Friday, Nov. 11, 2022

Veterans Day edition

Republicans take state senate, Stitt reelected

Michael Clark & Luisa Clausen Staff Reporter

Late into the eve ning Tuesday, enough votes were counted to confirm Repub lican control over the Senate seats of Okla homa. Republi can Kevin Stitt beat Democrat Joy Hofmeister in the governor election.

Family comes first

No hype, just commitment for Thomas at home

kids?” Thomas asked.

The officer answered yes.

“Well, I don’t get to see my kid,” Thomas said in response.

Davis Cordova Staff Reporter

In the confines of Sheppard Air Force Base, no soldier could be gone past 10 p.m., let alone a whole weekend. But Les Thomas Sr. needed to leave.

Thomas walked into his Mechanical Transport Of ficer’s office, closed the door and asked a question.

“Do you see your

Thomas told, didn’t ask, his commanding officer he was leaving and didn’t care about the consequences.

“Whatever repercus sions come with leaving, so be it, because I’m a man and I want to see my son,” Thomas said.

Thomas left Wichita Falls, Texas, en-route to his home in Oklahoma City shortly after that conversa tion to go see his son.

This is just one exam

ple that Thomas, known as OSU’s ‘hype man’ at foot ball and basketball games, has always thought family over everything — prevalent throughout his 20 years of service in the Air Force and the Oklahoma Air National Guard.

Thomas served 18 years as an accountant and two as a chaplain assistant from 1998-2018. He reflected on his time in the military and dedication to his country leading up to the Veterans Day holiday on Friday.

“I look at my time in the military as a privilege and an honor to serve our country,” Thomas said.

Thomas worked at local bases such as Tinker Air Force Base and Will Rogers Air National Guard Base, but for many years, he had assignments overseas in countries such as Iraq, in Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Kuwait, far away from his family.

While he was across the globe, FaceTime and Zoom calls weren’t around, but Thomas still found ways to talk to his family.

“I love my kids, I’m really close to my kids,” Thomas said. “I wrote to them and spoke to them as much as I could because

See Les on 8A

OSU kicks off Hunger Awareness Week

Kennedy Thomason Staff Reporter

Hunger Awareness Week is here.

Leadership and Campus Life will hold events throughout the week to familiarize OSU students with the issue at hand.

On Monday, the basic needs fair will be held in the Plaza Amphi theatre of the Student Union from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The fair will feature organizations on campus and from the Stillwater community that provide resources to OSU students in need. Some resources that will be shared include those for housing, health and food insecurity.

A hunger simulation will happen in the Sequoyah Room of the Student Union on Tuesday from 10:30 a.m.12:30 p.m. This simulation, hosted by Pete’s Pantry, will allow students to

understand the perspective of someone facing food insecurity. Students will be provided a budget and will have to plan meals within the provided con straints.

On Wednesday, a SNAP Q&A will occur via Instagram on the @osu campuslife story. SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) is a program run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. A SNAP representative will answer all questions about ben efits and how to use the program.

All of these events are in place to address the serious issue of hunger that Oklahomans face.

“Twenty-five percent of Oklaho mans receive benefits from the Supple mental Nutrition Assistance Program,” according to OSU Extension.

This percentage of Oklahomans that receive benefits from SNAP indi cate the severity of the situation.

Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week is a national event.

The National Coalition for the Home less and the National Student Cam paign Against Hunger and Homeless ness sponsor the week.

This campaign brings national awareness to the issue, but OSU’s Hunger Awareness Week focuses on the student body. The resources that this event highlights allows students to be successful.

“Oklahoma is one of the hun griest states in the nation. One in six (17%) Oklahoman adults and seniors are food insecure, and 1 in 4 (25%) Oklahoma children are food insecure,” according to OSU Extension.

This demonstrates a need for the resources that Hunger Awareness Week shares.

For more information regarding Hunger Awareness Week, what you can do to donate and events taking place, please visit lcl.okstate.edu.

Through out Stitt’s campaign, Re publicans said they expected the race to be tight but for the incumbent to win and beat Hofmeister. Stitt secured major victories throughout most of the state. Hofmeis ter won in the urban areas — Oklahoma County, Cleve land County and Tulsa County.

Republi can Rep. James

Lankford had a 32% lead over Democrat Rep. Madison Horn, with nearly 400,000 votes between the two senator candidates. The case remained the same for Republican Rep. Mark wayne Mul lin, who had a 26.6% lead over Democrat Rep. Kendra Horn and a 300,000 vote gap. “It’s time to get to work,” Lankford said at the GOP watch party Tuesday. “From me and my wife, Cindy, from our whole family, we want to say thank you to all of you for your engagement and your passion for the issues. It’s not about us. We understand that full well.”

Courtesy Les Thomas Sr.

Les Thomas Sr. made sure to be there for his kids and wife while serving in the Air Force.

Courtesy of Tulsa World

Govenor Kevin Stitt won re-election on Tuesday night, earning 55.5% of the vote.

By Kendall McGhee

Photo

OSU celebrated Veterans Day with several events including the flag placement and breakfast.

All photos by Jaiden Daughty, Karlie Boothe and Ethan Hilbert

News/Lifestyle

Fall fashion trends rises with colder weather

Bella Casey Staff Reporter

As the leaves on the trees change with each season, fashion trends do, too.

Though flannel button downs re main a timeless fall fashion statement, cool weather never fails to inspire new styles and closet makeovers.

The day that the leaves on the trees turned orange, new trends, such as sweater dresses and flared leggings, emerged and are showing promise for becoming new seasonal staples.

Older trends, like cardigans and blazers, are revived each year and die out as the weather gets warmer.

Most of today’s fashionistas draw inspiration from social media. Pinterest, Tiktok and Instagram provide an outlet for influencers and users alike to share what they’re wearing this fall or what personal twist they would add to classic looks.

As the everyday person tries a

Films to look forward to this November

Jaycee Hampton Staff Reporter

This year has been spec tacular for recently released movies. There are many films to be on the lookout for this November as 2022 draws close to the end.

As we tran sition into the holiday season, there are many films from various genres that audi ences are looking forward to. Some people are hoping to find new films to help them get into the holiday spirit, and Lindsey Lohan is here to make sure that is pos sible.

Lohan is making her return to the big screen in “Falling For Christmas.” With co-star Chord Overstreet, this is a holiday ro mance that is set to be released on Thursday, which is perfect timing for you to prepare for the holiday season.

Lohan recently signed a threemovie deal with Netflix, this being the first to excite fans. Audiences are anticipating Lo han’s performance because this is the

start of her official comeback.

One day later, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” will be released on Friday. With returning roles from Lupita Nyong’o, Winston Duke and Angela Bassett, this is one of this year’s most highly anticipated films. Since the death of beloved actor Chadwick Boseman, it has been difficult for the cast and crew, especially mak ing a sequel in his absence. They hope to do justice to this groundbreaking film franchise.

“She Said” is about the New York Times journalists Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey. The release date is set for Nov. 18. Publishing a report that exposes Hol lywood director Harvey Weinstein of sexual abuse allegations, these two women shatter decades of silence and are creating a powerful, support ive community for victims of sexual assault. This film is about a story that helped ignite a movement known as #MeToo.

look that went viral on TikTok or the sweater vest their favorite Pinterest user posted, they are commonly disappoint ed with the results.

