Page 8 Thursday, April 7, 2022
O’Colly
News
First suspect linked to Sacramento mass shooting appears in court on gun charge
Courtesy of Tribune News Service
Police work the scene on the corner of 9th and K streets after a shooting that occurred in the early morning hours on April 3 in Sacramento.
Sam Stanton The Sacramento Bee
The public defender’s office declared an overload, and the case was assigned for now to lawyer Linda Parisi, who said there would be a decision later on which defense attorney would represent Martin SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The first suspect and other defendants. charged in connection with the mass shooting in After court, Parisi described her client as “very Sacramento early Sunday made a brief court appear- somber, very somber.” ance Tuesday on a single count of illegal possession “You saw in court, this is very serious,” she of a firearm, with no charges tying him directly to the said. shootout that killed six and wounded 12. He will appear in court again April 26. Dandrae Martin of Blythe was arrested Monday Martin is one of two suspects arrested in the and is being held in the Sacramento County Jail on wake of Sunday night’s shooting. a felony charge that he was found in possession of a His older brother, Smiley Allen Martin, 27, was firearm despite a 2017 domestic violence conviction wounded during the gunfight and was arrested in a in Phoenix that prohibits him from having access to Sacramento-area hospital early Tuesday on charges of guns. being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm Court files say Martin, 26, had been “duly and and possession of a machine gun. legally convicted of a felony, to wit, the crime of AgThe machine gun charge stems from Sacragravated Assault — DV Impede Breathing” in Mari- mento police’s discovery of a stolen handgun at the copa County, Arizona. scene near 10th and K streets that had been altered so Sacramento police earlier had said he was also it was capable of firing as an automatic weapon, a law being held for assault with a firearm, but that was not enforcement source said. included in the criminal complaint filed by prosecuSmiley Martin also has a case pending in Sactors. ramento Superior Court charging him with a felony He appeared in a cage in a jailhouse courtroom count of impersonating someone else, and has a and spoke only once to confirm his name to Superior lengthy criminal history that included a 10-year senCourt Commissioner Ken Brody. tence handed down in 2018 for domestic violence and “Yeah,” Martin said, when asked if that was his aggravated assault causing great bodily injury, a conname. viction that prevents him from possessing a firearm.
That case led Sacramento District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert’s office to file a letter with the parole board last April strenuously opposing an early release for Martin. Despite that, Martin was out of custody and in Sacramento Saturday night where he posted a Facebook Live video hours before the shooting showing himself brandishing what appears to be a handgun. The video has since been deleted. Authorities have said they are looking for multiple shooters who may have been involved and the investigation is continuing. After the shooting unfolded, police say they arrested Daviyonne Dawson, 31, at the scene on suspicion of possessing a firearm despite being prohibited from having one. Dawson on Tuesday did not face any criminal charges “directly related” to Sunday’s melee, police said, and detectives do not believe the gun recovered during his arrest was used in the shooting. But detectives continued their investigation to identify additional suspects. Dawson has since been released from the Sacramento County Main Jail after posting a $500,000 bail bond. Police said detectives identified Dawson as a man who was spotted carrying a gun in the “immediate aftermath of the shooting.” news.ed@ocolly.com
O’Colly
Thursday, April 7, 2022 Page 7
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Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Lewis
ACROSS 1 Reminder trademark 7 1994 National Women’s Hall of Fame inductee 12 One having a ball 15 Kia model 16 Magna cum __ 17 Get rid of 18 Bracketology event (Cambridge) 20 Narrow waterway 21 Soup served with chopsticks 22 Chill-inducing 23 Sensed 24 Series that included Bugs and Daffy (Augusta) 29 Paso __, Calif. 31 Radamès’ love 32 Texter’s “But ... ” 33 Lured 36 Frat letter 39 Risky operations often with code names (Ann Arbor) 43 Tire pressure fig. 44 12-step offshoot 45 A, B or C, but not X, Y or Z 46 Move like water 47 Acted as an informant, in Ipswich 49 Science class visual aid (Joplin) 55 Second word of many limericks 56 “Cheers” server 57 More than -er 60 Pot part 61 Country leaders, and along with names in parentheses, a hint to 18-, 24-, 39- and 49-Across 65 Group of scenes 66 Triumphant cry 67 Anti-anxiety med 68 Gun, as an engine 69 Player in 18-Across 70 Firmly held ideas
