Nov. 9-15, 2021 by OU Daily

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The University of Oklahoma’s independent student voice since 1916

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Mr. Indian OU Adarius Begay speaks during the Five Moons Student Lounge dedication March 24.

Revitalizing Indigenous culture Tackling stereotypes, lack of tribal presence as Native students KALY PHAN @KPhsn

Around 15 years ago on the second Monday of October, an Alabama elementary school’s students put on a play for Columbus Day. A Choctaw student watched Columbus land in the “New World,” as actors praised him for bringing European values to Native American nations. Crispin South, an international security studies senior and citizen of the Choctaw Nation, said he was uncomfortable, as he knew the perspective of his Choctaw ancestors, which was passed on to him by his mother. The following Thanksgiving, his mother asked his teacher if she could teach the class about Columbus Day from a Native American perspective. “(My mom) would try and teach the kids some Choctaw words. She taught us numbers (and) told us stories that are in our oral tradition,” South said. “She was able … to balance (the curriculum) out. She wanted to come in and say, ‘No, we were here, we have always been here, and we are still here,’ and provide that perspective for my class way back in elementary school.” Growing up in Montgomery, where there was — and still is — little tribal presence, South said connecting with his heritage was difficult. The only reflection he saw of himself was in his immediate family, specifically his mom, who encouraged him to learn Choctaw. His experience encapsulates the story of many Native students on campus. South said there was never a point in his life where he wasn’t proud to be Native American, but there were times when cultural engagement and inclusivity were “logistically difficult.” During Native American Heritage Month, Indigenous students shared their struggles with embracing their identity and their efforts to reconnect with their heritage. “It’s a different thing to everybody, especially for Native students, because there’s so many different tribes, and

we have so many people representing all those different tribes,” South said. “I don’t know if (OU has) somebody from every tribe, but each is different, and they have their own ceremonies, customs, languages, traditions (and) games.” In an email to The Daily, South wrote that his father, who is not Native American, has always been “extremely supportive” of South, his siblings, mother and Indigenous heritage in general. He and his mother were a “dynamic duo,” and she helped South embrace their Choctaw culture. In addition to teaching him Choctaw, South said his mom always pushed him to appreciate his heritage and culture. Even today, South’s mother supports him in his effort to reclaim his heritage. When he spoke at Indigenous Peoples’ Day, he wore a Choctaw men’s shirt made by her, specifically for the occasion, as he had outgrown his previous regalia. “(My mom has) always been there to support me in any kind of questions about our cultural heritage (or) any kind of resources I need,” South said. “She’s very quick to connect me with that, and it’s really been awesome.” Computer science senior Adarius Begay also spoke at Indigenous Peoples’ Day, and like South, he said he’s always been proud of his heritage but struggled to connect with his culture. Begay is a member of the Navajo, Assiniboine, Sioux, Cherokee and Kiowa nations and is an enrolled citizen of the Colorado River Indian Tribes. Begay said he grew up in Phoenix, Arizona, and was often mistaken for being Hispanic. When he asserted his Navajo heritage and tried to join organizations in high school, he said he was subjected to elitism, as organizations insisted he must “know everything” about his culture, and students discounted him based on the stereotypes they held against Native Americans. “Once they see me, they’re like, ‘Oh, you’re just gonna go back to your reservation or just end up drinking your life away,’” Begay said. “When people see that, they discount the value I can bring (to organizations).” When he was younger,

Begay said he would shy away from questions related to his heritage and liked to poke fun at it by telling jokes about being colonized since he attended predominantly white schools. In college, he said his attitude completely changed. “Nowadays, I’m happy to answer (any questions),” Begay said. “‘You want to know more about this? Well, here’s this answer,’ or if I don’t know it, then I know someone who does. I’m able to teach some guys here a few Navajo words here and there (and) just being able to (provide) a safe environment for them to learn.” Begay currently serves as Mr. Indian OU 2020-21, and both he and South are involved in the American Indian Student Association and Sigma Nu Alpha Gamma, which is the only Native American fraternity on campus. The community and learning environment provided by these organizations is important to Begay and South. “(When) people come to college, they might not know what their heritage is. … If we don’t have that warm, open environment for (freshmen) to be able to learn (about their heritage), then there’s really no point in having a fraternity,” Begay said. “Being able to provide a learning environment where they can reclaim that heritage is very important to me.” J-T Murray, a mechanical engineering sophomore, said this sense of community helped him grow closer to his heritage during his freshman year. Murray is a member of the Ojibwe, Ottawa and Potawatomi nations — all commonly combined and referred to as Anishinaabe — and a citizen of the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan, a federally recognized band of Ojibwe. Growing up, Murray said he was indifferent about being Ojibwe and never claimed his Native American heritage. Finding Native organizations helped Murray find his “sense of belonging” since he said he never felt accepted by his community when he was younger. “I had always heard, ‘Oh, you won’t be dark enough, you won’t be Native enough,’” Murray said. “There definitely