ʼʼ

Sophomore construction engi

neering and technology major, Belue Harris, said unfair beau ty standards are to blame for why many are often left unsatisfied with trendy outfits.

“You want to be built like a Kar dashian,” Harris said while reflecting on the ideal body type.

This fall, influencers encourage viewers to dress for their body type.

“I think that’s something we’ve never talked about before,” Harris said. “I think it comes from the body positiv ity movement.”

It is impossible for every trend to flatter every body type. Therefore, influencers have proposed the idea that people should appreciate their ap pearances by accentuating their best features through fashion trends that work best for them, rather than striving to fit into the unachiev able mold that is the

ʼʼ

“Kardashian” body type. With a new outlook on fashion comes the opportu nity for news trends to bloom and old trends to thrive.

Harris predicts that cropped sweaters will trend this fall as an exten sion of summer trends.

“I know some people really want to get away from crop tops,” Harris

said. “But crop tops are really flattering on some body types.”

Fall veterans such as the turtle neck sweater are also making a come back and can be paired with a blazer or jacket to create a fashionable yet profes sional look.

The cool weather of fall forces a change in popular footwear. Both men and women ditch their sandals for a pair of Jordan sneakers. Jordans are a trendy addition to almost any outfit.

“They were big last year,” Harris said. “You can dress them up and dress them down.”

To improve your fall wardrobe or add these styles to your closet, Harris suggests shopping in the Student Union, supporting local boutiques and stores with your business or shopping for your next look on Amazon.

Whether you stick to trends or focus on your own unique style, fall fashion is meant to be enjoyed by all.

entertainment.ed@ocolly.com

Protect and serve

have had similar experiences or also are in a similar age range as I am,” he said. “We immediately have some thing in common. The ice is already broken.”

Engel Co-Editor-in-Chief

Cheryl Kleeman talks slowly and her voice quivers as the thinks about the American flags.

Thousands of them in front of Library Lawn. Each adorned with a dog tag from a soldier killed in action since 9/11.

Some of those dog tags belonged to Kleeman’s friends. One of the many reasons why she serves as director of OSU’s Office of Transfer and Student Veteran Success. She wants to help veteran and active duty students be cause of her experiences in the armed forces and a lack of resources when she attended school.

The office, tucked in a corner in the Student Union basement, is a hangout spot and headquarters for stu dent veterans. Kleeman and coordina tor Vincent Rivera are there to assist student veterans.

Jermonte Smith, a senior mar keting major from Arlington, Wash ington, frequently uses the office to hang out with his friends and eat lunch. As a Navy veteran, Smith didn’t know anyone in Stillwater. New school. New place. New opportunities.

“When I come to this office, I know that most of the people here

The Office of Transfer and Stu dent Veteran Success exists for multi ple reasons. Networking opportunities, financial and academic assistance, and a community for those transitioning back to civilian life.

“We look at our students holisti cally,” Kleeman said. “What do they need financially? What do they need academically? Where can we offer those supports? Where are the gaps that exist throughout our campus and how do we close those gaps to better support them?”

If a student needs to take a military leave of absence, Kleeman and Rivera help facilitate that. Emer gency funds, too. It’s a one-stop shop to work with OSU’s 400-plus student veterans. It’s poor experience that motivated Kleeman to help.

“When I was in my undergradu ate program, they didn’t know any thing about how to serve veterans and I felt like I had to slog through it all by myself with no help,” she said. We want to lessen that. We don’t want our students to ping pong between of fices.”

Malik McGee, a senior studying aerospace administration and opera tions, serves in the Oklahoma Nation al Guard and works at the Office of Transfer and Student Veteran Success. With Rivera’s help, McGee leaves Stillwater for his military duties and

returns as a student.

“There are a lot of things that the school does provide for student veterans and being a part of that, I’m really thankful that I got to spend my four years here,” he said. “It’s im portant that our school looks toward veterans and makes sure they get the things that they need.”

Kleeman said there are about 2,200 military-affiliated students which includes National Guard, active duty and dependents. She’s ready to help more.

“We really just want our veter ans to feel like this is their home too like they’re part of the Cowboy fam ily,” she said.

Karlie Boothe

OSU’s Office of Transfer and Student Veteran Success in the Student Union assists more than 2,200 military-affiliated students with financial, academic and networking needs.

Student Veterans center assists large military affiliated enrollment

Courtesy of Tribune News Service

Letitia Wright in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.”

Adam

Karlie Boothe

The Military Times lists OSU as one of the top schools for veterans. The Transfer and Student Vet eran Success Center is the hub for those students.

I think that’s something we’ve never talked about before, I think it comes from the body positivity movement.

See Movies on 5A

News/Lifestyle

OSU places annual flags and dog tags on Library Lawn

Kennedy Thomason Staff Reporter

A total of 7,168 flags stand proud ly in Edmond Low’s lawn, a tribute to our veterans.

These flags, along with the corre sponding dog tags, serve as a reminder of the soldiers lost since 9/11.

The Department of Transfer and Student Veteran Success, along with the ROTC, student and community volun teers uniformly placed the flags and dog tags in the lawn. Placing the flags and dog tags is the start to a week of events that recognize veterans for their service and sacrifice.

This display is nationally recog nized, as OSU is the only university that creates a display that accurately reflects the number of lives lost. OSU is also unique in the fact that the dog tags are printed with each veteran’s name, branch and how long they served.

Vince Rivera is the veteran suc cess coordinator and has been doing this event since he arrived at OSU.

“It’s a way for us to not only show our student veterans, but our active students who are active duty, our guard and reserve students, our military fami ly members, so their parents might have been in the military, so they’re going to school here using the G.I. bill of some sort, and the Stillwater community how much our veterans mean to us,” Rivera said. “To commemorate that, since I’ve been here, every year we’ve put

Stitt...

Continued from 1A

While Hofmeister initially had a sizable lead against Stitt, once early voting and absentee bal lots were counted, which are a majority of the Democratic votes, Stitt came ahead of Hofmeister for the rest of the night.

Currently, about 95% of the votes have been counted, but it is impossible for that un counted 5% to turn the tides of this election in a meaningful way. Be cause of that, most major news sites have called the Oklahoma midterm elections in favor of the Republicans.

A few seats in the senate are uncounted for, with the Democrats hold ing 46 seats and Repub licans holding 48. Two seats are held by other parties and results for a few states are still com ing in. It is unclear if we are looking toward a split senate or a small lead for the Republicans or Demo crats, but the situation is unraveling at this very moment.

In Stillwater, incum bent Rep. Trish Ranson (D-Stillwater) won reelection in District 34 of the Oklahoma House of Representatives.

Oklahoma Secre tary of Education Ryan Walters won the spot for Oklahoma State Su perintendent of Public Instruction, according to unofficial results from the Oklahoma State Election Board.

The voter turnout for Oklahoma seemed to be somewhere around 1.2 million. This is a sig nificant decrease from the 2020 election, with 1.5 million voters.

The Oklahoma midterm election for 2022 was a victory for the Republicans with a wide margin, and while voter registration was down this year, the push for Demo cratic representatives may lead to interesting election years for 2024 and 2026.

For more informa tion regarding the elec tion results, please visit oklahoma.gov.

out these nation ally recognized flag displays. It’s 7,168 flags. Each flag represents a military member that we have lost since Operation Enduring Freedom, so in other words, since Sept. 11, 2001.”

