Hurricane Elite Spring 2016 by Austin Chadwick

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14 | Basketball Remembered We take a look at the basketball teams this year as the men’s team reached the NCAA Tournament and the women’s team says goodbye to four great seniors.

20 | Class of 2016

Tulsa inked 20 athletes in football for this year’s 2016 Class. With a strong presenece in Texas, Philip Montgomery and his staff brought in some immediate help in a very athletic Class..

26 | Spring Practice Takeaways

Tulsa concludes spring practices and editor John Hoover take a look at the Hurricane’s accomplishments in March.

Annual Subscription includes three publications: • ANNUAL FOOTBALL AND FALL SPORTS PREVIEW (AUGUST) • ANNUAL BASKETBALL PREVIEW (NOVEMBER) • ANNUAL RECRUITING ISSUE (APRIL) For all the best in the highest quality publication covering The University of Tulsa Athletic Programs, get it all with Hurricane Elite. Go to HurricaneElite.com

34 | Spring Sports and More Take a look at what’s going on in the spring sports areas as well as some great events taking place over the next few months..

Trinity Media Group, LLC 12330 E. 60th St. Ste. A. • Tulsa, OK 74146 All rights reserved. Publisher Austin Chadwick Editor John Hoover Senior Writer/Recruiting Chris Harmon Contributing Writers Kyle Kendrick, Austin Chadwick Feature Photographer Brandy Moton, Brad Heath, Dave Crenshaw Contact Information Website: www.VYPEOK.com • Phone: 918.495.1771 • Fax: 918.495.1787 Hurricane Elite is published tri-annually by Trinity Media Group, LLC. Reproductions in whole or in part without permission are prohibited. Hurricane Elite is not responsible for the return of unsolicited artwork, photography or manuscripts and will not be responsible for holding fees or similar charges.

T H E 2016

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The Lead.....

John Hoover Joins Hurricane Elite During the last two decades, the growth all across the University of Tulsa campus has been nothing short of spectacular.

From the Reynolds Center to the Hardesty Sports Complex to the Case Athletic Complex, the fact is immutable: TU doesn’t even look like the same campus it did when luminaries such as Dave Rader and Tubby Smith roamed the grounds. More change of course, is imminent.

JOHN E. HOOVER -H U R R I C A N E E L I T E EDITOR

-RADIO HOST 107.9 FM THE FRANCHISE

Upgrades are on the way for most of the existing facilities. There’s an indoor practice field still on the wish list, though it’s closer now than ever before. With continued success established by the football and men’s basketball programs, TU’s other sports will share in the wealth.

As Tulsa continues to navigate through its stillfresh membership in the American Athletic Conference, it is vital that the school’s athletic facilities, coaching contracts, student-athlete amenities and recruiting efforts stay more than just competitive with other AAC schools — TU must keep striving to set the curve.

There will always be setbacks. The removal of the

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men’s golf program was a profound blow not just for the school, but for a community steeped in a proud golf history. And the pending retirement of president Dr. Steadman Upham at the end of 2016 is deeply significant for the academic sector at TU as well as for the athletics programs. Stead has always been a friend of athletics and oversaw many of the campus improvements since arriving in 2004. His departure should not be taken lightly by Golden Hurricane fans. But at TU, things are always looking up.

Just last week, the NCAA handed out three prestigious postgraduate scholarships — and TU student-athletes won two of them! Soccer player Katy Riojas and rower Emalia Seto were both awarded for their academic achievements. These were available to thousands and thousands of student-athletes from every school on every level in every sport nationwide, and TU kids took two of the three. Those two, about whom you can read more in this edition of Hurricane Elite, are merely the tip of the spear for all the ongoing scholastic accomplishments of Golden Hurricane student-athletes.

The football team, going into Year 2 under coach Philip Montgomery, is coming off a bowl appearance and a four-game improvement from the year before. The men’s basketball team was back in the NCAA Tournament under second-year coach Frank Haith. Tom McIntosh’s men’s soccer team won its second straight AAC championship last fall, and Kyle Cussen’s women’s soccer team was nationally ranked for the first time in school history. Steve Gulley’s cross country teams won their third consecutive women’s conference title and sixth straight men’s by the men. Dean Orford’s women’s tennis team just won its second straight AAC title, and Vince Westbrook’s men were runner-up. As a sports writer and columnist at the Tulsa World for 24 years, I was never fortunate enough to cover the TU daily beat, but I was always eager to take on my next assignment at TU. Whether a football game at Chapman Stadium against the Sooners or a basketball game at the Reynolds Center against UConn, or following the women’s basketball team in an NCAA Tournament game at Stanford, or sitting down with mile phenom

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Chris O’Hare to talk Olympic dreams, or interviewing Shea Seals about getting Kobe Bryant ready for superstardom as a Lakers rookie, TU athletes remain an impressive bunch. Now, though, my perspective has changed.