4/7/22
By Bruce Haight
3 The Blue Fairy helped Pinocchio escape from him, in the Disney film 4 Eye twitch, maybe 5 Arrival cry 6 They might hold chairs at a circus 7 iHeartRadio fare 8 “The Hunger Games” land 9 French way 10 Some taxi toppers 11 Fellows 12 “__ say it?” 13 Banish 14 Rhythms 19 NFL’s Cardinals, on scoreboards 23 OTC watchdog 25 K-12, in brief 26 __ kitchen 27 “Balderdash!” 28 Numbers with a colon 29 Lopsided win 30 Publisher Chandler 33 Game delay cause 34 Writer Rand DOWN 35 “If u ask me ... ” 1 Fanfare 36 Said goodbye to, 2 Large deep-water with “of” fish 37 Part of a pot
Wednesday’s Puzzle Solved
©2022 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
38 Exploited 40 Locker room powder 41 MLB family name 42 About 46 Charge 47 Milk for losers 48 Carol opener 49 It might be crowned 50 Cooled by rocks, in a way 51 High-def screen
4/7/22
52 Flummox 53 Choral platform 54 World leader with a distinctive suit 58 Assists, e.g. 59 Till stack 61 Brand with a Grabbin’ Grape flavor 62 Laundry brand 63 Mo. named for an emperor 64 Pewter, mostly
Nancy Black Tribune Content Agency Linda Black Horoscopes Today’s Birthday (04/07/22). Fortune flows through friendship, teamwork and collaboration this year. Disciplined, steady participation realizes shared dreams. Spring profits allow support for a shared endeavor this summer. Joint ventures pay off next autumn, providing ease with a winter financial challenge. Pull together for fun, ease and victory. To get the advantage, check the day’s rating: 10 is the easiest day, 0 the most challenging. Aries (March 21-April 19) — Today is an 8 — Fill your home with love. Beautify your spaces. Cook up something fragrant and delicious. Talk with family about upcoming plans. Listen carefully. Teamwork pays off. Taurus (April 20-May 20) — Today is a 9 — Follow fascinating ideas. Read, research and study. You can see what wasn’t working. Make adjustments. Edit and refine. Add illustrations, maps and link sources. Gemini (May 21-June 20) — Today is a 9 — Financial deals come together naturally. Discuss possibilities and set the budget. Words and actions align. Follow rules carefully. Take care of business. Cancer (June 21-July 22) — Today is a 9 — Develop practical personal plans. You know what you want. Dare to dream big. Talk about it with people you trust. Advance with help from friends. Leo (July 23-Aug. 22) — Today is a 7 — Sink into peaceful reverie and let your mind wander. Listen to good music. Put things away while you organize plans. Align your course and vision. Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) — Today is a 9 — Friends are a big help. Pull together for a common dream. Teamwork attracts good fortune. Talk about the plan. Reinforce the basics. Strengthen support structures. Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) — Today is a 9 — Your work is gaining attention. Polish portfolios, websites and resumes. Smile for the cameras. Discover fringe benefits. Your status and influence are on the rise. Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) — Today is an 8 — Enjoy a dreamy situation. Love and luck come together. Make long-distance connections. Discuss possibilities and align on the best direction. You’re learning something fascinating. Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) — Today is a 9 — Take advantage of lucrative conditions. Collaborate to harvest what you can. Stick to practical financial priorities to maximize savings. Build for the future. Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) — Today is a 9 — Love feeds your spirit. Pull together with your partner. Contribute to strengthen collaborative efforts. Support each other. Shared dreams can get romantic. Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) — Today is a 9 — Keep practicing. A dream lies within reach. Adapt and adjust with expert support. Nurture yourself for optimal physical performance. You’re building strength and endurance. Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — Today is an 8 — Creative muses inspire your artistry. Discover unimagined beauty. Fun and romance blossom naturally. Have fun with someone attractive and interesting. Share a delicious treat.
Level 1
2
3
4
4/7/22
Solution to Wednesday’s puzzle
Complete the grid so each row, column and 3-by-3 box (in bold borders) contains every digit, 1 to 9. For strategies on how to solve Sudoku, visit sudoku.org.uk
© 2022 The Mepham Group. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency. All rights reserved.