For more information on events and donations, you can visit universitycollege. okstate.edu/ transfer-veteran-success/veteran/ veteranweek2022.

from the head down stairs in the Veterans Benefit Center,” Anderson said. “He told the story of families coming up to this and asking for their specific family member’s dog tag and having an answer for that is really special, you

know. As far as they [Department of Transfer and Student Veteran Success] can find, they’re the only people that do the research, find a flag for every single military member that has passed away. And each flag represents one of those fallen people. Doing it for them is kind of nice.”

news.ed@ocolly.com

The process of placing the flags and dog tags takes two days to com plete. American flags were planted in the ground last Thursday and dog tags were placed on Friday.

Members of the Office of Student Veteran Success alongside student and community volunteers, such as the Daughters of the American Revolution, dedicated time to this project.

Timothy James Anderson, a firstyear student and veteran, placed flags in the ground as it rained last Thursday. He reflected on the experience of hon oring the fallen veterans.

“A lot of it is thankful that the ground is soft,” Anderson shared. “But a lot of it is just how many flags we have to put in, kind of makes you somber and feels not great, but also feels great to be part of representing them and just showing that 7,000 looks kind of small when you compare it to the national population, but staring at it to its face, it’s humbling and kind of somber.”

The experience of creating the display is personal and full of emotions.

“It’s important to me because I just recently learned about it [the event]

Movies...

Continued from 4A

Also releasing on Nov. 18 is “The Menu,” directed by Mark Mylod. This film looks particularly interesting, nothing like this film has been done before. Focusing on a young couple’s trip to a remote island, a world-class chef prepared an exquisite

“The Fabelmans” directed by Steven Spielberg is set to be released on Nov. 23. This is a semi-autobiographical loosely based on Spielberg’s adolescence and his first few years as a filmmaker. Starring Paul Dano, Gabriel LaBelle and Michelle

Karlie Boothe

OSU students, faculty and staff helped put out more than 7,000 flags and corresponding dog tags to remem ber the fallen after 9/11.

menu and some rather disturbing surprises for the guests. With major cast members such as Anya Taylor-Joy, Nicholas Hoult and Ralph Fiennes, this is certain to be one of the top films released this year.

Williams, the film follows a young Sammy Fabelman as he explores the power of film. There are multiple other films that are set to be released this November, at least one of them is certain to be your cup of tea. Be sure to visit your local theater and check out these recent releases.

Courtesy of Variety

“Falling for Christmas”

Courtesy of Universal pictures

“She Said”

Courtesy of Vulture

Remembrance: An OSU veteran’s story

Micah McKamie Staff Reporter

We were all just trying to go to school.

It’s not always that simple, but most of us in Sep tember 2000 weren’t there to fight a war. We were there to pay for college. I was always a bit of a passivist growing up. It’s not that I wouldn’t stand up for myself, I just always saw different approaches than getting physical.

I never thought that the world would fall into chaos a mere 12 months from then and I would be right in the middle of it. Once I was in the Army, I was hooked. What other job pays you to play in nature and blow stuff up? On top of that, there was the promise of pay ing for school.

Coming back from basic training was a culture shock. Most of you have experi

enced what it is like to come home after being at OSU for a little bit and even though it is familiar, everything seems just a little off. I was differ ent. Everything that had been taught to me and instilled in me during my time at Basic and AIT (Advanced Individual Training) had made me more confident and scarily fearless.

I had been enrolled at the University of Central Oklahoma for about three weeks when the first plane hit the towers. As I sat there on the bed in my dorm room, I knew nothing would ever be the same.

Not long after, a major ity of the Oklahoma National Guard was activated for vari ous deployments and taskings, and education became a distant memory. I replaced my books and fraternity for a rifle and my platoon.

I remember so vividly the day I left to our mobiliza

tion training in Fort Carson, Colorado, and saying goodbye to my mom. It doesn’t mat ter how tough you are, saying goodbye to your mom to go to a combat zone is one of the hardest things I ever had to do.

During the many years I spent overseas, I learned a lot about myself and learned to focus through the fear. School was all I wanted to do and as long as I made it through all of this, that was my reward. It kept me going. Day in and day out we patrolled, escorted the supply trucks and stayed alive.

The part about this that is hard is remembering the guys who didn’t make it. Those that did pay that ulti mate price for a benefit they will never receive. We all knew it was a possibility, but the reality of it all really sinks in when you start sending your buddies home to be buried.

When you are still in the military, a lot of the issues

you have are not thrust to the forefront of everyday life. The mental side gets pushed back into the shadows. After separating from service, many emotions flooded my psyche. What had I done? Why was it I survived and so many didn’t? What do I have to offer that they didn’t? These thoughts become intrusive, especially when I hit rough patches while going to school.

It no longer is about the veteran passing the class, but if they are worthy to even be there. These thoughts are only compounded by a lasting self-scrutiny that all service members gain during service, the drive to make yourself good enough. To these men and women, school is more of a mission than a box to check or a degree to obtain.

I personally see my education as me honoring all those men and women who expected to get to experience

universities like ours but never will. The GI Bill is more than education benefits; it’s a bill that has been paid up front in full by the men and women who signed the dotted line and chose to stand up for what they believed was right at the time.

We all sacrifice in some way; some just don’t get to reap the benefits. I don’t tell this story for recognition or pity. I only share my experi ences so you know what these motivated individuals are doing here.

They are veterans and cashing a check that they have paid for time and time again. Some days they pay for it again just by remembering what we had to do to be here, in school.

Courtesy of Micah McKamie

Micah McKamie shares his personal war story and what it is like being a veteran and a student.

A day overseas in the combat zone

Micah McKamie Staff Reporter

Editor’s note: Micah McKamie, an O’Colly writer, served in the Army for 16 years and separated at the rank of Staff Sergeant. He serves in Iraq and Afghanistan and deployed to Hurricane Katrina. He earned a Bronze Star, Combat Action Badge, Airborne Wings and Air Assault device among other awards and citations.

One of the most frequently asked questions to me as a veteran is what is war like? How does one go about being in a war? What does living in a war zone feel like?

Well the answer to that ques tion is complex and multifaceted. Each veteran has a very different experience of what war feels like. Let’s get right to the point. War is boring, especially for infantry.

Most days start off with a brief ing from your squad leader or higher up about missions for the day, taskings, details and much more. During this process, duties are broken down and paperwork is assigned to set up the mis sion documents. These jobs go to a few junior leaders and brand new boots and the rest of us are kind of on our own to get ready for mission, get chow, work out or just lay on your bed and wonder how you got to such a place.

War is not a thrill of the minute ride. It’s extreme bouts of boredom accentuated with moments of intense moments that are usually over and done before you realize they happen. Some situations drag out into firefights, which are few and far between, and then there are the task force missions.

These missions are well coordi nated and often involve multiple units, from multiple branches, to include mul tiple countries. These types of things could last up to a week and had far reaching implications into the war and specifically our battle space.

Even these sometimes were mas sively uneventful, and you ultimately find yourself guarding some tin horn in the middle of nowhere in a vehicle with four other guys eating meals ready to eat and talking about what you were going to do when you got home. I would elaborate on those conversations, but they aren’t always rated PG.