I’m proud to be intimately associated with Hurricane Elite and The University of Tulsa for the first time. My daughter plays for the TU soccer team and just finished her freshman year. Yes, I now own a couple of TU hats and shirts, but no, I try to only wear them on TU soccer game days.

That association adds to the pride with which I write this letter as Hurricane Elite’s new editor. Our publisher, former TU football player Austin Chadwick, hired me for the job after I left the Tulsa World in early March. You read that right: I no longer write for the Tulsa World.

I do still write online columns and blogs for The Franchise, the sports radio station that launched in Oklahoma City four years ago and recently branched out into Tulsa. You can find all my work now at TheFranchiseOK.com.

And after 30 years in the newspaper business, my career has finally branched out. I’m now co-host of “Further Review with John Hoover and Lauren Rew” on The Franchise Tulsa. You can hear Lauren and me talk sports every weekday from noon to 3 on fm107.9 or am1270, online at TheFranchiseOK.com or on The Franchise app. And, as always, I welcome your feedback on Twitter (@johnehoover) or Facebook (JohnEHooverMedia). Change is always inevitable. And around here, change is good.

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The Lead.....

Tulsa’s Annual All-Sports Banquet Tulsa’s Top Student-Athletes Recognized at 21st Annual Golden ‘Cane Awards Gala The 21st Annual Golden ‘Cane Awards Gala honored The University of Tulsa’s top student-athletes Tuesday night, April 26. A crowd of over 850 gathered for the Grammy Awards-type Ceremony at the Donald W. Reynolds Center on the TU campus.

The top awards were given to TU’s “Ultimate Team” members, while the Wilson Holloway Ultimate Service Award, Outstanding Team Community Service Award, Warren Garrison Academic Excellence Award, Faculty Member of the Year Award, the Dan Bitson Courage Award, the Faculty Athletic Board Classroom Grit Award and the Athletes Supporting Athletes Award were also presented. The “Ultimate Team” honors those student-athletes who, during the current academic year, have exemplified those qualities and characteristics that are consistent with the missions and values of The University of Tulsa. The qualities and characteristics considered include academic success, campus involvement, community outreach, athletic participation and other areas of student involvement. The “Ultimate Team” members for the 2015-16 academic year was made up of nine student-athletes, including Derrick Alexander (Football), Bradley Bourgeois (Soccer), Marissa Catalanotto (Rowing), Ashley Clark (Basketball), Shaquille Harrison (Basketball), Tim Rackers (CC/Track & Field), Katy Riojas (Soccer), Jocelyn Sheffield (Softball) and Isaac Sanders (Track & Field). Riojas, a recent recipient of the NCAA’s Walter Byers Postgraduate Scholarship Award, is a repeat selection to the Ultimate Team.

“Ultimate Service” award was established in order to recognize the efforts of student support staff for service to the teams and student-athletes. The selection of this individual is based on academic success, campus involvement, community outreach, service-oriented participation in athletics or other areas of student involvement. This year, the honoree was football student manager Ashton Billeter.

Tulsa football student-athletes, Zik Asiegbu and Darrell Williams, were recognized as Dan Bitson Courage Award winners. The award, which was established in 1992 in the name of former TU football standout Dan Bitson (1986-91), is presented annually to the TU student-athlete who exemplifies courage, perseverance and tenacity for overcoming adversity. Bitson fought back from severe injuries suffered in an automobile accident in 1989 and returned to the football field in 1991.

Both Asiegbu and Williams suffered injuries that threatened each of their football playing careers. 8

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As a sophomore, Asiegbu was involved in an automobile accident as he suffered knee damage resulting in LCL and PCL tears, a broken jaw and concussion that caused him to miss the entire 2012 season. Prior to the 2013 football season Williams suffered a dislocated knee in fall camp, tearing his ACL, MCL, and PCL. They each returned to the field and turned in valuable contributions in their final years of eligibility.