Page 6 Thursday, April 7, 2022
O’Colly
Lifestyle
Coachella 2022: Swedish House Mafia with the Weeknd to replace Kanye West as headliner Vanessa Franko The Orange County Register Swedish House Mafia and the Weeknd will team up to replace Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) as the Sunday headliner at the 2022 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, the festival announced via social media on Wednesday. The news comes two days after Ye pulled out of the festival’s Sunday night spot. The Weeknd and Swedish House Mafia will join Harry Styles and Billie Eilish atop Coachella’s return to the Empire Polo Club in Indio April 15-17 and April 22-24. Swedish House Mafia had been previously listed on the lineup poster in big, bold font, but at the bottom of the image, not assigned to a day. The Weeknd was not previously booked for this year’s event. Swedish House Mafia, the EDM supergroup of Axwell, Steve Angello and Sebastian Ingrosso, announced their reunion in 2021 with new music. Among that new music is a collaboration with the Weeknd, “Moth to a Flame.” Swedish House Mafia has never headlined, but the trio did close out the main stage back in 2012 after the Black Keys’ opening night set. And the individual members have played Coachella in other years. The Weeknd made his Coachella debut in 2012 before closing out the main stage after headliner Jack White in 2015. He finally became a headliner in his own right in 2018, but in the time since has become a household name, with his song “Blinding Lights” being pretty much everywhere, including last year’s Super Bowl halftime show. The festival is sold out and each weekend is expected to draw around 125,000 people to the venue to see artists such as Danny Elfman, Doja Cat, Megan Thee Stallion and more than 100 others. West dropped off the festival on
The Weeknd is set to perform at Coachella 2022 amid Kanye “Ye” West’s exit from headlining the show.
Monday. He was expected to return to Coachella as a headliner for the first time since 2011, although he had brought his Sunday Service worship program to the festival in 2019. However, after he was announced as headliner, West ended up in the news for erratic behavior, which included a
Graphic Designers Wanted The O’Colly Media Group is now hiring Advertising Designers for our ad and marketing departments. Duties include working on layouts, designing ads and assisting marketing department with media campaigns. Hours are flexible, we will work around your class schedule. For more information contact Lori@ocolly.com or call 405-744-7355.
WHEN IS LITTLE MUCH?
There is a short chorus that has encouraged me many times. “Little is much if God is in it. Labor not for wealth or fame. There’s a crown and you can win it. If you go in Jesus’ name.” The woman, who poured the precious ointment on Jesus just before he was crucified, was criticized for “wasting” this expensive item. Yet, Jesus said everywhere the gospel is preached this woman’s action would be told. (Mk 14:3-9) Little things mean a lot as we are willing to serve the Lord. Paul mentions many in Romans 16 who helped him. The Good Samaritan stopped to help the man beaten and robbed. (Lu.10:30-37) Paul writes as you have opportunity, do good to all men, especially to other believers.(Gal.6:10) When the poor widow dropped the two pennies, all that she had, into the temple offering. Jesus said she gave more the large offerings given. Her “large giving” was in relation to what she had. (Mk.12:41-44)
Many people may plan to give when they receive a great amount of money, but that large amount of money may never come. We may plan to give time or talent to a project when we have more time, but that perfect time arrangement may never happen. Again, the apostle Paul encourages us “as you have opportunity, do good to all men.” We never know when a little gesture of kindness, with money, or helping in an area of service, spending a little time with a person, a word of encouragement, will be just the action that will be a great help to someone. These can be practical ways of living out the Lord’s challenge to love one another. This is the fulfilling of the many commandments in the Bible: loving people by word and action.