still is that stigma. There was one time, at a public event, someone shamed me for being ‘the white one’ and said that, essentially, I couldn’t lead the song or drum with them.” Murray said he is a strong advocate for “cultural revitalization,” which is founded on the idea that there is no single way a Native American person looks. He said as an individual of mixed descent, this subject remains close to his heart. “The biggest thing I want to say to the world is don’t just look at someone and think you can tell where they come from, who they are (or) whether or not they’re Indigenous,” Murray said. “At the end of the day, Indigenous people come in so many different shades and colors and shapes and sizes, and there’s not one type of Native person. It can be intimidating for a lot of people but, as a community, that’s definitely the mindset with the newer generation.” As soon as he came to OU, Murray actively sought to get in touch with his heritage and said he was “scooped up” by many of the university’s Native American organizations because of the small number of Native American students on campus. Murray serves as vice president of Sigma Nu Alpha Gamma, the sponsorship chair for AISA, and the events manager for the OU American Indian Science and Engineering Society, which Begay also joined. Murray said he is part of a “dying culture” and is in a unique position to strengthen it in younger generations. “(Native American cultures are) getting kind of manhandled and squeezed and slowly choked to death,” Murray said. “I’m very big into trying to bring culture back and (getting) people involved because, if no one learns it, it’ll die off and that’ll be the end of it.” Murray attributes his previous distance from his culture to generational trauma, or a psychological effect where the collective trauma experienced by one group of people has lingering and lasting effects on following generations. He said he doesn’t blame his parents, but his mom didn’t want him to be involved in Native American organizations. “She was scared that I was gonna have a bad experience

because she had bad experiences,” Murray said. “In a lot of folks’ minds, unfortunately, they view being Native as a bad thing because of what they’ve been through, and it’s no one’s fault. It’s what they’ve been subjected to, the cards that they’re dealt.” South said he hopes OU students, both Native American and non-Native, use November as an opportunity to make themselves aware of the difficulties the university’s Native American community faces, remain allies to them and become open to educating themselves on tribal cultures. “We have seen an all-out assault on tribal sovereignty by the state of Oklahoma following the McGirt (v. Oklahoma) Supreme Court decision, which reaffirmed our tribal boundaries, which are guaranteed by treaty,” South said. “There’s a perpetual campaign going on for missing and murdered Indigenous people, and Indigenous women face much higher rates of violence, murder and kidnapping, and sexual assault.” In terms of education, South, Begay and Murray have all taken steps to reclaim their heritage. Murray said he hopes to travel to Michigan so he can have a naming ceremony to get a name in Anishinaabemowin, the language of his tribe. South, Begay and Murray said they all are relearning their respective languages to reclaim their heritage, but none of their methods involve OU courses. Begay said he prefers immersing himself in the language, as he constantly listens to a local Navajo radio station and reads the Navajo Times. Murray said he studies online because Ojibwe is not among the four languages offered at OU. “Schools from up north, where the Ojibwe actually are, like the University of Minnesota, have an Ojibwe program,” Murray said. “At OU, there are two Ojibwe, me and Tsali (Smith). So, obviously, it would be kind of strange to have a whole course when there’s just the two of us.” South said he doesn’t have room in his schedule and, even if he could take a Choctaw course, it is not considered a “strategic language”

