role as a veteran leader. She has started every game since her freshman year, taking over former OSU great Andrea Riley, and plays like it today, Littell says.

“It seems like she’s been here five or six years,” he says. “We’re glad for that.

Probably a lot of the other coaches in the league aren’t.”

Bias says she spent the summer watching game film and dissecting her play, focusing on replicating her focus during games such as a white-knuckle 66-63 win over the Jayhawks that saw her icing it with free throws in the final seconds. She had 26 points and eight assists in that contest.

S T O RY

DECEMBER 2012

CONTINUES

“I think people are going to be very surprised at what we can do.”

TIFFANYY BIAS

9

“I’ve started to realize I don’t have to go a hundred miles per hour every second,” she says. “It’s other things, too. Being more explosive. Learning to finish and being consistent.”

Donohoe had the ups and downs common for a talented freshman, struggling at times with the speed of the game.

But she came on strong, especially during the WNIT. She showed herself to be a strong shooter and a reliable rebounder, finishing the season with five straight double-doubles. She had a pivotal 13-point, 13-rebound performance during the team’s upset of the No. 23 Longhorns.

“I would like to take credit for her,” Littell says, “but she has made herself an outstanding player.”

The pieces fall in to place further when one checks out the Cowgirls’ post presence. Toni Young and Lindsey Keller complement each other well, Littell notes.

Young is an extreme athletic talent, he says. Recovering from a broken arm suffered the previous year, she spent much of last season splitting time with center Kendra Suttles but still became the second player in OSU history to have 1,000 points, 700 rebounds and 100 blocks for her career. She also led the team in field goal percentage while averaging 12 points and seven rebounds per game.

Like Donohoe, she came on strong during the WNIT, scoring more than 20 points during three of the six tournament games. The following summer, she was

runner up in the high jump at the Big 12 Championship, jumping 6.25 feet. She

10

came in fifth at the national championship meet and even earned a trip to the Summer Olympic Trials in Oregon to try out for the American team.

“She’s just a tremendous athlete,” Littell says. “That shows in what she’s done in the high jump … Hopefully, the success

DECEMBER 2012

she had last year will propel her to work hard and have a great senior year.”

Keller is the enforcer opposite Young.

Littell says Keller’s handiwork typically doesn’t show up on the scoreboard. She’s the essential bruiser any athletic post player like Young needs at her opposite side to play punishing defense, box out and force defenses to react to her ability to score points off boards.

She’s a great screen setter for ball handlers, rebounding, fighting for loose balls and shutting down other post players who can score.

Gary Blair, Texas A&M’s head coach, called her the “linebacker of the league,” Littell says, after the Cowgirls beat the No. 14 Aggies 57-53 in Stillwater last January.

“I wish I had one as physical as she is,” said Blair, during his post game press conference. “She looked like ‘Little Country’ in there … It’s the mindset she brings, the intensity, the whatever-ittakes type of attitude. That’s what you’ve got to do to be able to win at this level.”

There are some wild cards in the mix, too, for the Cowgirls. Several new players could see playing time.

One of those is Brittney Martin, a six-foot freshman guard rated the

No. 3 wing player in the nation by ESPN’s HoopGurlz.

A native of Syracuse, Utah, Martin led her high school team to a 70-1 record her final three seasons as she averaged 18.5 points, nearly 10 rebounds, five steals and three assists per game.

Littell says she can create her own shot, something that’s always useful when a play breaks down on the court.

“That’s kind of what we’ve lacked in the past here,” says Littell, noting Martin, like Donohoe, has the physical side of the game down already. She just needs to adjust to its speed.

Joining her is freshman guard Brittany Atkins from Kansas City, Mo., who produced a jaw-dropping high school stat line of 29.2 points, 12

rebounds, four assists and three steals per game as a senior.

Fans will notice some new—and familiar— faces on the team’s staff, too.

Littell lured Jack Easley away from an associate head coach position at perennial tournament contenders Iowa State to be his director of player development. Easley oversees things such as player academics, summer camps and fundraisers.

“When I called him, I said, ‘Jack, I don’t want to insult you by offering you a player development job, but I’m just going to throw it out there. We know you spent nineteen years at Oklahoma State and consider Stillwater a very special place for you, your wife and family. I’m going to throw it out there. I’d like to have you come home.’”

Obviously, Easley agreed. He left behind a career with the Cyclones that included seven NCAA tournaments, including the Elite Eight in 2009. But he got his start at OSU in 1983 as an assistant coach. He was in Stillwater for 19 years, won three conference titles and went to the NCAA tournament seven times. Littell calls him a proven winner.

The second new hire is associate head coach Candace Whitaker, a former player of Littell’s who dates back to his days as a coach at Kansas’s Seward County Community College.

Whitaker was hired away from the University of Missouri Kansas City, where she led the team to one of its best seasons ever in 2012, finishing 22-12.

“She was basically a shot away from making the tournament,” says Littell, who lauded his former protégé for her basketball knowledge, ability to relate to others and her drive. “This is a rising star in the women’s game.”

During college at Texas Tech, she played under Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame member Marsha Sharp, where

“It’s a team that has as good a chemistry as any team I’ve coached.”

COACH JIM LITTELL

she started for two years before beginning her coaching career at Valparaiso.

“She has always been special,” Littell says. “Since the time I coached her at Seward County, you could tell she was a student of the game … She carries those same special qualities as a coach. She makes the people around her better just like when she was a player. She brings out a lot of positive attributes in people.”

With assistant coaches Bill Annan and Richie Henderson, they make for what Littell calls a diverse and experienced staff.

“I don’t know if that’s a nice way of saying we’re all old, or what,” Littell ruefully jokes.

T he pieces a l l fit for the Cowgirls. The thing is there are a bunch of other Big 12 teams who have all the pieces, too.

What sets teams apart is not just talent but chemistry on and off the court. And OSU’s Cowgirls have both in spades.

“I think people are going to be very surprised at what we can do,” Bias says.

11

CROSSING THE COWBOY RUNNERS LEAVE CHAMPIONSHIP LEGACY STORY & PHOTOS BY

2 DECEMBER 2011

Clay Billman

FINISH LINE 3

As a 40-degree drizzle collected on the outside the chartered tour bus, Oklahoma State Cross Country coach Dave Smith addressed his team before the 2011 NCAA Cross Country Championships.

The speech was brief, yet sincere. The message: “I’d rather lose with you guys than win with anybody else.”

W

ith that, the Cowboys—led by senior stars Colby Lowe and German Fernandez—stepped out onto the familiar LaVern Gibson Cross Country Course at Indiana State University and began warming up in the chilly, mid-morning mist. As the home of eight straight championship meets, Terre Haute has dubbed itself “Cross Country Town, USA.” The Cowboys were looking to paint it orange for the third straight season.

Smith’s squad was confident, yet cautious leading up to the meet. OSU had captured the 2009 and 2010 team championships and was ranked No. 1 to start the 2011 campaign. Since the competition began in 1938, 16 teams have won back-to-back titles, but only five have pulled off a three-peat.

4 DECEMBER 2011

RETURNING A TEAM THAT FEATURED FIVE ALL-AMERICANS (top 40 finishers at the NCAAs), the Pokes had a chance to do just that.

Veterans Fernandez (8th), Lowe (9th) and Johnathan Stublaski (36th) were joined by redshirt sophomore Tom Farrell (29th) as low scoring threats. Added to the mix was Shadrack Kipchirchir, a transfer from Western Kentucky (27th a year ago).

Rounding out OSU’s seven would be sophomore Joseph Manilafasha, who emerged as a strong runner last season, and Fabian Clarkson, a mature, 21-year-old freshman from Germany.

While the Cowboys were claiming convincing wins at the Cowboy Jamboree, Chile Pepper Invitational, Big 12 Championships and NCAA

Central Regional, another elite team emerged on the scene. By the time Nationals rolled around, the traditionrich Wisconsin Badgers had taken the top spot in the rankings and the title of “team to beat.”

THE START OF ANY CROSS COUNTRY RACE IS A SIGHT TO BEHOLD, BUT THE SCENE AT THE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS IS EXTREME. Two hundred fifty of the nation’s elite harriers, comprised of 31 teams plus individual qualifiers, toe the line. Spread 50-yards wide, each team is confined to its own starting box, an array of multi-colored singlets painting the horizon.

When the starting gun sounds, the pack lurches forward like a battle scene in an epic motion picture. This is no ordinary spectator sport. A

hearty horde of die-hard fans (many shirtless and adorned with body paint) grabs a quick look at the first few hundred meters and suddenly sprints ahead to beat the runners to the next vantage point, and the next ... The runners will make two grueling laps around the 5,000 meter course, which serpentines back and forth across the soggy hilltop, as fans shout, wave flags and shake cowbells to motivate their favorites.

WEARING THEIR SIGNATURE DAYGLOW ORANGE TOPS, THE COWBOYS ARE EASY TO SPOT AT A DISTANCE, DESPITE THE LIFTING FOG. As the 800-yard straightaway narrows, Lowe and Fernandez settle in to a steady pace just off the front.

OSU’s gameplan was unchanged.

Like they’ve done all season, similarly skilled teammates run together at a manageable pace, conserving energy for the final 2K and picking off runners toward the home stretch.

Wisconsin went out fast, as expected. By the halfway point, the Badgers were in the lead. OSU was in fifth as a team, but moving up on the field. Individually, freshman sensation Lawi Lalang of Arizona was on pace to break the course record. No one would catch him.

As the throng of frenzied fans pushes toward the cyclone fence to get a glimpse of the finish line, coaches and spectators do quick math in their heads, projecting finishing team scores. In cross country, a team’s top five runners are given a point for their place, minus unattached runners.

Lowest team score takes the trophy.

The Badgers struck the first blow, with a 3rd place finisher. Twenty-five seconds later, two Pokes pass the electronic sensor in 7th and 8th place (Lowe in 29:32 and Fernandez just

a second behind). Then, two more Wisconsin runners (13th and 19th), followed by Farrell in 22nd.

Only two points separated the teams through the first three runners, but soon the outcome was clear, as a pair of white and red-clad runners came into view. Orange was too far back. Wisconsin’s fourth and fifth scorers earned 27 and 35 points, while Kipchirchir and Stublaski scored 39 and 63.

IN THE CHUTE, THE RESULTS WERE IMMEDIATELY KNOWN. Badger runners rejoiced, while disappointed Cowboys traded brief hugs and consoling nods.

Few words were spoken after an exhausting 10,000-meter battle.

“The guys ran what they needed to run,” Smith says. “Colby, German and Tom ran good races. I thought the next three ran average races. Overall, I’m proud of that group. They did a good job.

“We’ve got a good group of kids,” he adds. “That’s what I meant when I said I’d rather lose with this group than win with anybody else. I like the group we have. They’re good kids, they do the right thing. They work hard. They go to school. They do well in the classroom …

Honestly, we just ran up against a team that was kind of destined to win. As a coach I could feel the momentum they were gathering. They were building confidence and were on a roll like we were on last year.”

Wisconsin took the team title with 97 total points. There would be no three-peat, but a silver lining through the gray sky was a silver medal equivalent. The Cowboys had finished second overall, edging Colorado by five points, 139 to 144.

“We wanted to win,” Smith says.

“We don’t want to lose anything. We lost to one team last year at the

regional meet. We lost to one team this year, Wisconsin at the national meet. Against Division I competition, we’ve been 99 and 1 both years. It just stinks that we let this one get away.”

“It was definitely a disappointment not winning,” Lowe says. “That’s what you always set out to do. But we know we went out there and did the best we could. TO END MY

CAREER WITH TWO NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS AND BEING IN CONTENTION TO WIN ANOTHER ONE—MOST PEOPLE WOULD DREAM TO BE IN THAT POSITION.”

5 His fellow seniors agree.

“A LOT OF TEAMS WOULD KILL FOR SECOND PLACE,” Stublaski says. “We’re disappointed, obviously, but for us to say we’re completely disappointed STORY CONTINUES

Now that we are at that level, we’ve got to maintain it.”

about second place, it would be kind of silly for the sport. It’s like king of the hill. We’ve been the king twice, and every single team in the NCAA is after us. That’s a lot of pressure, even if you’re a great team. If you have one, maybe two guys slip a few places, that’s game.”

“It’s not the outcome that we wanted,” Fernandez says, “but I was pretty happy with everyone’s performance. It wasn’t first place, but not many teams can say they’ve been on the podium three times in the past three years. We were ranked No. 2, we finished No. 2, so it wasn’t a horrible outcome.

“I’M JUST GLAD TO BE WEARING ORANGE AND BLACK AND REPRESENTING OKLAHOMA STATE,” adds Fernandez.

“To say I’ve been a two-time national champion and took second … I will take that … I will take a team championship over an individual championship any day. As a runner, I have many opportunities for individual victories in the future if everything goes right for me. Team-wise, it’s once-in-alifetime to be on a college team.”

It may be hard to picture second place in the country as a letdown, but

6

DECEMBER 2011

that is an indication of the state of the O-State program under Smith, who has taken OSU Cross Country to elite status since inheriting the program in 2006.

“OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS, WE’VE BEEN THIRD, EIGHTH, FIRST, FIRST AND NOW SECOND,” Smith says. “That’s

better than anybody in the NCAA over the last five years. I’m proud of where we are.

“Several years ago, Ryan Vail came here and elevated our program from a team that was happy if we qualified for Nationals to a team that was consistently in the top ten and fighting for trophy spots in the top four.

German and Colby came and took us the next step, from a team that no longer is happy with top ten, but wants to be on the trophy stand every single year and is contending for the national championship every single year. I really love those guys for what they did for our program. They took a chance on us. When they came here we hadn’t won a championship in 50 years. We talked winning championships here, and they did that. It was a risk. They could’ve gone to places that

had won more recent championships, so I’ll be forever grateful to them.”

“That’s what Dave brought us in for,” Lowe says. “‘Do you want to start something and do something big?’ That’s what it was all about— coming in and helping build this program and make OSU a powerful distance school.”

Smith also lauded the efforts of Stublaski, who became a valuable contributor in the team’s top five.

“Stubs is a guy that I’m as proud of as any,” he says. “He has really matured a lot in the last two years and has become Mr. Dependable. I love John Stublaski. He’ll be part of the Cowboy family forever. He’s loyal.

He’s the right kind of guy.”

REPLACING THOSE SENIORS IS NO EASY TASK, Smith says.

“Now that we are at that level, we’ve got to maintain it. We have to find guys with the same attitude. Finding a German or a Colby is almost impossible. It is really, really hard to find those guys or everybody would be winning national championships. There are a lot of guys out there that look awfully good in high school, but it’s hard to transition that to consistently be

competitive at this level. That’s why those guys are so special. Colby was top ten three of his four years here, and that just does not happen.”

Next fall, the team will build around Farrell and Kipchirchir, with a host of fresh faces having the opportunity to step up and fill the shoes of this year’s outgoing seniors. Smith hopes Farrell will assume a leadership role on the squad.

“Tom is a guy that needs to grab this team and become the leader,” he says. “I think he has the right attitude, has the right work ethic, the right demeanor. He’s not afraid to confront guys who aren’t doing the right thing.

He’s not shy. And he wants to win.

He ran fine—he’s an All-American again—but he’s hurt that our team didn’t win. The program is important to him. After the race I said, ‘Tom, it’s time. You take the reins. They need to know what we’re all about, and you get it, so you teach them.’”

Despite losing three veteran runners, Smith isn’t lowering expectations for next fall. HE PLANS TO RELOAD. “In terms of our program, we’re gunning for the national championship next year. That’s our goal,” Smith says. “We’re not shy about saying that.

I think we’ve got a really good team.

We’ve got a lot of potential, and it’s time to develop that potential. It’s not going to be easy, but if it comes along the way I think it can, we’re going to be right back in the fight again for a national championship. I’m going to work as hard as I can, and get these guys to work as hard as they can, and hopefully next year we’re back on top.”

After the race, Smith spoke to his returning runners.

“I told them, ‘IT’S YOUR TIME

NOW. OKLAHOMA STATE IS YOU. OUR PROGRAM IS YOU.’

We’ve got some guys that got here as freshmen and were kind of in awe of our program, in awe of their own teammates. They haven’t realized that

those guys had to work to get where they are, and they need to do the same thing. It’s time for them to realize they are the Germans and Colbys, and they are the ones we are counting on to win. That’s the challenge right now for me as a coach, to impart that sense of urgency on them.”

Fernandez says he’s proud of the legacy he and Lowe helped create, but now it’s time to pass the baton.

“I told the guys to represent us in a good way the next couple years and make it their legacy,” he says. “JUST KEEP OKLAHOMA STATE RUNNING AT AN ELITE LEVEL, BRING IN NEW RECRUITS AND WIN MORE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS FOR OSU AND COACH SMITH. THE SKY’S THE LIMIT.” “These last four years have been some of the best times of my life,” Lowe says. “I’ve got a bunch of stories, a bunch of memories of being around these guys. This team is a family, and to be able to do what we’ve done, it’s something that doesn’t come along every day.”

WHEN THE OKLAHOMA STATE MEN’S AND WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY TEAMS donned their trademark bright orange singlets on the morning of the 2011 NCAA Championships, they added a special feature: two bands of black tape across the left shoulder.

Just days after hearing news of the crash that took the lives of Cowgirl Basketball head coach Kurt Budke and assistant Miranda Serna, along with OSU alumni Olin and Paula Branstetter, the team ran with heavy hearts.

“When this tragedy happened, I think it brought us even closer,” Fernandez says. “I was thinking of Coach Budke and Coach Serna when I was in my race, you know. We were trying to bring home a national championship for them, just to bring a little bit of happiness to Oklahoma State …

“Of all the other colleges I’ve seen, I think Oklahoma State has the closest athletic department. All of the athletes hang around with each other. We all know who we are, what we’re doing, always asking each other, ‘How’d your game go? How’d your race go?’ Stuff like that. There’s not many words that can describe Oklahoma State athletics. We’re just a family.”

7

CATCHING UP WITH DOC

By Gene Johnson

44 APRIL 2012

C

PER

DR. DONALD “DOC” COOPER IS A LONGTIME OSU FAN EXTRAORDINAIRE WHO BLEEDS ORANGE. FOR ALMOST FOUR DECADES THE DIMINUTIVE DOC, WITH DISTINCTION, RAN THE CAMPUS INFIRMARY AND DOUBLED, PRO BONO, AS TEAM PHYSICIAN FOR ALL COWBOY VARSITY ATHLETIC TEAMS. DOC’S SINCERE SMILE, INFECTIOUS ENTHUSIASM AND POSITIVE DEMEANOR, ALONG WITH HIS COMPETENT PROFESSIONAL SKILLS, HAVE AIDED IN HEALING AND ENCOURAGING MANY A COWBOY ATHLETE, INCLUDING ME. IN JULY, 2011, DOC SUFFERED A STROKE, IMPAIRING HIS SPEECH AND CONTROL OF HIS RIGHT SIDE. DOC, WHO IS NOW 83, AND HIS WIFE DONA DECIDED IT WOULD BE BEST TO MOVE INTO AN ASSISTED LIVING FACILITY IN STILLWATER. LAST DECEMBER, DONA FELL AND BROKE HER ARM. STORY CONTINUES

45

AS TIME QUICKLY FADES INTO MEMORIES, 68 years for me already, I think about what else I’d like to do. Currently I’m compiling a bucket list of experiences I’d like to have before I meet my maker, including writing a book about OSU’s 1965 Big-8 Championship basketball team and its main characters. To do this I need to interview several people instrumental to the accomplishments of that squad, including Doc Cooper.

DOC SERVED AS DIRECTOR OF OKLAHOMA STATE UNIVERSITY’S HEALTH CENTER AND AS ATHLETIC TEAM PHYSICIAN FOR 39 YEARS, 1960-99. Standing maybe 5’8” with a medium build, Doc, always smiling, was a constant bundle of energy, a rapid fire talker, was never boring, and quick to offer his thoughts on ballgames, politics, a good restaurant or whatever subject came up.

For some reason Doc seemed larger than the dimensions of his stature.

WITH A SHOCK OF STRAIGHT BLOND HAIR ALWAYS NEATLY GROOMED, DOC WORE OUTSIZED GOLD WIRE RIMMED GLASSES and one of his many fashionable plaid sport coats accessorized by the perfect tie, usually a shade of red. Doc smelled of a generous splash of good cologne. A handsome man in a caricature way, Doc’s looks were complimented by his warm, engaging personality. Doc never met a stranger.

I first met Doc in the OSU infirmary. All the freshmen scholarship round ballers (that’s a basketball term for you non-fans) -- seven of us -reported for our pre-season physicals.

After each of us gave a urine specimen, a nurse drew our blood, then we waited outside Doc’s small office to be examined. Wanting get it over, I was first in line.

46

APRIL 2012

Doc opened his office door. “Boy, come in here,” Doc bellowed to me, “What’s your name, son?” Doc shook my hand, displaying a vice-like grip for a small guy.

“Gene Johnson, sir.”

“Oh, yeah. You’re the kid from Seminole, right?” he asked as he shut the door.

“Yes sir.”

“Mr. Iba’s pretty high on this year’s freshman group, hope he’s not disappointed,” Doc said with a grin.

“Me too,” I answered, sounding nervous.

“OK, you know why you’re here?” I nodded.

“Strip down and let’s see if you’re healthy enough to endure the rigorous practices Mr. Iba has planned for you.”

I obliged. In less than a minute, that seemed much longer, Doc, finished, said, “You look alright to me son.”

“Good,” I answered as I dressed, “nice to meet you, Doc.” “You too Gene,” Doc said as he opened his door. “Next man,” he said, then to me, “good luck, big boy. Give ‘em hell. I’ll see you on the court.”

“Thanks Doc.” I liked him.

During my four years at Stillwater, Doc, as team physician, sat on the Cowboy bench at all home varsity basketball games. If one of us got banged-up, Doc was there to quickly address our ailment so we could return to the game. He was a constant cheerleader, giving us credit when we did something well, extolling us to get after them during the heat of the game, loudly blasting the refs when he thought they made a bad call or groaning when one of us made a bonehead play. Down deep in his heart Doc adored all collegiate athletics, loved us players unconditionally and was an asset to our squad. Doc was the ultimate fan and friend.

IT WAS MARCH, 2010. I DIALED DOC’S HOME, AND DONA, DOC’S PRETTY PETITE BRIDE OF SIXTY YEARS ANSWERED THE PHONE. “Hey, Mrs. Cooper, this is Gene Johnson, from the old days, remember me?”

We exchanged pleasantries and I explained I’d like to drive up and see them, that I’d been doing a little writing and would like to include them in a story. “Sure,” she laughed, “we’d be delighted. We both look forward to seeing you.”

The next Thursday, entering Stillwater, and with the aid of my GPS, it took me about 10 minutes to find the right street. I rolled down my window as I drove down Doc’s street to get some air, the pleasant aroma of pinion wood burning in someone’s fireplace drifted in. Not a cloud in the blue sky, a brisk but comfortable March day. Several sparrows fluttered from a large leafless elm, a squirrel scampered across the street … a great day to be alive.

I found the house, a well-kept 1960s sprawling ranch-style dwelling, built on a quarter- acre lot. Several mature oaks added character to the home’s curb appeal.

Getting out of the car, I fumbled for my notebook and tape recorder, dropping my keys. I rang the doorbell. Dona opened the door, all 5 feet, 90 pounds of her, large dark sparkling eyes, short bobbed hair, more black than grey.

She had aged gracefully, if at all. “Oh, Gene,” she said, shaking my hand and giving me a half hug, “do come in.”

Her head was barely above my waist.

“Donald, Gene is here.”

Dona walked into the kitchen as Doc grabbed my hand with both his hands and shook it. “By golly, Gene, you old son of a gun, you don’t show

too much wear and tear, looks like you could still get up and down the court.”

“Doc, your eyes must not be too good,” I said as we both laughed.

Doc escorted me to a comfortable leather chair in the living room. “Doc, this isn’t your chair is it?” I asked.

“No, no, sit down. But over there,” said Doc, pointing across the room to a folding chair with OSU’s logo on the back, “that’s Eddie’s chair from the ’94 Final Four in San Antonio. He asked me if I wanted it. I told him, ‘Hell yes.’ ” “That was nice of him, but I understand he’s good at doing nice things,” I said.

“Yep,” Doc beamed, “he’s always been a prince to me.”

The large living room, informal and tastefully decorated, included mementos and photos collected over six decades of marriage.

Dona returned with hot cider and fresh baked molasses cookies, still warm, which she passed to us. She sat next to Doc and said, “Don and I still go to most of the home ball games, provided the weather’s not too bad.”

Catching up, we exchanged information about each other’s families.

I learned that Doc and Dona’s son, Chip, is a physician in Bristow and serves as team physician for the local high school sports teams. “Guess what’s on his license plate?” he challenged me. I shook my head, not having a clue. “JOCDOC2,” he said, answering his own question. “Mine’s JOCDOC, and has been for thirty years or more,” he beamed, “Chip’s a chip off the old block.” I grinned as Doc nodded his approval.

“We have three other children,” Dona said. “Cathy, an artist, lives in Perkins. Cherie, an LPN is in Memphis, while Tad works with car

dealerships. And we’re blessed with eight grandkids and 10 great-grand kids. What do you think about that?”

“Your family has gone forth and multiplied,” I answered. Dona smiled.

I explained to Doc that I was writing a book and would like to include a story about him, then asked his approval.

“Sure,” he answered, grinning and looking a little embarrassed. “I’d be pleased.”

OVER THE NEXT TWO HOURS, DOC AND DONA TOLD ME ONE DELIGHTFUL STORY AFTER ANOTHER, all related events in their lives woven together into an interesting biographical sketch.

“I was born in 1928 in Pittsburgh, Kansas. My Dad was the County Engineer which was a darn good job, so we lived good, had a comfortable home with a white picket fence. Dad always drove a fairly new four-door Chevrolet. When I was born, I had siblings ages 14, 12 and nine. When Mom got pregnant with me, she thought she was going through menopause, but I guess she was wrong.”

Doc laughed. Dona, sitting close to Doc, encouraged and occasionally corrected him as he talked.

As a high school freshman Doc stood 5’1” and, soaking wet, weighed a whopping 105 pounds. “I certainly wasn’t much of a threat as a football player and definitely didn’t have the attributes to play basketball, but I loved all sports,” Doc remembered.

“When the junior high football coach asked me if I wanted to be the water boy, I accepted and was in hog heaven.

During the games, with one ladle, I had a bucket half filled with water that I could barely carry out on the field for the players. But, I’ll tell you a fact, not a single player ever got sick drinking after each other. Drinking out of the same dipper never hurt anyone.”

Dona got us some more hot cider as I took my third cookie. They were addictive.

Shifting gears, Doc recalled that during his high school years, 1943-46, gas rationing, because of the war, was in effect. Each family received weekly a card allowing them to purchase 12 gallons of gas. The government made no allotment for how athletic teams would travel to out of town games. To solve this dilemma, local businessmen would buy unused gas stamps, then, for away basketball games, gas up two four-door sedans to transport 10 high school players, two coaches and Doc, who served as trainer and water boy, but also called game results into the local newspaper, carried the ball bags and kept the score book.

“Gene, you’ll like the rest of this story,” Doc promised, pointing his finger at me. “Each car held five players and a coach, who drove.

STORY CONTINUES

47

The players took off their warm-up were a pretty darn good firecracker,” tops which were heavy wool, and he added, “A sight I’ll never forget.” place them in the trunk After the miliof one of the cars. I’d Gospel truth, tary, Doc and Dona crawl in the trunk, on top spent several years the only thing I in Manhattan, Kan. of those uniforms, then a coach would close the where Doc was in worried about trunk and away we’d go!” private practice for was, if there’s a three years, then he Doc stopped, waiting for wreck, I hoped took a position as the my reaction.

In disbelief I said, someone would number two man at “Holy moly! Doc, did that the K-State Health know to open really happen?”

Center and was also “Gospel truth, the only the Athletic Team the trunk and thing I worried about was, Physician. K-State had get me out.” if there’s a wreck, I hoped recently built a statesomeone would know to of-the-art facility. Doc open the trunk and get me out.” was in line to be the head man within AT THE AGE OF FIVE, DOC WITNESSED two years. Oklahoma A&M’s athletic A PHYSICIAN SET A BROKEN LEG WITH director, Henry Iba, tried to hire Doc PLASTER OF PARIS. DOC IMMEDIATELY away, but he declined. OSU’s facility INFORMED HIS PARENTS HE WAS GOING was dated, almost archaic in some of TO BECOME A DOCTOR. the things they did, still handling their Graduating from Pittsburgh, Kansas cash out of a cigar box.