social media spat with Eilish over her perceived slight of Travis Scott and a feud with Trevor Noah of “The Daily Show” after the host called out the rapper’s harassment of ex-wife Kim Kardashian. And the rapper’s music video for “Eazy” depicted kidnapping and burying Pete Davidson, Kardashian’s
Courtesy of Tribune News Service
boyfriznd. Nearly 50,000 people signed an online petition calling for the rapper to be removed from the Coachella lineup on Change.org. entertainment.ed@ocolly.com
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Thursday, April 7, 2022 Page 5
Stillwater roads take a toll Dallas Haggerty O’Colly Contributor Traveling in Stillwater has drivers worried about more than rising gas prices. Chipper Skelton, a senior at Oklahoma State University, has had his fair share of nightmare scenarios. Four years of traveling to and from campus in his white Nissan Altima wondering when the next tire light problem will appear on his dashcan take a toll on a college student’s wallet. “I’ve poured hundreds of dollars into different tire shops around town,” Skelton said. “I feel like the mechanics know me by name considering the amount of times I’ve had tire problems.” Various potholes around town serve as the culprit for what feels like never-ending car issues.Drivers have made their point clear to the city through voicing opinions online and taking his or her concerns to the Stillwater City Council in attempts to force Stillwater to take action. “I just wish the city would listen to its people,” Skelton said. “I’ve been here for four years with just one simple wish.” It turns out repairing all the roads in Stillwater isn’t as simple as it might seem. Monty Karns, the director of City Engineering for Stillwater, is aware of the ongoing struggles many experience while taking a commute around town. The city and Karns understand the roads in Stillwater aren’t up to standards. The focus has always been serving the communitywhile staying within the city’s $4 million yearly budget. Staying within the city’s budget for repairs and getting enough votes hasn’t been a problem for Karns and his engineering team. “We have an Asset Management plan in place to better the roads,” Karns said. “The hardest part of maintaining the plan is staying within the $4 million budget so we can afford to keep everything operating the way
it should be.” The Pavement Management Program is responsible for implementing and maintaining the vision of having less harmful roads throughout Stillwater. Every five years, each road is re-evaluated and given a priority score. The scale of scoring ranges from 0 to 100. If a road reaches the 100 range, the area is immediately repaired. Reaching a top score is rare, something Karns has been a part of a handful of times. “It’s a rare sight to be near the 100 number,” Karns said. “This is something myself and my team take pride in. When a road starts to get ratings that high, we almost immediately take action.” It’s a constant battle to keep roads up-to-date when thousands of drivers use them daily.Closing roads for a repair is also a major point of emphasis the Pavement Management Programattempts to control. Allowing for easy access when traveling around Stillwater is the department’s goal. When it’s time to close a main road for repair, residents typically voice their opinions without hesitation. Karns and his crew attempt to get the job done without upsetting the community. Succeeding is rarely a given. “We try to do most of our work on the main roads during times of low volume,” Karns said. “The less angry the drivers get, the happier the ground construction workers are at the end of the day.” It’s a stay out-of-the-way-andeverything-will-be-fine mentality. One that continues to be the theme of the construction sites. Gary Morton, the owner of Morton Construction, attempts to keep the community content while getting the job done in a timely manner. Morton Construction handles the majority of road construction in Payne County. Handling the bulk of operations in a town primarily made up of college studentscan sometimes make for a long day. Balancing getting the job done and staying away from the flow of traffic presents a challenge to Morton and his crew.
Branson Evans Construction on Perkins Road is fixing some of the potholes around Stillwater.
“I just tell my crew to handle the business and to stay away from irritated drivers,” Morton said. “At the end of the day, we’re doing the community a favor. It’s not the other way around in our eyes.” Making necessary road repairs on main roads in cities is a different story. Perkins Roadis a popular route choice for many Stillwater drivers that is under repair. Kaleb Clark, a senior at Oklahoma State University, is a frequent user of Perkins Road. There is one road Clark relies on daily to get to class on time. “I can’t believe Perkins is down to a single lane,” Clark said. “I’ve already been late to class multiple times this week. It’s starting to become a problem.” This isn’t the only problem Clark has had to face driving on Stillwater
roads. Clark’s 2005 Toyota Corolla has been out of alignment since he moved to Stillwater for college. Clark isfull of frustration after multiple adjustments and a few hundred dollars spent in attempts to reset his car’s alignment. “It’s a never-ending uphill battle,” Clark said. “I will get my car exactly how I want it and then these bad roads will put me right back where I was, waiting in line at all these auto repair shops.” Clark factored road quality into his final apartment decision after almost not re-signing his lease at Cottage Row Stillwater. The endless holes and cracks on 920 Loveland Drivehave made it a difficult task to simply drive out of the driveway. news.ed@ocolly.com
Page 4 Thursday, April 7, 2022
sports
O’Colly
Phansalkar improving in bullpen Rowdy Baribeau Staff Reporter
Notebook
Oklahoma State concluded a 2-1 in Manhattan, Kansas where they clinched the series 2-1 against Kansas State. Despite losing their first conference game, the Cowboys remained relatively consistent this year. But pitcher Victor Mederos said there is still room for individual improvement. “I feel like I still need to execute a little bit more,” Mederos said. “I’m getting better and better at executing at every start, but I still feel like I have to do more. What I mean by more is at the end of the game, I don’t look at what I did. “I don’t look at how many strikeouts I had. What I look at is, ‘Did we lose the game, did we win the game, and how many times did I execute each of my pitches?’” Doersching returns First baseman Griffin Doersching got a chance to bat Sunday against Kansas State. Doersching has been nursing a leg injury which has kept him out of the lineup. David Mendham has been the first baseman in his absence and has filled in nicely, but Coach Josh Holliday isn’t concerned about first base play. “Griffin getting healthy and ready to contiribute will be a really good thing for him and the team,” coach Josh Holliday said. “David just needs to continue what David’s doing. I mean, he’s played really well. He’s very steady and consistent right now on the things he’s doing, not worried about first base play right now. David’s out first baseman right now there’s no doubt about that.” Phansalkar improving in bullpen Pitcher Roman Phansalkar has begun to make his presence known in the bullpen despite past-injuries. “Roman, when he came back to us, was really evolving from what we had seen as a 17, 18-year-old to where he was as a 20-year-old,” Holliday said. “So, when he got healthy here, really we’ve watched him develop the last
Karisa Sheely After struggling in 2021, Roman Phansalker is off to a solid start for OSU in the bullpen.
