The O'Colly, Monday, September 4, 2023.

Monday, September 4, 2023

Nardo’s first game as OSU defensive coordinator shines light on what needs work in his defense

caller, especially with the generic play calls.

Bryan Nardo believes there’s 7,000 things he can fix on his defense after Game 1.

The new OSU defensive coordinator called his first Division-I game in OSU’s 27-13 win over Central Arkansas Saturday night, but he had a limited sheet to call from − it was by design.

Nardo didn’t have the full playbook open against UCA. He wanted to allow his defense to play freely and watch what he has in a base scheme. He said he feels confident in opening up more of his 3-3-5 playbook in next week’s game at Arizona State.

OSU coach Mike Gundy said he felt Nardo performed as expected in his first game as OSU’s defensive play

“He thinks things through, talks things through. He was fine and he’ll get better,” Gundy said. “Very calm and he had answers for certain things except for (the dump pass to the running back in the flat). Other than that, we had answers for mostly everything. We were pretty vanilla this game. We wanted to just run base and let the guys play.”

Central Arkansas almost scored on its opening possession, twice, but OSU’s defense survived.

The Bears had two touchdowns called back because of penalties in back-to-back plays, then cornerback Korie Black came around the end and blocked the ensuing field goal attempt.

OSU played three QBs, but Gunnar Gundy lifted OSU over Central Arkansas

Daniel Allen Staff Reporter

Mike Gundy said three quarterbacks would play in Oklahoma State’s 2023 season opener.

Many anticipated two. But the OSU coach insisted in the coming weeks it was three.

Garret Rangel, a returning redshirt freshman. Alan Bowman, a transfer from Michigan and former threeyear starter at Texas Tech. But the unforeseen name in the midst of the competition ended as the hero in OSU’s 27-13

season-opening win over Central Arkansas.

Gunnar Gundy.

Prior to Saturday’s game, Mike and his coaching staff informed the three they would be playing in thirds. It wasn’t clear if that meant quarter-by-quarter or evenly divided playing time. He said he anticipated it being a game-time decision on his part.

And neither he nor his staffers faltered at the thought of the latter option entering playing in a critical stage. Not even if it entailed OSU (1-0) only leading an FCS foe 13-7 in crunch time of the fourth quarter.

But sure enough, it did.

Quarter No. 4, with the Cowboys clinging to a six-point advantage over 26-point underdog UCA (0-1).

Gunnar’s first drive concluded as a three-andout, a similar ending to most of OSU’s offensive drives up to that point late in the third quarter.

But did Mike even ponder with the thought of abandoning his pregame plan, yanking Gunnar in favor of Bowman or Rangel? “No,” he said. “We stuck with the plan.” And it paid dividends.

Leading a town thrust into the national spotlight for a widely condemned police raid of the local newspaper is a “daunting” task, says Michael F. Powers, the presumptive next mayor of Marion, Kansas.

Powers is running unopposed in the south-central Kansas town’s election this fall.

Earlier this year when the attorney and former 8th Judicial District judge decided to file for mayor, he wanted to better market the small town and “change the momentum.”

Momentum did pick up — but not in the way Powers had envisioned. Now, he has to rebrand it from what it’s become known for: a city where the First Amendment was allegedly breached.

Leaving office is Mayor David Mayfield, who was elected in 2019 and often clashed with the Marion County Record’s publisher Eric Meyer as well as the paper’s reporters.

Many see recent grudges — some personal and others professional — among the mayor, the paper, the police and other figures as contributing to the Aug. 11 raid itself and the fallout the community is facing.

Since then, local leaders and residents have seemingly dug in on their sides as disputes new and old continue to divide the town.

But Mayfield has remained largely absent from the public eye. He did not return multiple phone calls or emails sent by The Star in the weeks following the raid, and was not at the first city council meeting since the raid took place.

“I’m not going to talk about any issues we’ve had in the past with the newspaper or anyone else,” Mayfield said at a special city council session last week. “It is what it is.”

Mayfield said he ran for

mayor to improve the city’s infrastructure and has no interest in another term.

“I got accomplished what I wanted to accomplish,” Mayfield said.

‘Hit a crescendo’

Powers said he was aware of long-standing issues in the community, which has less than 2,000 people, when he decided to run — including rifts the mayor has with the newspaper and City Council members, and critiques among residents of the paper’s coverage.