The Warren Garrison Academic Excellence Award, presented in honor of TU’s first academic advisor and given to the graduating senior with the highest cumulative grade point average, has two winners this year. Both winners, Katy Riojas from women’s soccer and Kelsey Parks from volleyball, have compiled perfect 4.0 GPAs. Riojas majored in mechanical engineering and Parks will earn her bachelor’s degree in Biology. The Faculty Member of the Year, voted on by the student-athletes, is Applied Instructor in Spanish, Marta Chamorro. The Faculty Athletic Board Classroom Grit Award, which recognizes one female and one male graduating senior studentathlete who has faced the rigors of TU classes with extraordinary commitment and effort, went to softball athlete Jodi Edmiston and football’s Trent Martin, who will return for his fifth season of eligibility in 2016. The Athletes Supporting Athletes Award went to the team recognized by the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) that attends the most sporting events in support of their fellow student-athletes throughout the year. The inaugural winning TU team is the Golden Hurricane Volleyball Team. For turning in a total of 2,705 volunteer hours for an average of 51.04 hours per student-athlete in 2015-16, the Rowing Team was the recipient of the Outstanding Team Community Service Award.

2015-16 SPECIAL AWARDS ULTIMATE TEAM MEMBERS

(awarded to student-athletes based on academic success, campus involvement, community outreach and athletic participation) Derrick Alexander, Football Bradley Bourgeois, Men’s Soccer Marissa Catalanotto, Rowing Ashley Clark, Women’s Basketball Shaquille Harrison, Men’s Basketball Tim Rackers, Cross Country/Track & Field Katy Riojas, Women’s Soccer Isaac Sanders, Track & Field Jocelyn Sheffield, Softball

WILSON HOLLOWAY ULTIMATE SERVICE AWARD

(recognize the efforts of student support staff for service to the teams and student-athletes) Ashton Billeter, Football

DAN BITSON COURAGE AWARD

(presented to the TU student-athlete who exemplifies courage, perseverance and tenacity for overcoming adversity) Zik Asiegbu, Football Darrell Williams, Football

STUDENT-ATHLETE ADVISORY COMMITTEE FACULTY MEMBER OF THE YEAR AWARD

(selected by the TU Student-Athlete Advisory Committee) Marta Chamorro, Applied Instructor of Spanish

WARREN GARRISON ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE AWARD (presented to student-athletes who have maintained 4.0 cumulative GPA) Kelsey Parks, Volleyball Katy Riojas, Women’s Soccer

ATHLETES SUPPORTING ATHLETES AWARD

(team that attends the most sporting events in support of their fellow student-athletes) Volleyball

OUTSTANDING TEAM COMMUNITY SERVICE (team with the most community service hours) Rowing

FACULTY ATHLETIC BOARD CLASSROOM GRIT AWARD

(awarded to one male and one female graduating senior student-athlete who has faced the rigors of TU classes with extraordinary commitment and effort) Jodi Edmiston, Softball Trent Martin, Football

2015-16 INDIVIDUAL SPORT AWARD WINNERS MEN’S BASKETBALL James Woodard, Offensive Player of the Year Shaquille Harrison, Defensive Player of the Year

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Ashley Clark, Offensive Player of the Year Te’era Williams, Defensive Player of the Year

WOMEN’S & MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY Rachel Baptista, Female Athlete of the Year Mark Scott, Male Athlete of the Year

FOOTBALL

Keyarris Garrett, Offensive Player of the Year Michael Mudoh, Co-Defensive Player of the Year Derrick Luetjen, Co-Defensive Player of the Year Matt Hickman, Special Teams Player of the Year

MEN’S GOLF

Jack Knoesel, Golfer of the Year

WOMEN’S GOLF

Nadia Majidizadeh, Golfer of the Year

WOMEN’S ROWING

Sarah Ringler, Team MVP Emalia Seto, Team MVP

MEN’S SOCCER

Juan Sebastian Sanchez, Offensive Player of the Year Bradley Bourgeois, Defensive Player of the Year

WOMEN’S SOCCER

Rachel Thun, Offensive Player of the Year Roman Edwards, Defensive Player of the Year

SOFTBALL

Maggie Withee, Co-Offensive Player of the Year Shelby Estocado, Co-Offensive Player of the Year Caitlin Sill, Defensive Player of the Year

MEN’S TENNIS

Carlos Bautista, Most Valuable Player

WOMEN’S TENNIS

Renata Kuricova, Most Valuable Player

MEN’S TRACK & FIELD

Bryce Robinson, Indoor Athlete of the Year Bryce Robinson, Outdoor Athlete of the Year

WOMEN’S TRACK & FIELD

Stacie Taylor, Indoor Athlete of the Year Audrey Jean-Baptiste, Outdoor Athlete of the Year

VOLLEYBALL

Erica Bohannon, Offensive Player of the Year Brooke Berryhill, Defensive Player of the Year HURRICANE ELITE

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The Lead.....