two years and that’s really been fun because he’s done just a fantastic job taking what you learn from the game head on and adjusting.” Holliday also had nothing but positives to say about the play of true
HIMALAYAN GROCERY STORE
freshman, Roc Riggio. “Roc is playing second base as good as you can hope to play,” Holliday said. “There’s been high level, high, high level second base plays. He makes the routine plays, he makes the difficult
plays, he makes some plays that are even kind of hard to see how good he makes them because we play a bit more shift defense now, so balls get hit in funny places.” sports.ed@ocolly.com
O’Colly
Thursday, April 7, 2022 Page 3
Lifestyle
Greek Discovery Day Greek Discovery Day gives incoming OSU students the chance to learn more about Greek Life and what each sorority or fraternity has to offer. The second Greek Discovery Day is this Saturday, April 9. Stop by Greek Row to get a glimpse of bustling Greek Life this weekend with new visitors. All photos by Habbie Colen and Molly Jolliff
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Page 2 Thursday, April 7, 2022
O’Colly
sports This season tennis reflecting on COVID, anticipating NCAA Championships Ben Hutchens Staff Reporter Chris Young said he thinks about the 2020 NCAA Tennis Championships often. Young, Oklahoma State University’s director of tennis and women’s tennis coach, doesn’t think about the matches played or the trophies lifted. COVID-19 cases sweeping the world canceled the championships OSU would have hosted, and almost two years later Young is forced to think about what could have been. “I think it would have really been good for college tennis,” Young said. “I think for us to have hosted and done some of the things that we were going to do and just see how that works with a tournament, a lot of the outside fan experiences and things we were going to do.” Young said he got reminded of canceled championships earlier this season; when the Cowgirls played against Ohio State. In 2020, OSU had one loss, a 4-3 defeat against Ohio State. “I think we had a lot of momentum that season,” Young said. “So, you know, we were hoping to maybe to get a little redo on their home courts.” The championships were going to be more than tennis matches. It was going to be a two-week tennis celebration. Musical acts and tents were planned to take over Hall of Fame Avenue, which was to be blocked off from traffic. Gavin Lang, OSU associate athletic director and director of communications, attended the 2019 NCAA Tennis Championships in Orlando to get an idea of the scale of the event. “It was going to be so much more than just the tennis,” Lang said. In October 2020, the NCAA awarded OSU the 2024 NCAA Tennis Championships. The announcement came as a relief to many in Stillwater. OSU would get a chance to showcase itself on college tennis’ largest stage. Although the championships are scheduled to return to OSU, there are things COVID-19 forever changed. People inside the OSU athletics department spent hundreds of hours preparing for the 2020 championships. In the months leading up to the event, OSU representatives met weekly to meet every request outlined in the more than 100-page operations manual the NCAA sends each site hosting an NCAA Championship. The meetings addressed all sorts of items, such as the amount of signage needed to direct attendees, food menus and how Orange Power Studios would coordinate with the Tennis Channel to televise the matches. “When you’re in mid-March, a lot of those details are in place,” Young said. “So, I think a lot of the hard work had been done and now you are kind of starting over.” The pandemic tightened college athletic department budgets everywhere. OSU was able to recover some of the money it spent on the canceled championships but other costs the school will not get back.
he t t ou k c e Ch
Branson Evans Due to COVID-19 OSU was unable to host the 2020 NCAA Tennis Championships, but the team is anticipating this seasons event.