High School in 1946, Doc started college Having second thoughts about turnin his hometown at Pittsburgh State, ing down the job, Doc asked a close finishing his bachelor’s degree in three friend what he thought about Doc’s years, then entered the University of decision to turn down Mr. Iba’s offer.

Kansas Medical School. He and Dona, The friend challenged Doc, telling him, the love of his life, married in 1950. Doc “Sure, you can stay where you are and said, “Our first child was born just nine be comfortable, but your boss, who’s months and two days after our wedding. close to retirement, is responsible for I’m a pretty efficient guy, don’t you building this program at K-State. You think?” He winked. I grinned. can stay here, sit in your rocking chair The Korean Conflict was going and have an easy time of it. But, since full blast when Doc finished medical you asked my opinion, I encourage you school in 1953. Being eligible for the to accept this challenge, build your draft, Doc knew the Army would send own program and establish your own him to a MASH unit in Korea, so he legacy.” Doc thought it over. THE NEXT joined the Air Force, spending time DAY DOC CALLED MR. IBA AND ACCEPTED in Albuquerque, New Mexico. While THE POSITION. stationed at Yucca Flats, over a twoDoc went on, “I WOULDN’T TRADE MY LIFE WITH ANY year span and from seven miles away, MAN. I’VE HAD A BETTER LIFE Doc, peering through a black protecTHAN I DESERVE.” He looked at tive sheet of x-ray film, witnessed the Dona who squeezed his arm. explosion of four atom bombs. “They

48

APRIL 2012

“Mr. Iba was the finest man I ever met. Working for him was pure joy. He was a super human being, dynamic, yet down to earth. Treated everyone with respect,” Doc said, “I can still hear that deep gravelly voice of his at practice telling his players to ‘Cut that out!’ He showed his appreciation for what you did and had a wonderful sense of humor. He particularly liked fishing stories. He was a friend, a good friend.”

“What about some of the other coaches?” I asked.

Dona spoke up, “OH, DON, TELL HIM ABOUT THAT TIME WITH JIMMY JOHNSON.” “That Jimmy Johnson was a crackerjack,” Doc said.

For quite a few years Doc, much in demand a speaker as an authority on sports medicine, gave 35 to 40 speeches a year, both in the U.S. and overseas. Doc had served as a team physician during the ’68, ’72 & ’76 Olympic games.

Jimmy Johnson, the OSU football coach, saw Doc one afternoon in the hallway after football practice, and said, “Doc, where in the hell were you yesterday when practice was going on.”

“I told him I had a speaking engagement in Oklahoma City,” Doc said.

Then Jimmy asked Doc what in the dickens he thought the football program was paying him for. Doc shot back, “The athletic department doesn’t pay me a damn dime. I do it because I love it and know they don’t have any money.” Doc grinned as he proudly recalled the incident. “Jimmy shut up. Only time I ever saw him at a loss for words.

“IN MY CAREER, I’VE HAD MANY HIGHLIGHTS, BUT ONE RIGHT AT THE TOP WAS BEING A TEAM DOCTOR AT MY FIRST OLYMPICS, IN ’68 IN MEXICO CITY. There

huff. I was so mad at him I could have spit nails.” Doc shook his head.

“Doc thirty-nine years you were here,” I said.

“LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF IT,” DOC SAID, “WISH I COULD DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN, DON’T WE DONA? NOT SURE I’D DO ANYTHING DIFFERENT.” Dona

were only four doctors and we worked our tails off, but what an experience to be assisting those world class athletes and watch them compete.

Today’s U.S. Olympic team will have 40 or more physicians.” Doc sighed.

“Only one coach I didn’t get along with, and I won’t name him,” Doc began, “you might be able to guess.

He was a nice person socially, but on the practice field he was an absolute monster. He’d kick the kids in the butt, and I mean kick them hard. One ball game, we were playing one of the Texas schools. There was a head-on collision between two players on our

side of the field, right in front of where I’m standing. Both players were lying on the field, barely moving. I quickly got the helmet off our boy, checked his breathing canal and he was fine.

I hurried over to the other kid and began to carefully remove his helmet.

I lifted his head to make sure he could breathe. Our blasted coach came running down the sideline, lickitysplit, and told me not to help that boy, that he was the enemy! I stood, glared at the miserable coach and said, yes, and he’s somebody’s son and I’m going to help him! Our coach stared at me, then turned and walked away in a

smiled. Doc went on, “Athletes are a special bunch, at least most of them.

I got to sit in best seats in the house.

That four-overtime game when you, King, Hawk, Labrue and the rest of that bunch kicked Kansas’ butt was priceless.”

“Doc, we won the game, but I wouldn’t say we kicked them,” I said.

“Maybe, but it was sure sweet,” Doc said, smiling. Returning his smile, I shook my head in agreement.

Shifting gears, I said, “Doc, a lot of us former players saw you as a role model with your positive attitude, ceaseless energy and dedication to your profession. You influenced us in a meaningful way.”

“Shucks. It was a real pleasure.” Doc said. Dona offered me another cookie.

Shortly after, we said our goodbyes and I drove off. A squirrel crossed my path. I took that as a good sign. The sun was shining. I felt good.

An old friendship had been revisited.

Doc, God bless him, and I shared a part of an OSU journey together, memorable for me and, I think, for him. My four years in Stillwater was better because Doc was there.

49

APRIL 2013

Cowgirl Sen ior

Close s Sta ndo ut C are er

C I L R L C U L F

34

E

ST

OR Y BY

KAT ESPINOSA

CL

AY BI

LL

35

MA

N

PJ O TO GR A PH Y

BY

B R U C E WAT E R F I E L D

OKLAHOMA STATE PITCHER

KAT ESPINOSA

HAS HER NAME ETCHED THROUGHOUT THE COWGIRL SOFTBALL RECORD BOOK. A FOURYEAR FIXTURE IN THE CIRCLE FOR RICH WIELIGMAN’S SQUAD, THE SENIOR IS AMONG

THE SCHOOL’S ALL-TIME LEADERS IN VICTORIES, INNINGS PITCHED, STRIKEOUTS, SAVES AND A HOST OF OTHER PITCHING METRICS. ACCORDING TO ESPINOSA, HOWEVER, THE MOST IMPORTANT MEASURE OF SUCCESS IS NOT A QUANTIFIABLE STATISTIC.

IT’S “FUN.” “I’m trying to remind myself and my teammates that we’re all here to have fun,” she says. “I love this sport. This is the sport that we chose to play as little kids and wanted to grow up to play in college, maybe get a scholarship. Luckily, I was one of them.

“Despite the games that we’ve lost, I remind myself that I had fun playing. Even if we lost, I still had fun.”

Midway through her final season in an OSU uniform, Espinosa isn’t taking anything for granted.

“This is my last year of playing softball.

I’m going all out, and my teammates know that. We’re all striving for the same thing.

We want to go far this year.”

36

APRIL 2013

The 2013 season has had its ups and downs, but Espinosa remains confident in herself and teammates.

“I know that we’re all going to come together at the right moment, the right time,” she says. “I think

we’re really going to be good this year.

I have this weird feeling in my stomach every time I think about May, and it’s going to happen this year. We’re going to go far. We just have to believe in ourselves.”

“This team can play with anybody,” her head coach says, “but the thing that we have to do that we haven’t been doing is getting base hits at clutch times and making the clutch play or clutch pitch at the right time. We’ve got to get a little tougher and understand that we’re going to play close games this year. That’s who we are.

We’ve got to make our opportunities

count. That’s what separates the good teams from the great.

“That’s why we got to the World Series in 2011—that run from Regionals through Super Regionals,” Wieligman adds. “We were making the pitches, we were making the plays.”

As a sophomore, Espinosa was a key element of the Cowgirls’ journey to the Women’s College World Series.

“We had lost seven games in a row before we made it to Regionals,” Espinosa recalls. “That was a big deal, because we all knew we were in a hole. We tried to do anything to stay positive no matter what happened. Somehow we punched through that wall and made it.”

“Kat carried us through that Tennessee regional,” Wieligman says. “She set the tone for that tournament, and brought it back to Stillwater for the Super Regional.”

Espinosa pitched a shutout in the first game against Houston,

but lost game two of the best-of-three series 1-0. In the deciding contest, she came on in relief, giving up just one hit before closing out the Cougars with a K. The strikeout punched the Cowgirls’ ticket to Oklahoma City for the first time in more than a decade, and players erupted in celebration on the infield.

“Honestly, I don’t remember it because I was in such shock,” she says.

“I was in game mode the whole time. If anything exciting happened, I had to cut it off and focus on the next pitch, the next inning. I have to always hold my emotions in, because when I do show it, it affects me when I pitch. And at the end, when I finally struck that last batter out, I guess I was finally able to express how I felt at the end of the game. We were going to

the World Series. It was a dream come true.

I don’t remember it, but I have so many pictures from that moment. Every time I look at it, it just makes me smile.”

After experiencing the high of a World Series appearance, last season’s 25-26 record was a disappointing setback for the squad, particularly Espinosa.

“Last year we didn’t have the year we wanted, and I think she took a lot of it on her shoulders,” Wieligman says. “It really wasn’t her fault. It’s not a black and white game. You can go 4-for-4 and not hit a ball well, and you can go 0-for-4 and scorch a ball. The same with pitching. You can win a lot of games and not pitch very well, or you could be pitching lights out and not win a game. So, from that perspective, it was a tough year last year. I thought Kat pitched really well for us, and we couldn’t ever get runs for her.”

“Last year I had a lot of confidence issues,” Espinosa admits. “I was struggling. Our whole team was struggling.

It was like a tease not even making it to regionals after going to the World Series … I don’t want to talk about last year.”

This year is different, she says, turning the conversation to the present.

“Our team is strong. Our coaches and players are on the same page. We’re all working together as one. For those who are struggling, we try to lift each other up.”

Wieligman agrees.

“This year it started out the same way, but I feel like this year she’s handling it so much better. She understands what her role is for the wins, and that’s all she can control. She’s putting up the numbers she needs to put up. I think last year she tried to control too much.”

“Our team is strong. Our coaches and players are on the same page. We’re all working together as one.”

— Kat Espinosa

Espinosa credits a renewed faith with helping her confidence in the circle.

“I built a better relationship with God,” she says. “Because I trust in Him so much more, it’s helped me keep my anxiety down.

One of my teammates, Shianne Hughes, has really helped me trust in God’s plan for me and realize that I can’t always do all the work. I can’t take all the weight all the time. It’s helped me to just have fun in my last season of softball.”

“I can’t believe it’s been four years. It’s gone fast, that’s for sure,” Wieligman says. “It’s been fun watching her grow and learn different experiences throughout her career.”

“Yesterday I was a freshman, and now I’m a senior,” she says. “I’m almost done with my softball career. I’m going to be a coach when I’m done, but it’ll be a different perspective in life. This is the sport that I love. I started playing when I was like 4 or 5, in tee-ball. It’s all coming to an end.”

As a freshman, Espinosa experienced immediate success. Splitting time with veteran Anna Whiddon, the Houston native

won 19 games, including a no-hitter against the Texas Longhorns in Austin.

“I had no idea I was throwing a no-hitter until that last at-bat in the 7th inning, that last pitch,” she recalls. “I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m throwing a no-hitter!’

I pitched the ball, and the girl popped up to left field. That was a really big experience for me because my entire family was there and happened to watch it all. I’m a very family-oriented person, and I don’t get to see them that often, so it was a big deal because they actually got to see me throw a no-hitter.”

Espinosa’s pitching coach her first three years at OSU was Clarisa Crowell, now the head coach at Miami University (Ohio). This season, first-year assistant coach Kelsi Dunne (an All-American hurler for Alabama from 2008-11) has taken on that role since joining the staff last summer.

“I am very grateful that I had the chance to work with Coach ‘C’ for three years.

37

S T O RY

CONTINUES

She was always there for me and helped me become stronger every year to this point. For me, mentally, she left at the right time, because of what she instilled in me.

“Kelsi has taken care of me ever since, and she’s helped me in so many ways,” she adds. “Coach ‘C’ was more of my mental coach, and Kelsi is more of my physical coach to go along with the mental aspect.”

“As a new coach, you get to know your players and you see what their strengths and weaknesses are,” Dunne says. “Coming in to this job I knew Kat had pitched in the World Series when I was there my senior year at Alabama, so I already knew that she was a tremendous pitcher, and I was really excited to get to work with her. In the short time I’ve been here, I feel like I’ve been working with her for years.

She’s not just a great pitcher, she’s also a great person.”

Dunne says opposing coaches have noticed, as well.

“Earlier this season when we played in a tournament in California, I had pitching

38 APRIL 2013

coaches from two different schools come up to me and tell me that they watched her throw and that she looks world class.

She has great movement. So she’s got it, she just has to get out there and do it.”

In the offseason, Coach Dunne worked with Espinosa to develop a changeup and drop ball.

“Right from the beginning, we talked about her goals for this year and what she wanted to achieve,” Dunne says. “Knowing that she had strengths in other pitches, we really wanted to work on making her changeup a lot more reliable. In the fall we definitely worked on it a lot, and she now believes in it a whole lot more than she did in the past. She also worked on her drop ball quite a bit, so Kat’s definitely added to her arsenal of pitches this year.”

“Kelsi has helped me to have confidence in every one of my pitches,” Espinosa says. “I don’t know what it was, but I had a mental block whenever I’d throw that changeup. This year I just believe in every pitch. My freshman year I only had two

pitches, my curveball and screwball. Now I have a curveball, screwball, a changeup, a rise and sometimes a drop ball.”

“Calling pitches for Kat is so much fun,” Dunne says, “sitting in the dugout, just knowing that you’re setting up a hitter for a certain pitch that they’re not expecting.

She’s got movement on every side of the plate and different speeds, so it’s really fun to set up hitters and make them look silly. That’s what she’s been doing all year.

I don’t think her record shows that, but her statistics definitely do.”

Boasting an earned run average

around 1.50, a 4-1 strikeout to walk ratio and holding opposing hitters to below a .200 average, Espinosa has been

a model of consistency during her career.

“Kat has done such a good job of learning how to prepare to play every game she pitches,” Wieligman says. “She competes.

She’s been consistent all four years. That’s the biggest thing you’ve got to have in the circle—consistency—and that’s what you’re going to get.”

Along with junior Simone Freeman, Espinosa provides OSU with a formidable pitching rotation.

“Kat and Sim alternate starts, and we’ll use them both out of the bullpen,” Wieligman says. “We try to keep it as even as we can, just because we know it’s a long season.”

By season’s end, Espinosa’s name will be near the top of the OSU record book for appearances and innings pitched. But despite the heavy workload, she has managed to remain relatively injury-free.

“Under my shoulder blade, there’s a giant knot that will never go away,” Espinosa says, “probably even after I’m done pitching.”

There’s also a faint scar on her forehead, barely visible now, but it comes with an embarrassing backstory that the coach will never let her forget.

“In January before my junior year, I was visiting a former teammate and her dad offered to teach me how to shoot a gun.

That’s the first time I’d ever held a gun. I put my eye up to the scope, but I didn’t know you were supposed to rest the gun against your shoulder. I put it under my arm instead.”

Espinosa squeezed the trigger. The rifle’s recoil sent the scope backward in an instant, landing a serious blow just above her right eye socket. OSU’s star pitcher was headed to the hospital for seven stitches.

“I had to tell Coach when we got back to Stillwater. I don’t know how I worded it, but he wasn’t very happy.

“At the time, I didn’t realize it was that big of a deal,” she adds. “I had a headache, but I didn’t know it was a concussion. It was the week before the season started, and I had to lie in bed in a dark room. Couldn’t watch TV, couldn’t look at my phone, couldn’t look at anything bright. It was horrible. It lasted several days. It was not fun.”

Although Wieligman’s political leanings aren’t publicly known, it’s fair to say

he’s in favor of gun control … at least for his players.

“When I got back to campus, he actually made me sign a contract that said I can’t shoot any guns until after I graduate,” she says.

Both Espinosa and “Coach Wigs” can laugh about it now. That’s indicative of the tone in the clubhouse.

“When it comes to playing the game, let’s just play every pitch as hard as we can and make sure we stay in the moment of that pitch,” Wieligman says.

Work hard, but enjoy the moment.

Espinosa is a living testament to that philosophy.

“I appreciate everything my coaches and teammates have done for me and how they have helped me along in so many different ways,” she says. “They’ve been there for me the times I’ve needed them the most, and I’ve tried to do the same for them. I am very glad and grateful for the people that I’m around. I love our team and how our atmosphere is.

No pressure ...

“Fun and games.”

She’s not just a great pitcher, she’s also a 39 great person.”

— OSU pitching coach Kelsi Dunne

GALLAGHER-IBA ARENA:

2 AUGUST 2013

A RETROSPECTIVE

3

4 AUGUST 2013

Days and Nights in Gallagher Hall

BY GENE JOHNSON

The dorm room. Kind of makes you think back to your college days — like BENNETT HALL, STOUT HALL or KERR-DRUMMOND — doesn’t it? Well, a ‘Dorm Room’ located in Gallagher Hall was unique to a special group of people, me included. Beginning in the early 1940s, this room housed two varsity basketball players up until 1969.

Named for long-time and legendary wrestling coach Ed Gallagher, Gallagher Hall was built as a high school 4-H building with funds ($1.5 million) approved by the state legislature. It just so happened, thanks to the foresight of Oklahoma A&M

No central air and only steam heat was provided — all the comforts of home. The entry door opened to the east into a long hallway that wound around the basketball arena.

Next door was the training room, a hub of activity that smelled of rubbing ointment, Epsom Salt and sweaty athletes. That’s where players from all sports received treatment for minor ailments, took steamy whirlpool baths and got their ankles wrapped.

President Dr. Henry Bennett and basketball coach Henry Iba,

In the mid ’40s, Bob ‘Pee Wee’ Williams, who stood all of five-

the structure also provided an excellent venue for basketball games and wrestling matches.

foot-two, and two-time All-American Bob Kurland, who measured 7-feet, stayed in the dorm room.

After graduating from Lawton High School, Williams hitched a ride to Stillwater seeking a trainer’s job.

GALLAGHER HALL’S DOORS OPENED IN 1938. That same year, actor SPENCER TRACY won an Oscar

for his role in Boys Town, Saudi Arabia discovered oil, PRESIDENT FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT started the March of Dimes in an effort to combat polio and the ball point pen was introduced.

After watching several basketball games in Gallagher Hall, the media dubbed it the ‘Madison Square

Garden of the Plains.’

Located on the west side of Gallagher Hall and just north of the metal center doors was a spacious 14’ x 20’ ground floor dorm room. It was tiled and had one large window which opened to the west, providing a panoramic view of LEWIS FIELD. Venetian blinds provided privacy. A private bath and shower were just off the bedroom. Inside the main room were two single extra-long beds, two somewhat gently battered wooden armoires and a plain dark brown oak desk with access from two sides, allowing two students to study at the same time.

“MR. IBA MUST HAVE LIKED ME BECAUSE HE OFFERED ME A JOB,” Williams said. “Best thing

that ever happened to me, besides my wife and kids. I did whatever they asked me to do — taped ankles, swept the floor, washed practice gear, refereed scrimmages. For football practices, I had to have a bunch of quart jars full of water at all times. I loved every minute of it!

“Living there was great. I did most of my work next door in the training room. At night the room was quiet. Kurland and I got along well and respected one another.”

Williams had the utmost respect for his famous roommate, which was based on a lot more than just Kurland’s basketball ability.

5

“Kurland absolutely was the hardest worker on the team,” he

said. “Also, he was brilliant, always the smartest guy in class, plus he didn’t think too highly of himself

and was well-liked by his teammates. Super individual!

“At times Mr. Iba got on Kurland hard, but he knew Bob could take it. He’d tell him, ‘All-Americans don’t loaf.’ Bob always hustled. I believe Mr. Iba was making an example to the rest of the team. If he’d get on Kurland, the rest of the players knew they’d better go all out.

“IN

TOUGH

GAMES,

sophomore year. We were playing Kansas University and every time I ran by our bench, Mr. Iba stood up and hollered at me, telling me what I was doing wrong. It started to bother me. Finally, the next time down the court, as I passed him, I said, ‘Mr. Iba, would you please sit down and be quiet, I’m doing the best I can!’ To my surprise, he sat down.” Bob laughed.

KURLAND WOULD HOLLER TO HIS TEAMMATES TO THROW HIM THE BALL, EVEN WITH TWO OR THREE OPPONENTS HANGING ON HIM. MORE

In the 1950s, Kansas City native

OFTEN THAN NOT, HE’D MAKE

Dale Roark lived in the dorm

SOMETHING GOOD HAPPEN!”

room.

“After I graduated from high school, me and a classmate each bought ourselves a bus ticket to Stillwater and tried out for the baseball team. After a rigorous day in 100-degree heat, both of us were selected,” Roark said. “When school started, Mr. Iba put me in that room in Gallagher Hall along with a basketball player, which was fine with me. It was quieter than the regular dorms, plus it was next door to the training room and closer to my classes — there was nothing not to like about it.”

When school started, Roark tried out for the basketball team.

“We had 125 guys that first day, Roark said. “Every kid in Oklahoma

Last year I had the chance to interview the late Kurland by phone.

Bob led the Aggies to back-toback NCAA basketball titles (’45 and ’46) and starred on two U.S. Olympic gold medal teams. He is an iconic figure in the history of college basketball.

“At t h e ’5 2 g a m e s i n Helsinki, I carried our flag during the ceremonies,” recalled Kurland. “(That was) Quite a moment for me — 60,000 fans stood and cheered. By far the biggest thrill I ever had.”

On living in the Dorm Room, Kurland said, “I loved living in Gallagher Hall. Pee Wee was a crackerjack, a lot of fun and we were compatible.”

Scholarship athletes, in those days, had to work an hour a day, five days a week.

“My job was sweeping the gym floor,” Kurland said. “I especially enjoyed it on game day. As I swept the floor, students began to arrive an hour or more before game time, whenever the doors opened, to save the best seats. I used a large oiled dust mop, about four feet long and 10 inches wide.

The students liked to talk to me.

They kidded and encouraged me.

I enjoyed their banter.”

Shifting gears, Kurland added, “One thing that did happen during a game in Gallagher Hall was out of character for me. At that time I was still clumsy, probably my

6

AUGUST 2013

who had been a star on their local high school team wanted to play for Mr. Iba. The coaches picked

10 of us to scrimmage while the rest ran up and down the stairs in the fieldhouse. After about 15-20 minutes, they’d pick another 10 to scrimmage while everyone else kept pounding the stairs. We’d do that for about two hours and then run wind sprints. Guys were puking and dropping out like flies.

After a week or so, we were down to about a dozen players, just the right amount for a team.”

Roark doesn’t have a special memory of a particular game in Gallagher Hall except to say, “I liked them all because no way were they going to be in a game as tough as

one of Mr. Iba’s practices! A game was almost like a day off!”

Kendall Sheets, Roark’s roommate, remembered that the dorm room windows had bars on them to the outside. “I thought that was odd, didn’t know if they were to keep us in or others out,” he laughed.

“My favorite game in Gallagher was against Kansas,” recalled Sheets. “CLYDE LOVELLETTE was their big 6-9 All-American and supposedly the best player in the country. Mr. Iba’s strategy was for everyone to sink down on Lovellette, try to shut him down — didn’t work too well. After about eight minutes, Mr. Iba called time out. KU led 10-0. Big Clyde had scored all 10 points. “‘Boys we’re changing it up. I don’t give a damn if Lovellette gets 40 points, we’re going to press the point, push them hard outside, and clog their passing lanes!’

“It worked. We beat them. Mr. Iba was a genius!”

I lived in the dorm room in the early 1960s. My roommate was 6-foot-4, 220-pound Pitt McGehee, from Ft. Smith, Arkansas. With sky blue eyes, short auburn hair and a perpetual broad grin, Pitt was an upbeat guy and a good roommate.

On our third night in the fieldhouse, we decided to play some one-on-one — in other words, check out each other’s game. One problem — the light box was locked.

No problem. We played by the light of the Longines clock located just above fan seating on the south end.

For some reason we played in our stocking feet. Each of us ruined a good pair of socks. Who won? I’d like to say I did, but I’m not sure I remember that far back.

About six weeks later, on our first cold night in the room just as Pitt and I got to sleep, we heard some loud clanging. It sounded as though someone was trying to

7

8 AUGUST 2013

break into the building. Pitt jumped out of bed, “Get up Big Daddy,”

he said, using the nickname he’d given me. “Somebody’s trying to break in. Let’s get ‘em!”

Sleepily and somewhat reluctantly, I climbed out of bed.

Barefoot and clad only in our skivvies, we peered out our door. We didn’t see anything. Pitt grabbed a baseball bat that was in our room. We crept slowly down the hallway that surrounded the basketball court. The intermittent clanging continued. At one point I caught a glimpse of the Longines clock: 11:30 p.m. It crossed my mind that I hoped these burglars didn’t have guns.

Now we were on the other side of the fieldhouse, opposite our room, more than halfway around.

There was still occasional clanging, but not as often. Then, without warning, “WHAMMM!” “What was that?” I asked.

“Our room!” Pitt answered as he took off running toward our room.

I followed after him.

Arriving at our room the door was closed. Pitt turned the door handle, “Damn,” he said, “it’s locked!”

I sighed. “Holy moly!”

After evaluating our options, we decided to spend the night with the stadium rats, the nickname given to six basketball players who resided underneath the north football stadium. There, teammate Paul Labrue located two old mattresses and furnished Pitt and I each a clean Army blanket. The scratchy blanket was a bit short.

When it covered my size 14 feet, my bare chest got cold, and if my chest was protected, my feet froze.

The mysterious rattling noise?

Early that evening the custodian had turned on the steam heat to warm the fieldhouse. The warming pipes caused expansion, resulting in their bumping each other.

On a sunny chilly November day in 1963, I was resting on my bed after returning to the dorm room from lunch. I turned on my white clock radio to my favorite rock n’

roll station as Roy Orbison belted out ‘Pretty Woman.’ Suddenly the music stopped.

“We break into our regular program to bring you this news bulletin… Shortly after 12 p.m. today President Kennedy, while riding in a Dallas motorcade, was shot. At this time we don’t know the condition of the President. I repeat, the President has been shot. We will bring you more news as we receive it.”

I was devastated.

My favorite game in Gallagher was my senior year before a packed house. WE WHIPPED KANSAS IN FOUR OVERTIMES, a real nail-biter! Several of us played the full 60 minutes, and we all slept well that night.

Cowboy basketball players

Skip Iba and Jack Heron lived in Gallagher Hall for a year in the mid 1960’s.

“Great place,” recalled Iba. “No noise and close to everything. Plus you didn’t have to pay $5 to get into an Allied Arts performance.

You were already there, always got the best seats since there was no reserve seating. I remember seeing Bob Hope and the Smothers Brothers. Great shows.”

Heron echoed Skip’s sentiments. “Also,” he remembered, “if I couldn’t sleep, I’d go into the gym, turn on the lights and shoot a few baskets. One night I’m shooting free throws, about two in the morning. I hear someone walk in.

Darn if it’s not track coach Ralph Higgins, who had been upstairs in his office. He wants to shoot me a game of H-O-R-S-E! I won, but barely. For an older guy he could shoot the ball!”

In 1968, Rick Cooper and Joe Smith were the last roundballers to occupy the dorm room.

The next year, Rick and Joe moved to Iba Hall, a new athletic dorm that housed scholarship athletes and is still located across the street from Kerr Residential Hall.

“ S H O OTIN G BAS KE T S WHENEVER I WANTED WAS A TREAT,” SMITH SAID.

One afternoon Cooper and Smith were shooting hoops when two members of the recently formed OSU women’s basketball team showed up to shoot baskets.

“I’d never seen girls play,” recalled Smith.

“My favorite game was against Colorado,” he said. “The guy guarding me couldn’t cover a slow turtle.

Somehow I got 29 points, mostly backdoor cuts. Normally it took me three games to score that much.”

“In 1969, when the athletes moved into Iba Hall, the trainer’s room was expanded and encompassed the former dorm room,” said Dick Soergel, Athletic Business Manager during the late 1960s.