Powers said there is a “sizable number of people in the community who feel like the paper is unfair in its coverage.” Meyer said that the paper is often accused of being too negative if it publishes something that someone doesn’t like.

Over the years, Meyer and Mayfield have traded barbs about the newspaper’s stories. In several posts dating back to May 2021, Mayfield writes about setting “the Record straight.” When pressed for specifics, Mayfield said, “Just go back and read some of his articles, some of his editorials.”

“Look at Facebook where our citizens have challenged some of the things that he wrote editorial opinions on.”

Meyer described Mayfield’s tenure as having been “marked by controversy,” including drama last year about a capital improvement plan and an ethics violation accusation over the transfer of a police dog to the sheriff’s office.

“(Mayfield) has basically accused us at the newspaper of doing fake news,” Meyer said. The animosity is apparent to many in the community.

“I don’t think there’s a question that there are folks that have been crosswise with each other over the last couple of years, and it seems to have hit a crescendo recently,” Powers said.

See Kansas on 7

Ethan Scott

The Cowboys allowed Central Arkansas to make an opening drive into the red zone Saturday, but the Cowboys settled in. Safety Kendal Daniels (5) said they will “get things fixed.”

See Nardo on

After Kansas newspaper raid, Marion’s likely next mayor wants to fix town’s reputation

Ethan Scott

Gunnar Gundy (left) was often the name left out of quarterback battle talk ahead of the season, but he delivered the Cowboys a win with a good fourth-quarter showing Saturday night. See Gundy on

Davis Cordova Staff Reporter

Katie Moore The Kansas City Star

Cowgirls showed they can respond in comeback win over UCA The Cowgirls have dominated their opponents this season.

D.J. McKinney

Brennan Presley

Elijah Collins

Cowgirls showed they can respond in comeback win over UCA

the 17th minute, via Logan Heausler’s third goal of the season, but the Bears responded quickly as Maria Vanegas scored in the 19th minute.

OSU hasn’t been in many tight games. The Cowgirls have dominated their opponents this season. Entering Sunday, they were averaging nearly four goals per game and had only allowed two goals in five games.

But it took a second-half turnaround in Sunday’s game against Cen

tral Arkansas for the Cowgirls to leave Neal Patterson Stadium as 5-2 winners.

The Cowgirls drew first blood in

The Cowgirls (5-1) hadn’t allowed a goal since Aug. 20 at Missouri State or any goal at home this season. However, the Bears capitalized on offense, scoring twice off three shots on goal.

Abbi Armstrong added another goal in the 36th minute as Central Arkansas (0-4-2) led 2-1 at halftime.

OSU coach Colin Carmichael wasn’t pleased with his team’s firsthalf performance, but he and his team remained calm and confident.

“In the first half, we created a ton of looks and didn’t score,” Carmichael said. “At halftime, we went in and didn’t panic. We just talked through it and demanded a second-half response.”

Defender Mollie Breiner said the team was frustrated after the first half, but the past two weeks showed they could overcome it.

“Everybody was getting frustrated the first 45 minutes, but we went in there and told each other you’re not done,” Breiner said. “Y’all are still playing. We have 45 minutes and there’s no need to fret. We were only down one goal. We have the capability to come

back and win.”

The Cowgirls started the second half with a bang, striking goals from Ellie Geoffroy and Megan Haines within the first three minutes of play. Shyann McClary added a goal in the 59th minute, followed by Xcaret Pineda in the 82nd minute. Haines was proud of how her team responded when faced with a deficit. “Confidence is a big thing for us right now,” Haines said. “We have some great attacking players, and we can rotate. We have some depth in those attacking positions, which is always good and that helps us a lot.”

sports.ed@ocolly.com

File Photo

The Cowgirls had been blowing out opponents leading up to Sunday’s match against Central Arkansas, but they proved they can win in other ways in a 5-2 comeback win.

Griff McClellan Staff Reporter

Nardo...

It was an eerie first drive. Without the two penalties on UCA, the defense would’ve allowed the Bears to take the lead early, but the defense settled in after that.

Safety Kendal Daniels said it takes time to settle into a new season.

“It’s just getting back to football,” Daniels said. “They had some plays schemed up for us and they hit the right gaps. It’s the first drive since January, but we’ll get it fixed.”

It took Central Arkansas almost three quarters to put points on the board, but Nardo said he believes his defense stepped up at the right time and got stops in crucial situations.