by the U.S. and doesn’t apply to his major. As the sitting Student Government Association Undergraduate Student Congress Chair, South said he hopes to help Native American organizations and students. He said congress has several pieces of legislation in the early stages with this goal in mind. “(Congress) wants to see increased education so that people who aren’t Native are able to engage with the culture in a constructive manner instead of a manner that’s appropriative or destructive,” South said. “(We’re also looking to add to) Camp Crimson some kind of a training module (for) people who are not Native and who don’t already know the history and the impact of the state of Oklahoma’s actions.” South also said, given the right policy change, it would be easy to give Native American students priority to their respective languages so they could attend classes if they wished. During its Nov. 2 meeting, congress saw a concurrent resolution seeking to preserve Native American languages, specifically the Cherokee language, which was declared to be in a state of emergency by the three federally recognized tribes in June 2019. The resolution passed unanimously. Although OU, its organizations and Native community have helped Murray discover his place of belonging, he said he takes issue with how the university flaunts its Native American students. Murray said he hopes there will be a time when the university’s Native American community is treated equally. “That word — Anishinaabe — that’s how (my tribe) refers to ourselves,” Murray said. “It’s not the name of our tribe. It doesn’t mean that at all. It means human being. When we recognize that we’re all human beings, (that) we all have flaws. No one’s perfect, but we’re still people and we (have to) try to respect each other in that way.” kaly.n.phan-1@ou.edu

NEWS

• Nov. 9-15, 2021

OU extends vaccine deadline Mandate pushed to January in line with executive order KALY PHAN @KPhsn

OU Human Resources announced the extension of the university’s deadline for required COVID-19 vaccinations for all employees from Dec. 8, 2021 to Jan. 4, 2022. In a Nov. 4 email following OU President Joseph Harroz’s Oct. 29 announcement and President Joseph Biden’s Sept. 9 executive order, OU Human Resources wrote all OU

employees must be fully vaccinated with a World Health Organization approved COVID-19 vaccine. Personnel considered university employees include all faculty, staff, undergraduate and graduate student employees, according to the email, alongside scholars, research scholars and associate research scholars. The executive order applies equally to fulltime, part-time, temporary and PEAK employees. This vaccine requirement doesn’t include the booster shot or extend to students who aren’t employees. The OU American Association of University Professors,

however, wrote in a Nov. 1 press release that it hopes Harroz will consider widening the reach of the requirement to all community members, as well as a university-wide mask mandate. OU Human Resources wrote that it strongly encourages unvaccinated employees to get vaccinated as soon as possible because some vaccination procedures take weeks. Medical or religious accommodations are, and remain, confidential but employees must send in a An OU flag in front of the Bizzell Memorial Library. formal request. The processes to provide a request being finalized, but more by OU Human Resources. for an accommodation or information will be providproof of vaccination are still ed the week of Nov. 7-13

TREY YOUNG/THE DAILY

kaly.n.phan-1@ou.edu

University Title IX coordinator resigns Succesor to fill position pending Regents approval BLAKE DOUGLAS @blake_doug918

O U President Jos eph Harroz announced on Nov. 3 the university’s Title IX coordinator has resigned. Shaniqua Crawford, whose hiring was announced in November 2020, served as Title IX coordinator, institutional equity officer and equal opportunity officer, according to an email from Harroz. Crawford’s hiring came

in the wake of former OU Title IX Coordinator Bobby Mason’s resignation in April 2020. During Mason’s tenure, the Title IX office was criticized by several students for its handling of their reports and a lack of transparency during investigations. Mason resigned to accept a position as Texas State University’s first chief compliance officer. Crawford’s hire also coincided with changes to OU Title IX regulations in response to adjustments by the U.S. Department of Education to the definition of sexual harassment and the steps universities must take when handling Title IX cases.