Today the space which made up the old Dorm Room has been absorbed by the current Cowboy basketball dressing room.

Convenience, quiet, sound sleep, laughter, camaraderie with teammates, opportunity for mischief, smells from the training room, Mr. Iba’s booming baritone voice shouting instructions, shooting the ball in the wee hours of the morning, getting locked out, free allied arts performances, spectacular ball games — blood, sweat and tears left on the court, the thrill of victory and agony of defeat, making lifelong friends — all describe experiences of those who once inhabited the dorm room. Now those so

9

long ago cherished events are but fading memories.

Undoubtedly, there will never be another dorm room, where 50 years hence, a story could be written, reliving fond memories from its past occupants.

I think I speak for all past dorm room residents when I say there is no other place we would have chosen to live!

STORY BY BLAKE ZIMMERMAN PHOTOGRAPHY BY BRUCE WATERFIELD

GOING THE DISTANCE During her time as a Cowgirl,

NATALJA PILIUSINA

has collected an NCAA title, seven All-America honors, six combined indoor and outdoor Big 12 championships in the 800 meters, multiple school records and has been named 2013 Oklahoma State female student-athlete of the Year.

AND TO THINK SHE ALMOST DECIDED NOT TO COME TO OSU. Stillwater, Okla., is 5,132 miles from

KLAIPEDA, LITHUANIA, and that’s if you

fly in a straight line. That distance was almost too far for Piliusina as she was deciding whether to attend college in the United States.

2

“I GOT COLD FEET,” PILIUSINA

SAID. “I REALIZED THE DISTANCE INVOLVED, AND I WASN’T SURE ABOUT BEING SO FAR AWAY. I DIDN’T REALLY KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT IT. SO, WHEN I GRADUATED, I TOLD EVERYONE I WASN’T COMING.”

AUGUST 2013

Piliusina, a highly-recruited distance runner since she was in the tenth grade, always knew she wanted to come to Oklahoma State ­— she just needed some extra convincing.

“Zivile Pukstiene, our jumps coach, emailed me and said I should just come for a visit and see if I liked it,” Piliusina said.

“I visited for two days and fell in love with everything about the team and the school.

I canceled all my other visits. I knew OSU was where I wanted to be.”

The Cowgirl track and field record books haven’t been the same since.

STILLWATER

All of the success has come from long hours of preparation, and that’s how Piliusina wants to be remembered at OSU. “I just want people to see how hard you have to work to be one of the best runners in the NCAAs,” Piliusina said. “I not only want to rewrite the record books here at OSU, but also make sure they don’t get rewritten for a while after I’m gone. Of course I want the program to grow and get better, but I want getting a school record to be a huge deal as well. I WANT TO CHANGE THE PROGRAM.”

Piliusina has spent her entire college career changing the OSU women’s program, and on June 8, it culminated with a dramatic victory in the 1,500 meter final at the 2013 NCAA Outdoor Championships, in Eugene, Ore. The 12 runners stayed in a jumbled pack for most of the 1,500 meters. Piliusina was boxed in on the inside part of the track with 300 meters to go, in sixth place.

“With 300 meters to go, I was having flashbacks to last year,” OSU Coach Dave Smith said. “It looked exactly the same to me. I thought ‘Oh my gosh. It’s happening again.’”

The race he’s referring to was the 2012 NCAA Outdoor women’s 1,500 meter final.

Piliusina entered the race with the top time in the country. She started the race strong, and led for most of the way. With a lap to go, she thought she was going to win.

She finished tenth.

“Last year, all the pressure of entering as the favorite got to me,” Piliusina said. “I put pressure on myself. I kept telling myself ‘I have to win. I have the fastest time.’ Things just didn’t go right

LITHUANIA

for me. Even the weeks leading up to the race were a disaster. My workouts weren’t good. I was getting way too nervous, and that did me in.”

Cut to 2013. Entering the final turn, Piliusina made her move. She moved into fourth place on the inside of the track, and things were looking better, but she was cut off With less than 200 meters to go, she had to back off and let people pass her, so she wouldn’t be boxed in.

With 100 meters to go, she was in seventh.

“At that point, I wouldn’t say I gave up, but I knew I wasn’t going to win,” Piliusina said. “I felt fine, but there was no way out. Something changed. I just wanted it so bad. Coming close so many times, and all the work I had put in entered my m i nd . I wanted it so bad.”

3

The 10th-place finish the year before, the runner-up finishes in the 2011 NCAA Outdoor 800 meters and the 2012 NCAA Indoor 800 meters and the workouts like the ones OSU Assistant Coach Bobby Lockhart witnessed became fuel.

ON THE HOME STRETCH, WITH LESS THAN 100 METERS TO GO, PILIUSINA SAW A WINDOW, AND WENT FOR IT. “I kept f lashing back to last year,” Piliusina said. “There wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t think about that race.

I don’t remember all that happened, but I found a way.”

Piliusina split six opponents and f lew down the inside lane into second place. Then, she jumped back outside with about 50 meters to go. She only had one runner left to pass, and she wasn’t going to finish in second again.

By the time Piliusina crossed the finish line, she had a cushion of more than 10 meters. She was finally No. 1.

“With 20 meters to go, I knew I had it, but I didn’t want to celebrate,” Piliusina said. “I wanted to make sure. But when I did cross, it was excitement. It was relief.

It was everything. When I watched the races before mine, and saw other people crossing the finish line and celebrating, I wanted that. I wanted that happiness that you get when you accomplish something you dream about.”

After Piliusina finished her post-race interview, she saw Smith outside the fence bordering the track. She ran over to give him a hug.

“Honestly, I was relieved,” Smith said.

“I KNEW HOW HARD SHE HAD WORKED. I KNEW HOW BADLY SHE

She had done everything we could think of to keep her healthy and ready to go. She sacrificed a lot. If she didn’t win, it was going to be so hard on her. It was tough on her last year, but she doubled down this year. She was more ready for it, and understood the pressure.”

WANTED IT.

4 AUGUST 2013

Later that day, Piliusina found a link to her race online and watched it. Even she couldn’t believe what she saw.

“If I had been a spectator watching that race, there’s no way I would have guessed I would end up winning,” Piliusina said. “ I STILL CAN’T BELIE VE IT HAPPENED.”

She believes it now. The minute she got back from Oregon, she was out there again, trying to get better.

When coach Lockhart arrived in Stillwater, his bags still packed from the trip to Eugene, he saw Piliusina jogging through the north parking lot of GallagherIba Arena.

She was on a run. He couldn’t help but chuckle.

“I wish I could tell you I was surprised,” Lockhart said. “I know it’s not the best answer, but I wasn’t surprised. I just knew she was on a run.”

That’s because it’s no secret—Piliusina is as competitive as they come.

“She’s already preparing for the next race,” OSU Coach Dave Smith said. “When we got back, she told me she needed to go on a run. I ASKED HER ‘YOU AREN’T GOING TO TAKE A DAY OFF?’ SHE

She went home, parked her car, changed and went running. I sat on the couch for an hour, and she went on a run. That’s who she is. She did tell me her first run as a national champion felt great.”

Piliusina’s success hasn’t been limited to the track. She has been great in the classroom as well, pursuing her bachelor’s degree in economics. In order to be considered for OSU student-athlete of the year, a student-athlete must have maintained a 3.0 GPA or better, while having completed 100 credit hours.

Although she will go down as one of the greatest female athletes in OSU history, Piliusina takes the “student” part of “student-athlete” seriously, and she may not be done with school yet.

“I want to get a degree,” Piliusina said.

“That’s why I came here. I didn’t choose to become a pro runner right away, because I want a degree. School is so important.

SAID ‘NO.’

I’m actually thinking about going after my masters degree, too. School and running come together in a nice way for me.

Both are a huge part of my life and they balance out well.”

Even when it comes to class, Piliusina treats what she does as a training session— a chance to get better.

“I think being a student isn’t as much about the actual knowledge you gain, but training yourself to learn,” Piliusina said.

“Learning to learn, I guess. It’s preparation for the real world. It’s about keeping yourself on schedule and getting work done on time. It’s more than just class.”

Smith said that mindset has carried over to the track, and not only made Piliusina better, but also made her an example for others in the program to follow.

“Obviously, she is very gifted athletically,” Smith said. “She is really competitive and has a great work ethic. When you put those three things together, you get great results. She has put our program on the map, helped us elevate our visibility, and she has brought some of the other girls along with her. They have had the opportunity to train with her and it’s made everyone better.”

Piliusina has one year to go to get her degree, meaning she still has one more year to continue rewriting the OSU women’s track and field and cross country record books. She already holds more individual OSU track and field/cross country records than anyone else in school history, and is more than willing to try to add to her totals.

“I want to go for doubles in everything,” Piliusina said. I want to be female student athlete of the year again next year — go back-to-back. It’s awesome to see my picture there with all the great athletes at OSU. I also want to win another national title, because I would be the first woman with two outdoor titles at OSU. I also want to try new events. I WANT TO HOLD EVERY RECORD BETWEEN

5

THE 800 METERS AND THE 3,000

METERS. IT WOULD BE COOL TO SEE MY NAME EVERYWHERE.”

If Piliusina continues at current pace, her goals for next year don’t seem too far out of reach, especially considering she came more than 5,000 miles to accomplish them.

It Takes a ATHLETIC VILLAGE 2006

VI

THE NAME IS CATCHY:

The Athletic Village. THE CONCEPT IS EXCITING:

2

A vast expanse of sparkling new athletic facilities for OSU student-athletes and fans, all located just north of Boone Pickens Stadium in a slick addition to the Oklahoma State campus.

THE PROCESS:

Well let’s just say patience has been a virtue.

MARCH 2014

LLAGE STORY BY KEVIN KLINTWORTH

3

CONSTRUCTION WITHIN THE ATHLETIC VILLAGE, AND ON SEVERAL OTHER OSU PROJECTS, REACHES AN INTERESTING AND SIGNIFICANT CROSSROADS DURING THE SPRING OF 2014.

In some areas, work is coming to a celebrated and long-awaited conclusion. In others, the tasks are just beginning. But there is no denying gigantic steps have been taken toward an athletic complex that Oklahoma State coaches, athletes and fans have been dreaming about for years, and eagerly anticipating since the term “Athletic Village” first echoed across the OSU campus in 2006.

THE INTERSECTION OF “JUST-GETTING-STARTED-AND-WELCOME-TOYOUR-NEW-HOME” IS A CROWDED PLACE. This spring, OSU expects to officially dedicate the GREENWOOD TENNIS CENTER, which has drawn rave reviews in tennis circles throughout the country. Plans are being finalized to start massive construction upgrades at the Cowgirl soccer complex, which will change everything but the playing surface. By the end of spring, work could be complete on OSU’s newest venture, ORANGE POWER STUDIOS. Also ongoing is design development on a new baseball stadium. Still to come is a new equestrian center and continued upgrades to the new track and field facility, which is now located north of McElroy Street at the top of the village.

Meanwhile, across the street, OSU had been busy spending approximately $50 million obtaining properties spread over roughly 90 acres. That land was designated as the eventual site of The Athletic Village and the future homes for OSU track, baseball, tennis and possibly soccer and equestrian. One of the centerpieces of the village was to be an OSU first — an

indoor training center that would be available to any OSU athletic team that needed it, and was considered by most to be the final piece of OSU’s football facility overhaul.

In January of 2007, the dream took another step toward reality when the Sherman Smith family made a $20 million gift for the indoor facility. But the momentum soon came to a halt.

“In 2008, the world changed,” said Director of Athletics

Mike Holder.

In the middle of one of the biggest building projects college athletics has ever known came one of the biggest economic downturns in U.S. history. And things went silent north of Hall Of Fame Avenue. The Boone Pickens Stadium project was completed, thanks in part to even more help from Boone Pickens himself, and a stadium rededication was held in September of 2009, culminating with a Cowboy win over No. 13 Georgia. But The Athletic Village was in a holding pattern and looked lonely and forlorn adjacent to the new-look football facilities.

Holder, away from the spotlight as is his modus operandi, quietly began to rebuild the dream of The Athletic Village. There was no grand announcement and really no defined road map or self-imposed deadline. It was simply a case

of putting one foot in front of another and quietly re-starting the process. That MO

In January of 2006, Boone Pickens announced his for construction on BOONE PICKENS STADIUM and The Athletic Village. It was not his first major donation and would not be his last. And just six months after that announcement grabbed national headlines, work began on the west end zone of the stadium with major construction having already been completed on the north and south sides of the facility in 2005 and 2006. The west end zone project added approximately 20,000 stadium seats and became the spitshined headquarters for OSU football as well as Cowboy Dining, Inc., which handles meals for OSU’s training table and caters the suite and club meals on football game days. The west end zone will also house Orange Power Studios.

$165 million gift

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MARCH 2014

had worked well for Holder in the past.

He conceived the idea of Karsten Creek Golf Course 19 years before it was completed. The Athletic Village challenge was unique in that he would have to put the pieces back together during one of the toughest economic stretches in the lifetime of most living Americans.

HOLDER’S MOTIVATION WAS SIMPLE. SEVERAL OF OKLAHOMA STATE’S SUCCESSFUL ATHLETIC TEAMS WERE NOT COMPETING OR TRAINING IN TYPICAL BIG 12 FACILITIES. IN FACT, SOME PROGRAMS ACTUALLY HAD NO FACILITY TO SPEAK OF.

The men’s and women’s tennis teams, which have won a combined 34 conference championships, shared their facilities with the OSU students and the general public. The DeBois Tennis Complex was constructed in the 1980s as much for the OSU student body as for the tennis programs. There were no locker rooms, court access was inconsistent and upkeep was a challenge. A passer-by during summer evenings on campus might see those courts being utilized by skateboarders, rollerblade enthusiasts or bicyclists — and sometimes even some recreational tennis players. Upkeep was a constant problem.

That facility challenge made the run of long-time head tennis coach James Wadley even more impressive. The former Cowboy boss oversaw the program for 40 years, the longest coaching tenure in the history of Oklahoma State University.

He WON 662 MATCHES, had a

WINNING PERCENTAGE OF .665, brought home 12 CONFERENCE TITLES and coached TWO NATIONAL PLAYERS OF THE YEAR.

“THIS PLACE IS AMAZING. EVEN THE NFL SCOUTS ARE SHAKING THEIR

The OSU track and field teams basically had no track and virtually no field. But Stillwater did provide some open space. Head coach Dave Smith promptly turned that resource into a neardynasty with THREE MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS (2009, 2010, 2012) and a couple of other near misses. But with a track facility that had deteriorated to the point of almost being unsafe for training, Smith and staff lacked the ability to build a true, balanced track squad. He concentrated on distance events, which allowed his stellar cross country athletes to score points in track meets.

Another success story was taking place just north of the Colvin Center. The OSU women’s soccer program, one of the newest additions to OSU Athletics, was blossoming into one of the best programs in the southwest. Oklahoma State picked up a BIG 12 REGULAR SEASON AND/OR TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONSHIP FOR FOUR STRAIGHT YEARS (2008 THROUGH 2011) and twice was a win away from THE WOMEN’S CUP, the sport’s version of the Final Four.

But again, there was a facility challenge. While the playing surface itself was/is among the best in the country, fan amenities, locker rooms and media facilities were virtually nonexistent and lagged far, far behind the other Big 12 programs.

“It wasn’t about who was successful and who wasn’t,” Holder said of the long-range projects. “We had far too many programs competing in third-world type facilities. To try to recruit to those facilities and develop student-athletes ­­— it just wasn’t fair. I’ve always felt if you were going to have a team you should try to compete at the highest level. That takes a commitment and not just on the part of the athlete. It also takes a commitment on the part of the athletic department to provide resources that allow you to be successful.”

The first sign of new life came when Holder was approached

by OSU graduate and donor Rick Cooper, whose family owns W&W Steel in Oklahoma City. W&W Steel has been involved in massive building projects across the globe, including Boone Pickens Stadium, AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, and in New York City at Madison Square Garden and at ground zero.

HEADS AND THEY HAVE BEEN EVERYWHERE.” — COACH MIKE GUNDY

Cooper’s company had recently helped with the construction of a new football indoor practice facility at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

“Rick is a huge, huge supporter of OSU Athletics and he knew that the original plans for the SHERMAN SMITH TRAINING CENTER were grandiose, probably in the $50 million range,” Holder said. “But his company had just helped construct an indoor facility at the academy for approximately $20 million, or roughly the same amount as the Smith family had donated to us for our indoor facility.”

Cooper, who serves as president and CEO of W&W Steel, put Holder in touch with OSU graduate and architect Jim Hasenbeck, who came up with a ground-breaking design, at least in regards to collegiate training facilities.

The unique approach featured six massive, fabric roll-up doors (three each on the east and west sides of the facility, which runs north-south). The convenience and

flexibility turned the now-officially-named Sherman E. Smith Training Center into a showplace with the indoor facility eventually flanked on the east by three practice fields, two natural grass fields and one artificial field.

“Jim had built some aircraft hangers and his idea of the hanger doors would allow us to not worry about heating or cooling,” Holder said. “When he told me about the doors I thought it was

either the best or worst idea I had ever heard.”

5

Construction began on the new practice fields in April of 2011, In June of 2013, the football Cowboys moved their summer workouts from the scorching turf of the stadium into the indoor center. On Aug. 8, as football’s fall camp entered its second week, the Cowboys held their first official team practice in the Smith Center when the threat of lightning forced them to vacate the traditional east fields on the Duck Street side of the Athletics Center. The Cowboys apparently liked the new digs because they never went back to the old ones.

“I’M NOT SURE FOLKS ON CAMPUS OR AROUND THE STATE CAN FULLY UNDERSTAND THE NATIONAL BUZZ SURROUNDING OUR NEW FACILITIES.” — COACH CHRIS YOUNG

“There might be a better practice facility somewhere,” head football coach Mike Gundy told the media last fall. “But I don’t know where. This place is amazing. Even the NFL scouts are shaking their heads and they have been everywhere.”

Gundy’s reference wasn’t just to the Smith Center, but also to the surrounding practice fields, fencing and landscaping.

“It’s turned out to be a huge plus for practice,” Holder said of the new indoor facility design. “You remove those walls and inside is just like outside. Our maintenance during the summer months is much lower and I think we ended up with a better structure than we would have with the $50 million project.”

The $20 million gift from the Smith was originally intended as an endowment for the indoor facility to ensure its continued modernization and upkeep. Instead, that gift went for the construction of the building itself. However, Boone Pickens answered the call yet again and put a testamentary $20 million gift in his will for the endowment of the Smith Center — associated with the Smith family.

6

MARCH 2014

“I think everyone worked together to make a bad situation as good as you could get it,” Holder said. “Kudos to everyone involved, Boone Pickens, Will Smith (son of Sherman Smith), Rick Cooper and Jim Hasenbeck.”

“What’s really gratifying to me are times like February when we had three teams using the Smith Center and none of them were football. It really is a facility for everyone.”

The completion of the football project was the first tangible check mark in the village process. The area just south of

the Smith Center has already become a popular spot for Cowboy football fans on game days and has been incorporated into the Hall Of Fame Block Party. In just one short

season it has provided “how did we ever do without this” satisfaction to football fans as well as the team.

The completion of the football facilities coincided with another long-term decision. The women’s soccer stadium project would not be incorporated into The Athletic Village. With one of the best playing surfaces around, and in a snug environment surrounded by student housing and the bustling Colvin Center, the decision was made to build new soccer facilities in the same location that the Cowgirls have called home since the program was launched.

“That was a real tug-of-war,” Holder said. “You would like to have soccer close to the rest of the facilities and in the village, but the current location is very compelling. They have a great playing surface and they are basically surrounded by the student body. After a lot of give and take we decided to leave it at the current location.”

Holder has often said that facilities are a piece of the puzzle for success but piling on brick and mortar alone is not the sole solution for championships and the Cowgirl soccer staff agrees.

Much like Holder’s days of winning golf championships long before Karsten Creek was constructed, the soccer program found success first, followed by facilities.

“What we’ve learned over the years is to sell what you have,” said OSU soccer coach Colin Carmichael, “our university, our people, our community and the success of our program.

But there is no doubt that if a kid comes to look at our facility and then visits some of the people we compete with, they can’t help but wonder why we don’t have nicer things. That’s just a kid being a kid.

“That’s the one thing we have been missing here,” he added. “AND ONCE THAT’S IN PLACE, I THINK IT WILL REMOVE ANY DOUBT ON HOW SERIOUS WE ARE ABOUT SOCCER.”

Plans for the new Cowgirl soccer stadium are nearly completed and it’s possible that OSU will play its fall slate of matches amid construction. And the soccer team will be happy to battle any dust and noise. THEY MIGHT EVEN DON HARD HATS

DURING MATCHES IF IT HELPS EXPEDITE THE PROCESS.

On a visit to Stillwater during construction on the Greenwood Center, the United States Tennis Association took to Twitter and proclaimed that in collegiate tennis, only Stanford had facilities comparable to the new digs at Oklahoma State. The USTA’s visit,

in essence, became an eight-hour Twitter deluge on the wonderful-ness of OSU’s facilities.

“That whole project is a credit to Chris Young,” Holder

said. “He had built courts at Wichita State (his previous coaching gig) and had been through the process before. He came in and hit the ground running and started trying to raise enough money to build six to 12 outdoor courts. That’s really as big as we were thinking at the time.”

For years, actually decades at this point, OSU’s varsity squads had been competing at those Colvin Center courts. The place was made more of a home court advantage by signs above the aluminum seating that said “OSU Tennis” and that was pretty much it for the amenities. The courts did serve the tennis programs well enough for both the men’s and women’s programs to build strong traditions. But the world moved on, the Big 12 was formed and the competition got tougher. But OSU’s tennis programs continued to play in the tiny little corner of campus they shared with the rest of Stillwater.

“The plans we have seen look phenomenal,” Carmichael said. “A soccer-only facility was important to us and we have that. Having a family-friendly atmosphere is very important to Coach Holder. When you look at our crowds, our fans are our students, youth players and families. We want them to have a great game-day experience.”

“WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO HOST NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS,” HOLDER ADDED. “THAT’S OUR MINDSET FOR EVERYTHING WE ARE BUILDING. WE WANT NATIONALCHAMPIONSHIP CALIBER FACILITIES.”

OSU has hosted national championship events in the past, most recently on the men’s golf front at Karsten Creek. The next championship-type facility to come online at OSU will house the tennis programs.

In October of 2012 construction began on the Michael and Anne Greenwood Tennis Center, located on the south-

east corner of the Washington and McElory. The new facility, expected to be completed this spring, features 12 OUTDOOR

COURTS, SIX INDOOR COURTS, LOCKER ROOMS, A SPORTS MEDICINE AREA, and ELEVATED SEATING GALLERIES. It is an absolute game

changer for the tennis programs. In one of the first events held inside the facility, the Cowboy men’s team shocked sixthranked Tennessee in front of a roaring and capacity crowd.

The women’s tennis program, thanks in part to the new facilities, has pulled in a recruiting class ranked among the top five in the country.

“I’m not sure folks on campus or around the state can fully understand the national buzz surrounding our new facilities,” said Chris Young, head women’s coach.

7

Of course one of the biggest obstacles for the programs was weather. Both teams spent numerous hours on the highways driving to indoor facilities around the state in an effort to overcome Oklahoma’s kooky spring climate.

“We played at Oak Tree my first year, then The Greens Country Club in Oklahoma City my second year and then the Ponca City Country Club last year,” Young said. “Most clubs had junior programs that started at 4 p.m. so we had a very small window in which to practice between class and court availability. Ponca City was more flexible but it just had two courts so we would take some of our girls with afternoon classes up in the morning and practice. We’d drive back to Stillwater, drop them off, pick up the girls that had morning classes and head back up to Ponca City for afternoon workouts with a stop at Subway somewhere in there.”

“Basically we were on the road from 8 to 5 and getting in about four practice hours on good days.”

Michael and Anne Greenwood, for whom the tennis center is named, originally got on board to name one of the outdoor courts for Anne’s father, Joe Morris, a Stillwater resident and long-time fan of both tennis programs.

“Originally we were just working on a plan for new outdoor courts,” Young said. “The Greenwoods became more intertwined with the program and started coming to more and more matches.

We were attaching naming rights to every outdoor court; when another court opened up for sponsorship they jumped on it.”

On one of those long days that featured two trips to Ponca City, Young got a call informing him that another donor had to bow out of the project. Again the Greenwoods stepped up.

“They told me they didn’t want anything to slow down the facility and to let them know what else they might need to do,” Young said.

The final step in the process was, of course, weather related.

“WE PLAYED A MATCH AGAINST BAYLOR THAT

“The Greenwoods provided OSU tennis with the largest gift in Payne County history (largest gift bestowed by a Payne County resident to the university),” Holder said. “Now we’ve gone from using Colvin Center courts to indoor courts, outdoor courts, locker rooms, sports medicine facilities and spectator seating.”

As challenging as the facility problem has been for the tennis and soccer programs, no one has had a bigger hill to climb than track and field. While the tennis and soccer teams at least played home matches, the idea of hosting an NCAA-level track meet on campus was completely out of the question.

“THE TRACK WE HAD WAS BEYOND REPAIR,” Holder said. “Shame on us for letting it decay to that point, but that’s where it was. We did a land swap with the university, which wanted the old track space for more student housing. That was about the only thing left of the old track — location.

“In return, the university provided us with the bare bones of a first-class track facility. There’s still a lot of work to be done over there, but we have a competitive track and a building that can house your athletes in locker rooms, training rooms and store equipment.”

“It’s a big, wide track with big, wide sweeping turns which makes it faster than most,” said Dave Smith, who

oversees track and field for both the OSU men’s and women’s teams, as well as the cross country programs. “It’s nine lanes and the lanes are as wide as they are allowed to be. The bigger and wider a track is the better it is…the faster it is.”

Smith has overseen the renaissance of OSU’s cross country programs. His teams’ THREE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS in men’s cross country are the first for OSU since the 1950s. But his past philosophies regarding the track programs are a microcosm of the facility challenges he faced.

“I WOULDN’T HAVE FELT RIGHT ABOUT RECRUITING SPRINTERS HERE,” HE SAID. “IF I HAD BEEN A HIGH SCHOOL COACH OR PARENT, I WOULDN’T LET MY KIDS

STARTED OUT IN 50-DEGREE WEATHER AND ENDED

GO SOMEPLACE THAT DIDN’T HAVE A TRACK.”

IN 30-DEGREE WEATHER,” YOUNG REMEMBERED. “AT

Smith backed up those words when a high school track star from an OSU family was interested in the Cowboy program.

Smith was honest about the status of the track in Stillwater and steered the family in another direction. At the time, OSU did not have a sprint coach or competitive sprint athletes, and worked out on a distressed track. That particular student-athlete went

THE END OF THE MATCH, IT WAS JUST MY FAMILY AND THE GREENWOODS. THAT DAY MIKE ASKED ME WHAT IT WOULD TAKE TO ADD AN INDOOR FACILITY. THAT REALLY STARTED THE PROCESS. UNTIL THEN, WE WERE STRICTLY THINKING OUTDOOR COURTS.”

8 MARCH 2014

on to win a national championship at another Big 12 school.

NEW OSU TRACK & FIELD FACILITY LOUNGE “If that guy was here today I would be all over him,” Smith said.

The OSU track program, in essence, changed overnight with the new facility.

“Once we knew the track project was going to get done I started thinking about hiring a sprint coach,” Smith said. “I went to the administration and said we need to rearrange our staff and hire a sprint coach and here’s why. They were on board with it.”

Smith then started the hiring process and says he was surprised at the national interest in OSU’s position.

“I think a lot of sprint coaches had their eye on Oklahoma State for a long time — thinking maybe this was a sleeping giant,” he said. “I got contacted by a lot of high-level people. I kind of went into it blind.”

Diego Flaguer, an assistant at Auburn, now tutors OSU’s growing contingent of sprinters.

“The kids like him, the other coaches like him. He’s already had a major impact on recruiting,” Smith said. “Somehow through luck or due diligence, I think we got the best possible guy.”

But it all started with the new facilities.

“It really starts with the track,” Smith concluded. “It has a great surface and a separate throwing facility outside of the oval, which I think is a huge benefit. But the team room, locker room and training room are all state of the art. I think when a track and field athlete sees a locker room like that, they know the school is serious about the sport.”

Another success story on the OSU campus is the equestrian program that has been built by head coach Larry Sanchez.