2015-16 ULTIMATE TEAM BIOS Senior DERRICK ALEXANDER was a four-year letterwinner and three-year starter for the Golden Hurricane. A double major, Derrick will graduate next month with a Business Management/ Finance degree, and leaves TU having played in the 2012 AutoZone Liberty Bowl and 2015 Camping World Independence Bowl. He was credited with 132 career tackles, 35 TFLs and 20 quarterback sacks in his career. In addition to his many accomplishments on the field and in the classroom, Derrick is involved in the community through his participation in the North Mabee Football camp, United Methodist Church Food Drive, and Feed My Starving Children food packing program.

Senior men’s basketball player SHAQUILLE HARRISON has been a regular in TU’s starting lineup since his freshman year. This past season, Shaq was a second-team all-conference performer and was named the American Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Scholar Athlete of the Year, all while leading the Golden Hurricane to their second NCAA Tournament appearance in four years. In addition to his athletic success, Shaq has been involved in numerous community outreach events including Lift Up America, Big Brothers Big Sisters, the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma and Kendall-Whittier Reading Partners. Shaq will graduate next month with a 3.14 GPA in business administration.

Senior women’s soccer student-athlete and team captain KATY RIOJAS maintains a 4.0 GPA in mechanical engineering, and last year was a recipient of the prestigious Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship. In addition, earlier this month Katy was named one of two recipients of the NCAA’s Walter Byers Postgraduate Scholarship, which recognizes student-athletes combining the best elements of mind and body to achieve national distinction for their achievements and to be future leaders in their chosen field of career service. Following graduation next month, Katy will continue her education at Vanderbilt for a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering Senior BRADLEY BOURGEOIS is a four-year letterwinner and twoyear captain of the men’s soccer team. During his four years at TU, Bradley lead his team to three conference titles, including back-toback American Athletic Conference Championships in 2014 and 2015, as well as three appearances in the NCAA Tournament. Off the pitch, Bradley maintains a 3.042 GPA in finance, and was named to the 2014-15 American Athletic Conference All-Academic Team. He is currently with Major League Soccer’s Houston Dynamo.

Senior TIM RACKERS maintains a 3.96 GPA while double majoring in mechanical engineering and Spanish, all while competing for the Cross Country and Track & Field teams. In competition, Tim has been on Golden Hurricane cross country teams that have won three conference championships and made four appearances at the NCAA Championship. When he’s not outrunning the competition, Tim is involved with the TU Newman Center, Habitat for Humanity, and reading partners program at San Miguel Middle School. Women’s basketball senior ASHLEY CLARK is a four-year letterwinner and starter, and maintains a 3.286 GPA in exercise & sports science. On the court, Ashley leaves as the program’s leader in games played, second in field goals made, and third in both 10

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points scored and double-doubles, all while leading her team to two postseason appearances. Off the basketball court, Ashley led a shoe drive for the Tulsa Day Center for the Homeless, and regularly volunteers with the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma and Sequoyah Elementary School reading tutor program.

A senior from Moore, Oklahoma, Track & Field student-athlete ISAAC SANDERS is a two-time conference champion as a member of the Men’s Distance Medley Relay team. Off the track, Isaac is very active on the TU campus, including participation in the Student Athlete Advisory Committee, Association of Black Collegians, Students Alliance for Violence Education, and United Campus Ministries. Outside of campus, Isaac is heavily involved with Big Brothers Big Sisters, We The People, YMCA/YWCA, and the Clean Up North Tulsa project. Rowing senior MARISSA CATALANOTTO is a four-year letterwinner and maintains a 3.86 GPA in biochemistry and pre-med. On the water, Marissa represented the United States and TU last summer in the World University Games in South Korea, and last season captured a silver medal at the American Athletic Conference Championship in the 2nd Varsity 8. Off the water, Marissa serves as the president of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, and volunteers with the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma and Day Spring Villa Domestic Violence Shelter. After graduating next month, Melissa will attend medical school at St. George’s University in Grenada. Softball senior JOCELYN SHEFFIELD carries a 3.96 GPA and will graduate next month as a triple major in International Business, Spanish, and Management Information Systems. On the field, she is the starting first baseman and is batting .253 with 4 home runs and 24 RBI in 36 games. Along with her studies and softball experience, Jocelyn has been involved with several campus organizations and activities including representing TU as an Orientation Leader. In addition, she also volunteers at Kendall Whittier, serves on the Teachers for Excellence award selection committee, and was a worship band-leader for Chi Alpha campus ministries. Currently, she is a member of the Women in Business Club and La Tertulia, the Spanish-language club here on campus.