On occasion, you would get put on details to man a guard shack, run the front gate or escort local nationals to their jobs on the Combat Outposts (COP), but these were only one to two days at a time and when we weren’t in a higher tempo of operation. Every base, big and small, had a gym. It might be a stellar Anytime Fitness type of gym or it could be a ratty corner of the COP that we dedicated to the little bit of equipment we were able to bring or make. To be honest this sounds like a dream.

You have all the time in the world, free food and you can work out as much as you want, but how long can a person really work out everyday? Over time the excitement wears off, and you hit the gym for two hours a day.

Between preparing for and execut ing the mission, getting in and out of bunkers and working out, you have cov ered half of the day. What now? Water was scarce, so showers were a commod ity, and we weren’t exactly allowed to head downtown to check out the night life. So we watched movies. An ungodly amount of movies.

I still to this day have three terabytes of movies, TV shows and

music on a hard drive that I collected over the years through multiple deploy ments. Many veterans are well versed cinephiles and love to discuss them to extremes. Want to know if a movie is good or not, ask a veteran, they have experience.

Overall, the life overseas has its ups and downs. Everything is always dirty; You, your tent, the latrine and the showers are all caked with moon dust and mud.

There are highlights. You get to talk to the family now and then on morale and recreation room computers when they are operational, and holidays are always accented with a phenomenal spread no matter where you are.

You spend a lot of time thinking. Some days I would spend hours star ing off into the vast fields leading up to the mountains that surrounded our little outpost and think about everything from growing up in Texas to how I was going to spend my time when I got home. A lot of what I wanted to do was experience going to school and this kept me going.

The military was an intense roller coaster ride of success, failure, loss and celebration that I would never trade

for anything. I was able to experience amazing sunsets, breath taking sunrises and some of the most beautiful scenery you will ever see, all counter balanced with people trying to kill you almost every day.

From incoming rockets to impro vised explosive devices, alleys meant to dampen our resolve to help the Afghan people build their own country based on respect and freedom for all its citizens. Even as I watched with the rest of the world as Afghanistan fell to the Taliban I never regretted what we tried to do there.

Minus the bureaucracy of the entire twenty-year span that we spent in Afghanistan, I do believe we made a difference in their lives. Even though each day had its share of success and loss, we made the best of the situations and in the end did the best we could.

Now these men and women add to the vast experience and knowledge at universities across the country by exem plifying the words of General George Patton, ”If everyone is thinking the same, then no one is thinking at all.”

news.ed@ocolly.com

OSU Dept. of Theatre

Courtesy of Micah McKamie

Micah McKamie shares his personal war story and what it is like being a veteran and a student.

a connection with them was very important. It was vital to me because I made a decision with myself when I had my son, that I was going to be committed to them. Physi cally, not being able to see them, really sucked, but I made sure to talk to them as much as I could.”

On occasion Thom as surprised his family, returning from tours. Thomas remembers the time he surprised his son, Les Jr., at his basketball game, but it wasn’t just any game, it was the playoffs.

Les Sr. was allowed to return from his tem porary duty assignment a few days early, with no one knowing of his arrival. He had a family member pick him up from the airport and immedi ately go to the game.

“It was important to me to make all my son’s games,” Les Sr. said. “I walked into the game in my uniform and I just remember seeing the smile on my son’s face, he wasn’t expecting it.”

With frequent fourmonth tours, Thomas found himself not being able to always be there for his family, he especially remembers the first time he couldn’t aid his wife and kids.

While Les Sr. was away, the fence fell down in the family’s backyard, the dog got out and it went missing. Simple task, sure, but Les Sr. was frustrated he couldn’t help his family fix the fence and find the pooch that eventually was found.

“That simple thing triggered me because if I was home, I would’ve been able to fix the fence,”

Les Sr. said. “Then, you have all these people say ing that they’re going to help when I’m away, but when the rubber meets the road, a lot of them are just talking. So, I was really frustrated that my wife and family needed help and I wasn’t able to be there for them.”

From his weekend absence at Sheppard Air Force Base to see his new born to surprising Les Jr. at one of his high school playoff basketball games, Les Sr. always found a way to be there for his family.

“My family is really important to me,” Les Sr. said. “I didn’t grow up where my father was highly involved with me, so I made a commitment to myself and to my son and daughter that I will be committed to my kids and be at everything as much as I can.”

Les Sr. never let his upbringing get in the way of being true to his family and people took notice.

First Sgt. Daniel Swanson has known Les Sr. for about 14 years, working with Les Sr. in the financial department. Swanson took note of Les Sr.’s dedication to his family despite his back ground.

“He’s from a pretty challenging background, and the way he adapted, overcame and showed resilience is inspiring,” Swanson said. “From the background he and his brothers came from, they had to kind of stick together and I think that translated well for when he was able to establish his own family and his own way. He’s always been very enthusiastic about his family, and very enthusiastic about just anybody who happens to come across his path.”

news.ed@ocolly.com

Courtesy Les Thomas Sr.

Les Thomas Sr. always tried to be there for his family even though he was across the globe on tours.

Is Rangel ready?

Sudden spotlight on freshman quarterback

Sam Hutchens Staff Reporter

Jerry Rangel occasionally texts his son Garret the same three words.

“Preparation equals suc cess.”

A Rangel family mantra. Not that Garret needs a reminder. He’s been hearing the sage advice before he got a phone.

“That was drilled into him since he was in grade school,” Jerry said.

The advice resonates now as much as ever. Last week, an injury to senior Spencer Sanders thrusted Garret, a true freshman OSU quarterback, from highly touted third-stringer into the starter spot at Kansas.

Next? Perhaps salvaging the Cowboys’ suddenly floundering season, depending on Sanders’ status.

Will he start against Iowa State on Saturday? For the rest of the season? Coach Mike Gundy won’t tip his hand. But those who have known Rangel the longest say he is ready for the moment.

“He’s been ready since he stepped foot on that campus,” said Christy Rangel, Garret’s mom. “I can just tell you that that’s his mental state.”

Jeff Rayburn, Rangel’s

high school coach at Frisco Lone Star, said it is difficult to unnerve Rangel.

“He’s going to take all the good and all the bad and all the ugly, but he wants it on his shoulders,” Rayburn said. “And that’s somebody that everybody will follow.

“And so I don’t think there’s anything you can put him in that’s going to rattle him.”

Rangel’s debut against Kansas was a mixed bag. He threw 40 passes in a 37-16 loss. He threw for 304 yards and two touchdowns, but also tossed three interceptions.

Senior center Preston Wilson, who placed fault for the interceptions on the entire of fense, said he was impressed with Rangel’s spot-start performance.

“I think he handled it the best way he could possibly,” Wil son said. “He came in, he didn’t act scared. He didn’t act timid and stuff, but he was also willing to accept advice from older guys. He knows he’s having to step into a quarterback role and that’s a huge role and you do have to be vocal and be loud.”

While evaluating Rangel on the sideline, Gundy said he thought the young quarterback was calm and demonstrated a clear understanding of what was going on.

“I thought he played good, made some plays,” Gundy said. “Obviously, he had some mis takes, but that’s gonna happen when you’re young. He had some turnovers and things that were unfortunate, but I liked the way

he competed, liked the way he threw the ball at times.”

Jerry and Christy said Ran gel’s composure may stem in part from his experience. He started playing flag football at 4, and while no toddler truly runs an of fense, Rangel was the quarterback even then.