Young was not completely pessimistic. When talking about how the cancellation changed his program, he spent more time addressing the positives and finding silver linings than he did rehashing the negatives. “You know, (getting a bid to host the 2024 championships) just gives us something out there as a goal to shoot for,” Young said. When recruiting, Young uses the 2024 championships as incentive. He said whenever his staff talks to a recruit, it brings up the potential to win a national championship in Stillwater. “It’s something that you want to be able to just to make them aware of,” Young said. “I think that means something to some kids. To others, that doesn’t really factor into their decision at all.” Young said hosting an NCAA championship doesn’t mean much to some international recruits who have never heard of the association. Explaining OSU is hosting a championship helps validate the top-notch tennis facilities OSU has, especially if the recruit is unable to visit the Michael and Anne Greenwood Tennis Center. Oona Orphana, a freshman on the OSU women’s tennis team, said she likes traveling to new places for away matches but said there is an advantage
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to playing in Stillwater. “I think it’s going to be really cool,” Orphana said. “Playing at home is always good and having that big tournament here I think it’s going to be an advantage for the team.” Martina Zerulo, an OSU graduate transfer, transferred from Arkansas and has never played in an NCAA championship. The idea of playing in one in Stillwater excites her. “The crowd here is crazy and the energy you feel when you play here gives you something more,” Zerulo said. Even though it was canceled, the 2020 NCAA Tennis Championship created tennis fans in Stillwater. Young said he often gets asked when the event is coming back to OSU. “I think that it created a lot of people interested in like, ‘Hey, when do you get it back?’” Young said. “It kind of brings up some conversation with people about us getting it back and people starting to grow and learn about it so that they’re ready when it does come back.” The delay in Stillwater hosting the tournament creates additional anticipation in fans eager to see championship tennis in Stillwater. “Maybe some people had just found out about it and the cancellation maybe brought to light some things so
the cancelation could be a positive or a negative,” Young said. “You can look at it either way.” Young also has hopes the championships will be improved because of the extra time OSU has to prepare for them. The weekly meetings and time invested into the 2020 championships were not wasted when COVID-19 threw a wrench into the plans. “I think we learned a lot of things from that that we can hopefully put into play this time,” Young said. “So, you know, I hope that we’ll have a good team that we can put together in 2024 and make a run at it as well.” Lang gave a sense of optimism the 2024 championships would be better than what would have been the 2020 championships. He said other than loose conversations, detailed planning has not started, but when it comes time, many of the same people who worked together two years ago will again organize the championships. “We want to put on as good a show as we can put on,” Lang said. “You know, the best show that we put on in 2020, may not be as good as the best show that we could put on in 2024 when there’s new technologies, new things available to us.” sports.ed@ocolly.com
Thursday, April 7, 2022
Chris Becker With multiple departures on the offensive line Cole Birmingham is moving back to guard after playing tackle last season.
Birmingham anticipating improvements with updated offensive line Rowdy Baribeau Staff Reporter
book and everything,” Birmingham said. “Just from people I’ve talked to, going from a JUCO to a Division 1 program, it’s a big jump and people don’t think that it is as big of a jump as it is. Speed of play Cole Birmingham, a fourth-year offensive line- is different, your opponent’s definitely different. He is man, has stepped into a leadership role this season. doing everything he can to make sure he knows our Birmingham said he is excited to see younger playbook, make sure he knows what he’s doing and guys like Caleb Etienne get to a comfortable weight you know, he’s going a long way.” to play at his highest potential on the offensive line. Birmingham has also found himself in a new “He is just moving around a lot better,” Birposition. He originally was recruited to play guard mingham said. “I mean, it seems like he is a lot more but instead was moved outside to tackle. Birmingham comfortable doing what he’s doing now than what he is enthusiastic about the chance to play guard this was.” season as he believes it caters more to his playing Another individual on the offensive line that style, while re-learning how to play the position at has stood out is the improvement of Tyrone Webber. the collegiate level. Birmingham said he understands Webber’s transition “I was at left tackle all last season, so I’m movfrom JUCO to Division I football is not easy. ing to left guard,” Birmingham said. “Just kind of “He is doing good, he’s spending extra time getting all the aiming points, (they’re) a little differwatching film, like making sure he knows the playent, hand placement, so I’m just getting back used
to playing guard. That’s just mainly what I’m focusing on right now. I’m definitely more comfortable at guard, it’s kind of more of my play style.” Even though the team has only had six practices, Birmingham likes what he has seen from the offensive line group as a whole despite being stretched thin on bodies. “Honestly, everyone’s doing really good,” Birmingham said. “We’ve only had six practices so far, so it’s going great so far. We’re a little low on offensive linemen but everyone’s willing to jump in if anyone needs help or fill in a spot. It’s been really good and it’s helping our chemistry I believe.”
sports.ed@ocolly.com