A unique sport that features one of the largest rosters in the athletic department, equestrian needs are unique and varied. Like soccer, equestrian will not be part of the Athletic Village but will be part of the facilities overhaul.

The new equestrian center will be located west of the Sixth Street (Highway 51) and Western Avenue intersection, on the south side of the highway.

“We have about 160 ACRES for the facilities and we have a $5 MILLION GIFT from Madeleine Pickens,” Holder said. “One of our biggest challenges right now is finding a way to utilize the land without spending most of our lead money on infrastructure.”

Like soccer, equestrian is a relative newcomer to OSU Athletics, but also like soccer it is a sport that found success quickly and is building a strong and consistent tradition while waiting on the facility pieces to fall into place.

And speaking of traditions, it’s hard to top OSU baseball.

The Cowboys have appeared in 39 NCAA TOURNAMENTS, won 30 CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS and rank SIXTH ALL-TIME with 19 TRIPS TO THE COLLEGE WORLD SERIES. Allie P. Reynolds Stadium has been a tremendous home field advantage for the Cowboys since 1981.

OSU entered the 2014 season with a record of 836-190 at the facility. But like tennis and track, the long-time home that has meant so much to the tradition of the program is showing its age.

9

“I’m just going to ballpark it at between $30 and $40 million,” Holder said of the new baseball facility that is still in the design development phase. “I think that’s what we need to spend if we want to have the premier college baseball program in America.

Why not?”

With that price tag, the new baseball facility, which will be located just across McElroy Street from the Greenwood Tennis Center, will be the most expensive component of the village.

“It’s time to put something out there that gives Josh Holliday (head baseball coach), Rob Walton and Marty Lees (assistant coaches) the same opportunity that we had in the 1980s when Allie P. Reynolds Stadium was a first-class facility.”

“When we get that lead gift of $15-$20 million, we’ll start building that stadium,” he said. “We just haven’t gotten anyone to pull the trigger yet.”

Away from the competition venues another construction project is quietly humming along in the background.

Work on Orange Power Studios, located in the west end zone of Boone Pickens Stadium, has begun. The project is scheduled for an early-summer completion date and is expected to be in full production mode when the fall semester gets underway.

Orange Power Studios will be the new home, and in many ways the first home, for OSU’s video board productions, coaches shows, on-line videos, and OSU’s new surge into third-tier television programming.

Third-tier programming in the Big 12 Conference refers to home events that have not been selected for telecast by the league’s national or regional TV partners.

It is another major investment being made by OSU Athletics.

OPS will be headed up by C.J. Lickert, who most recently served as video and technical director of the New Orleans Hornets (now Pelicans) of the NBA.

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MARCH 2014

“The construction process is well underway,” Lickert said.

“As soon as that work is complete we will begin the equipment installation and not long after that we should be in business.

It’s exciting to be a part of a new venture and we are looking

forward to having a big impact on OSU Athletics.”

The first phase of Orange Power Studios will include offices for OSU’s video production staff, internet services team and photographer, along with a control room and studio. Plans for the next phase will include a second control room, which will allow OSU to provide live television programming while producing the in-house show (scoreboard video) simultaneously. For the past several years OSU has partnered with Cox Communications for video production needs. Cox has also produced OSU’s limited third-tier programming and in conjunction with Learfield Communications, has produced OSU’s coaches’ shows.

At some point, hopefully sooner than later, someone will pull the trigger and work will begin on new baseball stadium — the final piece of The Athletic Village. And when that project comes on line, and when the new track and field facility has added the requisite number of bells and whistles, and eventually an indoor track center, which is in the long-range plans, the facilities overhaul by OSU Athletics will be complete.

The price tag, not counting any costs involving Boone Pickens Stadium or Gallagher-Iba Arena, will be in the $200 million range, including money used to purchase the site of the Athletic Village.

And it was an easy to decision, according to Holder.

“WHEN YOU ATTRACT GREATNESS, EXCELLENCE, OR RARE ABILITIES FROM AROUND THE WORLD TO YOUR CAMPUS, YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT WILL HAPPEN,” HE SAID. “AFTER THEY GRADUATE, THEY MAY GO OUT AND CHANGE THE WORLD.”

IT WAS A QUARTER-CENTURY AGO, BUT THE FALL OF 1988 IS FOREVER ETCHED IN THE MINDS OF OKLAHOMA STATE FANS. From a do-more-with-less, land grant university in flyover country, a humble hero emerged to win the most prestigious, wellknown, iconic award in collegiate athletics. Maybe all of athletics.

On this, the 25th anniversary of Barry Sanders’ Heisman Trophy-winning season, the reluctant superstar looks back on what is, without question, the greatest single-season performance in college football history.

“It’s hard to believe that much time has passed,” Sanders says, recalling his junior season in Stillwater. “That was such a monumental time, and really just a year that so many things changed for me.”

Despite earning All-America honors as a kick returner in 1987, Sanders was still in the shadow of Cowboy great Thurman Thomas, OSU’s all-time leading rusher who had just embarked on a promising pro career. Coaches, teammates, fans and opponents had seen flashes of the talent Sanders possessed, but none could have predicted what lay ahead for the first-year starting tailback.

Looking

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AUGUST 2013 PHOTO / MALCOLM EMMONS – USA TODAY SPORTS

Back

Sanders Reflects on Heisman Season STORY BY CLAY BILLMAN PHOTO / HEINZ KLUETMEIER - SPORTS ILLISTRATED

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“I would get those preseason magazines, and I’d look at the articles, reading about different players and whatnot,” he says. “That was always fun. I was such a big fan of college football and I had worked so hard in my own way to be the best player I could be.”

Sanders wasn’t surprised when he didn’t see his name in among preseason all-conference tailbacks, let alone Heisman hopefuls.

In the summer of 1988, the cover of Street & Smith’s College Football preview featured a pair of west coast quarterbacks, UCLA’s TROY AIKMAN and Southern Cal’s RODNEY PEETE. Post-season accolades are often popularity contests, and without household name recognition or playing in a media mecca like Los Angeles, Sanders would have to do something special to garner the attention of Downtown Athletic Club voters. Something more than special.

Something epic.

“Everyone pretty much knew that Troy and Rodney were the frontrunners,” Sanders says. They had enjoyed good college careers to that point. I guess I literally came from out of nowhere to win it.”

Sanders, who always let his play do the talking for him, announced his arrival on the scene in bold fashion. Catching the Cowboys’ opening kickoff of the 1988 season one yard deep in the endzone of Lewis Field, Sanders bolted upfield between the hash marks, running around, through and past 11 Miami (Ohio) Redskins 100 yards to pay dirt.

“That was pretty bizarre,” Sanders recalls, “because the previous season I’d done the same thing against Tulsa. It just seemed so unreal and like a dream.”

(His back-to-back season-opening scores became the first of 34 NCAA-recordsetting moments that fall.)

After being mobbed by teammates,

4

SANDERS CASUALLY TOSSED THE BALL TO AN OFFICIAL AND JOGGED BACK TO THE SIDELINE—a classy move he would repeat

another 38 times.

AUGUST 2013

PHOTO / MALCOLM EMMONS – USA TODAY SPORTS

“It’s funny, because a lot of fans appreciate that,” Sanders says of his signature noncelebration. “For me, I always approached the game as kind of serious business. It’s not time to celebrate until the game is over and you won the game. That was just my approach. That kind of a thing just wasn’t my style. I left that to the other guys. That was their personality. It just wasn’t who I was. For me it was about remaining true to myself and just playing the game and enjoying the game. I tried not to be too

excited when I was on the field or get too low, because there was always more that needed to be done.”

W hen Sa nder s lined up in the I-formation, he saw a veteran cast in front of him. Senior fullback Garrett Limbrick, junior quarterback Mike Gundy and an offensive line comprised of five seniors— center John Boisvert, guards Jason Kidder and Chris Stanley, and tackles Mike Wolfe and Byron Woodard— dubbed the “WAR PIGS.”

“We were fortunate to be a part of that offense, to have the weapons that we had in our skill positions,” says left tackle Wolfe.

“As for the offensive line, we were nothing special up front. All of us were fiveyear seniors, and we were probably better than average college linemen, but none of us made it in the pros. But we had all played together and had that bond so we knew what each person was doing, And that’s important on the offensive line. It definitely showed on the field, and with of all that coming together in one year, we had a great offense.”

ALL-AMERICAN RECEIVER Hart Lee Dykes added to the Cowboys’ arsenal.

“I don’t get a chance to talk about Hart Lee enough,” Sanders says. “He had an outstanding career at Oklahoma State and was one of the nation’s top receivers. Certainly the offensive line took great pride in what they did. They loved being able to just come off the ball and run block. Garrett Limbrick was just a tough, hard-nosed football player. Mike wasn’t the biggest, strongest guy, but he was a winner. So I certainly benefited from all that (support).

I was fortunate enough to stay healthy and play with a group of guys and in a system where everything just happened the right way.”

While the modest Sanders is always quick to praise teammates and deflect attention from himself, his left tackle says it was obvious that No. 21 made the War Pigs look good.

“At that time, we probably thought as offensive linemen that we were doing a little bit better job than what we were actually doing,” Wolfe says. “After I had graduated, I got into coaching a little bit and was able to look back at some of our film. It was a quick realization that we were not as good up front as we thought we were. WE WERE NOT MAKING BARRY LOOK GREAT— HE WAS MAKING US LOOK BETTER THAN WHAT WE WERE. AND BARRY MADE US LOOK PRETTY GOOD.”

Reeling in a Legend

PHOTO / BRUCE WATERFIELD

The One That (Almost) Got Away WHAT ABOUT BARRY? George Walstad raised the question at the conclave of Cowboy Football coaches just before national signing day in February 1986.

Oklahoma State Head Coach Pat Jones gathered his staff in the conference room one final time to pare down the list of suggested scholarship offers. For those bluechip prospects whom Jones green-lighted, letters of intent would be hand-delivered.

“We’d go around the table,” Walstad says, “and Pat says, ‘Well, give a scholarship to so-and-so,’ and so on.”

Among the list of prep standouts were Midwest City’s MIKE GUNDY, speedy wideout CURTIS MAYFIELD and Stillwater star SIM DRAIN III. The OSU staff had also targeted three highly touted tailbacks that year, including a top 10 Texas recruit in TERRANCE MILLER, Waxahachie’s GERALD HUDSON and Del City all-stater VERNON BROWN.

Near the end of the meeting, Walstad urged Jones to take a chance on one more player. It was a player he’d championed throughout the recruiting process.

A name Walstad brought up repeatedly in staff meetings.

“What about Barry?”

The response was a familiar one, Walstad recalls. “Let’s wait and see.”

“George always had a pretty good feeling about him,” Jones recalls, “but we were on a bunch of high-powered guys at that time. Sanders wasn’t an afterthought, but I’m not going to sit here and say he was a highly recruited guy. He wasn’t, obviously.”

OSU’s assistant head coach under Jones, Walstad was in charge of the defensive line and special teams. His primary recruiting territory was Dallas-Ft. Worth metroplex.

“In those days you took the scholarship papers with you and signed them in person.

There was no faxing like there is nowadays.

That same year I think I signed five or six guys from that area, so Pat said, ‘Go ahead and go to Dallas.’

“Barry said he was going to call me Sunday night at six o’clock and let me know his decision between us, Tulsa and Iowa State.”

The phone rang promptly at 6:00 pm.

“Barry said, ‘Coach, I want to go to Oklahoma State.’ I said, ‘Great!

Let me call Coach Jones, and I’ll call you right back.’

“So I called Pat and told him Barry wanted to be a Cowboy.”

“Take him,” Jones replied.

KANSAS CONNECTION A 1963 OSU grad, Walstad was a twoway player for the Cowboys. After a stint in the service, he took his first high school coaching and teaching job at Wichita’s Southeast High School.

“I had developed some good relationships with the coaches up there,” he says.

“After I was at Oklahoma State, a friend of mine from Wichita called and told me about Barry. That wasn’t my area, and as a matter of fact, we were not even recruiting Kansas at that time, but I took the opportunity to go up on a couple Thursday nights.”

But each time Walstad went to Wichita North High School to watch Sanders play in person, the recruiting trip was a washout.

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“TO BE DOWN THERE ON THE FIELD WITH HIM AND TO SEE IT THAT CLOSE, IT WAS JUST AMAZING TO WATCH HIS ABILITY AND WHAT HE COULD DO.” — Mike Wolfe “He did some unbelievable things,” he adds. “He didn’t have to have a big hole.

That fella, he’d squirt through anything.

To be down there on the field with him and to see it that close, it was just amazing to watch his ability and what he could do.”

Despite the loss of Thurman Thomas (a future NFL Hall of Famer) Wolfe says

the team was confident in Sanders’ ability to carry the load at tailback that season.

“We had no question in our minds as far as Barry was concerned,” he says. “Now, we weren’t for sure how successful that season was going to be, but we didn’t feel like there was going to be any letdown from Thurman. Thurman, obviously was a great

“Both times it rained so hard that you couldn’t even watch the game,” he recalls. “We were trying to recruit Barry as a kick returner, because we had just lost Bobby Riley to graduation. We thought with Thurman (Thomas) coming back, we would be able to utilize someone like Barry to return kicks.

When I went up there to watch him, he was playing at a slot back position. Very seldom did he ever carry the ball, only when they would hand the ball to him on a reverse or something like that.

And it rained the whole game, so when they would punt, nobody would field it because it was so wet. The ball would go up in the air and hit the ground and just plop. So I didn’t get to see Barry do very much at all.”

OSU was also recruiting Sanders’ teammate, JOEL FRY, a 6-foot-6-inch, 245 lb. offensive lineman and state heavyweight wrestling champ.

“Joel’s parents would bring both of them down to Stillwater to our games and stuff like that, so we liked that part of it,” Walstad adds.

Later that fall, OSU played the Jayhawks in Lawrence. Walstad utilized the opportunity to scout the local junior college ranks and check back in on Sanders.

“Whenever we played those two schools in Manhattan or Lawrence, I usually drove up and went through the Kansas junior colleges, because I used to be the head coach at Garden City Junior College, and I knew all those guys. I stopped in Wichita

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and the high school coach at that time, DALE BURKHOLDER, had moved him to tailback.”

In the final half of the season, Sanders averaged more than 200 yards rushing per game in his newfound position.

AUGUST 2013

athlete, a great football player. But at the same time, we saw Barry and his ability on a daily basis, so we knew there probably wasn’t going to be much of a drop off, if any. Obviously it turned out much, much

better than what we thought.”

Sanders says he looked up to Thomas and learned a lot from his predecessor.

“I really enjoyed having Thurman there, because I could kind of see how he went about his business,” Sanders says. “There was no real pressure on me. There was this sense of ‘What are we going to do without Thurman Thomas?’ He had been so much of our offense and integral to our success, and even in his sophomore year he’d been very high on the podium for the Heisman.

“I had enjoyed a lot of success on special teams in the return game, but never

“Coach Burkholder had made a highlight film of Barry since he had moved him to tailback. It was a pretty impressive film to look at, because I think he had already had over 1,000 yards rushing by that time, so I asked the coach if I could borrow it. If you didn’t see that film of Barry playing tailback, you wouldn’t have even recruited him. I was happy I did, too.”

The painstakingly produced 16mm reel was the coach’s one and only copy.

“He produced this 16mm highlight film by taking VHS game footage and projecting it on the wall and shooting it with another camera,” Walstad says. “Those old 16mm film reels, hell, that’s all we had. You had to splice every damn section, and they were always coming loose when we were watching film.”

Walstad admits he didn’t return the reel.

“As difficult as it was to make that highlight film, he never had the chance to do it again. The film’s probably still up in my attic somewhere.”

“That was one of the films that stayed in somebody’s brief case for awhile,” Jones adds. “It wasn’t coincidental. We didn’t want to do anything to help anybody.”

Coach Jones and the rest of the Cowboy staff viewed Sanders’ highlight reel, but it still took Walstad’s constant persuasion to get Jones to pull the trigger on a scholarship offer.

“Pat always liked us to see him play live. We’d all seen the tape and everything, but nobody—including me—had seen him play tailback in person. Of course, I had seen him play basketball and dunk with a bad ankle because I’d gone up there, so I knew a little more about him than anybody at that time on our staff.”

Former Oklahoma head coach BARRY SWITZER claims the Cowboy staff intentionally kept Sanders’ recruitment reel under

really carried the ball 20-30 times a game.

I understood that was a big deal, and I was certainly ready for the challenge and looked forward to it.”

Sanders’ assault on the NCAA record book began with 178 yards and two rushing touchdowns that first game, including an 89-yarder.

The first real test for Pat Jones’ Pokes came in week 2, as Texas A&M came to town.

The No. 18 Cowboys took advantage of early miscues and jumped on the Aggies right out of the gate. Sanders set the tone with a 58-yard TD scamper on the game’s third play from scrimmage, and added a 61-yard punt return for a score for good measure. He finished the night with 157

yards and three touchdowns as OSU downed A&M 52-15.

THE STATISTICS SANDERS PUT UP IN 1988 ARE MIND-BOGGLING. Against Tulsa, he scored five times and set

the school record for single-game rushing with 304 yards on 33 carries. (He would top

300 yards three more times that season.)

The national media was starting to take notice. The Cowboys traveled to Boulder to face the Colorado Buffaloes in week 4, and Sports Illustrated was on hand to document Sanders’ feats.

“Most people thought we hadn’t really been tested,” Sanders recalls. “When we played Colorado, they had a couple guys on their defense that would eventually play in the NFL, and I still had a pretty

good game. So that’s when I started hearing Heisman talk and things like that.”

In an article titled “Quiet Cowboy Ridin’ High,” Sports Illustrated’s RICK REILLY praised his performance and offered tongue-in-cheek advice for embracing the spotlight:

Listen Barry, we need to talk. The boys here at Heisman Helpers, Inc., think you can run … The trouble is … you’ve got no gimmick, no videotape campaign, no golden helmet …

Barry, we know guys who would send a limo out for more sportswriters after having the kind of day you had.

Seriously, you’re just not in synch with the rest of college football. (SI, Oct. 17, 1988)

wasn’t a limit on who could get on I-35. He was a very good judge of talent, and we knew that, but George just out-worked and out-hustled all of ’em.”

The OSU staff soon saw Sanders’ skills first-hand. In the fall of 1986, Sanders was an unheralded freshman taking part in two-a-day practices.

“On the first day in pads, nobody even knew what he could do,” Walstad says. “We were having a 7-on-7 running drill, and he made a cut out the back side … He was going front side and jumped all the way back side, and all of us defensive coaches just looked at each other and went, ‘OH MY GOODNESS. WHAT HAVE WE GOT HERE?’ Thurman couldn’t even do that. That kind of made everybody realize he was a pretty good find.”

“We knew what good was, and Barry was beyond that,” Jones says. “In hindsight, his performance would rank right up there with the best single seasons anybody has ever had in any major sport. It would be like hitting 90 home runs. Any of those magPHOTO / BRUCE WATERFIELD

wraps to prevent the Sooners from poaching their prize. Walstad thinks that’s a bit of revisionist history, and the truth isn’t nearly as cloak-and-dagger as it sounds.

“I think that’s just a story Coach Switzer told because he was catching hell about not recruiting him. He overlooked him, just like everybody else. There wasn’t anybody recruiting Sanders.

Little did we know he was as good as he was.”

Coach Jones says other programs were simply beaten on the recruiting trail.

“All you got to do is get on Highway 35 and drive to Wichita, which George did. And so did Tulsa and so did Iowa State. There

7

ical years, whether it be TIGER WOODS, MICHAEL JORDAN or anybody else, this falls in that family of stuff.”

It isn’t every day that a coach signs a future Heisman Trophy winner (not to mention NFL Hall of Famer), and Walstad’s recruiting coup may just top them all.

“GEORGE IS REALLY THE HERO IN THAT WHOLE DEAL,” JONES SAYS. “PLEASE QUOTE ME ON THAT.”

“One time Pat told somebody on the radio, ‘I just want to make it clear and understood that George Walstad recruited Barry Sanders,’” Walstad says. “That meant a lot to me.”

“Everybody in the world claims that they recruited somebody, but I was the only one on the staff who was behind Barry Sanders the whole time. I knew what we had.”

Paired with an iconic photograph of Sanders leaping over the goal line, the exposure introduced Sanders to the nation.

“A lot of people really got behind that Heisman push on my behalf because of that game and because of that article,” Sanders says.

The secret was out in Stillwater.

The following week, the tenth-ranked Cowboys traveled to Lincoln, Nebraska, to face the No. 7 Cornhuskers—a team OSU hadn’t beaten since 1961.

“I tell you what,” Wolfe says. “They jumped on us fast and hard. And I think it was 42 to nothing in the second quarter. Nebraska ended up beating us pretty good (42-63), but they never could shut us down. They never took the first team defense out.”

Despite the loss, Sanders and Co. had earned the respect of the eventual Big 8 champs. Tom Osborne’s teams were not used to surrendering 42 points to anyone, let alone four touchdowns and 189 rushing yards from a single tailback.

Sanders’ statistical low output of the year came the following week against Missouri for Homecoming, with only 154 yards on the ground and a pair of touchdowns. The Cowboys cruised past the Tigers 49-21.

Kansas State was little match for the OSU offense, and Sanders ran wild in his home state. Breaking his own single-game mark, he rushed for 320 yards and three TDs on 27 carries, while sitting out much of the fourth quarter after the Cowboys had pulled away from the Wildcats to win 45-27.

“HE COULD’VE STAYED IN THERE AND GOTTEN 400 YARDS.” WOLFE SAYS.

His teammates urged Sanders to try and break the NCAA record, but he politely declined.

“There were a good handful—maybe three to five games—where I sat and could’ve run for a lot more yards,” Sanders admits. “But for me it wasn’t really about that.”

While Sanders shied away from the spotlight, his teammates took to the media.

8

AUGUST 2013

“After the Kansas State game, we kind of turned our focus a little more on Barry and trying to get him the Heisman,” Wolfe recalls. “At least I know I did. I remember doing an after-game interview in the locker room where they asked me about that. I made the comment that if Barry doesn’t win the Heisman, it will be a travesty. He will have gotten robbed.”

“IF BARRY DOESN’T WIN THE HEISMAN, IT WILL BE A TRAVESTY.” The 1988 Bedlam game was a heavyweight prizefight, with each team trading punches until the very end. Sanders toted the pigskin 39 times for 215 yards and two scores, while MIKE GADDIS matched his effort with 213 yards for the Sooners.

When the final gun sounded, OSU was a field goal short, falling 28-31 in a heartbreaker. It would be the team’s last loss of the season.

In a 63-24 blowout over Kansas, Sanders’ five-touchdown explosion eclipsed the NCAA single-season touchdown mark with 31 for the season, while his 312 yards on the ground put him over 2,000 total yards with two games remaining.

“Growing up I watched MARCUS ALLEN run for 2,000 yards in college, and so I witnessed that and felt a part of it and was cheering for him,” Sanders says.

“For me to have enjoyed that kind of success was amazing.”

On a cold November day in Ames, Iowa, Sanders broke an 80-yard touchdown run that broke the Cyclones’ back.

He finished with 293 yards and four TDs as OSU pulled away late to win 49-28.

“That Iowa State game, in particular, stands out to me,” says Wolfe. “It was freezing cold. I tell you, it was awful. We had to put the water cups in front of the heaters because they were freezing up. It was just that cold. And we were behind most of that game, all the way into the 4th quarter. It was so cold I was ready to go home. As cold as it was, and we were just not playing well, and Barry just kind of took it on his shoulders and ended up changing the whole momentum of the game. We end up coming away with a couple touchdown victory that day, but it could’ve gone either way.”

Sanders’ next date with destiny would be a special non-conference matchup that paired the Cowboys and Texas Tech Red Raiders in Tokyo. The inaugural (and shortlived) Coca-Cola Bowl was billed as a showcase of American football in Japan, and provided the OSU athletic department with a $100,000 payday.

The 1988 Heisman Trophy ceremony just happened to be scheduled for the same weekend.

William and Shirley Sanders

made the trip to New York City for the announcement, while their son—half a world away—just wanted to sleep through it.

“They’re 13 hours ahead of east coast time,” Sanders says, “so they had to wake me up at some strange hour. I had so much on my mind, because the game was to be played later on that day. It sounds kind of trivial, but one of the things you try to do is get a good night’s sleep before a game.”

“I’ll tell you, Barry did not want to participate in it,” Wolfe recalls. “He said, ‘I’ve got a game today, I don’t need to be getting up and doing that.’ It took a little bit of persuading, but he went, and we were allowed to tag along to the studio.”

Three of the top-five vote getters were in attendance in New York: Peete, Aikman and Major Harris of West Virginia, while Miami’s Steve Walsh joined Sanders via satellite. At 5:50 pm (7:50 am Tokyo time), Peter Lambos, president of the Downtown Athletic Club, stepped to the podium.

The 1988 winner … of the Heisman Award … the John W. Heisman Memorial Trophy … is BARRY SANDERS of Oklahoma State University!

Upon hearing the news, the winner cracked a slight smile and politely applauded.

“It was a thrill to be a part of it,” he says. “My parents were able to go to New York to be a part of the ceremonies, and some of my brothers and sisters as well. My dad had been a lifelong football fan, and he was really touched by just being there and having me announced as the winner. That was definitely an amazing day for our family.”

It was an award the talented tailback shared with his teammates.

“They took such pride in it,” Sanders says. “I did owe a lot to those guys, because they had done so much to make sure that I was in that position. So I thought it

was only right and only fitting to have them there.”

“That was something really special for us offensive linemen,” Wolfe says. “When he won it, it was just jubilation. Very few offensive linemen get to block for a Heisman Trophy winner. We were just so fortunate to have him back there. We enjoyed every second of it.

“Barry always gave the credit to somebody else,” he adds. “For an offensive lineman, you don’t get a lot of recognition. For somebody like him to always mention that to the press, that made us you feel good, like we were doing something to help put him where he is. We used to take him out to PHOTO / GARY LAWSON

lunch, and he was just always just a very genuine guy. Just a good person at heart. He’s always been that way.”

Hours later, the Cowboys got into a shootout with the Red Raiders, but the newly-crowned Heisman winner would save his best for last. BREAKING HIS OWN SCHOOL RECORD WITH

332 YARDS ON A STAGGERING 44 CARRIES, HE SHATTERED ALLEN’S NCAA SINGLE-SEASON MARK as OSU edged Tech

45-42. (So much for lack of sleep.)

His 2,628 yards in just 11 regular season games (an average of 238.9 yards per game) is still the standard for greatness.

Despite 12, sometimes 13, regular-season games in today’s era of college football—plus bowl statistics (which have been only been included in NCAA records within the last decade)— most of his stats have yet to be topped.

If you include the 62-14 Holiday Bowl win over Wyoming, add five more TDs and 222 yards. Not to mention 1-for-1 passing on a throwback to Gundy.

(Sanders sat out the 4th quarter, by the way.)

The 1988 season stands out as the greatest performance in college football history. Not just for the aston-

ishing numbers—a grand total of 2,850 yards and 44 touchdowns— but for the personality of the person behind them.

“FOR ME IT WAS JUST A SPE-

9

CIAL TIME BECAUSE OF THE PEOPLE

THERE,” SANDERS SAYS. “IT WAS A PERFECT PLACE FOR ME AND JUST

THAT CRUCIAL TIME GROWING FROM

BEING A KID TO BEING A MAN. I LOVED MY TIME THERE AND REALLY LOOK BACK WITH

A LOT OF GREAT MEMORIES OF GREAT PEOPLE AND EXPERIENCES.

“IT WAS JUST A MAGICAL YEAR.”

S E O G S U C R MA LLEGE O C TO D STAYS N A —

2

DECEMBER 2013

P HO T OG

R

RTER cWHO ELD M E D FI Y WA ATER W S T ORY B E BRUC A P H Y BY

MARCUS SMART

REMEMBERS HIS FIRST TRIP TO GALLAGHER-IBA ARENA WELL — BUT HE ADMITS IT’S NOT AN EXPERIENCE HE LOOKS BACK ON WITH FONDNESS. “I came here with my AAU team in 2004,” Smart said. “I remember it was too crowded. I was a little kid at the time, and I really couldn’t see because everybody was standing the whole game. But I can still remember that atmosphere, how intense it was and how it was so amped and hyped up in there.