Nardo said his defense can improve on tackling, which OSU missed quite a few of, and covering screen passes to running backs. UCA had a handful of screen plays work, even scoring a touchdown on one.

All in all, Nardo is trusting in his process and committing to finding the answers to questions left about his defense from Saturday’s performance.

“Our kids played really hard and when it came for them to bow up and make a stop, they bowed up and made a stop,” Nardo said. “What we need to do is not so much about what happened tonight, it’s can we fix everything moving forward and have the answers we need to have –which we will.”

Continued from 1 sports.ed@ocolly.com

It was an eerie first drive. Without the two penalties

Ethan Scott

on UCA, the defense would’ve allowed the Bears to take the lead early, but the defense settled in after that.

Gundy...

with a 16-yard rush, leading his unit on a second touchdown drive and putting the game out of reach.

In spite of Gunnar’s late-game heroics, Mike remained insistent that his team’s quarterback battle remains unsolved, with no resolution coming soon.

On his second drive, Gunnar led the Cowboys on a nine-play, 93-yard touchdown drive – their first since the first quarter. In that, he completed four of his six attempted passes for 62 yards, bringing the offense a fluency that had been absent throughout.

On the ensuing drive, Gunnar recorded a 39-yard connection to Jaden Bray with a well-placed deep ball amid tight one-on-one coverage. He followed

A former walk-on, who for the majority of last season spent time as the third-string in OSU’s quarterback room, cemented himself as a catalyst in an offensive breakthrough.

His teammates didn’t hold much surprise of his 7-for-9, 106-yard outing that earned him a 176.7 QBR.

“We have full faith and trust in him and in (Gunnar),” said wide receiver Brennan Presley. “When Gunnar’s in there, Alan and Garret, they’re on the sideline cheering (him) on and he’s doing great things. And at the end of the day, it’s all about the win.”

“Well, you guys watched, you wouldn’t be able to (make a decision) either,” Mike said. “I’ll watch the tape and (give) the grades.”

ing for 80 yards, leading OSU on two field-goal drives, which could have been touchdowns. Offensive coordinator Kasey Dunn attributed to uncanny drops from the wide receivers. OSU had three on the night.

Continued from 1 sports.ed@ocolly.com

“(They were) uncharacteristic and untimely drops,” Dunn said. “Unfortunately, it impacted the quarterback and how it looks, how he played.”

Rangel started Saturday’s contest, throwing an interception on his first drive. He settled down and led the Cowboys on a nine-play, 80-yard drive that ended on a swing pass to Brennan Presley on the left side for an 11-yard score. He finished 10-for-15 with 118 passing yards.

Bowman finished 13-for-24 pass-

But Mike Gundy, Dunn and others reiterated, a win is a win. However, regardless of Saturday’s outcome, the necessity of finding an answer rises weekly with a trip to Arizona State one week out, and Big 12 play looming around the corner.

Gunnar Gundy (pictured) was the third quarterback option in Saturday’s season opener, but wide receiver Brennan Presley the team has full faith in Gundy if he’s called on to lead the offense.

Students take brief break for Labor Day

Michael Clark Staff Reporter

Twelve days into the school year, and OSU is taking its first break: Labor Day.

Paige Matthews, a sophomore majoring in psychology and management, is taking time to visit with her family from Texas.

“My family and I usually go to the lake for Labor Day,” Matthews said. “We buy some frosted cookies and spend the day out on the water.”

Some students, such as Mel Heskett, a sophomore majoring in psychology, have more relaxed plans for Labor Day.

“I don’t plan on doing much for Labor Day weekend,” Heskett said. ‘I’d like to study for my Japanese class, hang out with friends and spend a little time with my family.”

Other popular Labor Day activities include grilling food or going out to a nice restaurant and catching up with loved ones.

Kaden Swords, a junior majoring in marketing, said he is also planning to visit his family.

“This year I am going back to my hometown,” Swords said. “My girlfriends does makeup for local theatre companies, so I am going back to see her production of Snow White.”

news.ed@ocolly.com

Kansas...

Continued from 1

It’s unclear how much — if at all — personal disagreements played into the newspaper raid.

Adding to the mix is Councilwoman Ruth Herbel, whose home was also searched the same day police raided the Record. She recently disagreed with Mayfield on city spending and had been “skeptical” of Marion Police Chief Gideon Cody.

Mayfield supported

Cody’s appointment as chief, a position he himself held from 1999 to 2002. He continued as an officer with the department until 2013 and later joined the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.