“The minute he did any thing, he was a competitor,” Christy said. “He was born with it. Because it’s something you can’t really teach.”

Rangel shares competitive ness with his mom.

It is where “the heart of a lion” — the other Rangel fam ily mantra — comes in. Whether playing Monopoly or table tennis, Rangel’s parents never let him win. He had to earn it, especially in table tennis.

“(Christy) would do the Forrest Gump moves and Gar ret would get frustrated at that,” Jerry said. “Then all of a sudden he would excel at that and come back and triple whatever Christy just did.”

Rangel’s sudden rise up depth charts is nothing new. When he enrolled at Frisco Lone Star High School, he expected to be put on the ninth-grade team. Instead, Jerry and Christy got the unexpected pleasure of watching him start on junior varsity.

After a few games, he was elevated to varsity.

Rangel seized the starting job his sophomore year. Three games into the season, he faced a daunting task.

Rushing to conclusions

surpass 350 yards rushing.

Rush defense, which was once the strongest, most reliable part of OSU’s defense, has now become its most glaring issue.

OSU Football gameday:

Opponent: Iowa State

When: Saturday at 2:30 p.m.

Where: Boone Pickens Stadium

Theme: Blackout and Veterans appreciation

TV: ESPNU Radio: 93.7 FM - KSPI

Muhammad’s toughness, leadership is what OSU looks for after losses

embrace.

The computer chips in the shoulder pads confirmed Mike Gundy’s suspicions.

The defense appeared slower than normal against Kansas and was failing to do important things right. Tackling, assignments and getting off blocks. The rush defense, especially, gave up too many big plays and lacked execution.

After looking at the data on the chips, Gundy said the speed of the de fense was slower against the Jayhawks than any other game this season. And it showed. KU manhandled OSU’s defensive line and created huge running lanes.

After that, arm tackles, poor angles and missed assignments at linebacker allowed the Jayhawks to

“We missed more tackles in that game than we have,” Gundy said. “Quite honestly, we looked tired, in my opinion.”

Things weren’t always this way. The Cowboys gave up just 118 rushing yards per game over their first five games, 3.3 yards per carry, which would rank top 25 nationally at this point in the season. Boy, does that feel like a long time ago.

In the four games since, OSU has allowed 244.5 yards a game, at a rate of 6.2 yards per carry – slating it as the 100thranked rush defense in FBS. So what’s went wrong?

Gundy placed some of the blame on the inju ries that have plagued the Cowboys.

Jabbar Muhammad exited the locker room with his chin up and a stern facial appearance.

Minutes before, OSU lost 37-16 at Kansas. Not in basketball. In football. The week prior, Kansas State blew out the Cow boys 48-0. In those two games, OSU’s defense allowed a combined 1,049 yards and 85 points.

Many OSU players and staff left the 101-yearold stadium with bitter, stoic expressions. But Mu hammad, a junior defen sive back, stepped like he wanted to reclaim some thing taken from him.

“It’s tough, espe cially for the standards we have set for ourselves,” Muhammad said. “Two losses like this isn’t our standard. We expect noth ing but wins…

“I hate this feeling,” Muhammad said. “I hate losing.”

Because something was taken from them — pride. OSU’s defense became a force in 2021, and carried much of that momentum into 2022. The results weren’t pretty early this season, but the Cow boys were winning games.

Now, they’re not.

“We lost these two games badly, and we shouldn’t have,” said OSU defensive end Collin Oli ver. “We need to get our minds back on track and say, ‘Hey, this isn’t who we are. We’re gonna keep pushing.’ We needed a wake up call. We shouldn’t have needed it, but it looks like we do now.”

To get the defense’s mind back on track, the Cowboys say they need two things. Leadership and toughness. Both of which, Muhammad strives to

On OSU’s defense, eight starters have missed time with injury at some point this season. De fensive tackle Brendon Evers decided to forgo the remainder of the season because of nagging in juries. Both Tyler Lacy and Trace Ford exited last week’s game with at this time unknown lower body injuries, and corners Thomas Harper and Korie Black have each missed action.

The injuries not only forced young players to rise up in their place, but also the veteran presence and voice in the locker room and on the field be came absent. Muhammad knows the importance of guidance, as someone who sat and developed behind older corners. Now as the older corner, Muhammad has been the teacher for the teenagers who have been thrust onto the field, and the voice they need to hear from after losses.

“Some guys have been on the team for a minute,” Muhammad said. “They’ve got to step up and be ready, especially at this point in the season. We’re going through a little rough patch. We need them to hear the older guys’ voices.”

One player who’s been under Muhammad’s wing is Cam Smith, who wasn’t even listed on OSU’s two-deep depth chart until he played most of the 104 snaps against Texas Tech after Black went to the sideline with an injury after the first drive.

As a redshirt fresh man, Smith had previ ously only seen the field sparsely, or against FCS opponents. With more injuries and Muhammad splitting time between corner and safety, Smith has been thrust into an everyday cornerback role against high powered Big 12 offenses.

Mackenzie Janish

Garret Rangel has suddenly been thrown into the limelight after injury to fourth-year starting quarterback Spencer Sanders.

Gabriel Trevino Sports Editor

Chase Davis

Jabbar Muhammad brings a veteran presence and toughness to a banged up and underperforming defense.

Mackenzie Janish

Braden Bush

Staff Reporter

A road game against Highland Park, the No. 1 team in the state.

“It’s a hostile environ ment,” Rayburn said. Highland Park had not lost a home game to an instate team since 1998. Rangel ended the streak. He threw a 45-yard strike on the first play of the game, connecting with future Oklahoma receiver Marvin Mims for a touch

down.

Lone Star pulled out a 30-19 victory against High land Park, the three-time defending state champs.

“From there I think Garret’s confidence really grew,” Rayburn said.

Three different offensive coordinators coached Rangel in high school. Christy said he studied for hours, in prepa ration for when he would be quizzed on the offense in front of his teammates.

As for free time, he plays Madden and reads sports books.

“He knows the mental

sports

preparation that comes with this game,” Jerry said. “He’s not going to be one of those guys clowning around out there. He never has been.”

The Cowboys aren’t anointing Rangel the longterm starter yet. Gundy said he will continue to evaluate Rangel and fellow backup Gunnar Gundy, the coach’s son, before making any deci sions.

If Sanders is healthy enough to play, the battle becomes a moot point.

The chance to preserve Rangel’s redshirt is another complicating factor. If Rangel

plays in three more games, he cannot be redshirted, as NCAA rules allow a player to appear in four games and still maintain redshirt status.

Rayburn doesn’t think the uncertainty will faze Rangel.

“Garret Rangel will never blink and he will never flinch,” Rayburn said. “I don’t care what game it is, how big the moment is. That’s what kind of separates him so many people.

“He thrives in that type of environment.”

Cowgirls add two players for 2023 class

coaching staff,” Heard said. “When I came to visit, they just made it feel like home, I’m all about having coaches that care for you on and off the court, they made me feel wel comed and that they truly cared about me.”

An odd similarity

When OSU had a comparable losing stretch

2014 was the last time the Cowboys suffered consecutive blow out losses while scoring 17 points or less — similar to the stretch of losses they have faced the past two weeks against Kansas State and now Kansas.

Daniel Allen Staff Reporter

As Kansas running back Devin Neal shifted past a herd of OSU defenders, there was nothing but green turf awaiting the sopho more running back.