“I DEFINITELY NEVER THOUGHT I’D WANT TO BE BACK AT OKLAHOMA STATE.”

But a decade later, Oklahoma State and Gallagher-Iba is where Smart is calling home for a second year, something most thought would never happen but Cowboy fans are sure glad he did.

And once again, those orange-and-black clad fans are filling up OSU basketball’s famed arena, thanks in large part to Smart and his teammates, whose success last season delivered good on a promise to “bring the rowdy back!” to the home of Cowboy hoops.

Smart’s role in helping return GIA to the “rowdiest arena in the country” cannot be understated.

In his first season in Stillwater, Smart established himself as not only the BIG

12 CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE YEAR but an ALL-AMERICAN and the BEST FRESHMAN IN COLLEGE BASKETBALL.

Along the way, his will to win and passion to get that done led OSU to 24 victories and a return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in three years.

It also revived OSU’s fan base, making sold-out contests the norm again, just like those that Smart remembers from his first trip to Stillwater.

“We were ecstatic — it was an amazing feeling,” said Smart of the rejuvenation of OSU’s fan support last season. “I was here in 2004 when we had the Graham brothers (Joey and Stephen), Tony Allen and (John) Lucas so I’d seen the rowdy.

“To walk in here that first game and look into the stands, you’re just like, ‘Okay, I don’t want to play anymore.’ That just really didn’t sit well. But for us to come out and do the things we did last year and change that, have people come out and support us and bring the rowdy back,

3

it was a great feeling.”

The rowdy is expected to return with fervor during the 2013-14 season, with coach Travis Ford’s Cowboys ranked among the nation’s best in the preseason — and that of course coincides with a decision Smart made last April.

Predicted by most to be a top 5 pick — and possibly the No. 1 pick overall — in last summer’s NBA Draft, Smart made the uncommon choice to return to school for his sophomore season.

That decision sent shockwaves throughout the college basketball and NBA landscapes, and while it wasn’t easy to make, the choice to go against the grain was not as surprising as you might think.

“There were days that I’d play devil’s advocate,” Ford said. “There were days

4

DECEMBER 2013

I could tell (Smart) was wanting to stay and I was like ‘Are you sure? You’re gonna be this pick.’ I really wanted him to think about it and really wanted to pick his brain to make sure he was thinking about the right things.

“This went on for several weeks. He talked to a lot of people. And when it came down close to the decision, I kind of knew what he was going to do. I FELT LIKE ALL ALONG HE WANTED TO STAY IN COLLEGE FROM THE BEGINNING.

There was always the pressures from many different sources on the outside saying ‘You’ve got to do it, how could you not?!’

Those things are natural for people to say.

But I knew where Marcus’s heart was and knew the type of person he was.

“He told me the night after he won the

Wayman Tisdale Award, and his rationalization for it was just unbelievable. He told me, ‘I WANT TO HAVE FUN, AND I’M ENJOYING COLLEGE. I WANT TO BE WITH MY TEAMMATES. I enjoy playing for you. I’m not passing up the NBA, I’m just putting it off for a year. There’s things I need to work on, and I can’t get these days back.’

“He had all the right reasons. It was really impressive how he handled the whole situation. He did what he wanted to do — he didn’t let outside distraction or peer pressure affect his decision. And that’s tough for anybody, especially an 18-, 19-year old, to make their own decision. And he was 100 percent convinced that he wanted to come back.”

FRAN FRASCHILLA, an ESPN college basketball analyst who has known and watched Smart play for the better part of the last decade, also wasn’t surprised by the decision.

“Marcus has always bid on himself, and he’s almost always won,” Fraschilla said.

“Whether he’s the third pick or the sixth pick or the eighth pick (in the NBA Draft) next year, it really won’t matter. Will he leave a little bit of money on the table in the short term? Absolutely. But assuming he has the kind of year we expect him to have, he’s gonna have an incredible impact on college basketball before he leaves.”

Smart knows there are plenty of people who can’t fathom turning down millions of dollars to live out a dream most will never accomplish, but he says it’s easy to deflect.

and also included the death of Smart’s older brother, TODD WESTBROOK, when Smart was just nine-years old.

“Growing up, I wouldn’t say I had a childhood — I was forced to grow up earlier than I expected,” Smart said. “In AAU ball I was constantly gone — I never really got to go spend weekends with my friends, go out, go swimming, take vacations in the summer because my summer was full of basketball and travelling.

“Once you get in college, you get to experience living on your own and that fun and the highlights of the years that you’re here. Those are things you don’t get back once they’re gone. You have to cherish those moments while they’re

him. And knowing those two words helps you understand why it should never have shocked anyone that he bypassed NBA riches for college life.

Those words?

COMPETITOR. WINNER.

“I’ve never been around a player — ever — as a player or a coach that plays as hard as he does every single day; there are no off days,” Ford said. “He is competing every day the same and with one goal in mind — to beat you. Before a game, after a game, three games in a row — you would never know any different with Marcus Smart.

“I don’t know many players at all that go do that. So he quickly gained everybody’s respect by doing that.”

How quickly? When Ford was asked to relay a story highlighting Smart’s competitiveness and drive, he tells a story from an exhibition game during OSU’s summer FORD S I V A R trip to Spain in 2012.

T H — COAC “(Smart) made some crazy passes — threw one out of bounds, threw a lob that hit the top of here, and you don’t want any the backboard — and I jumped on him regrets when you’re gone.” really quick. And he probably hadn’t been The other factor? That’s easy to pinjumped on too many times,” Ford said. “A point ­— March 21, 2013. lot of players will get upset or pout, but That date marked the opening round of he said, ‘Alright, I’m gonna show him!’ the NCAA Tournament in San Jose, Calif. In “He picked up their guard full court and OSU’S FIRST NCAA TOURNEY GAME SINCE 2010, ripped the guy twice before the other guy Oregon upset the fifth-seeded Cowboys, got past half court. And I quickly realized 68-55. Smart nearly had a double-double you can challenge Marcus, but also he with 14 points and nine rebounds, but he was more upset with himself than he was also committed five turnovers and shot me getting onto him and he was gonna just 5-of-13 from the field. make up for it.

“That’s not who I am,” Smart said. “I “That is the definition to me of a winner didn’t feel like I played to the best of my — a guy that understands ‘I’m gonna make ability, and I felt like I let my team down. mistakes, but I’m gonna make up for them.

That’s not how I wanted to leave and be I’m not gonna dwell on the mistakes and known for.” pout about them, get upset when my Smart’s desire to make amends for how coach yells at me, I’m gonna do somehis freshman season ended led him back thing about it.’ to Cowboy Country, and that should also “And from that point on, I knew this come as no surprise. kid was pretty special.”

Talk to anyone who knows Smart and Smart laughs when recalling Ford’s story there are two words that will almost always — he remembers the moment well. be mentioned when asked to describe

A D N U O R A N E E H E B S A R E D V R E A N H E S V A ’ S “I Y A L P T A H T ” . . .

Y .

A R D E Y E PLA VERY SINGL DOES E “The talk for a long time was ‘How could you turn (the NBA) down?,’ Smart said. “It was stressful going back-andforth in your head, discussing the situation and all the scenarios. But I sat down with my mom and my family, and we figured it out. ONCE I MADE MY DECISION, IT RELIEVED A LOT OF THAT STRESS OFF ME. I obtained a lot of criticism for

it, but at the same time, I obtained a lot of praise and appreciation.

“Whichever decision I made, I would have gotten criticism either way so it really doesn’t bother me much.”

So how exactly did the 19-year old Smart arrive at such a decision? Many

factors were involved, but Smart says two things swayed him most to return to Stillwater.

One of those was a childhood that admittedly wasn’t always void of trouble

5

“Most freshmen would have probably gotten down on themselves or gotten kind of mad, but I just took it like I always do,” Smart said. “That’s one of those things and those times where you look deep down and use it as a spark to get you going.

“I made some dumb plays, but I made up for it at the defensive end. When things like that happen, it’s not about how hard

you get knocked down, it’s about how fast you get back up.

“That was instilled in me as a little kid so I’ve been like that my whole life — it comes natural. I do have some days where it’s just like, ‘Man! I don’t know if I can do it today.’

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t. Everybody has those lulls where you feel like you hit the wall. But you just have to dig down and find something to get you going, to motivate you to go ahead and give it your all.”

Added Fraschilla, “He’s always had a great IQ for the game and a great competitive spirit that has just been enhanced over time. He was ahead of his time as a high school freshman, especially as far as competitiveness…

“You hate to throw stats out the window because you know he’s going to end up with 17 points, eight rebounds, six assists, but stats don’t matter with Marcus — it’s how his competitiveness affects the outcome of games. Not just individually but also how his competitiveness rubs off on his teammates.

“The best compliment you can give somebody is that the guy is a winner, and in Marcus’s case, winning is far more important than what the stat line says.”

For Smart, the stat line is usually stacked. Last season, he averaged 15.4

points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game and also set a Big 12 freshman record with 99 steals, averaging

three thefts a contest.

Smart’s all-around game and will to win are a big reason OSU finished 24-9 a year ago, including a 13-5 mark in Big 12 play, which marked the Cowboys’ best showing in 10 years.

“When you watch him play, it’s understandable why an opponent would not like him,” Fraschilla said. “As good a kid as he

6

is off the court — as polite and humble as he is — he’s got the killer nature competitively on the court.

“He’s not a popular guy in most Big 12 arenas outside of Stillwater, and it’s because of that competitive nature. He’s always trying to make the extra hustle play, draw the extra charge. He’s one of those guys who you really wouldn’t like if you’re an opposing fan base, but you would absolutely love him if he was wearing your team’s uniform.

“I’ve watched him play games where he’s played poorly for much of a game but then has stepped up big at the end or he’s had a complete impact on the game and you look at the stat line and it’s an average stat line for a good college player.

His impact on a game is not influenced by what the stats say at the end. That’s because of his competitiveness, and his very high basketball IQ. He makes winning plays even though they might not show up in a box score.”

Fraschilla added that Smart’s success as a freshman, which included the aforementioned accolades as well as being a

finalist for two national player of the year honors and the Bob Cousy Collegiate Point Guard of the Year Award, did not surprise him in the least.

“I’ve seen him do it at a high level for so long,” Fraschilla said. “He’s always been able to back up with his play on the court the reputation that he’s brought to the court.

“Anytime you watch him play, it’s always

‘Can Marcus win this game? Can he win this individual matchup? How will he help his team win? ’ And then at the end of the

game, you get to the point where you’re no longer surprised by the things he does.”

However, another endearing quality about Smart is that those things he does on the court aren’t something he flaunts.

He’s already accomplished more on the court than most his age — he’s led both the U.S. UNDER-18 AND UNDER-19 TEAMS TO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS and last summer he was ONE OF ONLY TWO NON-NBA PLAY-

ERS TO ACCEPT AN INVITATION TO THE 2013 USA MEN’S NATIONAL TEAM MINI-CAMP – yet

there is no air of cockiness about him.

DECEMBER 2013

Ford calls Smart one of the most humble and polite individuals he’s ever been around.

“HE WANTS PEOPLE TO FEEL GOOD AROUND HIM; HE GOES OUT OF HIS WAY TO MEET PEOPLE, TO BE NICE TO PEOPLE, TO INTRODUCE HIMSELF TO PEOPLE,” Ford said. “It’s refreshing to be around someone who gets as much publicity and notoriety as he does, and it doesn’t go to their head whatsoever.

“Everybody knows he’s a great player, but he’s a better person. He is able to really block out all the publicity stuff and just have fun and be a person who is appreciative of everything, and you don’t find that a lot nowadays. He’s not a guy that’s full of himself. Marcus is about the

right things, and it’s fun to be around him every day.”

Says Fraschilla, “If you don’t know him, you don’t realize how humble he is, how unassuming, how soft-spoken he is — it kind of belies the assassin’s mentality he carries with him on the court. So it’s unique.”

And Smart’s unique approach to fame is something he admits isn’t always easy, what with being the so-called “big man on campus” and all.

“I’ve seen a lot of people that get a lot of praise and take it the other route — they embrace it a little too much and it brings cockiness and backfires on them,” Smart said. “Growing up, some things that happened in my life, put me in a stage to be humble. I’ve seen that just as quickly as it’s given, it can be taken away from you.”

“I’m a regular person like everybody else on campus, but I do understand that I’m set on a pedestal higher than a lot of people on campus just because everybody knows who I am. It’s a good feeling, but at the same time it brings a lot of responsibility. All eyes are on you so you really have to be careful of what you say, what you do, how you act, how you look.

how my actions speak for me in what I do on-and-off the court.

“You have to know what’s best for the team, and you have to take everything with ‘me’ and ‘I’ out of the equation — it has to be ‘we’ and ‘us.’ You have to listen to what the team has to say and put everything before yourself. If you do all that, all the individual accolades will start to roll in.”

Despite having already achieved status as one of the country’s top players, Smart says there is plenty of room for improvement in his game. He shot 40 percent from the field last season, including 29 percent from beyond the three-point arc — both are numbers he wants to improve upon while also becoming a better scorer.

“We’ve challenged him to get a little bit better at everything,” Ford said. “I don’t think there are any true weaknesses in his game, but he can afford to get better in a little bit of everything. Get a little bit better shooting, a little bit better ball handling, a little bit better defensively, a little bit better rebounding and go down the line.

“That’s how we’ve approached it. I don’t think there’s anything he’s lacking in, but in every area, there’s room for improvement.

“HIS GREATEST STRENGTHS ARE HIS LEADERSHIP, HE’S A WINNER, HIS WORK ETHIC IS CONTAGIOUS,

“Sometimes it can get frustrating because I’m still a college kid, but you have to think about the consequences and how people will react to what you do.”

All Smart wants to do is perform at a high level every time he steps on the court. He embraces the leadership role he’s had since he joined the program and says he’s unfazed by the perhaps unrealistic expectations people have for him.

“I’m not really focused on those expectations,” Smart said. “I can only control

HIS PERSONALITY. There’s not many at any level, NBA or anywhere in the world, who can match those things he has.

“And then he is a very good ball handler, great passer, great defender, good rebounder, good shooter. When you mix all those greats in with the goods, you get a really, really special player.”

Smart has already stated that this will be his final season with the Cowboys — he won’t bypass the NBA a second time.

SO WHAT WILL MAKE HIS FINAL SEASON I N ST I L LWAT E R A SUCCESS?

“Knowing that every game we went out there and did everything we could to give ourselves an opportunity to win,” Smart said.

That attitude may be what endears him to the pros the most, Fraschilla said.

“What NBA guys love about him are that he competes from start to finish, he’s got the body and size to handle himself in the league as a young player, he’s going to be low maintenance on-and-off the court, he’s going to be very coachable, he’s going to be serious about his craft and always look for ways to get better,” Fraschilla said. “I’m not sure what kind of NBA career he’ll ultimately end up having — I can’t tell you whether he’s going to be an NBA superstar or just a solid player — but he’s going to be in that league for a long time and probably play on a lot of winning teams. He has a winning personality, winning is in his DNA, and when you play with other great players you want guys like him on your roster.”

No one knows this better than Ford, who now has a new gauge when scouting players to join his program.

“There’s not many Marcus Smarts.

There’s not many people with his ability who think team first, winning first, plays as hard as he does every day, somebody who would make some of the choices he’s made to stay — there’s just not many like him,” Ford said. “But as a coach being around him right now, you start seeing traits that you realize are so important and may be more important when you go out recruiting than even talent sometimes. You really look at that and realize how far the winning ways and personality of somebody can take you.

7

“WILL WE EVER FIND OR COACH ANOTHER MARCUS SMART? That’s

the goal, that’s the challenge, and you hope you do.”

MEET T 2

SEPTEMBER 2012

Few positions lost more starts than the wide and inside receivers.

PHOTO/GREG BULLARD

Gone are Hubert Anyiam, Justin Blackmon, Colton Chelf, Josh Cooper and Michael Harrison.

Those guys combined for more than 3,100 yards and 27 touchdowns.

THE

Nevertheless, “We’re still going to throw to win,” says Kasey Dunn, the team’s wide receivers coach. “That’s what we do.”

Dunn expects no drop off from last year, although there may not be someone who caught 120 passes last year like Blackmon, the two-time winner of the top award to wide receivers in college football, the Biletnikoff Award, and the holder of single season receptions and yardage records at OSU. He’s a rare breed. Blackmon grabbed 40 touchdowns in two years, too, good for second all-time to Rashaun Woods’ 42 (and Woods had an extra year to do it in).

His fellow former teammates were no slouches either.

Cooper was a dependable inside receiver who could be counted on for tough catches and runs that kept drives alive.

Chelf, a former walk on, caught the 24-yard reception from former Cowboy quarterback Brandon Weeden that set up the winning field goal in the Fiesta Bowl.

In Blackmon and the others’ stead is a host of talented players who lack only game time. The preseason depth chart shows experienced-starters Isaiah Anderson and Tracy Moore starting at wide receiver, but less experienced players Josh Stewart and Blake Jackson starting on the inside – the positions between the wide receivers and the offensive line. Justin Horton is starting at tight end and will play inside, as well.

“There’s not a guy I have that’s played or started a game other than Justin Horton,” says Doug Meacham, inside receivers and tight ends coach. “Josh Stewart has played some but he didn’t start. Blake Jackson wasn’t here. David Glidden was redshirted.

We’re not thinner, we just don’t have a lot of experience … It’s going to be interesting.”

One plus, Dunn notes, is OSU will have greater depth at wide and inside receiver in 2012 than last year.

“Last year we were challenged in just getting enough guys on the bus to go to a game,” he says. “We didn’t have four deep like we do now. A lot of these guys are young, but they’re talented, and we don’t have a lot of junior college transfers, so OSU fans are going to see them for a long time.”

3

S T O RY

STORY BY MATT ELLIOTT

CONTINUES

Looking down the roster for 2012, several trends emerge.

OSU’s wide receivers, inside receivers and tight ends are all athletic and fast.

The spring game introduced fans to a few of those guys, including Charlie Moore, a 6-feet 2-inches tall wide receiver from Bullard, Texas, who racked up 243 yards and three touchdowns in that contest.

Although Moore played in every game last season, he never started. Headed into August practices, he was the secondstring receiver behind speedster Isaiah Anderson, who many believe will have a big senior year in 2012.

Big changes also include moving Tracy Moore from his inside receiver position to Blackmon’s spot on the outside. Tracy had his best season as a Cowboy in 2011 when he grabbed 45 balls for 672 yards and four touchdowns, including a big score against Texas A&M in the Cowboys come-from-behind win over the Aggies.

Moving Tracy to the outside “is a good move,” Meacham says.

“He’s a body guy. He’s real strong through the ball. He ran a high 4.5 40-yard dash this spring.

I’m not saying he’s Blackmon, but in terms of straight-ahead speed, there’s no difference between he and Blackmon. He’ll be good for us out there. He’s got a lot of reps. He’s been in a lot of big games and made plays.”

Read on for a breakdown of each player and his potential to contribute in 2012.

4

SEPTEMBER 2012

TRACY MOORE DUNN:

Tracy last year was an inside receiver. We’re moving him outside this year. He’s going to be the “Z” for us. He’s trying to fill Blackmon’s shoes. Those are some pretty big shoes to fill. But he’s handled it really well so far.

He did a great job this spring. The transition from inside to outside receiver is a big one. He did a great job handling all the new plays and the nuances of the position.

There’s a lot more of a running load in his new position. He was bigger for a while. So he needed to increase his cardio and probably lose a few pounds to go all game like we need him to do. He has done all of those things.

ME: Wow. So he’s being working hard.

KD:

It’s a lot of hard work. It’s a lot of training. It’s a lot of staying on track and not getting too heavy. He was probably 225 and now he’s maybe 212 or 213.

ME: Does losing that weight make him quicker off the line?

KD:

I don’t know that he’ll be faster.

Generally, it doesn’t really equate that way – losing weight to gain speed. He might be a touch quicker. He’ll certainly be able to play longer. He should be just as fast in the fourth quarter now as he is in the first. So, that will help tremendously.

He’s got a great attitude. He’s playing good football right now. He has done a great job of leadership with the kids out there over the summer right now because we can’t be involved with them at all.

I know he goes out there, does a great job orchestrating our workouts. So, good stuff. I think he’s due for a big season because he has great ball skills. He sees that this is his last year. Generally, when guys see it’s their last year, they try and squeeze a little more out of the season.

PHOTO/GARY LAWSON

WIDE RECEIVERS

C.J. CURRY KD: Behind Tracy, we have a C.J. Curry, a true freshman in from Georgia last year.

He’s just done a great job from what I understand of picking up the offense and making plays.

He has done a great job coming in and adapting. He catches the ball well. He’s certainly physically ready to play. He looks like veteran. He’s big. He’s thick. He can run. He just has that presence about him.

ISAIAH ANDERSON KD: On the other side for us is the X position. Isaiah has got unbelievable speed. He’s about 5-feet 10-inches and 175 pounds.

He is fast. I mean he can really run. I go out there and run 40s with him every once in a while – trying to give him a little rabbit (laughs). He’s a good kid, and he works his tail off. He’s done great job catching the ball.

He’s one of the few kids last year that didn’t finish the season with a dropped pass. That’s a pretty good deal. He has worked hard on improving his hands.

He spent a lot of time catching balls and tennis balls and going to jugs machines by himself and putting in all of that extra time and effort.

It’s great to see a guy like that work on it all summer long and have it work out for him during the season.

ME: That’s rare for a freshman.

KD: Very. Very. He’s a 6-foot 2-inch 210pound kid who can run. We’re fortunate to have him in the situation that we’re in because losing some of the guys from last season left us short. We need some guys to be able to come in and play right away.

We didn’t necessarily want to wholesale go down the junior college route, either.

We did that a little bit, but if we could, we wanted to have guys in here for four and five years. And he fits all that. He’s big, fast, strong and ready to play. Plus, he’s got four years of eligibility with us.

So, we’re excited about him. But, until you put pads on all these guys you don’t know. Until you get the kids out of pajamas and put them in pads, it’s really hard to project.

BRANDON SHEPERD KD: Another young kid. He’s another one of those guys that’s physically talented.

He’s another true freshman with a big, big body that can run. He catches the ball real well. I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw him try to challenge for a job out there.

NICK ROCKWELL KD: Nick is a walk-on who has been real steady for us. He played last year at times and did a nice job of jumping in there behind Blackmon. He’s a good sharp kid.

PHOTO/GARY LAWSON

CHARLIE MOORE KD: Behind Anderson is Charlie Moore. He did great in the spring game, and we’ve got to a find a place for him to play this year. He did a nice job all the way through spring.

People asked if he was playing like that during the first 14 practices in the spring, and the answer is yes. People just didn’t see him until the spring game.

He’s a big kid. He’s got good speed, and he’s going to make plays for us next year.

No question. He’s working his tail off over the summer from what I understand and will be ready to go come August, too.

5

JHAJUAN SEALES

AUSTIN HAYS

KD: Jhajuan is a true freshman, a kid from

KD: Another true freshman – a kid from

Port Arthur, Texas. He’s got very good track speed. He’s fast, a kid with a very high ceiling. He has got a lot of potential.

All these kids that we brought in this year, they’re all over six feet. They’re all tall. They’re all big and ready to go.

They’re all 6’ 1” and 6’ 2.” They can all run.

And Jhajuan’s probably the fastest one of the bunch.

San Antonio. Austin is, at this point, a polished receiver, and he’s got size and the range.

He is also a very sharp kid. He’s got more a veteran feel to him. He doesn’t act like a rookie, and that is a good thing with the situation we’re in. We’re pretty excited about what we’ve got going on outside.

S T O RY

CONTINUES

INSIDE RECEIVERS AND TIGHT ENDS

JEREMY SEATON

JUSTIN HORTON DOUG MEACHAM: Justin is a really

DM: Justin started out as a tight end, and

big, powerful guy. He’s really super fast.

He actually ran a 10.75 hundred meters in high school (Editor’s note, Marion Jones medaled at the 2000 Summer Olympics with that time). So, he’s a guy when we get into his kind of formations who can actually stretch the coverage and maybe run by some people because he’s so fast.

then we moved him to inside receiver.

He’s back in the 260s now, so we’ve moved him back to tight end.

He’ll block a little. But he’s a guy that can take off up a seam and get mismatched maybe with a linebacker – that kind of guy. If we’re in a throwing mode, he’ll be a definite target. A guy like that can take off and hit the end zone.

ME:

ME: I imagine he presents a lot of match

DM: His uncle played in the NFL for a

up problems for a defense. Most linebackers and safeties are too slow to keep up with him. And he’s too big for a corner or nickelback to cover.

That’s impressive at 6’ 3,” 250ish pounds. I bet he surprises a lot of people with his speed.

long time. His name was Dudley I think (Editor’s note: Ricky Dudley played for the Raiders from 1996-2000, a year with the Browns and three years with the Buccaneers). That’s his last name.

Played for Raiders. He played like 10 years in the NFL. So he’s got some good bloodlines.

6 ME:

Oh, you mean Ricky Dudley. I remember him. He was a really good tight end.

SEPTEMBER 2012

DM: When he’s in the game, the defense probably won’t nickel out. They’ll have their bigger guys in when he’s in. He’ll most likely have a linebacker covering him.

ME: I think he’ll win that battle most of the time.

DM: Yeah.

PHOTO/GREG BULLARD

DM: He was a high school quarterback and linebacker from Cashion. He’s one of those cats who brings his lunch pail and gets after it. He’s a real tough, physical, ultra-smart guy. You’ve got to have guys like him that make it all work.

He can be in the backfield and in our three-backs formation. He can also be a tight end. He can be in a lot of special teams stuff. He’s a real physical kid. And he’s pretty athletic because, like I said, he played QB in high school.

He’s a good guy to have because he lets you tweak a thing or two. He’s a versatile guy. During a short yardage situation, you can sneak him out in to the flat, or you can put him out wide. You can put him on the line and motion him into the backfield. You can move him around a lot because of all the things he can do.

DAVID GLIDDEN DM:

He had a great spring. He’s a guy who’s always in the right spots.

He’s a little gym rat. He makes a lot of plays. He’s not going to wow you in pregame warm up because of his size, but he does everything right and he’s reliable.

He’s real smart. He’s instinctive – those kinds of things. He’s a good player. He’s been nicked up just a little bit. He’ll be OK, though. He’ll be ready.

ME:

He sounds like another OSU ball catcher with uncommon knowledge for a freshman.

DM: He just gets it. You’ve got instinctive players and guys that are non-instinctive players. You’ve got guys who require a lot of reps, and you’ve got guys that just know.

They’re instinctive. I would classify him as an instinctive player, which is good, because, like I said, he’s not the fastest or the biggest, but he’s always in the right spots. He’s reliable. He always catches the ball.

He does a lot of things you want guys to do, but sometimes it takes them a little longer to figure it out. It doesn’t take him very long.

DM: I think he caught 18 balls and had two touchdowns last year. As a true freshman, he plays our “H,” which is the inside receiver to the left in our base formation.

He has tremendous body quickness. We call it “twitch.” He has really above average ball skills. He’s really good at catching the ball with his hands. He attacks the ball well. And he’s a really tough kid. For a little guy, he’s really tough.

JOSH STEWART He’s got a lot of upside. He’s kind of what we’re looking for inside. Our outside guys are the taller, faster guys, and the inside guys are most of the time twitchy punt returner types who match up well against some of the linebackers and guys like that.

ME: He’s also a hard and shifty runner.

I remember he made his cousin miss on a tackle against A&M and got a nice gain out of it.

DM: Yeah, he kind of got our comeback started. He hit a little flat route, took off and got about 30 yards out of it. That’s where we ignited after that play earlier in the third quarter.

He runs well. I think his dominant trait is his ability to make you miss.

ME: I remember Josh Cooper had a lot of catches and runs like that during his career. He’s very similar to Josh.

DM: Yeah. Josh Cooper was a little bigger, but he did a lot of the same stuff. Josh Cooper was probably about 5’ 11,” and Josh “Stew” is probably 5’ 9.”

Size is really not an issue inside.

It’s just about catching the little stuff and making big stuff out of it.

PHOTO/GARY LAWSON

TORRANCE CARR DM: He’s another big guy. He’s about 6’ 3” and 220 pounds. Really, really athletic. Really good ball skills. He was a high school quarterback, and he played a little bit of receiver.

He’s still learning the position, but he’s going to be a good player. I just think that he needs every rep he can get and every opportunity to watch film and try to absorb things.