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The Lead.....

Bill Brogden Closes Out 30-Year Career at Tulsa After 30 years at The University of Tulsa, the 2015-16 season is the last for Bill Brogden as the Golden Hurricane men’s golf coach. An icon in the collegiate golf world, Brogden has coached for a total of 46 seasons and his teams competed in national competition 38 times, advanced to the NCAA Championship finals 19 times and claimed 16 conference championships. Brogden coached No. 1-ranked teams, 22 All-Americans and earned conference coach of the year honors 11 times, while also seeing his players advance to the professional golf ranks.

rating in 1989.

Tulsa won 10 conference titles with Brogden at the helm, winning seven Missouri Valley Conference titles, two Western Athletic Conference Championships and one Conference USA crown.

“All university departments are regularly asked to examine their available resources and readjust their programs as needed to align themselves with financial realities and the athletic department is no different,” said Derrick Gragg, TU’s vice president and director of athletics. “This was an extremely difficult decision, but after much deliberation, we made the tough call to eliminate the men’s golf program.

Hired on September 2,1986 to infuse life into a program that had previously won just one conference championship and made the NCAA Championship field three times, Brogden took the Tulsa golf program to new heights. He led the Golden Hurricane to seven of the school’s 10 NCAA Championships, coming in 1987, 1988, 1995, 2002, 2005, 2007 and 2012. Brogden took 23 teams to NCAA Regional Tournament appearances since the regional format began 27 years ago (1988-89).

Brogden coached 12 All-American golfers and also had 29 Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) Scholar Athlete award winners. He was named the Conference Coach of the Year five times at Tulsa, earning the honor in the Missouri Valley Conference three times (1987, 1994, 1995) and once each in the WAC (2001) and Conference USA (2007). Brogden was inducted into the National Golf Coaches Association of America Hall of Fame in 1991. In addition to the conference titles and individual awards for both himself and his players, other highlights during his Tulsa tenure included winning the school’s first-ever NCAA Central Regional Championship in 2007, having a total of four golfers earn GCAA Scholar Athlete academic awards in consecutive seasons (2006 and 2007), finishing with a school-best ninthplace NCAA performance in 2002, earning the golf program’s highest-ever national ranking of eighth in 1995, as well as the school’s first-ever golf ranking with a 14th-place national

Prior to his appointment at Tulsa, Brogden spent 10 seasons at Oral Roberts University, where his teams made seven NCAA Championship appearances, captured six Midwestern Collegiate Conference titles and won 15 tournaments. He was named the National Coach of the Year in 1980 and added District V Coach of the Year honors in ‘80, ‘81 and ‘85. During a four-year span, Brogden’s ORU teams placed sixth at the NCAA Championships twice (1978 and 1979), finished third in 1980, and in 1981, placed second after spending most of the season ranked as the nation’s No. 1 team.

Brogden also coached for five years at LSU and began his collegiate coaching career in 1969 at Memphis State, where he stayed for two seasons. A native of Wilmington, North Carolina, Brogden was a standout golfer and basketball player at East Carolina University. Men’s Golf in Final Year

On March 24, The University of Tulsa announced that it would reduce the number of its intercollegiate athletic programs by eliminating the sport of men’s golf, effective July 1, 2016. The decision was made after careful consideration by university administration with input from trustees and stakeholders. The decision affects six current student-athletes. The university will honor all scholarships granted to the current men’s golf student-athletes.

“Coach Brogden has represented our program exceptionally well during the past three decades,” said Gragg. “His contributions and those of his many teams will always be a proud part of Golden Hurricane history. We thank him for all he has given to the TU family.”

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The University of Tulsa

2015-2016 HURRICAN Photos Provided by The University of Tulsa - TulsaHurricane.com

Senior guard Marquel Curtis was a productive sixth man for the Golden Hurricane

Dâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Andre Wright completed his career with averages of 7.0 points and 4.2 rebounds.

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Tulsa team huddles before a home game

Shaquille Harrison not only was a secondteam all-conference selection, but was named the American Athletic Conference Scholar Athlete of the Year for basketball.