Thirty-one yards, to the house.

What was once a promising 5-0 start had quickly shifted to a season likely geared toward a re spectable bowl appearance. Just two weeks ago, OSU was a top 10 team nationally.

“I wouldn’t say that things have spiraled out of control,” Gundy said. “We’ve got guys that are trying to work in roles that they haven’t had much experience in. We have some key players out.”

The lead into the 2014 season was not too different from that of this season. A talented wide re ceiving core with an experienced quarterback and offensive line was expected to lead the Cowboys to a nine or possibly 10-win season.

Amid a 37-31 loss to defending national champion and No. 1-ranked Florida State to open the year, OSU garnered early success, jumping out to a 5-1 start. Even after quarter back JW Walsh suffered a seasonending injury in the second game of the season against Missouri State, backup Daxx Garman provided enough stability under center for the Cowboy offense to function.

“JW went out but Daxx came right in and we didn’t miss a beat,” said David Glidden, a junior wide receiver on the 2014 OSU team. “We

were inexperienced on certain ends, of course. But we won our next five after the Florida State loss and we were honestly looking pretty good.”

Glidden, a mainstay for the Cowboy offense over a four-year span, remembers the highs of that five-game winning streak. But he also remembers how it ended.

A top-15 matchup at TCU awaited the Cowboys. Four quarters of action later, the trajectory of the season took a turn for the worse.

A 42-9 blowout road loss to the Horned Frogs was followed by a 3410 loss to West Virginia on Home coming. Losses to Kansas State and Texas ensued, and all of a sudden what had once appeared as another strong season for OSU, turned into one with a level of uncertainty re garding whether or not the Cowboys would even make a bowl game.

“I don’t know what happened,” said Kevin Peterson, a cornerback on the 2014 team.

Jacie Hoyt just signed her first few players of the 2023 class.

On Wednes day, two guards took advantage of the early signing day period. Here are their summaries.

Stailee Heard: 6-foot guard from Sapulpa. Heard in her junior year almost av eraged a double-double with 19.4 points and 9.2 rebounds per game.

“I chose OSU mainly because of the

Mia Galbraith: 5-foot-9 guard from Austin, Texas.

Galbraith posted 12 points and five rebounds per game and will be a four-year varsity player come this year.

“I chose OSU for many reasons,” Gal braith said. “One being the way the coaches and players interacted. It felt more than bas ketball, a way that you could truly see that ev eryone cared for each other like a family.”

Mackenzie Janish Garret Rangel has been called to start at quarter back after Spencer Sanders’ injury.

sports.ed@ocolly.com

Abby Cage

OSU coach Jacie Hoyt added two 2023 recruits on Tuesday for her first official recruiting class.

File Photo

This year’s OSU football team is drawing similarities to its 2014 season, where it started 5-1, then went on a five-game losing streak.

Davis Cordova Staff Reporter

Messaoudi left Morocco to better family’s lives

sometimes at these milers that might be able to run cross country,” Smith said.

“And he’s definitely one of those guys.” But Messaoudi never overlooked himself. He knew what he was capable of. And now, 5,000 miles away from his home country of Morocco, he looks to do more both for him and his family.

Then, OSU reached out to Mess aoudi. He didn’t even know what the NCAA was, or anything about the style of competition in the U.S. Just the recruiting process was a big reach for him.

was eye-opening: $3,000 a year. Com ing from such an impoverished area, furthering a career in running and get ting and education is a way to support him and his family.

Dave Smith lauded Fouad Mess aoudi before the Big 12 Cross Country Championships in October. And for good reason.

After saying Messaoudi was one of the most overlooked runners in the country, Smith, OSU’s cross country coach, had his claims verified. Mess aoudi only competed in races less than 3,000 meters, and he’s still just in his freshman cross country season, having joined in January. But he finished sixth at Big 12s.

Smith wasn’t sure what they’d get out of him, but he had an idea based off athleticism and potential.

“I think what a lot of people fall for nationally is they forget to look

Messaoudi began running at a young age, while his brother was already in training. That’s when the potential was realized. Other neighbor hood kids played soccer, and he did, too, but it didn’t stick like running did.

“I find my passion in running,” Messaoudi said. “I love running.”

At 12, Messaoudi was running at a primary school and winning his re gion. Then, at 13, he made the Moroc can National Team. The passion only grew from there.

He was training with elite Moroc can athletes such as Soufiane El Bak kali, the 2020 Olympic gold medalist in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. He said those Olympic-caliber athletes trained alongside him and pushed him to be on the same level as them.

“It’s hard to be a recruit because I have to apply for a visa first, and then it’s not like American people here –they come to see what’s going on (at OSU) and then they decided to come in here or not,” Messaoudi said. “It’s not like me. When (Smith) explained to me, I put all my trust in him.”

“There’s people here that spend $3,000 a year on coffee,” Smith said. “He looks forward to getting an educa tion and be able to go well beyond his running and support his family and kind of change the outcomes of, you know, the lives of his family.”

Not only did it take trust from Messaoudi, but also his family. They all looked at it as a great opportunity to benefit his future as a runner.

“They were really proud of me,” Messaoudi said. “That’s like a great progress of my life, trying to build my future and trying to find a great op portunity for me to afford (my family) a good life and also to help me and to be responsible.”

Braden Bush Staff Reporter sports.ed@ocolly.com

With a 2022 Indoor and Outdoor All-Big 12 finish and his first Big 12 cross country season complete, he’s not overlooked anymore. His first year at OSU has been one of adjustment, but also one of success, which he looks to carry on to NCAA cross country regionals and national championships.

Smith sat down and looked up the average income of Messaoudi’s home town of Oujda, Morocco. The search

“When I come here, I find the team, I find the coaches here, and they support me so much and they push me,” Messaoudi said. “I think this year we’re gonna be good and trying to achieve something nice at this university.”

or Pizza made to your liking!

SINCE 1957,

Courtesy of OSU Athletics

Fouad Messaoudi traveled 5,000 miles from Morocco to Stillwater to compete at OSU and help build a better life for him and his family.

“It’s like after the (TCU loss), everything that could possibly go wrong for us, went wrong. Whether it be a handful of missed tackles, guys lining up wrong, simply losing a 5050 ball in coverage, everything went wrong for us. It was just the little things, and it was frustrating.”

In week 12, Garman went out with a shoulder injury, and true fresh man quarterback Mason Rudolph made his OSU debut in a 49-28 road loss to No. 5 Baylor. Rudolph had his freshman moments, throwing two interceptions and completing only 52% of his passes. But also a 291-yard performance through the air gave some silver lining to the OSU coach ing staff.

The same could be said for true freshman Garret Rangel’s first start as a Cowboy in Saturday’s game versus Kansas this season. His three inter ceptions were costly for OSU, but two touchdowns and 304 yards through the air were promising.

The situations aren’t entirely the same. The 2014 team was fighting for bowl eligibility. This year, the Cow

boys could still win 10 games.

sports

At the same time, the similari ties are visible. A promising start that quickly shifted into uncertainty re garding the remainder of the season. A true freshman quarterback is now the centerpiece of the offense.

“I see the similarities of both teams in the sense of adversity,” Peterson said. “This year’s team has just been super injured and banged up. Much like ours. But I think they’ll bounce back. We were very very young, but I always wonder what our peak could have been had we stayed healthy.”