When you get redshirted like he did as a freshman, you may play receiver, but you’re just over there running the scout team cards. It’s not like you’re running our offense. You’re running somebody else’s offense. So, he’s really just had this spring at that position.

He needs a ton of work. But he has a lot of upside and he’s a bigger target, too.

BLAKE JACKSON

BLAKE WEBB

DM: Blake is a bigger kid, a tight end guy,

DM: He’s an incoming freshman who ran

but he’s got more of a receiver’s body.

He’s about 225, 230 pounds. He’s a little bigger than a lot of the other receivers.

He can body up on guys. He’s real long and he can outmuscle some guys for the ball, use his length and things like that. Also, he’s a good, solid blocker on the perimeter when we’re throwing little screens and stuff out there. He’s a good player

a 4.47 in the 40-yard dash.

That’s an electronic 4.47. That is like running a 3.43 if someone’s clocking you by hand because of the delay - because you’re 40 yards away from them. They pick their hand up off the ground and you’re always a little late pushing the button on the stopwatch. Whereas, if someone is clocked electronically, it’s dead spot on.

He was the fastest kid out of our new crew. We really like him, his instinctiveness and his ball skills.

7

JOHN GOODLETT DM: On the other side, we have Josh Goodlett who’s a walk-on transfer, a kid from Indiana State who went to Owasso High School. We really like him, too. He does a lot of good stuff.

It’s time for another exciting year of OSU sports.

First, I’d like to thank you for helping us set another record for football season ticket sales.

At press time, sales at topped the 44,000 mark, with the potential for more records due to fall with student sales. Your support has made the current era of OSU athletics one of the most successful in the history of the university.

Your contributions to facilities have made a profound and immediate impact on recruiting. Your willingness to endow scholarship funds has allowed us to better support some of our Olympic sports, like TRACK AND FIELD and TENNIS. This year looks to be as exciting as the last. Our FOOTBALL TEAM is ranked in the preseason TOP 25 poll, and the SOCCER TEAM, which was RANKED 5TH IN THE COUNTRY before the season began, is already off to another good start. Our MEN’S BASKETBALL TEAM fared well in an exhibition tour in Spain, giving them valuable preseason experience.

We talk about it a lot, but season ticket sales are the lifeblood of the athletic department. Season

2

tickets pay for the future of our student-athletes, which makes you directly responsible for the opportunities they receive. Without you, much of what we do would not be possible.

We hit a record this year in football, let’s break records in soccer, men’s and women’s basketball and wrestling, too.

As always, thank you for your continued support of OSU athletics. I hope to see you at the games.

MIKE HOLDER DIRECTOR OF INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETICS

SEPTEMBER 2012

Former OSU Men’s Golf Coach OSU Class of 1973

the

PLAYBOOK

SEPTEMBER 2012 VOL.6 NO.1

features

22 HITTING THE GROUND SWINGING 32 MEET THE RECEIVERS 50 A LITTLE DEFENSIVE 58 TEAM PLAYER 64 BACK IN BLACK 72 RANDLE WORKS THE CARWASH 78 OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR

departments

4

LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR

20 THE 150 28 PARKING MAP 84 WRAYVINGS

3

COVER PHOTOGRAPHY BY PHIL SHOCKLEY

Brodrick Brown 40 THE ISLANDERS

No man is an island ... unless you’re a cornerback...

PHOTO/GARY LAWSON

POINTS FOR 36 ESCAPE DECEMBER 2011

STORY BY

Clay Billman

PHOTO BY

Phil Shockley

JAMAL PARKS WRESTLES LIKE HIS LIFE DEPENDS ON IT. If it weren’t for wrestling, he says, “I’d probably be in jail, prison or dead.”

That’s not hyperbole. That’s not cliché. It’s the honest voice of a young man whose future was forever changed when he first heard the call of a junior high coach and discovered a sport that gave him direction … a purpose … a lifeline.

“Wrestling don’t owe me anything,” Parks says. “I owe everything to wrestling and the people who have helped me out. I don’t know where I’d be … I wouldn’t be working at McDonald’s, I can tell you that right now. Wrestling has given me a lot.”

His current coach agrees.

“No question, wrestling has saved him in a lot of ways,” says Oklahoma State head coach John Smith. “HE’S IN A LOT BETTER PLACE BECAUSE OF THE SPORT. HE’S GOING TO BE IN A LOT BETTER PLACE WHEN HE’S DONE HERE BECAUSE OF THE SPORT.” Growing up in Tulsa, Parks’ childhood was unstable, to say the least.

Fatherless since age four, Parks and his mother clashed from an early age.

“We butted heads all the time,” he recalls. “She moved around a lot . She made promises to me and broke them multiple times … just a lot of stuff.”

His escape was athletics, primarily football. In a state where youth wrestlers often get their start in kindergarten, Parks was a stranger to the sport until 8th grade.

“It’s an interesting story,” he says.

“I had just finished football, and the junior high coach was talking to everybody about wrestling. I came in at the tail end of it. All I heard was ‘wrestling.’ I was into WWE (pro wrestling) and stuff like that. I had never seen a real wrestling match. I didn’t even know what it was.

“The coach said, ‘You’ll be in the best shape of your life. It will help you for football.’ So I was like, ‘Why not?

Football season is over. Why not try something new?’ I tried it and fell in love with it instantly.”

Part of the appeal at the time, Parks says, was the sport’s aggressive nature.

“IT WAS JUST LIKE A FIGHT,” he says.

“It’s a funny thing. Up until I started wrestling, I was suspended for fighting almost every day I was in school.

When I started wrestling and doing well, I never really had any more problems in school. I did better in school. I actually wanted to do better. ”When I first got into it, I didn’t have any expectations at all,” Parks adds, “but as I started getting better and better, I thought to myself, ‘HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I LOST? NOT MANY.’ That’s when I realized I was good at it. After my 8th grade year I decided to stop football and focus my energy on wrestling, because I felt like it would take me the farthest.”

While he began to experience success on the mat, his home life continued to fall apart. By his freshman year at Union High School, Parks’ strained relationship with his mother finally came to a head.

“My mom moved away,” he says.

“She left me with my sister at the beginning of my freshman year.”

Parks slept on the couch in the onebedroom apartment.

“WE DIDN’T HAVE ANYTHING,” HE SAYS. “WE PAWNED EVERYTHING SO WE COULD HAVE SOMETHING TO EAT. It wasn’t the easiest life, but Christina did everything she could for me. She’s more like my mother than my sister.”

His high school coach, Corey Clayton (a former OSU wrestler under Smith), was keenly aware of Parks’ situation.

“One day we were loading up from a freestyle tournament, and he asked me if I wanted to come live with his family. That’s basically how it happened. I wasn’t expecting it. I didn’t ask him. I didn’t mind sleeping on a couch. He just asked me, and I said, ‘Okay.’

“It’s given me a lot. He was kind of a father figure in my life, giving me a male role model. He just showed me what I needed to do. Kept me on track. Kept me right. Wrestling has given me discipline like you won’t find anywhere else.”

Parks continued to excel on the mat, but still didn’t envision a future in the sport beyond high school.

“I never thought it would take me to college until my sophomore year when I won my first state title,” he says.

Parks would go on to win two more Class 6A titles for the Redskins, amassing a 138-12 prep record.

Named the state of Oklahoma’s Outstanding Wrestler, HE WAS WIDELY REGARDED AS THE TOP PROSPECT IN THE 135-POUND WEIGHT CLASS COMING OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL. “That’s how I got here,” he says.

STORY CONTINUES

37

“Here” is the Oklahoma State University wrestling room, five years later.

The transition from high school star to Division I student-athlete hasn’t been smooth, however, on or off the mat.

“Jamal was obviously one of our top kids coming out of high school,” Smith says, “but we knew he was going to be a project wrestling-wise, because he really won a lot on speed and quickness and didn’t have a lot of skills on top or on bottom. It’s been a developmental process with him.

“In his personal life, there were some hard times for him,” Smith adds.

“He didn’t grow up in a traditional family, by any means—the furthest thing from it—and some of that I think carried over into college.”

Smith says Parks is still “a work in progress,” but is proud of strides he’s made.

“HE SURE HAS GROWN UP A LOT, AND HE’S GOT A GREAT WORK ETHIC. WE DON’T EVER WORRY ABOUT HIM ACADEMICALLY NOW. We don’t worry if he’s not getting up and going to class … There’s a level of responsibility that he’s taking on and we have a lot of confidence in his self-reliance with where he’s going.”

As a wrestler, Parks has become an integral part of OSU’s secondranked squad.

“Athletically, he’s obviously improved. He’s put himself in position as a senior now to be one of the best at the weight. It’s a very competitive weight, year-in and year-out, but he has high goals for his season this year.”

38

DECEMBER 2011

LAST SEASON, PARKS EARNED ALLAMERICA HONORS WITH A FIFTH PLACE FINISH AT NATIONALS. Smith says the key to making the leap to become a national champion is mental.

“You’ve got to see yourself as that person,” he says. “National champions can look in the mirror and see a person that can be the best. It’s about building that confidence and accepting responsibility that I am that person.

And there can’t be fear of it. There’s a big difference between being an AllAmerican and an NCAA champion.

There are seven others who are AllAmericans. There’s only one champ.”

Parks possesses the tools to win it all, Smith says.

“JAMAL IS DOING A LOT OF THE RIGHT THINGS RIGHT NOW, but he needs to continue to see himself in the mirror as that guy … a strong-minded person that deals with adversity, that can come from behind, that can stretch leads out, that can separate himself from 90 percent of the weight class.

There can’t be any weaknesses.”

In high school, Parks dominated opponents with his athleticism and speed. At the collegiate level, he’s had to develop unfamiliar techniques in order to win.

“I’m still fairly new to the sport,” Parks says. “I’M STILL LEARNING. I basically didn’t have to do that many moves in high school. I wasn’t used to people riding me or having to ride somebody or having to do anything critical in the match because I’d be so far ahead. But once I got here,

every guy is tough. Every guy has his strengths. My strength is on my feet, but I was weak on bottom and top.

Now I can ride and get that minute (bonus).” That’s something I’ve had to work on, and I know I have to keep working on it. YOU JUST HAVE TO ACKNOWLEDGE WHAT YOU’RE NOT GOOD AT AND BUILD ON IT.” Smith says Parks’ progression has been more of a struggle than most fans of the sport might realize.

“What people have misunderstood about Jamal more than anything, is how much development needed to take place,” he says. “I think everybody pictures him being athletic, quick … in wrestling that’s just a very small portion of what it takes. There are a lot of national champions who aren’t quick. It’s just an element of the sport. His speed and his quickness have got to be used in a style that allows him to be successful.

“I THINK PEOPLE THINK JAMAL CAN TAKE PEOPLE DOWN AT WILL. THAT’S FAR FROM THE TRUTH. Jamal has to earn hard takedowns. I think there have been times that he’s held back a little bit. He came into a program that wanted him to be a dominating wrestler, and he struggled a little bit.

But I don’t see him holding back much this year. I think he’s got a good level of confidence.”

As a redshirt sophomore, he showed flashes of his potential by WINNING THE BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIP at 141 pounds, but failed to live up to his No. 2 national seed at the NCAA Championships.

“What kept me off the podium was a lot of things,” Parks admits. “Some bad habits. I was cutting too much weight. Some of it was mental. I just didn’t execute. It hurt really bad when I went in ranked second and didn’t

Without wrestling, without my diploma, I can’t do anything.

I’m stuck …

I need to wrestle.”

PHOTO / GARY LAWSON

come out with anything. After that, I had to get my mind right and come back and improve.”

PARKS ADMITS HE MADE COSTLY MISTAKES OFF THE MAT, AS WELL. “In high school I didn’t party, I didn’t drink. I didn’t do anything,” he says. “Wrestling was my party.

Wrestling was my drink. It was everything. It was something that I’ve had to rediscover in college. You can’t live that lifestyle and expect to accomplish great things. Some people can get away with it. I’m not one of those people. BASICALLY I’VE HAD TO LIVE A PRETTY SIMPLE LIFE TO ACCOMPLISH THE THINGS I WANT TO ACCOMPLISH.” Temptations are ever-present, he adds.

“You have to stay strong. There’s always temptation. My first couple years, I fell to those temptations, and

I did things that I shouldn’t have been doing. They’re not things that are very detrimental if you’re a regular, Average Joe student. I still made my grades …

If I was a regular student, I would have been fine. But I’m not. And I want to do some things that will last forever, so it’s not even a sacrifice. I just have to keep doing what I have to do to accomplish what I want to accomplish.”

Coach Smith says he considered kicking Parks off the team more than once.

“I was done,” Smith says. “I was getting rid of him. I was just at the point where he had no more chances.”

“At first when Coach Smith said he was going to kick me off the team, I was like, ‘You’re bluffing,’” Parks says. “But when I saw he was serious, I THOUGHT I’D LOST EVERYTHING. Without wrestling, without my diploma, I can’t do anything. I’m stuck … I need

to wrestle. I need to get my diploma.

I need to do something positive with my life. I can’t just act like I don’t care, because this is my life I’m talking about. It’s going to affect me for a long time, and I want to be involved in wrestling, so it really humbled me.”

“It’s hard to quit on someone who admits his mistakes,” Smith says.

“Half the people today won’t admit that they’re wrong, but Jamal would always be accountable. I appreciate that. He’s been worth the chances, because you know he wants it. You know that he doesn’t want to do some of the things that he did. We’re not perfect. We make mistakes. I’m not looking for perfection, but I expect big improvement.”

STORY CONTINUES

39

“That’s part of being a man,” Parks says. “That’s part of growing up. You have to admit when you’re wrong. I wasn’t doing the right things and me denying it was me just lying to myself and lying to the Michael Jordan of our sport, basically. Constantly denying that you’ve done anything wrong is going to get you nowhere. You’re going to be in a freaking abyss for the rest of your life if you keep doing that.”

“You’ve got to constantly fight to make changes,” Smith says. “It’s scary and intimidating at times. Can I do it?

Can I live up to it? He’s gone through all that, but the one thing that I really appreciate it is that he’s fought the whole way through.”

CURRENTLY RANKED NO. 2 at 149 pounds, Parks has his goals set on an individual championship and team title for the Cowboys.

“My goal is to help my team get better, first and foremost,” he says.

“If we are going to make it to the top, it’s not just going to fall to the rankings. It’s not like football, it’s not a popularity contest … 1 and 2 don’t always face off. Unexpected things can happen. So we have to bring our A game.

“LAST YEAR WAS REALLY A GOOD EXPERIENCE, GETTING OVER THAT HUMP TO BE ALL-AMERICAN. It really gave me a taste of what I need to do. Rankings really don’t mean anything to me.

In my mind I have to think of myself as the No. 1 guy, and everybody else is wrestling for second place. That’s basically how I have to look at it, and now it’s up to me to make it a reality.”

“There’s definitely a definition of a national champion,” Smith says. “He’s getting closer to that definition in a lot of ways with the changes he’s made

40

DECEMBER 2011

personally. I expect him to continue to fight, to make it as bloody as he has to for this opportunity.

“His work ethic in the room has changed from the time he was here until now. It’s unbelievable. I could literally not watch him in practice and know that he’s getting it done. That’s a good feeling as a coach.”

“It’s about character,” Parks says. “YOU HAVE TO WORK HARD WHEN NOBODY’S LOOKING. You can’t only go hard when your coach is hovering over you. That’s something that I’ve had to rediscover about myself.

“We have an outstanding staff with Zack Esposito, Coach (Eric) Guerrero and Coach Smith, along with Coach (Kenny) Monday. Those guys are the best of the best and point out things that I need to work on.”

“Early on he didn’t take a lot of advice,” Smith says. “There was a little bit of a struggle with listening and understanding. It hasn’t been an easy journey for any of us with Jamal.

It’s been tough. But it’s been worth it.

He’s going to be successful because of the commitment to making some changes, doing the right things and avoiding the temptations that can take you down.

“It’s easy to work with him now.

It’s easy to be his coach now.”

PARKS WILL GRADUATE IN MAY WITH A DEGREE IN EDUCATION, AND HOPES TO USE WHAT HE’S LEARNED TO HELP OTHERS IN THE SPORT. “I’m definitely going to wrestle international after I’m done here, so I’ll still be training. But at the same time I’ll be coaching other people.

That’s really my passion, teaching other people the sport. It feels good when you help somebody succeed

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

because of something you taught them. I don’t want to just keep my knowledge to myself.”

“HE’S GOING TO BE SUCCESSFUL THIS YEAR AND IN THE FUTURE,” Smith says.

“Wrestling has been the key in what he’s had the opportunity to do, and is going to do … I’m talking about getting a college education, possibly teaching and coaching anywhere he wants.”

Last year, Parks reunited with his biological father.

“He’s a firefighter in Kuwait.

He came and visited me, and that’s the first time I’ve seen him since I was four. He got to watch me wrestle for the first time ever in the Bedlam match. That relationship is going well …”

(Thanks to wrestling.)

41

the Honor

Roll

When OSU announced its scholarship endowment initiative, the athletic program was last in the Big 12. Now, more than halfway through the 10-year program, OSU leads the conference.

But we’re not finished yet.

OSU awards 229 full scholarships to student-athletes each year at a cost of $4.5 million. Each dollar freed up through endowed scholarships goes back into our programs.

Better equipment. Better facilities. Better support. Each dollar has a direct impact on the lives of our student-athletes.

“Each scholarship we endow secures the future of OSU athletics and provides more opportunities for our student-athletes on and off the field,” says Mike Holder, Vice President for Athletic Programs and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics.

This is the list of all the generous supporters who have helped to provide a bright Orange future. They are our Honor Roll.

To learn more about scholarship opportunities and how you may contribute, please contact Larry Reece (405-744-2824) or Matt Grantham (405-744-5938).

“It has been amazing to see 315 donors step up to get us past the $58 million mark in commitments to the Leave A Legacy campaign.

The bottom line is OSU supporters get it … scholarships help our studentathletes today while strengthening our athletic budget forever.”

64

— LARRY REECE, SENIOR ASSOCIATE ATHLETIC DIRECTOR, DEVELOPMENT

AUGUST 2013

B A SE B A L L

6 . 5

F U L L S C H OL A R S H I P

Dennis and Karen Wing (2) Hal and Lynne Tompkins

Jennifer and Steven Grigsby

H A L F S C H OL A R S H I P

Mike Bode and Preston Carrier

Sally Sparks

QUA RT E R S C H OL A R S H I P

Bryant and Carla Coffman David and Grace Helmer Jill Rooker FOOTBALL

Martha Seabolt Sandy Lee Dr. Scott Anthony 3 0. 5

F U L L S C H OL A R S H I P

Bob Norris Bryant and Carla Coffman / The Merkel Foundation David LeNorman Dennis and Karen Wing (2) Dr. Mark and Beth Brewer Jim Click John and Gail Shaw Ken and Jimi Davidson

Leslie Dunavant Mike and Kristen Gundy Mike and Robbie Holder Ron Stewart Ross and Billie McKnight Sandy Lee Tom and Sandra Wilson Wray and Julie Valentine

H A L F S C H OL A R S H I P

Cindy Hughes Donald Coplin Doug Thompson Greg Casillas Ike and Marybeth Glass Jim and Lynne Williams

John and Patti Brett Mike and Judy Johnson Sally Sparks State Rangers Tom Naugle

QUA RT E R S C H OL A R S H I P

Al and Martha Strecker Arthur “Andy” Johnson, Jr. Arthur Couch Barry and Roxanne Pollard Bill and Ruth Starr Brad and Leah Gungoll Brian K. Pauling Bridgecreek Investment Management LLC Bryan Close David and Cindy Waits David and Gina Dabney Dr. Berno Ebbesson Dr. Ron and Marilynn McAfee Eddy and Deniece Ditzler Flintco Fred and Janice Gibson Fred and Karen Hall Howard Thill

James and LaVerna Cobb Jerry and Lynda Baker Jerry and Rae Winchester John P. Melot John S. Clark Ken and Leitner Greiner Kent and Margo Dunbar Paul and Mona Pitts R. Kirk Whitman Randal and Carol White Roger and Laura Demaree Shelli Osborn Steve and Diane Tuttle Tony and Finetta Banfield

GE N E R A L

WOME N ’ S B A SKE T B A L L

1 . 2 5

H A L F S C H OL A R S H I P

F U L L S C H OL A R S H I P

Terry and Martha Barker

Brad and Margie Schultz Ken and Jimi Davidson

QUA RT E R S C H OL A R S H I P

David and Judy Powell Kenneth and Susan Crouch

Sally Sparks

GR A DUAT E AT HL E T E

0.7 5

Tom and Cheryl Hamilton

ME N ’ S B A SKE T B A L L

18.5

F U L L S C H OL A R S H I P

A.J. and Susan Jacques Brett and Amy Jameson Calvin and Linda Anthony Chuck and Kim Watson Dennis and Karen Wing (2) Douglas and Nickie Burns Griff and Mindi Jones

James and Mary Barnes Jim Vallion Ken and Jimi Davidson Kent and Margo Dunbar KimRay Inc. Mitch Jones Memorial

Baloo and Maribeth Subramaniam

Bill and Marsha Barnes David and Julie Ronck Dr. Mark and Susan Morrow Jay and Connie Wiese

QUA RT E R S C H OL A R S H I P

Bill and Sally Cunningham Calvin and Linda Anthony Donald Coplin

QUA RT E R S C H OL A R S H I P

Dr. Scott and Lynne Anthony Gary and Sue Homsey Holloman Family Michael and Heather Grismore

Rick and Suzanne Maxwell Robert and Sharon Keating Steve and Suzie Crowder Terry and Donna Tippens 3 . 2 5

F U L L S C H OL A R S H I P

David and Julie Ronck

Dennis and Karen Wing

H A L F S C H OL A R S H I P

Stillwater National Bank

WOME N ’ S E QU E ST R I A N

Bob and Elizabeth Nickles Garland and Penny Cupp

Richard and Joan Welborn

ME N ’ S T E N N I S

0. 2 5

QUA RT E R S C H OL A R S H I P

Tom and Cheryl Hamilton

David and Gina Dabney WOME N ’ S G OL F

0. 5

QUA RT E R S C H OL A R S H I P

Amy Weeks

Kent and Margo Dunbar

WOME N ’ S T E N N I S

W R E ST L ING

0. 2 5

10. 2 5

F U L L S C H OL A R S H I P

A.J. and Susan Jacques Bruce and Nancy Smith Chuck and Kim Watson Lon and Jane Winton OSU Wrestling – White Jacket Club / Gallagher Endowed Wrestling Scholarship OSU Wrestling – White Jacket Club / Myron Roderick Endowed Wrestling Scholarship Mark and Lisa Snell QUA RT E R S C H OL A R S H I P

Danny and Dana Baze / Cory and Mindy Baze John and Beverly Williams R.K. Winters

0. 5

QUA RT E R S C H OL A R S H I P

S OF T B A L L

0. 2 5

QUA RT E R S C H OL A R S H I P

H A L F S C H OL A R S H I P

QUA RT E R S C H OL A R S H I P

Dr. Mark and Susan Morrow

Jill Rooker Jon and Nancy Patton Richard and Linda Rodgers

Jamie Maher

Sally Sparks Sandy Lee Stan Clark

ME N ’ S T R ACK

Don and Mary McCall John and Caroline Linehan

QUA RT E R S C H OL A R S H I P

H A L F S C H OL A R S H I P

ME N ’ S G OL F

Mike Bode and Preston Carrier

H A L F S C H OL A R S H I P

QUA RT E R S C H OL A R S H I P

Bob and Joan Hert Neal Seidle

6

Susan Anderson 0. 2 5

QUA RT E R S C H OL A R S H I P

Tom and Cheryl Hamilton

PHOTO / BRUCE WATERFIELD

OSU Wrestling – White Jacket Club / Ray Murphy Endowed Wrestling Scholarship OSU Wrestling – White Jacket Club / Tommy Chesbro Endowed Wrestling Scholarship The Cobb Family

65

THE

IMPACTOF

GOING 12-1 IS MORE THAN JUST THE WINS. WINNING THE BIG 12 AND BEING THE FIESTA BOWL WINNER IS MORE THAN JUST CLAIMING THOSE TITLES.

PHOTO / BRUCE WATERFIELD

“You don’t sell a lot of replica jerseys in multiple colors without them being in demand because your team is

Wins, especially on the national

OSU fans sat around daydreaming

winning,” says Kyle Wray, vice president

stage, benefit the university beyond

about winning the Big 12 and getting

for enrollment management & market-

simply having a nice win/loss record.

a shot at a BCS game, possibly even

ing. “No one wants to wear those

It makes recruiting easier for the next

a national championship. Prior to the

jerseys if your team goes 5-7. But as the

couple of years. It brings in more

first game, however, it wasn’t about

team keeps winng? Absolutely.

money to the athletic department and

whether or not the team would win,

“And there’s a monetary benefit

the university. It puts OSU out there

but which new uniform combination

there. You could talk about ticket sales.

in front of people who might not ever

it would be wearing when it did. Also,

We’ve done this when teams were

see the brand.

where could they get one of the new

6-6, then 7-5. You don’t have people

replica jerseys.

buying more season tickets during the

2

At the beginning of the season,

all the talk about the football team

And then the season started and

season if your team is heading for 6-6,

revolved around its potential and the

the wins began to pile up. More and

but you do have people buying more

new uniforms.

more people went out and bought

season tickets and more single-game

record amounts of OSU gear, which

tickets as you’re going 12-1 and

in turn generated more and more

winning the Fiesta Bowl.”

APRIL 2012

revenue for the university.

But that’s just the bottom line stuff.

“We started off the fall ahead,

We’ve done some other things.

The more season tickets the football

so I don’t know that I can attribute

We’ve been proactive. The regional

team sells, the more funds go back

a whole lot of that to football, but I

and national attention does not hurt.

into the Athletic Department operat-

know it’s a whole lot better when

When we do well in athletics, it gives

ing budget, which in turn allows the

you’re in that position than when

us some marketing opportunities

department to better fund the rest

you’re not. It certainly doesn’t hurt

that we don’t have to pay for, and that

of the athletic programs. Make no

your application numbers.

helps everybody.

mistake, operating an athletic depart-

“It doesn’t hurt the Monday after

“You’re going to have a professor

ment, especially in Big 12 country, is

bedlam when all those high school

in the Spears School of Business

an arms race.

sophomores, juniors and seniors,

who’s going to have more students

HOWEVER, THE INCREASED NATIONAL EXPOSURE FOR A FOOTBALL TEAM IN TALK TO POTENTIALLY PLAY FOR A NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GOES BEYOND THE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT.

even fourth-graders, can wear their

in his class this fall than before, and

Orange and stick their chests out and

some of those students got a positive

be proud. That’s a big deal. We’re the

effect from the marketing opportunity

popular choice in the state right now

created by success in football.”

because of the victory in Bedlam. and minds of in the high schools

WHAT SUCCESS IN ATHLETICS DOES IS FOCUS MORE ATTENTION ON THE SCHOOL ITSELF. People outside an institution

“There’s a general feel-good,

across the state, so when you win it,

don’t see the athletic programs as

yes, I think it gives you a leg up.”

separate from the institution, they

popularity, public relations opportunity you have as well,” says Wray.

There’s a constant battle for hearts

The increased national exposure

see it as a part, as a representative.

THERE’S NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN OSU THE SCHOOL AND OSU THE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT. IT’S JUST OSU.

“Every time you tune into your local

on account of the success of

radio station, whether it’s sports talk,

the football team has come in

your favorite local affiliate or ESPN

conjunction with a rise in out-of-state

and hear something like, ‘Cowboys

applications, however. Again, it could

beat Arizona,’ or ‘Cowboys in Big 12

be a coincidence, there’s probably

going on at a university? Absolutely

lead after win over Texas,’ you’d have

some correlation. When a piece

not,” says Wray. “The most important

to pay millions in advertisements to

of marketing material arrives in a

thing we do is educate young people.

get that exposure. It’s what the Ohio

prospective student’s mailbox from

OSU is ‘Research, Instruction and

States, the Alabamas, the LSUs of the

OSU, even if they live out of state,

Extension.’ Athletics plays a supporting

world get year in and year out as a

there’s the chance that they might be

role in that, but the most important

result of success in football.

more receptive to the brand because

thing is educating young people,

“Well, we got that as a result of

“Are sports the most important thing

of having seen and heard OSU being

and then asking them to go out into

success in football this year. It’s free

talked about in the media.

communities and give back.

advertising. It’s positive things being said about your institution – football

“EVERY STATE THAT WE RECRUIT, THE NUMBERS ARE UP,”

result of winning in sports, we should

in this case – but your name is in

says Wray. “Texas is number one, obvi-

just all just open our arms and say

there. It’s guilt by association. EVERY

ously, and north Texas leads the way.

thanks. You can look at some of the

TIME THAT’S TALKED ABOUT IN LOCAL, REGIONAL OR NATIONAL NEWS, IT’S A POSITIVE FOR THE INSTITUTION.”