“To assist with this transition, Chief Diversity Officer Dr. Belinda Higgs Hyppolite will serve as Acting Institutional E q u i t y O f f i c e r, E q u a l Opportunity Officer, and Title IX Coordinator,” Harroz wrote. “Given the critical nature of this position in supporting our entire university community, under the guidance of Human Resources, the university has made an exception to the search process for a replacement as allowed by the university’s National Recruitment Procedures.” Christine Taylor, a finalist in the hiring process that resulted in Crawford earning the position, will be appointed as

Title IX coordinator, institutional equity officer and equal opportunity officer on Dec. 6 pending OU Board of Regents Approval, Harroz wrote. The next Board of Regents meeting is scheduled for Dec. 3. “With nearly 20 years of higher education experience, (Taylor) currently serves as Institutional Equity and Compliance Director at Wichita State University. In this role, she ensures WSU’s compliance with laws and regulations regarding equal opportunity, civil rights, affirmative action, sexual harassment, discrimination, and sexual misconduct,” Harroz wrote. “At OU, Christine will

lead the Institutional Equity Office, overseeing the university’s affirmative action and equal opportunity compliance efforts, as well as investigating complaints of sexual misconduct, discrimination, and harassment.” Taylor has been “instrumental” in creating protocols to centralize Title IX reporting and implemented a “comprehensive” investigation process at Wichita State University, Harroz wrote. Taylor served as Marquette University’s Title IX coordinator for three years, where she authored the university’s Title IX policies. Wichita State University had 12,406 undergraduate

students enrolled for the fall 2020 semester, and Marquette reported 8,024 undergraduates. For the same semester, OU-Norman reported 21,393 enrolled undergraduates. Taylor earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Iowa State University and a juris doctorate from Valparaiso University School of Law, according to the email. She also holds a Master of Laws in dispute resolution from The University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law. bdoug99@ou.edu

OU recognized for lack of transparency Watchdog group grants university Black Hole Award BLAKE DOUGLAS @blake_doug918

OU was awarded Freedom of Information Oklahoma’s Black Hole Award for the second time in three years on Nov. 2, being designated as an institution that has notably “thwarted the free flow of information.” FOI Oklahoma is an organization centered on “promoting open and transparent government in Oklahoma” through providing educational and legal resources for citizens to better navigate the state’s freedom of information laws, including the Oklahoma Open Records and Open Meeting acts. After selecting the OU Board of Regents as the Black Hole recipient in 2019 following the secretive selection of former OU President James Gallogly and the appointment of Harroz as Gallogly’s interim successor in a six-hour meeting that took place almost entirely in executive session and ended just before 2 a.m., OU received the award again this year alongside the Oklahoma State Department of Health. Andy Moore, FOI Oklahoma’s executive director, told The Daily the group’s awards committee met in September to determine this year’s award recipients. OU was selected primarily based on the university’s continued legal fight to withhold the Jones Day report — a collection of documents detailing the investigation of misreported donorship numbers and sexual misconduct allegations against former OU President David Boren — from public view. “I think the university is saying that, technically, personnel records are not required to be released by the Open Records Act unless they result in the termination of somebody,” Moore said. “And the fact that President Boren resigned, I think, is indicative that this was certainly all related. … Very often, groups like the university could — and in

our opinion, should — be as transparent as possible, and seek not just to fulfill the letter of the law, but the spirit of the law.” OU was sued by the Oklahoma City-based outlet NonDoc Media for refusing to release the Jones Day report under the Oklahoma Open Records Act. In a statement after the lawsuit was filed, OU argued that releasing the documents serves “the public’s curiosity — not its interest.” In its response to the lawsuit, the university wrote that records regarding investigations of “misconduct allegations involving an employee” are not subject to public release under state statute 51 O.S. § 24A.5(1)(a). The cited law reads that records “protected by a state evidentiary privilege such as the attorney-client privilege, the work product immunity from discovery and the identity of informer privileges” are “specifically required by law to be kept confidential.” The university had paid Jones Day in excess of $1.5 million for its services as of July 2019, according to the Oklahoman. Moore said citizens have “the right to know” the details of any record related to extensive expenditures of public funds. Open records fulfillment at OU has remained spotty even with documents that don’t draw legal disagreements, however, as noted by numerous Oklahoma journalists following a Sept. 21 Twitter thread posted by The Daily. Some media members covering the university had waited up to two years for their requests to be fulfilled. Former Oklahoma legislator Ron Sharp and senate author of the original Open Records Act Stratton Taylor both told The Daily that many state agencies have long toed the line of doing the bare minimum to respond to requests while not outright violating the law. Moore said OU’s fight to withhold the Jones Day report is just another symptom of the larger, state-wide issue. “We see this at universities, we see this at state agencies too, frankly, that an increasing number of government entities will refuse to comply