Cleaning up after the raid

When Powers likely takes office, he’ll need to handle more than just the personalities of the town, which is already facing a lawsuit from the Aug. 11 raid and has critics across the country questioning the decisions of its police force.

He said he has not yet read the affidavits that Cody

submitted to the court, but will eventually.

When it comes to Cody’s future with the city, Powers said he does not want to make a “knee jerk reaction,” but “there needs to be a very detailed look at the whole situation.” Then the City Council would have to make a decision. He and other leaders will likely also have to deal with the strain that lawsuits could have on the city’s budget.

“Obviously I’m concerned about that, but there’s not much you can do about it right now,” he said.

Last week, a Record reporter filed a federal lawsuit

against Cody, claiming her First and Fourth Amendment rights were violated when police seized her cellphone and computer.

Marion’s insurance company, EMC Insurance, hired McDonald Tinker, a Wichitabased law firm, as “litigation counsel” in anticipation of lawsuits. The insurance company hired the law firm without going through the City Council for approval.

Mayfield said he’s confident the city’s insurance company is taking the necessary steps to protect the city from a lawsuit.

Looking to the future

While Powers did not anticipate the drama that has caught the attention of free speech advocates across the world, he said the situation also presents an opportunity for the town.

“At this point you can’t ignore some of the bad blood and animosity and maybe this would be a good time to try to really address it head-on and talk,” he said.

“We have to find a way to communicate with each other, to disagree with each other without making it personal. ... My goal, my intent, is to try to reach out to those who are willing to talk and talk.”

As mayor, Powers said he plans to use executive sessions only when necessary and that he expects meetings to run longer because there will be more open discussions.

Meyer said he has not interviewed Powers as a candidate, but thinks he is “a reasonable man.” Meyer said he took it as “an excellent sign” that Powers has indicated he will present an issue at a City Council meeting and act upon it at the next meeting.

One of Meyer’s complaints about Mayfield is he believes the mayor has pushed through changes without enough discussion or time to review proposals.

Marion Presbyterian Church Pastor Jeremiah Lange said he thinks Powers is “levelheaded.”

“I know he’s had conversations with Eric (Meyer) over the years and they might not see eye to eye, but they can talk with each other,” Lange said. “So I think that’s a helpful step and I think it will put a different atmosphere on those city meetings and the relationship between the city and the paper.”

Two City Council seats, including the spot held by Herbel who is seeking reelection, are also on the ballot.

“You’ll have some new eyeballs on things and we’ll see how that goes,” Powers said.

The election will take place Nov. 7.

news.ed@ocolly.com

Courtesy of Tribune News Service

The first edition of the Marion County Record since its newsroom in central Kansas was raided by police.

Netflix’s ‘One Piece’ appeases manga fans

Michael Clark Staff Reporter Review

Picture this: you go to a restaurant and tell them you’d like to order a taco. In return, you get a cheeseburger that gives you food poisoning almost immediately.

This is how many anime fans feel every time Netflix makes live action adaptations of beloved anime and manga.

From their horrid adaptation of “Death Note” to a butchering of “Cowboy Bebop,” Netflix has never given us the metaphorical taco that we crave, only food poisoning.

Today, we finally got the taco we’ve been asking for, and even if it isn’t the best taco of all time, it sure tastes better than that cheeseburger. Netflix’s adaptation of “One Piece,” despite all of its flaws, is one of the greatest stories in all of fantasy.

“One Piece” follows Monkey D. Luffy, a kid on a quest to become the greatest pirate of all time by building a crew and searching for lost treasure. The story soon becomes incredibly complex and intricate.

The “One Piece” manga that the show is based on starts off slowly but manages to build one of the most creative and wonderful worlds in all of literature. The characters are lovable, the locations are diverse and the story is unbelievably grand in its scale.

The Netflix adaptation, however, doesn’t quite reach those highs. A lot of the more absurd and cartoonish elements of the manga are thrown out. It makes sense why this was done, as the tone would have felt a little too larger than life in live action format, but that goofy charm of “One Piece” is missed.

Despite those tonal inconsistencies, the show manages to hold true to the spirit of the manga. This is possibly because the author of the manga, Eiichiro Oda, was heavily involved in every step of this adaptation.