We’re seeing a huge increase there.

other schools across the country who

The extra exposure we get in Dallas

don’t have success in athletics and

and Houston is paying big dividends.

they wish they were in our position.

We won’t draw the line between foot-

But we’re also seeing increases in

“When positive things happen as a

“We try to market all the academic

ball and enrollment definitively, but Wray

Arkansas, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado

programs the best way we know how,

and others believe there’s a connection.

and New Mexico.

and when we win in athletics and it

Enrollment applications were up at the

“You never go into a recruiting

beginning of the school year, about 2000

cycle for the institution saying, ‘my

ahead of the same time last year, but last

best strategy is hoping the football

year’s football team did pretty well, too.

team does well. You can’t do that.

gets that kind of attention, we hitch our wagon to that star a little bit.”

3

NO MAN IS AN ISLAND ...

UNLESS YOU’RE A CORNERBACK.

THE ISLANDE When OSU starting cornerbacks

Brodrick Brown or Justin Gilbert line up across from a wide

receiver, if they turn around and look back, there is no one there. No safeties. No linebackers. Only the endzone. They are the last line of defense against an opposing offense’s push for points.

It’s a lonely, vital position, and one that requires a unique kind of athlete.

2

“They have to be the most disciplined players on the field,” says OSU cornerbacks coach Jason Jones. “You have a job to do, and you have to do your job. You can’t be selfish and try to do too much.

The one time you try to do too much, it could be the one play that they end up capitalizing on and scoring a touchdown.”

S T O RY

SEPTEMBER 2012

CONTINUES

PHOTOGRAPHY BY PHIL SHOCKLEY

ERS 3

In addition to discipline, Jones says cornerbacks need two more important characteristics. First, they have to be extraordinarily competitive.

“They play on an island,” says Jones. “The passer is going to force those guys into one-onone matchups all the time. They have to be willing to compete.

Second, they have to have what he calls a “short-term memory.”

“Every play is not going to be a good play. You may give up a touchdown. You may give up an explosive play or big gain. You have to put it behind you and go onto the next down.

“That’s what you have to have to be a cornerback.”

In a battle between the cornerback and the wide receiver, the receiver has the advantage. He’s running forward instead of backward. He knows which route his running, and at what depth he’s running it.

He knows if the play is a run or pass.

The corner knows none of this. He has to read the offensive formation, take what he knows from film study and assess the situation. As soon as the ball is hiked, he has to react and make a decision.

Take the slant route. The receiver typically takes two steps off the line, then cuts for the middle of the field. The quarterback, upon taking the ball from center, reads the defense then fires the ball. All of this takes less than two seconds.

4

“If they have the opportunity to intercept the pass, we expect them to catch it.”

PHOTO/GREG BULLARD

OSU CORNERBACKS COACH JASON JONES SEPTEMBER 2012

“The cornerback backpedals. He’s taking two steps back then he has to drive that foot in the ground and close on the slant,” say Jones. “We always tell them to drive to the collision point. Slants are always thrown slightly ahead of the receiver, so we break and drive to a point in front of them. We’re going to meet where we think the ball is going to be thrown. We’re either going to break it up or catch it, or if he catches it, make the tackle.”

OSU’s takeaway philosophy adds another level of complication to the position, inserting a bit of well-rehearsed risk taking. If there’s an opportunity for an interception, defensive backs (along with the rest of the defense) are not just encouraged to go get it — it’s expected.

“We put a big emphasis on, ‘If you have the opportunity to intercept the pass, intercept the pass,’” says Jones. “I try not to over-coach them. We recruited them because they’re athletic, and most athletes have confidence and believe in their ability. If they have the opportunity to intercept the pass, we expect them to catch it.”

OSU cornerbacks are held accountable for possible interceptions in practice.

There’s someone counting, usually a graduate assistant. At the end of the practice, for every dropped or missed interception, the entire position unit does up-downs (an exercise where starting from a standing position, you drop to a push-up, and then pop back to your feet). For each drop, they do five up-downs.

“We do it as a unit, as a team,” says Jones. “In a game, that dropped interception could make the difference between winning and losing. So we hold them accountable.

“They put a lot of peer pressure on each other. A guy like Brodrick, he’s going to catch it and if Justin drops one (not that Justin’s going to drop one), Brodrick would be mad and say, ‘Hey, you shoulda caught that. I’m doing up-downs because of you.’

So they put a lot of peer pressure on each other. It works.”

Because cornerback is such a difficult position to play, the Cowboy coaching staff scours the country looking for prospects every year, and the search is not limited to players already playing the position.

“Everyone wants to play offense,” says Jones. “People fill the seats to see touchdowns, so a lot of your best players are playing on the offensive side of the ball.”

Jones typically watches both the defensive backs and the wide receivers when he scouts a practice or camp. If there’s an athletic wideout who may not have great hands, he becomes a candidate for defensive back. Sometimes, they’ll look at athletic quarterbacks.

“That’s what happened with Justin Gilbert and Jonovan Griffin,” says Jones.

In those cases, it takes convincing.

“They are so used to playing offense.

They like to score touchdowns and get the attention. It took me awhile to convince Justin. He had offers from people telling him he could be a wide-out. Some were telling him he could play offense and defense. I had to convince him. I had to convince his high school coach. I had to convince mom. ‘Just trust me. He has the ability where if he focuses and plays corner, athletic-wise, if he plays as well as I think he will, he has the chance to play on Sundays.

“I had to convince Jonovan Griffin.

He had offers as a wide receiver from several schools, so trying to convince him to play defensive back was a challenge.

It’s a comfort zone for them. That’s what they’ve always done. It’s easy. This spring he was going through a slight learning curve because he’s never backpedaled before. Now, if you watch him backpedal, you can’t tell.

“If they are willing to continue to learn and fight through that learning curve, it usually works out for the best.”

Jones joined the Cowboys prior to the 2008 season, the same year Brown showed up as a freshman. In that time, he’s coached Perrish Cox, Andrew McGee (both first-team All-Big 12 cornerbacks ), as well as Jacob Lacey (who’s playing for the Indianapolis Colts). Jones coached corners at Alabama (as a graduate assistant), Tulsa and Rice prior to arriving at OSU, and he started at defensive back for Alabama.

Brown and Gilbert, his latest protégés, were just picked by KC Joyner of ESPN.com as part of the second-best secondary in the country. Joyner even listed Gilbert as the No. 1 cornerback in the country last season (though Brown might have something to say about that particular assessment).

The Big 12 is a pass-happy conference, and if a team is going to be successful, it needs strong play from its cornerbacks.

Gilbert and Brown were instrumental in OSU leading the Big 12 in scoring defense. They were good. Great, even.

This year, they could be even better.

“I’m expecting great things from them,” says Jones. “From what I’ve heard from my strength and conditioning coaches, they’ve had great off-seasons. They’ve worked hard. I’m expecting them to have a better year than they had last year. I think both of those guys, they sort of push each other. When they get out there on the field, they compete against the wideouts, but they also compete against each other. If Brodrick breaks up a pass, Justin will intercept one.

“I’m expecting them to have a great year.

I think they’re good enough they can play with anybody in the conference and anybody in the country.”

5

S T O RY

CONTINUES

The last two years, his job was Justin Blackmon. Guarding a first-round, top-5 NFL draft pick is bound to make

PHOTO/BRODY SCHMIDT/WWW.OSTATEPHOTO.COM

you a better defensive back. The great ones do more than just refuse to back down. They seek out the challenge. Prior to the Texas A&M game last season, Brown dropped by Jones’ office to talk about A&M wide-out Jeff Fuller.

“Everyone knew last year the A&M game was a big game for us,” says Jones. “We felt as a staff that winning that game could give us a lot of momentum and give our players a lot of confidence to finish out the season. They had a lot of good players. One of them in particular was Fuller.

“Brodrick came into my office Tuesday before practice, and said, ‘Coach, do you want to win this game?’ And I said, ‘Yeah, I want to win this game.’ He said, ‘We need to stop Fuller.’ I said, ‘No kidding.’

He said, ‘Well, if you want to win, then you

BRODRICK BROWN

The economics major from Houston will enter his senior season with 28 straight starts. He finished 2012 with nine tackles

secondteam All-American, first-team AllBig 12 (coaches and AP), a Thorpe Award semifinalist and a Lott IMPACT Trophy semifinalist. He had five interceptions, and 15 pass breakups. Unlike in the Fiesta Bowl, and was a

some of his teammates, he has always played cornerback. On the field, he must be accounted for.

“Quarterbacks watch films just like we do,” says Brown. “They watch what I like to do. They’ll still throw my way. I have to be on my toes so they don’t dump one over my head. I always have to be ready.

I don’t know that I’ve ever gotten into any quarterback’s head, but I’m pretty sure they are aware of me out there.”

The one knock anyone could make on Brown is his height. For a corner, he’s short.

6

“He’s only about 5’8”, 5’9” with high heels on,” says Jones. “I think his entire life, all he’s heard is that he’s too small, so he uses that. He plays with a chip on his shoulder to prove everybody wrong. He’s from Westville High School in Houston.

That’s a good school, always has college scouts in and out. A lot of people passed on him. He goes out every week to prove those who said he was too small wrong.

He has a lot of fight and a lot of toughness. He loves to compete. He doesn’t care who you are, or how big you are. That’s what you want in a player.”

When Brown was a redshirt freshman, he played on the scout team, and in every practice, he lined up on Dez Bryant.

Jones says Dez would call him out.

“Dez would say, ‘You’re too short. You’re just a rookie,’” says Jones. “Brodrick would get right up in Dez’s face. Some days, Dez would get him, and some days, Brodrick would get Dez. He was just a freshman right out of high school, but even then,

he wouldn’t back down.”

SEPTEMBER 2012

put me on him.’

“I said, ‘He’s 6’3”, 230 pounds. Are you ready for that?’ He said, ‘Coach, if you want to win, you’ll put me on him.’ So that’s what I did. We started watching tape, and our whole game plan was to match Brodrick up on him.

“And that tells you the type of person he is, and the competitiveness he has within.

He’s an outstanding young man,” says Jones. “He’s what you want in a player.

You don’t have to worry about him having off-the-field issues. He’s not going to put himself or the team in a tough situation where he’d embarrass himself or his family.

He’s a good student in the classroom.”

Gilbert’s assessment of his teammate echoes that of his coach.

“He knows he has to play with a chip on his shoulder because of his height,” says the junior. “I think that’s what motivates him to be the corner back that he is. He’s ferocious. He’s not afraid to come down and make a tackle.

He plays like a linebacker.”

Gilbert does have one knock on Brown, however.

“I don’t like the fact that he always tells people he’s faster than me,” he says. “He won’t race me.”

Brown, like any good corner, likes being out “on the island,” and he loves playing in the Big 12.

“It’s a pass-happy conference,” says Brown. “Teams like to throw the ball 67 percent of the time. Passes are going to come your way. Just knowing that every game you’re going to have plays coming your way, and you can really showcase your cover skills and knowledge of the game. The game is on your shoulders, the secondary’s shoulders. You can’t give up the deep play.”

Brown spent his summer training hard, and expects that his teammates have done so as well.

“We have a lot of tenacity,” he says.

“We want to be the best. We want to get to the next level. It’s been three years of offense this and offense that. We had a pretty good defense last year. We led the country in turnovers. We don’t want to be a defense that just gets turnovers. We want to be a defense that forces teams to have fewer than 100 yards rushing and less than 100 yards passing. “ Ever yone is going to be good.

Calving Barnett is a force to be reckoned with. I think when he gets an opportunity he’s going to be out there manhandling those offensive linemen.

You have to look out for him. Then you have D-Lowe (Daytawion Lowe) back there at safety. All the linebackers are excellent at what they do. You have Cooper Bassett and Ryan Robinson on the defensive front, so look out for them, too.

“I’m ready for this upcoming season.

I’m ready to get this underway.”

JUSTIN GILBERT Gilbert has the ideal build for a cornerback.

“If you could make a corner, you’d want him the size of Justin Gilbert,” says Jones.

“About 6-foot, 195. He’s a 4.3 (second) 40 guy, so he can run. So if you could go out and just pick what you want, that’s what you want. He’s big enough where he can play with big receivers who’re 6’3”, 6’4”.

He’s fast enough where he can run with them, and he still possesses that quickness where he can change direction and move from side to side and transition smoothly.

That’s what you want in a defensive back.”

Unlike Brown, Gilbert was not a corner while attending high school in Huntsville, Texas. In fact, he had not played a down as cornerback until setting foot on the OSU campus. To be mentioned as the best corner in the country two years later by an ESPN analyst is no mean feat.

“I watched him play on a Friday night,” says Jones. “He was a quarterback, but if they needed to throw the ball, the brought in another guy and lined Gilbert up at wide receiver. If they had to punt, he punted it. He returned kicks. He returned punts.

The water boy would run out onto the field to give him water. He never left the field.”

He’s come a long way in two seasons.

“He’s an unbelievable athlete,” says Brown. “He’s only been doing this for two years? He’s still developing. He’s starting to get a good feel for being a corner, and still has a lot of room for improvement. But he has his mind made up that he’s a pure corner now, instead of a guy who returns kicks. He’s committed.”

“With it being one of the hardest positions to play, I feel fortunate to get to play it at this level,” says Gilbert. “The transition from quarterback to cornerback has been a long, bumpy road, but I think I’m catching on pretty well.”

In addition to coaching from Jones and his current and former teammates, Gilbert has studied some of the positions greats, such as Charles Woodson and Deion Sanders.

S T O RY

CONTINUES

7 PHOTO/GARY LAWSON

“I couldn’t ask for a better group.”

JASON JONES

PHOTO/GARY LAWSON

“Coach Jones has taught me everything I know about playing cornerback,” says Gilbert. “I don’t think there’s anyone who could’ve done it better. He made it very easy. He and (former Cowboy and graduate assistant) Andrew McGee worked with me step by step.”

“The light has come on for him,” says Jones. “You saw it start to happen halfway through his freshman year. I could see in practice that he was starting to understand the position, to get the defense down. He

8

SEPTEMBER 2012

had a really great spring. Now he’s starting to understand the defense. He’s only been playing the position for two years.

He has a lot of talent. He hasn’t hit his peak yet. Once he really gets it, he’ll be able to play for a long time.”

Gilbert’s freshman year, Jones assigned Brown to mentor him, and so perhaps a few of Brown’s traits have rubbed off.

Like Brown, Gilbert prefers taking on the offense’s best player in practice. This year, he’s always looking to line up against either Tracey Moore or Charlie Moore.

“Tracey, he’s a big power guy, so he helps me when I’m preparing for games against bigger receivers. Charlie, he’s a speedy guy, so he ensures that I have my technique down and do all the right things to stay with him.”

Also like Brown, Gilbert is not a man who enjoys being told he can’t do something.

“If you tell him he can’t do something, he’s going to do everything in his power to prove you wrong,” says Jones. “We’ll be in practice and doing a PAT field goal block. Offense is working on field goals,

PHOTO/GARY LAWSON

defense is working on blocks. The offensive coaches will mess with him and say, ‘Don’t worry about blocking him. Justin can’t block it.’ And he’ll just look up, then come off the edge and ‘BOOM!’ He blocks it.”

Like most of the Cowboy nation, Gilbert is ready for the season to start. He’s ready to hear the roar of the crowd and see just how good the D can be.

“We’re going to be as good as we were last year. We lost a couple of key players, but we have some guys who’re going to step up and fill the gap.”

HEDGEPETH

THE REST OF THE CREW Past Brown and Gilbert, it gets a little thin. Coach Young says the position group has the least depth of any on the defensive side of the ball. After those two, there

is little experience, but that doesn’t mean there’s a shortage of talent.

Andrae May, a senior, returns from a spring knee injury. Devin Hedgepeth, a junior, comes back after tearing his Achilles during the A&M game last season.

Jonovan Griffin and Miketavius Jones are ready to contribute after serving their redshirt seasons. And then there are incoming freshmen Ashton Lampkin and Kevin Peterson.

“Griffin will be a guy who has to grow up and get ready,” says Jones. “He has the talent and the athletic ability. He just has to learn the defense and understand what we’re doing, then he’ll be fine. Jones, if he has a good fall camp, can add some depth. Peterson and Lampkin, both incoming freshman, are bigger guys. We think they can help us this year.

“They all have ball skills. Griffin, he probably has the best hands in my room. If he has the opportunity to get an interception, it helps. I tell those guys, ‘If you were once a wide receiver, use the knowledge you gained from the offensive side of the ball to help you become a better defensive player.’”

Jones says the cornerbacks are a tightknit group, hanging out off the field and helping each other where they can.

“They get along like brothers. If one of them needs something, they go to each other. If one of them is going through something tough at home, they have each other to talk to. But at the same time, if we’re out of practice and something happens, they’ll clown each other. And if a guy had a bad practice, they say, ‘Hey, you’re better than that. Tomorrow, come out here and have a better day.’

“I couldn’t ask for a better group. By no means are they perfect, but they try to help each other. They are not selfish. They understand that our offense scores at a fast pace, and in order for us to win we have to be able to play a lot of people. All those guys have to know what’s going on.”

Otherwise, the island will be a very lonely place to be.

9

TOUGH GLOVE A STORY OF PERSISTENCE, PERFECTION AND PARENTAL GUIDANCE

32

APRIL 2012

STORY BY

Clay Billman

PHOTO BY

Phil Shockley

33

SOMETIME IN EARLY SUMMER,

CHELSEA GARCIA WILL PLAY HER LAST SOFTBALL GAME IN A COWGIRL UNIFORM. WHEN THE FINAL OUT IS TALLIED, THE SENIOR FROM MOORE, OKLA., WILL WALK OFF THE DIAMOND AS OKLAHOMA STATE’S ALL-TIME LEADER IN GAMES PLAYED, SOMEWHERE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF 230, DEPENDING ON POSTSEASON PLAY.

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

Minutes before the 2009 season opener in Arizona, head coach Rich Wieligman surprised Garcia by giving the freshman the starting nod at shortstop.

“My dad told me, ‘I’m driving to Tempe,’” Garcia recalls. “I was like, ‘Why? It’s a really long drive. I don’t even know if I’m going to play.’

“Mariah (Gearhart) was at short at the time, and I had no idea what Coach Wigs was going to do. When he read off the lineup I told him, ‘I don’t even practice there very often.’

He said, ‘You’ve played there all your life, so it should be second nature.’

My dad said, “See? It was good that I made the trip.’”

34

GARCIA HASN’T MISSED A START SINCE. (And her father hasn’t

missed many either. Tanilo Garcia estimates he’s driven about 150,000 miles to watch Cowgirl games.)

APRIL 2012

“Chelsea came in with an understanding that she’d have to win the position outright,” Wieligman says.

“We moved Mariah to third as a sophomore, which turned out to be a great move. She became one of the best third basemen in the country.”

GARCIA WENT ON TO BECOME OSU’S VERSION OF CAL RIPKEN, dubbed Major League Baseball’s “Iron Man” for his monumental streak of consecutive games played.

“I have a lot of aches and pains,” she admits, “but it would take something pretty drastic to get me out of the lineup. My back has hurt for a long time, but I would probably have to break it to not play. My summer coach back home (former Cowgirl Alysia Hamilton’s father, Martin Herman) always said there’s a difference between being injured and hurt.

You can play when you’re hurt.”

To make it through four seasons without missing a game is a feat in itself, especially for a player as physical and competitive as Garcia.

“I try to give it my all every time because it’s only going to last so long.

I guess if I hurt myself I can recuperate in the next couple years.”

“Chelsea’s done a tremendous job at short,” Wieligman says. “I’ve seen her dive in the 5-6 hole going away from home plate toward left field, turn around and throw it from her knees to get the runner out at first. She’s done it twice in her career, and both times I’m just sitting there thinking, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me.’ She makes some plays where you just sit there and go, ‘WOW!’ NOT MANY BIG LEAGUERS CAN MAKE THAT PLAY.” “I take a lot of pride in my defense,” she says. “I’ve always known shortstop, even though I’ve played other

positions. I was the only one who could catch when I was a kid, so I was a first baseman, but short is where I feel comfortable.”

While Garcia’s glove has always been steady, the coach says her hitting has been a pleasant surprise.

“I knew she could swing the bat a little bit, but she just brings so much to the defense,” Wieligman says. “Shortstop is a key position, and sometimes you lean a little bit toward defense versus offense at that position, but she’s done a great job on both sides of the ball.”

Last season Garcia helped lead the Cowgirls on a dramatic run to the WOMEN’S COLLEGE WORLD SERIES. In addition to her stellar fielding, she hit .333 on the year, including 12 roundtrippers and 55 runs batted in.

“LAST YEAR SHE COMES IN AND LEADS THE TEAM IN HOME RUNS AND RBIS,” Wieligman says. “Did I think I was going to get that out of her? No I didn’t. I knew on the defensive side what we were going to get with her, but offensively, last season was unbelievable. I thought she deserved All-American recognition.”

“I surprised myself for sure,” Garcia says, “because I was never the greatest hitter. I work really hard on my hitting.

I know I don’t have a God-given ability to swing the bat. I came from a slow pitch background, so it was really hard for me to learn to hit fastpitch.”

For Garcia, softball has always been a family affair.

“My wife and I played slow pitch,” says Tanilo. “That was our recreational activity. It was inexpensive, and that’s basically what we did for fun. The kids grew up with softball.”

“My mom actually got us into playing,” Chelsea says. “My dad told

Robin Garcia was diagnosed with her, ‘If you’re going to have them play cervical cancer when Chelsea was just softball, you’re going to have to be nine years old. ready for me to coach them. I’m going “My mom was a teacher. I was in to make them the best player they can her fourth grade class,” she recalls. be, and I’m not going to give them any “She had gone in for an examination, slack.’ She said, ‘Okay.’” and when she got the results back she Sometimes the girls didn’t take pulled me out of class and told me. I the constructive criticism very well, remember them saying she had the particularly after games. rapid-growth type. Radiation, chemo …

“I was pretty hard on them,” Tanilo nothing worked. It took about a year.” admits. “Coming from a military Tanilo Garcia suddenly found background, my goal was to tear them himself a single father of four girls: down and build them back up. Hard Chelsea, her younger sister Sydney, work is something that we’ve always and teenagers Tiffany and Jeanna. taught. Nobody’s going to give you “RIGHT THEN anything. You’re basically going to AND THERE I have to earn it.”

HAD TO GROW The son of migrant farmers, all Tanilo UP,” Chelsea says. wanted was a better life for his children “My oldest sister, than he experienced growing up.

Tiffany, has “I had to work in the fields and hoe Down syndrome, cotton in the summertime,” he says. so she’s the inno“I never had the opportunity to do cent one. Syd was athletics because my parents weren’t only eight at the that interested in it.” time. I always If the Garcias were going to do somefelt like I had to thing, they were going all-in. Growing take care of my up, Chelsea and her younger sister sisters. I felt like Sydney were fixtures on the diamond. the mother.

Traveling teams. Thousand-mile road “My dad tells trips to tournaments. Vacations planned me he’s sorry I around the slow pitch season. had to grow up “It’s just something my wife and I a lot faster than wanted to enjoy as a family from day most people. one,” Tanilo says. “We knew we had SOMETIMES I to set a budget every year for travel.

We’d go to South Carolina, Alabama … THINK, DANG IT, THINGS WOULD’VE to all these slow pitch tournaments. It BEEN SO MUCH was the joy of being with the girls. It’s EASIER WITH A just like the MasterCard commercial: MOM.” ‘Bats and balls, $10 dollars; Spending Things time with your kids, priceless.’”

IN SHORT, SOFTBALL WAS LIFE. like boys and PHOTO / BRUCE WATERFIELD THEN LIFE THREW THEM A relationships.

NASTY CURVEBALL. “My dad was like, ‘You’re not dating anybody. You’re staying in this house. You’re not going anywhere,’” STORY CONTINUES

35

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

36 APRIL 2012

“MY DAD WAS SO STRICT. I USED TO THINK IT WAS KIND OF UNFAIR, BUT I LOOK BACK AND I THANK HIM FOR BEING HARD ON ME. IT’S MADE ME WHO I AM TODAY.” — CHELSEA GARCIA

she mimics. “My dad was so strict. I used to think it was kind of unfair, but I look back and I thank him for being hard on me. It’s made me who I am today.

“I LOOK UP TO MY DAD A LOT,” Chelsea adds, “because he never got remarried. He says only my mom could put up with him. I believe it. He is a handful sometimes.”

“I think my girls have been through a lot of things growing up, having to deal with me all these years,” her father says. “My late wife said I’m not the easiest guy to live with. And then all of a sudden these kids have to be raised by me. It scared me, the responsibility of raising kids, especially girls.”

As a teen, Garcia felt the void created by her mother’s absence.

“I would get really mad because girls my age would say stuff like, ‘I hate my mom.’ I remember one time I shot back, ‘At least you have one.’”

Now in her early 20s, Garcia envisions mother-daughter moments that she won’t get to experience.

“You watch wedding shows and think about walking down the aisle and all these things. I get angry about it sometimes. I’m not going to want to go shopping for a wedding dress. I’m just going to be a basket case that day.

I just wish …

“I THINK ABOUT MY MOM A LOT,” she continues. “I’ll look in the mirror sometimes and smile, and my gums will get really big like hers did, and I’ll think, ‘OH MY GOSH, I LOOK JUST LIKE HER.’ Except for her blonde hair and blue eyes, I’m the spitting image of my mom … only with dark hair and brown skin.”

“Chelsea’s a lot like her mother, God bless her,” Tanilo says. “Very giving. Looks like her. Smiles like her.

Everything.

“SHE IS A PERFECTIONIST,” HE ADDS. “SHE IS JUST ONE OF THOSE KIDS THAT WANTS TO DO EVERYTHING RIGHT. That’s something else she gets from her mother. I remember when she made that transition from slow pitch to fast.

In slow pitch you’re expected to hit 10 out of 10 balls because it comes in at 15 miles an hour. When she transferred to fastpitch, she expected to hit 10 out of 10. She hated to not get a base hit every time. As years progressed, she started to accept the fact that there is going to be failure. And what can be worse than losing a mom?”

“She’s pretty cerebral,” Coach Wieligman says. “She’s probably too hard on herself. That’s just her personality. SHE EXPECTS STRAIGHT A’S ALL THE TIME, IN EVERYTHING. Our game, unfortunately, is not built on straight A’s. This game is pass/fail. If you hit .300, you’re going to fail seven times to get three passing grades. So it beats her up a bit.”

“My mom was the academic,” Chelsea says. “When she passed away, my dad didn’t know what else to do but tell us if we didn’t get A’s we’d have to quit softball. I guess that’s ingrained in my brain. But also I feel like if I slack off I will regret it, because I didn’t give it all I had. So I just put all I have into it, and if I get a B, I get a B.”

“SHE’S ALMOST TOO PERFECT,” Wieligman says. “She

takes her school very seriously. Even on the road she works hard, getting up in the morning and studying. She’s not your typical kid at her age. I know I wasn’t that way. I thought I was doing well when I brought my books on the road, even though they never got out of my backpack …

“She never stops. For her to be able to do both things as well as she’s done them, it’s pretty impressive.”

PHOTO / GARY LAWSON

As of the 2011 WCWS, Garcia’s grade point average was a perfect 4.0.

At the tournament she received the NCAA’S ELITE 88 AWARD AS THE TOP SCHOLAR-ATHLETE among the eight participating teams. She has also earned FIRST-TEAM ACADEMIC ALLAMERICA HONORS, to go along with ALL-CONFERENCE and ALL-REGION accolades for her play.

However, the future math teacher has admitted to getting her first-ever B last fall.

“The class was Number Theory,” she says. “I’m just glad I didn’t get a C! I think it taught me that there really are concepts that people don’t understand, because I sat there every single class period and was like, ‘What is he talking about?’ I just want to teach algebra and geometry to kids and let them know that it’s not that hard.”