“Within the Office of Legal outside vendor for legal re- records management system.” with the law and not follow it,” Moore said. “We’ve seen Counsel, Open Records view as needed. The office will a number of lawsuits that now has access to addition- also soon implement a new bdoug99@ou.edu have been necessary to force al legal resources and an the government to do what they’re technically required to do by law.” Sharp and Taylor each said the law’s lack of a defined time period to respond to requests makes it one of the weakest in the nation. In 2020, Sharp attempted to amend the law to provide a 30-day period for government agencies to fulfill requests, but the proposed bill never received a hearing. There are still state legislators that Moore said he hopes will continue to push for transparent governance, however. “I know that there are a number of legislators that I have regular contact with who have similar concerns about government entities that are hiding information from the public or trying to delay or otherwise obfuscate what’s happening,” Moore said. “I think, and I hope, that we’ve got some allies in Legislature that are willing to fight for the public’s right to oversee their government.” An O U sp okesp ers on wrote in a statement to The Daily that OU is “committed to ensuring the public’s right to know and be informed about the operations of the university.” “The Open Records Office follows guidance provided by the Open Records Act for processing and completing requests,” the spokesperson wrote. “Requests are handled as quickly as reasonably possible once all responsive information is received. Delays in access are primarily due to the scope of the request and the time required to prepare requested documents.” According to the spokesperson, the number of requests sent to the university have more than doubled since 2011, with 708 requests in 2011 and 1,737 in 2020. OU has filled almost 400 requests since the hiring of an executive director for the Open Records Office in September 2021, according to the spokesperson. “The university is investing in the Open Records Office to ensure timelier responses,” the spokesperson wrote.

NEWS

Nov. 9-15, 2021 •

COMING UP AT OU

Lissau, Akuffo win race Junior duo garners majority vote per unofficial results for SGA president ALEXIA ASTON @alexiaaston

Tuesday Men’s Basketball vs. Northwestern State, 7 p.m. Watch OU take on the Northwestern State Demons

The race for OU Student Government Association president and vice president concluded in a victory for candidates Zack Lissau and Denzel Akuffo, according to unofficial results released Nov. 10. As of 9:44 p.m., public relations, pre-law junior Lissau and marketing, prelaw junior Akuffo obtained 66.42 percent of the vote, or 2,223 individuals, defeating classical studies junior Angelora Castellano and economics and political science sophomore Samantha Hepburn, who received 32.57 percent of the vote, or 1,074 individuals. Lissau and Akuffo’s campaign was founded on increasing student-university

administration communications and addressing campus safety through the assessment of OU’s blue light system. After results were announced, Lissau thanked the student body in an interview with The Daily for believing in the ticket’s “tangible platform.” He thanked everyone who voted in the election and said, no matter who they chose, he and Akuffo will seek to be an administration that serves. “We’re leaders that not only care about the university, but we also care about the students here, and that’s our primary goal,” Lissau said. “That will be my first initiative as president if I am to be certified, is to serve the students with all my heart, because this university has given so much to me, and I’m so excited to give back.” Akuffo said his and Lissau’s experiences at OU have been “nothing short of unique.” He said, as SGA’s president and vice president, both will work to communicate with the student

PHOTO PROVIDED

Marketing, pre-law junior Denzel Akuffo (left) and public relations, pre-law junior Zack Lissau (right) are one ticket for the presidential election.

body to make sure their experiences are similarly unique. In response to their losing ticket, Castellano acknowledged the unofficial results of the election and committed to seeing through the remainder of the certification process. “We’re going to wait to see what happens,” Castellano said. “Regardless, we did a really good job. … We did the work and, at the end of

the day, I think we completed something a lot of people said, ‘You know what, we wouldn’t have done that, so kudos to you.’” Lissau and Akuffo will replace SGA president Tavana Farzaneh and vice president Alex Gray one week after the validation of the election report. alexiaaston@ou.edu

OU defense anticipates boost

Injured players return ahead of critical matchups

Thursday Softball vs. North Texas, 6 p.m.