The production value in this show is simply astounding. There have been several high budget, yet low quality

television shows in the past few years, but the monumental budget of “One Piece” is felt in every episode. The series is packed with easter eggs, cameos and foreshadowing. Every location is detailed and believable, and costumes look worn out and lived in rather than seeming like cheap cosplays. The cast is what elevates the show to great heights.

Terrible adaptations such as “The Last Airbender” and “Dragon Ball Evolution” show that casting the right actors is paramount to recreating the magic of “One Piece.” Thankfully, the live action representatives of the Straw Hat Pirates are stellar. While there are some weak line deliveries here and there, and the script can be

pretty rough, these actors are perfect for the role.

It’s easy to tell that I’m passionate about this particular show. It isn’t perfect, and there’s tons of issues I probably should be focusing on, but “One Piece” feels like a love letter to fans of the manga, rather than a cheeseburger that gives you food poisoning.

entertainment.ed@ocolly.com

Courtesy of Tribune News Service

From left, Emily Rudd as Nami, Iñaki Godoy as Monkey D. Luffy and Mackenyu Arata as Roronoa Zoro in “One Piece.”

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle

Edited by Patti Varol and Joyce Lewis

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Houses for rent

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Cowboy Calendar

Monday 9/04/2023

Trivia Night

Stonecloud Brewing Company @ 7 p.m.

Leon Polk Smith: Affinities in Art & Design

OSU Museum of Art until Jan. 27th @ 11 a.m. 4 p.m. https://museum.okstate.edu/art/leon-polksmith.html

Line of Thought: The Work of Saul Steinberg

OSU Museum of Art until Sept. 30th @ 11 a.m. - 4 p.m. https://museum.okstate.edu/ art/line-of-thought.html

Those Who Served Military Exhibit

Stillwater History Museum at the Sheerar

Until Dec. 9th @ 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. https://www.stillwaterokhistory.org/

Tuesday 9/05/2023

Pet Portraits with colored pencil Prairie Arts Center @ 6 - 8 p.m. $45.00 members, $60.00 non-members https://artscenter.okstate.edu/adult-classes/drawing-and-painting/1241-pet-portraits-with-colored-pencil”

Wednesday 9/06/2023

Louie Kids’ Night

Louie’s Grill & Bar @ 11 a.m. - 11 p.m.

Live Trivia

Iron Monk Brewing Company @ 7 - 9 p.m.

Bingo Night

Louie’s Grill & Bar @ 8 p.m.

Small Batch Trivia From Geeks Who Drink

Iron Monk Brewing Company @ 7 - 9 p.m.

Thursday 9/07/2023

Intro to Glass Fusing

Prairie arts Center @ 6 p.m. $125.00 members, $150.00 non-membershttps:// artscenter.okstate.edu/adult-classes/ glass/1248-introduction-to-glass-fusing-2

Kid’s Night

Eskimoe Joe’s @ 5 - 9 p.m. w/ $1 Buffy meal

Cancer (June 21-July 22) — Today is a 7 — Get nostalgic with friends. Enjoy photos and memories, with Jupiter retrograde. Strengthen bonds over the next four months. Share your appreciation, recognition and acknowledgment. Leo (July 23-Aug. 22) — Today is a 7 — Revise career plans over the next four months, with Jupiter in retrograde. Study and prepare for tests and upcoming challenges. Reorient your professional path. Organize.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) — Today is a 7 — Reconsider your educational or travel plans. Refine schedules and itineraries over the next four months, with Jupiter retrograde. Make reservations and preparations. Imagine adventures.

Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) — Today is an 8 — Review and revise financial matters over four months, with Jupiter retrograde. Get your numbers in order. Find new ways to profit and save together.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) — Today is a 7 — Shift responsibilities. Over about four months, with Jupiter retrograde, adapt roles in a partnership. Revise your collaboration. Work together to grow what you love.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) — Today is an 8 — During Jupiter’s four-month retrograde, review and balance your work, health and fitness. Make plans and organize. Get your ducks in a row before making changes.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) — Today is a 7 — Reaffirm what you love during Jupiter’s retrograde phase. Consider beauty, music and art. Release outdated ideas. Reinvent romance.

Refine and redefine your passions.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) — Today is an 8 — Jupiter’s retrograde encourages enjoying your nest. Plan upcoming home improvements. Over the next four months, organize ideas and prepare budgets. Review priorities and visions. Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — Today is an 8 — Begin a fourmonth creative review process. Jupiter’s retrograde favors planning communications for greater impact. Study, research and edit. Publish or launch next season.

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