The final three games of this year that remain include three of the bottom four teams in the Big 12 standings. Will the two recent losses just act as a footnote of the 2022 season? Or will they be the peak of a massive collapse in a team that was supposed to have a season to remem ber?

“I’ve seen some stuff about that 2014 team,” said sophomore defensive end Collin Oliver. “We’re too talented to go on a (losing streak) like that. We’ve still beaten Texas and Baylor and got close against TCU. We’ll bounce back. We’ve got to. I’m confi dent in us.”

sports.ed@ocolly.com

Rushing...

His success in part to the coaching received from Muhammad.

“He’s one of the best leaders I’ve ever been around,” Smith said. “He knows I’m young, and any time I come off the field or if I made a mistake he’ll come up to me, dap me up and say, ‘Hey, it’s all right. There’s a next play.’ Then he gives me tips on the defense or the opposing offense’s tendencies.

“He comes with a confident swagger that our defense needs.”

Swagger and domi

nance on defense is some thing OSU had been used to. In 2020 and 2021, the Cowboys were top 15 and top five in total defense in the country. Yeah, some players from those teams went to the NFL or trans fer portal after defensive coordinator Jim Knowles left, but many stayed put in Stillwater alongside the hiring of Derek Mason.

But in 2022, the Cowboys are ranked 124 of 131 FBS teams in total defense.

“You remember that feeling you had when you play good defense, and you want to keep that,” Oliver said. “You just want to feel it again. Playing great, playing together and that comradery, you want to have it again.”

Against Kansas, OSU was cleaved on the ground for 364 rushing yards allowed. The defen sive line was pushed back, and linebackers and the secondary missed tackles in open space, offering Jayhawk running backs big plays and untouched touchdowns.

So when Muhammad departed the stadium, his rugged body language re flected the way he and the Cowboys need and want to play the rest of the season.

Tough “It’s gonna take the leaders,” Muhammad said. “We have to get our swag ger back. We have to have fun and play physically.”

Continued from 1B sports.ed@ocolly.com

Defensive tackle Brendon Evers is gone for the season, defen sive end Brock Martin has missed time and lineman Tyler Lacy has battled injuries. The excuse is there, but defensive coordinator Derek Mason isn’t hav ing it.

“I’m not going there (injuries),” Mason said. “I think that’s the season. I think everybody deals with the same thing. Every body’s beat up.”

Again, what’s the issue then?

Outside of Evers, the defensive front is nearly identical to that of last year’s defense that gave up just 87 rushing yards per game. The defensive unit averaged more than 10 tackles for loss per game over the first five games but has averaged just three since. There’s not the push into the backfield to stop run ners like there was early in the season.

Coaches have had to adapt to youth at linebacker, as well. Mason Cobb and Xavier Benson were forced to fill the voids of two

NFL linebackers, who were big assets in last year’s staunch run defense. This year’s defense doesn’t yet have that level of cohesion. Mason said it will re quire more from every one to improve.

“Here’s the deal, you can make every adjustment in the world, but this is still a run and hit game,” Mason said. “Schemes are schemes. Players make schemes come alive. When you’re running similar or same schemes, you need better execution. And so we’ll scheme it better, and we’ve got to continue to ask for better execution all the way around.” Practices this week have sounded different. That better execution is being asked for.

“A whole lot of yelling,” said defensive end Collin Oliver.

But it comes from a healthy place. Oliver said his unit has been more vocal this week and has held each other accountable. The defen sive line is the first de fense against the run, so they hold themselves re sponsible for problems defending the rush. If someone is slacking or missing assignments in practice, they’re getting called out.

Part of that men

tality trickled down from Sunday meetings, where Gundy was blunt with his coaching staff. It needed to get better.

“They weren’t big Gundy fans when the meetings were over,” Gundy said. “But that’s my job, because we have to share the defi ciencies with the team. We can’t just push it on the team because it’s not all on the team. We could have coached bet ter, also.”

Oliver said coaches are grading practices now and doing their part to hold play ers accountable, and he appreciates that. The team needed to refocus, rejuvenate and correct issues that, frankly, haven’t been a problem or needed addressing recently.

But whether it’s injuries, scheme, execu tion or a combination of it all, the rush defense has lost its touch over the last month.

“It is pretty frus trating, I’m not gonna lie,” Oliver said. “When you know that we’re better than what we’re showing out there, and we’re way better than what people are saying that we are, it is frus trating seeing all that. All I know to do is just fight back.”

Mackenzie Janish

Garret Rangel, a true freshman, was called to fill in at quarterback much like then-true freshman Mason Rudolph was in 2014.

Abby Cage

OSU’s rush defense ranks among the worst in the nation, with injuries on the front piling up.

Abby Cage

With Jabbar Muhammad filling in holes in other positions, cornerback Cam Smith has seen more snaps.

Mackenzie janish

Jabbar Muhammad is seen as a leader for the depleted and struggling OSU defense.

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Today’s Birthday (11/11/22). This year benefits your health, fitness and work. Home and family flourish with steady care and attention. Autumn reveals valuable personal discoveries, sparking new possibilities for winter collaboration. Physical victories next spring inspire a personal change next summer. Get your heart pump ing to thrive.

To get the advantage, check the day’s rating: 10 is the easiest day, 0 the most chal lenging.

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Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) — Today is a 9 — Strong collaboration can work miracles. Give up an assumption or preconception about your partner. Focus on here, now and common objectives. Teamwork wins. Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) — Today is an 8 — Prioritize health and energy. Moni tor conditions carefully. Data dispels myths and illusions. Hidden pitfalls line the trail. Watch where you’re going. Prepare ahead. Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) — Today is an 8 — Relax and have fun with someone you love. Avoid expenses or hassle. Keep things simple. A picnic in the park could delight. Invent romance.

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Asberry finds plug-andplay guard role at OSU

first being an exhibition against Ouachita Baptist and the second being the home opener, with As berry providing a spark on the defensive end.

Knowing your role is always important in the game of basketball, and Caleb Asberry is shining in his new role.

Through just two games, one regular season and one exhibition, As berry has already shown he’s capable of giving the Cowboys a little bit of everything.

Asberry, who spent the past three seasons at Texas State before transferring to OSU, is an experienced player who’s already shown he’s capable of doing whatever the team needs.

Del City delivery

DEL CITY – Toni Lewis will now get to feed both of her boys when she visits Stillwater.

Brandon Garrison, a four-star basketball com mit from Del City signed to OSU on Wednesday morning, while Donovan Stephens, her other son, is a redshirt freshman playing football for the Cowboys.

“I love to cook, I love to bake,” Lewis said. “Brandon really likes pecan pie, Donovan likes apple pie, but anything that they want I will defi nitely do my best to bring it on down.”

Beyond his love for his mother’s pecan pie, Garrison will also bring size to the 2023 freshman class, as the big man is the No. 1 recruit in his class for Oklahoma.

“It feels great just going to the place where I want to go... my dream school, I’m ready to go,” Garrison said.

Garrison’s connec tions with the Cowboys go back to March 28, 2021, when he was of ficially offered. This sum mer, he spent some ad ditional time with coach Mike Boynton, as the two were a part of the FIBA Team USA U18 squad. Boynton was an assistant coach, while Garrison helped contribute on the court, as the team brought home a gold medal in the FIBA U18 Americas Championship in Tijuana, Mexico.