“All of her other accomplishments aside, the thing I am the most proud about is her grades,” her father says.

“I come from a family that really didn’t go to college. I’ve been blessed with two girls that are here now at OSU

(Sydney is a sophomore), and both of them are very self-motivated.

“I can’t imagine losing your mother at that age,” Wieligman says. “She was pretty young, and having a mom there … that’s part of their self-esteem, part of their personality that develops.

I think Tanilo did a great job getting them to where those kids are at now. I think Chelsea’s dedication to studies and to life in general is a direct reflection on what he has done.”

“I give the credit to my late wife,” Tanilo says. “Robin was the teacher.

She laid the foundation. She’s the one responsible for where my girls are today – for where I am. She had more faith in me than I had in myself. She’s the one that motivated all of us … and she still does.”

Prior to each at-bat, Garcia reaches across the plate and etches a cross in the dirt with her bat.

“I’ve done that since I was 12, in memory of her,” she explains, “to remind me that I’m trying to make her proud.”

37

TH 6 DECEMBER 2012

PHOTOGRAPHY BY PHIL SHOCKLEY

PLACE-KI PUNTING KICKOFFS HR3AT Quinn Sharp

Oklahoma State senior recently became Cowboy Football’s

first three-time All-American.

And next season, it will likely take three players to replace him.

The do-it-all special teams standout has excelled in all three phases: place-kicking, punting and kickoffs.

STORY BY CLAY BILLMAN

PHOTO / BRUCE WATERFIELD

“I think the game is starting to change,” Sharp says. “People are beginning to see how much of an impact a kicker really can have, flipping the field and putting points on the board, and just an array of things in special teams.”

Very few teams (perhaps only one) have had the luxury of a player like Sharp on their roster.

The Mansfield, Texas, native was a first-team selection at kicker by the American Football Coaches Association, along with second-team honors from the Walter Camp Football Foundation. He was also the Football

Writers Association top pick as a kicker in 2011 and punter in 2010.

This season he was named the Big 12 Co-Special Teams Player of the Year and a first-team all-conference selection on both sides of the ball.

Sharp has been a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award for the nation’s top placekicker the past two seasons. (Former teammate Dan Bailey won the award in 2010). He was perfect on 65 point-after attempts and accounted for an eye-opening 11.67

points per game (2nd nationally).

7

3-TIME ALL BIG LOU GR PLAYER Sharp also led the nation in touchbacks for a second-straight year with 71 out of 100 kickoffs unreturned. His punt attempts

PHOTO / BRUCE WATERFIELD

Hair Apparent

Former Oklahoma State kicker Dan Bailey was known for his neon-orange soccer cleats.

Current Cowboy Quinn Sharp is famous for the auburn tresses flowing from beneath his football helmet.

“I guess it’s kind of become my signature,” Sharp says. “I made it through summer without cutting it, so I let it grow. This is as long as I’ve ever had it.”

Opposing crowds have seized upon the look.

“You hear other fans all the time,” Sharp says. “‘Get a haircut! You look like a girl!

What are you doing?’ I take it all in stride.”

Sharp says the long locks will eventually go to a charity that provides wigs for children suffering from hair loss due to medical conditions or cancer treatment.

“I’m probably going to end up donating it, because it’s gotten so long at this point,” he says. “I don’t know exactly how long it has to be, but I’m going to look into that and see where it goes.”

And when his trademark hair is gone, he’s not worried about the Samson effect.

“I’ve either had long hair or a buzz cut,” Sharp says. “There’s really no in-between.”

DECEMBER 2012

were too few to qualify for official NCAA rankings or awards, but his net average of 45.8 yards would put him 7th nationally. Sharp’s career net of 45.79 is tops among active punters.

“Awards are nice, but if I don’t get them it’s not the end of the world. I just want to help the team any way possible.”

Sharp credits 2008 Ray Guy Award winner Matt Fodge for helping improve his punting prowess.

“Following Fodge was a great experience,” he says. “He taught me a lot. I’ve gotten a lot better at directional (punts).

I’m able to hang the ball up a lot more to help our coverage unit and give us the advantage of flipping the field.

“I’ve always loved field goal kicking, that’s been my true passion, but I think I’ve grown a lot as a punter,” he adds.

“Coming in as a freshman, I wasn’t really a true punter when I stepped on campus. I kind of tweaked my own form. I’ve always been a little unorthodox in that phase.”

Sharp has aspirations of making an NFL roster as a kicker, but it may be his versatility that seals the deal.

“It will be interesting to see what teams think I am at the next level if I’m given that opportunity,” he says, “but I would definitely prefer to do field goals for sure.”

Combo kickers are rare in the professional ranks, but Sharp could end up being the exception to the rule.

“I think it’s doable. I think if you manage your body properly and focus your time you can do it. I think a kicker can pull it off, and it would be nice if I could be the one. We’ll see how it goes.”

Sharp grew up playing soccer, so placekicking came rather naturally. The same is not true for punts, he says.

“Field goals and kickoffs are pretty much identical in leg sw ing and

everything. The only difference is, when you follow through on a kickoff, you actually follow through onto your kicking leg. Whereas field goals are almost like a little skip-through, and you stay on your plant leg.

“Punting is a complete different leg swing,” he explains. “You’re trying to hit the ball on the outside of your foot, the outside panel of your shoe. You don’t want to catch it on the inside because that’s when you get the flutters and the endover-ends. You want it to kind of wrap off your foot. The technique

is the key on punts.

Everything is critical. It’s tricky. It’s hard to focus on just the littlest things when you’re dropping the ball. Things can go wrong really easily, so you have to work at it and try to perfect it.”

When it does go wrong, it helps to be quick thinking and athletic … and ambidextrous.

Against Texas earlier this season, Sharp bobbled a fourth-down snap in Cowboy territory.

“When I dropped it, I was like, ‘oh lord, just do something,’” he recalls.

“That was my first reaction.”

Pressure from the Longhorns forced the right-footed Sharp to move left after picking up the pigskin.

“I saw a guy coming off the edge, so I knew I wasn’t going to be able to run anywhere with it. If I tried to turn around or get back to my right side, he’d probably tackle me by then, so I just kind of tossed it … luckily I connected.”

Sharp booted the ball in stride with his opposite foot. The low-trajectory punt made it into Texas territory and was downed after netting 26 yards.

Considering the alternatives, it was a critical save for Sharp.

“It happened so fast. People said they didn’t realize it at the time that I kicked it with my other foot,” he says. “I could’ve easily just missed or hit the side of the ball, and it could’ve gone straight to the left or something. It was just one of those things that turned out well.”

E ALL-AMER G-12 FIRST ROZA SEMI R OF THE Y Sharp credits his soccer background for his two-footed skills, and admits he has practiced place-kicking left-footed.

“In high school, now and then, I would kick some left footed in practice, just to see how far I could go. But I’ve never really punted left-footed because it really feels so awkward when I try to do it. It’s almost like learning how to throw left-handed. For some reason I can’t do it as well.”

Like all kickers, Sharp has experienced the pressure—and the subsequent highs and lows— that come with the position.

On Nov. 18, 2011, an undefeated OSU squad took the field on a fateful Friday night in Ames, Iowa. Turnovers plagued the normally high-scoring Pokes, but a 37-yard field goal opportunity would give the No. 2 team the lead over Iowa State with barely a minute to play.

“I went out there and went through my routine. I kicked it. It felt great coming

off my foot. I looked up, and it looked like it was going through. And then, you see them signal, ‘No good,’ and it takes a second for it to register … I thought the kick was good.

From the angle I kicked it, I didn’t think that ball could wrap around. I thought it was inside the post, but I think whenever the referee looked up the ball was already behind him on that side.”

OSU would fall to the Cyclones in double-overtime.

“I take it personally, because I want to go out there and do my job every time,” he says. “But you can’t let it eat away at you because you know you’re going to have another opportunity, and you just have to make the most of it when it comes.”

Despite the loss, OSU capped off a dream season with a conference championship and BCS bowl game. As fate would have it, the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl would be decided by kickers.

Sharp watched from the sideline as Stanford’s place-kicker missed two gamewinning chances, first at the end of regulation, then in overtime.

On the ensuing possession, a Brandon Weeden connection to Colton Chelf gave OSU first-and-goal from the one. Instead of trying to run it in, head coach Mike Gundy chose to set up a chip-shot field goal for the win.

“I almost didn’t have time to think about it because we had all rushed the field thinking Chelf had scored on the previous play, and then we were all trying to get back to the sideline. When I saw Weeden take a knee, I’m like, ‘Okay, we’re going to kick it.’ It all happened so fast.”

Sharp’s kick split the uprights and the Cowboys rushed the field a second time to celebrate the 41-38 victory and a recordbreaking 12-1 season.

“To have the season we had, the greatest in OSU history and winning a BCS game, it was a great experience,” he says.

Sharp can also sympathize with the Cardinal kicker.

“I’ve been in those shoes,” he says. “I missed four in one game in high school.

It’s an awful experience. It’s hard not to think about those big misses or something like that when it happens, because I am so hard on myself, so critical. But I can’t let that carry over into a punt, or if I have a bad punt I can’t let it affect me on my next field goal. You’ve got to keep your mind strong and stay firm in your beliefs.

“I’ve always compared it to golf,” Sharp adds. “You could hit a bad shot, but you still have so many opportunities in front of you. It’s all about what you do on the next one. You just have to go back and trust yourself.”

Sharp trusts his teammates, as well.

Holder Wes Harlan and snapper Connor Sinko handle field goal/PAT duties, while

Andrew Suter

serves as long snapper for punts. Botched

PHOTO / GARY LAWSON

attempts have been few and far between for the crew.

“Wes has great hands. He gets the ball around. He knows what he’s doing. He has a good feel for which way to spin it if he gets caught in an awkward position.

It’s a great combination we have with all those guys, a solid routine. We don’t doubt each other when we run out there,” he says. “It’s nice to know you have that consistency every time you take the field.”

Often opponents will call time out before a big kick in an effort to “ ice” the kicker by adding to the nervousness in a pressure situation.

“I think now you kind of expect it, because you’ve seen it happen so much,” Sharp says. “We’ve actually worked drills on it in practice. You know that if they have a timeout, they’re probably going to call it, so you’ve just got to be prepared and stay with your routine. You can’t let that get into your head like that. If they do call a timeout, do a little dry kick, act like that was the real one, and move on to the next one.”

Sharp’s “next one” will be in the 2013

Heart of Dallas Bowl against Purdue on New Year’s Day. It will be his final game in an OSU Cowboy uniform.

“It just recently hit me,” he says. “I’ve been here for five years. It’s wild.

I’ve had a great time here. It’s been an awesome ride.”

2 ­— Flora Whittemore SEPTEMBER 2011

OPPORTUNITY STORY BY

Clay Billman

PHOTO BY

Gary Lawson

KICKS

IN 2006, KRISTA LOPEZ CLOSED THE DOOR ON SOCCER. The prep standout from Carrollton, Texas, was willing to call it quits on a promising future.

As a forward on the elite D’Feeters ’90 club team, as well as the Region 3 Olympic Development Program (ODP) and Creekview High School, Lopez had been a rising star in the Lone Star State. But family and personal pressures pushed her away from the sport she loved.

Lopez lived with her mother, but maintained a close bond with her father despite the divorce. Like most devoted dads, her father paid particular attention to his daughter’s performance on the soccer field. However, the relationship ultimately became too focused on the sport.

“I would call my dad, and all he would talk about was soccer,” says Lopez. “He kept nagging me and

telling me what I needed to improve on.

I wasn’t able to handle that at times.”

Coupled with a feeling of being burned-out on soccer, the strained relationship led Lopez to a desperate and definitive course of action.

“We had a falling-out, basically. I said, ‘I can’t do this anymore.’ I didn’t understand what his motive was. I was thinking maybe if I quit soccer maybe the relationship between my dad and me will be based on something other than soccer. So I quit.

“For the longest time, I didn’t talk to my dad, I didn’t talk to my club coach or anybody from my club team.

It was actually a relief.”

Weeks went by. Months. Meanwhile, during her junior year of high school, a number of her former teammates were accepting college scholarship offers.

SOCCER STAR DRIVEN TO SUCCEED “My family isn’t financially well-off, so I basically wasn’t going to get an education if not for soccer,” she says.

“My club coach, Hugh Bradford, and club manager, Charlie Fuller, kept calling me and trying to get in touch.

They would leave messages checking up on me. They said, ‘We still want you to get an education.’

“I thought about it for a long time. Finally, I called my coach and told him I’d like to come back. ‘I’ll apologize to the team for quitting. I’ll apologize to everybody that I have to, I just want to come back.’ I am so thankful they never gave up on me.”

Before her first practice back with the club, Lopez faced her D’Feeters ’90 teammates.

“They took me back with open arms. It was just like I had never left.”

Lopez says the break actually helped heal her relationship with her father.

“Our relationship did get better after that,” she says. “I think my dad learned that he should care more about things other than soccer. His heart was in the right place, though.

HE KNEW SOCCER COULD BE MY TICKET TO A COLLEGE EDUCATION.”

By that time, however, most Division I schools had already filled up on recruits.

“We watched her play growing up, through youth soccer, so we obviously knew who she was,” says Cowgirl head coach Colin Carmichael, “but she went off everybody’s radar for a while.

STORY CONTINUES

3

“Her club coach called us and asked if we had an opening because Krista Lopez is playing again – she had rededicated herself to soccer. One of our players had transferred, so we happened to have some scholarship money open up late. We thought, ‘Yeah, we’d love to have Krista.’

only schools with scholarships left were OSU, Villanova and Houston,” Lopez says. “I ended up visiting those three schools. I just loved it here.

That’s how I ended up a Cowgirl.”

“She came up and visited with her dad, and we really liked her on her visit,” Carmichael says. “She didn’t strike me as having any sort of issues off the field or anything. We’re really glad that it worked out. SHE’S NOT

ONLY A GREAT PLAYER, BUT A GOOD KID.”

PHOTO / GARY LAWSON

4

“We followed up with her club coach and asked, ‘Is this going to be a problem?’ She said, ‘No. Krista just had kind of a rough six months. She’s a good kid.’

“Because all the (interested) schools had given away their scholarships, the

SEPTEMBER 2011

In her first two seasons in Stillwater, Lopez helped the Cowgirls claim two Big 12 trophies and a pair of NCAA Tournament bids. Few could predict, however, her breakout junior season in 2010.

The Cowgirls started 2010 with a road win over Oregon, but it was a costly victory. Midfielder Annika Niemeier, OSU’s leading goal scorer, had gone down with a season-ending knee injury. Privately, the coaches wondered if the team had enough offensive firepower to compete. After only a handful of games, a promising season was already in jeopardy.

Lopez, who had only four career goals on her résumé, was challenged to step up her game.

“We actually called Krista out at halftime,” Carmichael says. “She was playing pretty well, but didn’t have any goals up to that point. I got on her a little bit. I said, ‘Look, you’re a forward. How are we going to win if you don’t score?’

“She actually came to me later and said, ‘I’m going to make a commitment to try and score more goals,’ and she took off.”

The next week, Lopez scored the game-winner, in a 2-1 win over No. 13 Memphis. Lopez would find the back of the net 14 more times in 2010,

the second-highest single-season total in school history. Seven of those goals were game-winners.

“We really thought she had a chance to have a really good season,” Carmichael says. “But who knew she’d score 15 goals?”

The Cowgirls would go on to win 20 games, highlighted by the 2010 Big 12 Tournament title and a remarkable Elite Eight finish.

“Nobody questioned her ability,” Carmichael says. “In practice and some games, you looked at Krista play and thought, ‘Wow, this kid’s pretty special.’ The talent has always been there, but once she got the opportunity, I think her confidence grew and she started playing better and scoring.

I don’t know if a light bulb went off or what, but you could tell there was improvement.”

“It has to do a lot with confidence,” Lopez says. “We had really good players my freshman and sophomore years in my position, and I would never get enough time on the field to really feel comfortable. If I messed up I thought, ‘Oh no, I’m going to get benched.’

Once I became a starter and was playing almost the whole game, I wasn’t afraid to mess up. I’m able to get over it and just keep playing.”

An ALL-BIG 12 and ALLCENTRAL REGION honoree, Lopez has become a go-to player on the squad, using her speed and determination to beat defenders to the corner.

Her 35 shots on goal led the team, but she also added five assists.

“She’s a kid that gets us going offensively, no doubt,” Carmichael says.

“When Krista is playing well, not only does it make her dangerous individually, but it opens up things for other people.”

I’m the player I am because I work hard.

I was never the person who had the perfect touch or was the star in high school.

I always had to train. I just ran and ran and ran. That’s why I’m the player I am.”

“Whenever I get the ball, my first thought is to BEAT THE

DEFENDER DOWN THE LINE,” Lopez says. “I’m going

to run at them and use my footwork and speed to get by them.”

Carmichael says a key to her improvement has been to channel that aggressive energy.

“Early in her career, she would just want to go an attack the whole time. As a coach I think that’s great, but we were getting killed on the other end. So we asked her to do some things defensively and tactically.”

“I’m the player I am because I work hard,” Lopez says. “I was never the person who had the perfect touch or was the star in high school. I always had to train. I just ran and ran and ran.

That’s why I’m the player I am.”

“Krista is one of the hardest working kids on the team,” her

coach confirms. “She plays pretty much 90 minutes every game, and there’s no letdown. It’s just constant energy the whole time. Her fitness level is off the charts.”

Going into the 2011 season, Carmichael expects Lopez to be even better, even if the statistics don’t show it.

“She’s not going to sit back and say, ‘I’m really good, I scored 15 goals.’

That’s not in that kid’s makeup at all,” he says. “Krista is going to try and get better. I’m not sure it has to be reflected in her goals, but certainly in her play and her intensity. If the goals fall for her, then great. If she doesn’t score and we kept winning, she wouldn’t care. She’ll be out there high-fiving the people who do score.

That’s just how she is.”

With a healthy Niemeier back in the lineup, along with talented forwards Megan Marchesano and Kyndall Treadwell, the coach believes other teams will have a to pick their poison.

“We’ve got more firepower this year,” he says, “a lot of kids who can score goals. That’s invaluable, because Krista is going to have an offday or she’s going to be shut down by

kids double-teaming her, but we have other people who can step up.”

“Colin said I need to be prepared for everybody’s best this season,” Lopez says. “Last year nobody knew about me so they didn’t double-mark me. Other teams are going to be more prepared for me and try to get more physical, so I’m just going to have to work even harder to make an impact.

“It’s more like self-motivation, because I don’t want to be anything less than what I can be.”

Carmichael says her drive to be the best extends well beyond the pitch.

“She’s an ultra-competitive kid,” he says, “and her competitiveness shows in the classroom. The kid hasn’t made a B in her entire college career.”

“I hate getting B’s. It kills me,” Lopez admits. “I’m really competitive, so I want to be a winner, and I HAVE

TO GIVE MY ALL IN BASICALLY EVERYTHING I DO.

“She’s going to compete as hard as anybody,” Carmichael adds “But right afterward, she’ll be goofing with the girls. She’s just a good-natured, likeable kid. I know her teammates like her a lot.”

STORY CONTINUES

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

5

Whether it’s practice or a pick-up game, Lopez doesn’t like to lose.

“You can ask a lot of people on the team,” she says. “We’ll be playing sand volleyball, and I’ll be yelling and getting into it. People who don’t know me will be whispering to their teammates, ‘What’s wrong with her?’

“I GET THAT FROM MY DAD.” Despite their differences in the past, Lopez says she appreciates her father’s motives.

“He’s always trying to get me to be Lopez sometimes wonders how her the very best I can be,” she says. “He life would be different had she given is the reason why I am the way I am up soccer for good.

“WITHOUT SOCCER, I today, because he has pushed me so WOULDN’T BE HERE,” she says. far. If it wasn’t for him pushing me, I “I wouldn’t be at any college. I think wouldn’t be who I am. I love my dad.

“It’s kind of bittersweet,” Lopez adds. about that a lot. If I had quit, there would be no education. No Big 12 “I know he did force me to quit, but I championships. No Elite Eight. No feel like everything ended up working once-in-a-lifetime experiences … out. It was just really hard for me at “I met my best friend here. My roomthe time. I couldn’t handle the pressure mates. The whole college experience. I then, but I’ve grown as a person.” became more social and learned how to

champ Notre Dame put an end to OSU’s spectacular season (2-0), but the upstart Cowgirls had earned a No. 5 national ranking in the final National Soccer Coaches Association poll.

“Every year, when you have success, it raises the bar for your program,” says head coach Colin Carmichael. “We’ve now become one of the elite teams that everybody STORY BY

Clay Billman

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

GOAL ORIENTED

COWGIRLS NOW THE TEAM TO BEAT

6

The fall of 2010 was a dream

become a favorite, and the goal is not

season for Oklahoma State Soccer.

to simply be invited to the dance, but

This year, the Cowgirls are wide

to prove they belong.

awake.

Last season, Cowgirl FC (Football

wants to beat. If you beat us, your RPI goes up, and it helps you get into the NCAA Tournament. The best programs — Texas A&M in our conference, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Stanford — they deal with that every week. We’re kind of climbing to that level, and we’ll definitely see it this year.”

With a veteran squad returning, Carmichael believes the Cowgirls have a chance to be even better.

“We had a great season last year, and for us to have a better season, obviously, the next step would be

No longer hoping to advance in

Club) compiled a SCHOOL-RECORD 20

to get to the Final Four and win a

the NCAA tournament, the current

WINS and captured the 2010 BIG 12 TOURNAMENT TITLE on the way to the NCAA ELITE EIGHT. Eventual national

national championship. Our attitude

squad is confident in its abilities,

expecting to win. The underdog has

SEPTEMBER 2011

about it is ‘Why not?’

meet new people, introduce myself and be more outgoing.”

Lopez is a nominee for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS award, recognizing excellence in character, community, competition and the classroom.

“I’m really happy for her,” Carmichael says. “She’s a kid who worked hard, bided her time, and now she’s getting all the rewards for it. Krista deserves it.”

Lopez will graduate in the spring with a double major in management and accounting. She is considering playing professional soccer overseas, but is leaning toward entering the business world.

THOSE DOORS ARE JUST WAITING TO BE OPENED. PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

“Having said that, we’re not naïve

teams. Let’s get to where A&M is.

shootouts both times. Last year,

enough to think that we also couldn’t

Let’s try to beat them. Now, being in

the barrier was finally broken, if not

drop off a little bit and lose some tight

that position where everyone looks

shattered.

games or maybe have some injuries

at us like that, it’s incredible. Now we

and things. We know that we have

have a big target on our back, and

got past

the potential to reach that level, but

everyone will come out and try to

the Sweet

we also are grounded enough to

beat us.”

Sixteen,

know that we have to play well every

The All-American defender says

week to have a chance to do that.”

the attitude in the locker room is

THE 2011 SENIOR CLASS IS SEVEN PLAYERS STRONG AND THE MOST DECORATED BUNCH TO MATRICULATE AT OKLAHOMA STATE. SARAH BROWN, ELIZABETH DELOZIER, COLLEEN DOUGHERTY, KRISTA LOPEZ, MELINDA “MINNIE” MERCADO, ANNIKA NIEMEIER AND KYNDALL TREADWELL HAVE ALL BEEN A PART OF THREE NCAA TOURNAMENT APPEARANCES, TWO BIG 12 TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONSHIPS (2009, 2010) AND A REGULAR-SEASON CONFERENCE TITLE (2008).

different after last season.

“Starting in the spring, we had a

it was kind of like, ‘Oh my

whole different approach,” Mercado

gosh,’”

says. “Usually our spring is more laid

Mercado says.

back, but Colin really stressed to us

“It was always our

that we can’t let down. You always

goal, but when you

have to play each game like it’s that

get there it’s different,

championship game. We set the bar

because maybe you really didn’t

high, and we put ourselves up there

expect it. After we got past that point,

with those top-ranked teams now.”

In five NCAA appearances prior

we were all excited to be playing that game, but we really weren’t going

to 2010, OSU had never advanced

into games thinking we have a right

to the Sweet Sixteen. In ’08 and ’09,

to be here.”

“It’s incredible,” says Mercado.

the Cowgirls suffered heartbreaking

“Ever since our freshman year we’ve

second-round exits from the 64-field

been comparing ourselves to other

“After we

tournament, falling in penalty kick

We’ve now become one of the elite teams that everybody wants to beat.”

— coach Colin Carmichael

THIS YEAR IS DIFFERENT. “We’re good enough to be here.

Let’s go play. I’m excited. I think our whole team is excited.”

“I think we went into the Notre Dame game hoping we could win the game. It was something we had STORY CONTINUES

7

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

but certainly weren’t the leaders in any statistical categories. Returning LOPEZ

­— OUR LEADING SCORER WITH 15 GOALS LAST YEAR — along with AD, Minnie and Annika, those are some big-name kids.

So we’ve got a lot of expectations on them.”

Part of the coach’s challenge will be to maintain the chemistry that was so evident in the 2010 team.

“I think every coach talks about chemistry and how important it is, and it becomes a little cliché at times,” Carmichael says, “but this group dreamt about,” Carmichael says. “But Notre Dame came in believing they

“It’s exactly the same,” he says.

“Business as usual. We just keep

genuinely enjoys what they do, they enjoy being around each other. I really

would win the game. I think that’s

reminding our team, ‘Don’t forget

think that’s been key to this whole

another step for this program. WE

why we’re here.’ Nobody walked up

group’s success. They work hard for

BELIEVE WE’RE GOING TO BEAT EVERY BIG 12 TEAM THAT WE PLAY. We prob-

and said, ‘Okay, you’re an Elite Eight

each other. They’re very encouraging

team.’ We worked very, very hard

of each other.

ably believe we can win most of our

over the last five or six years as a staff

non-conference games. Now we

and as players — even players that

adds. “It changes every year. You lose

have to believe that if we’re matched

graduated a few years ago. They put

a group and you bring new kids in. But

up with a Stanford, a Carolina, Notre

a lot into this building process. Obvi-

with our returning group of upperclass-

Dame, Florida State … that we should

ously we have talent, but we work

men, you would think that it will be a

go on the field thinking that we should

very hard. And that’s what we keep

similar situation to last year, chemistry-

win. That just comes with experience

selling to our kids. Our approach is

wise. Every year other things happen,

and being in those close games and

going to be just like it was last year.

and you’re never quite sure what you’re

winning them. I think if we’re fortunate

We’ll try to do the same things well

going to get, but we think our kids will

enough to get into a situation like that

and correct the mistakes we were

all be on the same page.”

again this year, that drawing on those

making and go from there.”

experiences will make us better.”

In addition to senior leadership,

“It’s difficult with college athletics,” he

Carmichael knows that expectations will be high for his program,

the Cowgirls also return junior

which was RANKED 7TH NATIONALLY in the preseason and PICKED TO WIN THE LEAGUE in a poll of Big 12 coaches.

The pressure is on to repeat, if not

and stay together as a team. I think

ALL-AMERICAN GOALKEEPER AD FRANCH, WHO ALONG WITH MERCADO, IS ON THE HERMANN TROPHY WATCH LIST FOR THE NATION’S TOP COLLEGIATE SOCCER PLAYER. Niemeier, who went down

now that we’ve made it that far and

with a season-ending knee injury in

than that is not a good season,” he

“We’ve been through a lot,” Mercado adds. “We’ve been through the highs and lows. I think we all have the right mindset, after last year, of just staying focused, keep competing

8

surpass, the 2010 campaign.

“People will say anything less

have more confidence in ourselves,

OSU’s second game last fall, was a

says. “That’s not necessarily true. In

this year we’ll be mentally stronger

Hermann nominee a year ago.

the NCAA’s, you might be sent to

and push past that barrier and hope-

“IF ANNIKA’S 100 PERCENT, SHE’S AN ELITE PLAYER,” Carmichael says. “So

don’t know what’s going to happen.

fully make it further than last year.”

Despite the preseason praise and

increased expectations, Carmichael

getting her back is better than any

We just try to keep our feet on the

recruit you could bring in as a freshman.

ground and not get too carried away.

says he isn’t changing how he and his

We’re thrilled for that. The kids who

staff approach the season.

graduated were very good players,

SEPTEMBER 2011

Minnesota to play in the snow … you

“Welcome to the big time. Hopefully we get to stay here for a while.”