Monday, October 12, 2020
RHA's ‘Don't FALL Behind’ Event Sees Massive Success By Robert Owens
The Residence Hall Association saw a victory in event planning during the Covid-19 era with its fall spectacular last Thursday, Oct. 8. The Oklahoma State University South Commons lawn was filled with students, pumpkins, food and adorable dogs. The event was named “Don’t FALL Behind,” and it was intended to lift students’ spirits as they near the last months of the Fall 2020 semester. “This event was made for students by students”, said Fred Dillard, RHA adviser. “I’m proud of this team, they did such a super job.” RHA had set up a total of five booths and six socially-distanced tables for painting and general gathering. Each booth had its specialty: there was a booth for caramel apples with toppings, a raffle booth, a booth for the pumpkin painting and a booth handling the long line for the opportunity to meet Pete’s Pet Posse. Covid-19 restrictions were a huge obstacle when it came to rallying Pete’s Pet Posse for the event, said Carley Herndon, RHA member, but their team worked
hard to ensure the Posse’s arrival. And it paid off. The line to visit the adorable pets nearly stretched to the other side of the lawn the entire event. “People miss the dogs,” Herndon said. At another booth, caramel apples were being served with toppings ranging from OREOS to marshmallows, the options were endless. They even had complimentary apple cider or hot chocolate to go with it. “We wanted to do a big event for kicking off Mental Health Month,” Devon Voyls, RHA member, said. “We were planning this three weeks in advance. On the day of the event, it took us ten hours with ten people working non-stop.” As the RHA members looked at all the happy people, they knew their dedication had paid off, Voyls said. The many attendees there seemed overwhelmed with all the fun going on. It wasn’t possible for even one dull moment. Everyone had smiles on their faces and the sound of conversations was lively. Two freshman
Photos from the Pumpkin and Mum sale at the OSU Botanical Garden on Sept. 22, 2020.
students, Kolby and Mateo, were busy with designing their pumpkin art. “Painting, for me, is a huge de-stressor,” Mateo said. “We saw some people setting up tables this morning and knew we had to come here,” Kolby remarked. Their pumpkins were inspired by the popular game “Among Us” and military aviation design.
Another student Miles Jennings said they came looking for a movie and ended up painting pumpkins. And student Victoria Warren said she just really wanted to paint some pumpkins and was hard at work with all the mesmerizing multi-color paint. Overall, the common theme among a lot of attendees was this is the first real event they’ve been to this semester, referencing how COVID-19 eliminated a large majority of big on-
Zachary Hunter
campus events with snacks and people. This “Don’t FALL Behind” program was a huge success in the eyes of RHA members, but RHA says they have even bigger plans in the future. With adjusting to and getting creative with their restraints, you can expect some cultural events along with teachings and virtual fun over the holidays. entertainment.ed@ocolly.com
Gundy impressed with Knowles' improved defense
Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire Mike Gundy has been impressed with Jim Knowles’ schemes.
By Dean Ruhl Oklahoma State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, now in his third season with the Cowboys, has made major strides toward improving his defense,
which has played a part in OSU’s 3-0 start to the season. “I really like how Jim’s adjusted to this league,” coach Mike Gundy said. “Again, we’re going to know a lot more this year
with this group over the next three weeks because we’re going to play teams that are really skilled on the perimeter. They have played well, we couldn’t ask for more of what they’re doing now.” Through three games, the Cowboys defense has allowed only 274.3 yards per game, which is second in the Big-12 and seventh in the entire FBS. The Cowboys defense has held two of OSU’s first three opponents to a mere seven points, and its average of nine points allowed per game leads the Big 12 by a large margin. These are both major improvements compared to last year, where the Cowboys allowed
418.1 yards per game and 27 points per game. “He’s a highly intelligent guy,” Gundy said. “Very, very intelligent and I think sometimes if you’re not careful, coaches who are really, really smart can outcoach themselves, and he’s made some adjustments that fit in with our players and simplified systems that allow us to play fast.” The defense’s success has come in large part from its senior linebacker core of Calvin Bundage, Amen Ogbongbemiga, and Malcolm Rodriguez. Bundage leads the team in sacks with 3.5, Ogbongbemiga leads the team in total tackles with
22 and Rodriguez comes in second in both of those categories with 19 total tackles and four tackles for loss. “They have to work together,” Gundy said. “When they break up in their meeting, each defensive coach has to give the same message from coach Knowles, and then they have to motivate their position group. The players have to take over when we get on the practice field. They all have to work together, there can only be one message and that message has to be the same so we’re not thinking different thoughts each week.” sports.ed@ocolly.com