CHANDLER ENGELBRECHT @ctengelbrecht

Friday IAC International Gala, 8-11 p.m. Men’s Basketball vs. UTSA, 7 p.m.

Saturday OU Opera: Coffee Cantata & La Serva Padrona, 8 p.m.

– From staff reports

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Delarrin Turner-Yell didn’t take his time on the Sooners’ sideline lightly. The senior safety suffered an apparent hamstring injury during Oklahoma’s 16-13 win over West Virginia on Sept. 25, which kept him out of its road matchup against Kansas State the following weekend. He returned in OU’s game against Texas on Oct. 9 but exited after the first play with a reinjury. Turner-Yell missed the Sooners’ next four matchups before reentering the starting lineup against Texas Tech last Saturday. The Hempstead, Texas, native proceeded to tally five tackles in a 52-21 win, helping send No. 8 Oklahoma (9-0, 6-0 Big 12) into its final month of regular season play with the nation’s longest active win streak at 17 games. “We’re just big on finishing,” Turner-Yell said. “We have an understanding that, in order to get in those games that everyone loves to play in at the end of

HOROSCOPE By Eugenia Last

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2021 ASTROGRAPH by Eugenia Last

Alter your lifestyle to encourage a healthy and happy future.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) It’s OK to mull over options, but you must take action as well. Do your research and move forward with your plans, and you’ll leave a lasting impression on important people.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) Promote what you have to offer instead of dwelling on what you can’t do. Be the first to make a move, change your direction or incorporate something new and exciting into the mix.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) Trust your instincts, not what someone leads you to believe. Focus on what’s important to you and where you can gain the most ground financially. Be direct and leave no room for error.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20) Look at the good, the bad and how to find the middle ground when dealing with peers, relatives and anyone in a position of authority. Knowing who you are dealing with will be your ticket to success.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Seize the moment and take care of business. Gain experience and knowledge through observation and discussions with experts. Develop your style by implementing the best of what you encounter.

CANCER (June 21-July 22) Get involved in something that concerns you or will help you get ahead. Raise your qualifications and eliminate any knowledgebased restrictions that are holding you back.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Through adversity comes strength of vision and an enriched sense of what you are capable of accomplishing. Stand tall and do your own thing, and you’ll discover what works best for you.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) Refuse to let change cause stress. Analyze the situation and get an expert opinion. Aim to stabilize and secure your position, life and relationships, not to upend them.

PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Be careful how you handle money matters and joint ventures. Make your voice heard and stay in the loop. Don’t leave money and essential decisions in someone else’s hands. Make important changes. Instructions: Fill in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 through 9. That means that no number is repeated in any row, column or box.

the season, you have to win in November, because that is when those decisions are made. We make it a big deal to play our best ball in the month of November.” In five games this season, Turner-Yell has totaled 30 tackles — one-and-a-half for loss — and one interception. His lone pick came in the Sooners’ win over West Virginia before his injury. While sidelined, Turner-Yell brought it upon himself to keep his teammates engaged in the game. Every chance he could, he made an effort to communicate with his unit about what was working and what wasn’t. In his absence, opposing quarterbacks averaged 264 passing yards a game against the Sooners. DefensivebacksKeyLawrence and Billy Bowman, a sophomore and freshman respectively, were among players who saw increased snaps while Turner-Yell was away. Though the Sooners’ secondary was far from perfect, Turner-Yell is confident in the ability of his younger teammates. “We had some ups and downs, but that’s the game of football,” Turner-Yell said. “No one’s gonna go out and play a perfect game ever. Just being able to keep the guys uplifted

ARIES (March 21-April 19) Do what’s necessary, then get on with life. Finishing what you start will be a relief and lift a burden that’s been weighing you down.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) You have everything in place; don’t procrastinate or hold up progress in pursuit of perfection. Striking a balance between quantity and quality will be your passage to success and fulfillment. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) Keeping the peace is essential if you want to finish what you start. A steady pace forward with an optimistic attitude will help surmount any obstacles you encounter. Trust your instincts.