“He’s just a great coach and I always wanted to play for him,” said Garrison on Boyn ton. “The USA experi ence was fun, that’s what helped me commit too.”

Lenny Hatchett, the coach for Del City’s

boys basketball team, has had multiple conversa tions with Boynton about the caliber of player he’s getting.

“We’ve had several conversations... I think we both understand what Brandon’s about and what he’s getting,” Hatchett said. “I just told him ‘I think you’re getting a special young man that’s going to make Oklahoma State basketball fun to watch.’”

Going into his senior year, Garrison is coming off the heels of two state championship appearances, with the Eagles capturing the title in 2021. So far, the for ward has 522 points, 462 rebounds and 82 blocks in his 66-game career with Del City. Hatchett is expecting him to finish his high school career off with yet another state tournament run.

“I expect him to dominate, I expect him to be a guy we can lean on and understand that we want him to be a factor on both ends of the floor,” Hatchett said.

On top of that, the sought-after senior could have more accolades coming his way, which his coach wasn’t shy about recognizing.

“I don’t know if he knows, but he’s also been nominated for the 2023 McDonalds All-American Game,” Hatchett said, in his address to the crowd in the John Smith Field house before Garrison’s singing.

Like his mother,

Smith is thrilled about his brother joining him in Stillwater. Growing up watching him play basket ball, he’s seen him grow immensely, however, when the duo got to high school it became clear that they could remain together at the next level.

“We started talk ing about it once we got to high school because I knew he was going to be a big-time baller,” Smith said.

Although his brother saw the trajec tory he was on, Garrison hasn’t let the success get to his head, as his mom cites that’s her son’s best quality.

“Brandon is really laid back, he really is... he just takes it day by day,” Lewis said. “The most impressive thing I love about Brandon is that he doesn’t let this get to his head, he’s a very humble kid.”

Garrison looks to play a pivotal role in the Cowboys’ future, as the forward will add more length to Boynton’s future rosters, something that he’s always in search of. Even with Boynton’s excitement about the four 2023 commits signing on Wednesday, the Del City star may be more excited, as he’ll be looking for ward to his pecan pie care packages.

“Whenever mama comes, they’ll know what’s expected,” Lewis said. sports.ed@ocolly.com

“He’s the type of guy that’s gonna impact the game, regardless of whether he’s making shots or not,” said OSU coach Mike Boynton. “You need guys to under stand that there’s more to the game than scoring.”

In OSU’s home opener versus UT Arling ton, Asberry recorded four points, four assists, two steals and a rebound, contributing in multiple areas. The Cowboys have played two games, the

Last season, As berry was in a much dif ferent role at Texas State than he currently is at OSU. As the team’s go-to scorer and a primary ball handler, he averaged 13.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game while shooting more than 38% from behind the arc.

Once Asberry de cided to enter the portal, OSU was not only in trigued by his perimeter shooting and scoring, but also by his versatility on defense and overall experience.

Asberry’s perimeter

defense has stood out thus far in the young season, now in his fourth year of college basketball, As berry is using his athleti cism to deflect passes and create turnovers, along with being just as effec tive when guarding the opposing team’s primary ball handler.

Overall, Asberry possesses a combination of perimeter shooting and ability to defend the perimeter, both of which will allow him to serve as potentially the perfect plug-and-play rotation piece off the bench.

“One of the things we identified when we recruited him is that he’s been coached by some really good coaches, he’s got the intangibles and already knows how to impact the game without having to make baskets,” Boynton said.

Courtesy Brandon Garrison’s Instagram (@brando2wavvyyy)

Brandon Garrison, a four-star center from Del City, signed to play basketball at OSU on Wednesday.

Chase Davis

Caleb Asberry, a senior transfer from Texas State, is finding his role at OSU.

Ashton Slaughter Staff Reporter

Parker Gerl Staff Reporter

After ACL tear, Wittlake eager for fresh start

“‘Deep breaths, Tra vis,’” coach John Smith told Wittlake.

But all he could think about was the burning pain he felt. Deep breaths were of little help.

season.

Now, he’ll debut at 184 pounds this weekend at Lehigh and Bucknell. He takes over for three-time All-American Dakota Geer, who exhausted his eligibility.

Besides the drastic weight gain needed, there was another obstacle.

Continued recovery with his knee.

tember. So, now I’m just in a smaller brace and a knee pad, too, and I’ve been wrestling in it for about a month or so now.”

Travis Wittlake felt a pop in his left knee.

Wittlake held a firm grasp of Bucknell’s Zach Hart man. As Wittlake attempted to neutralize Hartman’s mobility and go for another takedown, he felt it.

A throbbing sensation sent him spinning across the mat as he grasped his left knee in pain.

Despite the pain of what ended up being a torn ACL, Wittlake finished out the re mainder of the match. A once energized wrestler struggled to even make an effort to escape a bottom position.

Wittlake continued to wrestle with the balky knee at the Big 12 Tournament. An 0-2 finish forced him to come to terms with the fact that his season was likely over. A year later, he senses a need to prove himself heading into his senior

Last season, Wittlake compiled a 9-7 record in duals. The spotty record made such a major decision in his career significantly easier.

“I kind of knew after last season that it was probably best (to switch to 184 pounds) just because of how I was kind of struggling (at 164 pounds),” Wittlake said. “It was a tough decision to make, obviously, but coach Smith kind of helped me realize what was best for me and I made the call.”

A brace had to be worn at all times, especially as Wittlake focused on lifting weights, staying in good shape and gaining 20 pounds. As the summer progressed and Wittlake continued to spend time in the weight room, the brace around his left knee became a footnote compared to the excess effort put into his daily exercises.

Daniel Allen Staff Reporter sports.ed@ocolly.com

Wittlake is ready to embrace a new challenge and compete in a different weight class. With a new-look roster, Smith emphasized weight change should be the least of the senior wrestler’s concerns.

“It was hard at times but I got through it,” Wittlake said. “I wore that brace all summer long, didn’t take it off until about the beginning of Sep

“Obviously it’s some thing new for him,” Smith said. “But I think it’s a matter of him making some adjust ments, feeling powerful, feel ing strong and he’s gonna feel something different.”

HIMALAYAN GROCERY STORE

Molly Jolliff

Travis Wittlake (right) recovered from a torn left ACL and bulked to 184 pounds. He spent the summer lifting weights and weighed as much as 200 pounds.

Iowa State (12-10)

Iowa State (16-10)

TCU (40-33)

Texas (43-38)

Alabama (37-16)

Alabama (41-27)

UNC (44-42)

UNC (37-30)

UCF (34-33)

UCF (31-21)

OSU (27-24)

Iowa State (27-23)

TCU (38-28)

Texas (37-27)

Alabama (40-31)

Alabama (45-42)

UNC (37-24)

Wake Forest (38-37)

Tulane (37-21)

Tulane (28-20)

OSU (17-16)

OSU (24-21)

Texas (36-30)

Texas (31-28)

Alabama (31-17)

Alabama (41-24)

UNC (28-23)

UNC (31-14)

UCF (30-26)

Tulane (36-28)

About the guest picker: John Smith enters his 32nd season as OSU’s head wrestling coach. He’s widely regarded as the greatest American wrestler of all-time. As a coach, he’s led OSU to five team national championships.