and being able to lead them from off the field (was) actually fun. It wasn’t fun being out, but it was fun being able to step away from it a little and actually see those guys fly around and make plays. I was happy for each and every one of them that made a play.” Turner-Yell isn’t the only Sooner battling injuries this season. In its last outing, OU was without redshirt sophomore defensive back Jeremiah Criddell, redshirt freshman safety Bryson Washington, sophomore cornerback Woodi Washington, freshman receiver Cody Jackson, junior receiver Theo Wease and senior receiver Mike Woods. Additionally, freshman defensive back Jordan Mukes left the game early after a helmet-to-helmet hit. After defeating the Red Raiders, head coach Lincoln Riley said OU’s defense “feels different” with Turner-Yell’s return. That, accompanied by Lawrence garnering seven tackles and two pass deflections in his first game at cornerback and redshirt sophomore Jalen Redmond also returning from injury, leads Riley to believe the unit is heating up at the right time. “(Turner-Yell and Redmond)

were a part of the backbone of our defense,” said sophomore cornerback D.J. Graham. “They’re both leaders in their own respect, in their own certain way. So having them back is like, ‘OK, we’re starting to hit full stride again.’ … We’ve had injuries every single year, and (when) the guys come back, it’s like a boost. “Not like, ‘OK, we’re gonna be fine,’ but it’s kind of like, ‘All right, now we’re gonna do people even worse with these guys back.’” Now, heading into what the team calls “Championship November,” Turner-Yell wants his team to make the most of its bye week so it can emerge well rested. When it returns to play, Oklahoma faces No. 12 Baylor in Waco, Iowa State in Norman and No. 11 Oklahoma State in Stillwater in consecutive weeks. “No one wants to miss games,” Turner-Yell said. “It was really tough for me having to be out those weeks. But I just feel like with us having a week off, I can get my legs under me a little bit more and just dial in to coaching points. “Every game is important here, so (we need) to take it one game at a time.” chandler.engelbrecht@ou.edu

Universal Crossword Edited by Amanda Rafkin November 9, 2021 ACROSS 1 Unadventurous 6 Statutes 10 Place for a sail 14 Gladiator’s venue 15 Dating back to 16 Twistable cookie 17 *Artist known for painting rectangular regions of color (see this answer’s first 2 letters + last 2) 19 Warm, in a sense 20 Prefix with “center” 21 1910s conflict: Abbr. 22 Athlete’s best effort 23 Wise 26 Game with Reverse cards 27 *She played Sarah Connor in “The Terminator” (... first 2 letters + last 2) 32 Charon’s river 34 Actor Omar 35 Tribute in verse 36 John, across the Atlantic? 37 All together 40 Dorothy Parker’s forte 41 “Wow, no way!” to a texter 42 Not phony

11/9

43 “More Than Honey” insects 44 *“The Tale of Peter Rabbit” author (... first 3 letters + last 1) 49 Darling 50 Sword covers 52 Ed of “Up” 55 Up to now 56 Play it by ___ 58 Pal 59 Mobbed by mosquitoes ... or a hint to each starred clue’s answer, based on the word that surrounds it 63 Big name in pineapples 64 “Hold it right there!” 65 Brick worker 66 How cucumber soup is served 67 Accompanying 68 First course, for short? DOWN 1 “Ditto” 2 Snares 3 Form of exercise involving a hammock 4 Liquid in a pen 5 “On the Origin of Species” author 6 Frida Kahlo or Rita Moreno, e.g. 7 Fire proof? 8 Pan for moo goo gai pan

9 Airport with a BART stop 10 Golden Horde member 11 The “A” in BART 12 Stitched line 13 Sped 18 Had bills to pay 22 Herb hidden in “Can I see?” 24 Insta uploads 25 European range 26 Ballpark figures? 28 H.S. exams 29 2011 caper film where Ben Stiller plays a building manager 30 “Garfield” dog 31 Brings home 32 Messy person 33 Heavy reading?

37 Boo-boo 38 No, in German 39 Upper limit, informally 43 Get in the pool, perhaps? 45 Like many crosswords 46 “Is that right?” 47 Many an “Eighth Grade” character 48 Japanese floor covering 51 Really enjoy 52 Electrically versatile 53 “Beat it!” 54 ___ and void 57 “The Biggest Little City in the World” 59 “Gross!” 60 Tuna in a poke bowl 61 Little kid 62 PC linkup

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