NE BASKETBALL REMEMBERED

James Woodard was one of nine seniors honored before Tulsaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s final home game win over USF on March 4

Senior Rashad Ray was a spark plug for the Hurricane throughout his four-year career.

Brandon Swannegan celebrates with the student section after a Tulsa victory.

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The University of Tulsa

Tulsa spirit teams and band cheer on the menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s basketball team in Dayton at the NCAA Tournament.

Brandon Swannegan had three blocks to go along with nine points in Tulsaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s loss to Michigan in the NCAA Tournament.

Junior Pat Birt averaged 12.0 points, while knocking down a team-high 37-percent of his three-pointers.

The student section helps create a great game day atmosphere.

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The University of Tulsa

Tulsa team members gather before a Hurricane home game. Kelsey Grovey manuevers to get off a shot.

Senior Ashley Clark was a thirdteam American Athletic Conference selection in 2015-16.

Kelsey Grovey introduced during starting lineups.

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Tulsa seniors Teâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;era Williams, Kelsey Grovey and Ashley Clark with Head Coach Matilda Mossman on Senior Day

Tulsa players, led by Jessica Pongonis, enjoy a high five parade on the Tulsa bench.

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The University of Tulsa

MONTGOMERY AND STAFF SIGN A STELLAR C the offensive and defensive lines. Nine of the 20 players signed will play in the trenches.

Rowdy Frederick

By John E. Hoover In 2015, Philip Montgomery and his staff had only 10 official days to hit the recruiting trail.

Now, with a full season under his belt as the University of Tulsa’s head coach and a full recruiting calendar to bring in the class of 2016, things look quite a bit different at TU. “We really got what we wanted,” Montgomery said. “And I wouldn’t have said that early. Because you just never know how it’s gonna develop.”

The 2016 class consists of 20 newcomers — 10 on offense, 10 on defense; 18 high schoolers and two junior college transfers. “I thought we really addressed a lot of different needs in this class,” Montgomery said. “Being our first full class, you can tell the emphasis that we put on certain areas.”

The idea, Montgomery said, was to get bigger and more athletic on both 20

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On offense, Broken Arrow’s Rowdy Frederick (6-4, 330) and Stroud’s Tiller Bucktrot (6-5, 350) are locals. Early enrollee Clay Greathouse (6-5, 290) and Waahid Muhammad (6-7, 295) are Texans. And Deya Mhiesen (6-7, 305) played last year at Arizona Western College. “The emphasis up front was about size,” Montgomery said. “We have some guys that can move people. They’re long, can bend really well, have good feet, but have some girth to them. They’re guys that can maintain a single block, are strong and athletic, but have great size, and that’s what we were looking for on the offensive line.”

“And then just had to make sure we were taking what we needed at the skill spots.”

TU landed quarterback Luke Skipper (6-3, 200), who passed for 2,706 yards and 33 touchdowns and ran for 1,188 yards and 17 TDs as a senior at Forney, Texas. “Luke is athletic, tall, has great range, a great arm and is very accurate,” Montgomery said. “He can do the intangible things you want, but can also create on his own and extend plays. I’m excited to see his growth as a quarterback.”

Montgomery couldn’t get a running back he wanted, so he didn’t sign one. He did, however, sign three receivers.

“From a depth standpoint, obviously, if you saw spring ball, we need that,” Montgomery said. “Potentially two of the three of those may have a chance to come in and contribute early.” Stillwater product Jordan Brown (62, 198), and Texans Keenen Johnson (6-1, 190) and Josh Stewart (6-4, 201) bring size and speed that will fit nicely into the TU scheme.

On defense, tackle Shemarr Robinson (6-4, 280) is a Tulsan, tackle Tyarise Stevenson (6-4, 320) is from Louisiana, and ends Jimmy Nelson (6-3, 248) and Johnnie Williams (65, 275) are from Texas.

“We were able to add some big guys, players that can move and can make plays in certain situations, especially when you need them,” Montgomery said.

Deya Mhiesen

CLASS THAT ADDS SPEED AND ATHLETICISM from Texas: D.J. Allen (5-11, 225), Robert Revels (6-3, 234) and Cooper Edmiston (63, 245).

Jordan Brown Louisiana tight end David Fitzwater (6-4, 230), Montgomery said, “has got a bright, bright future.”

On defense, Montgomery said the trend of moving corners to safety, safeties to linebacker, linebackers to end and ends to tackle is progressing faster than ever in the American Athletic Conference.

“You get more length, more athleticism, more speed on the field,” Montgomery said, “because that’s the direction our conference is going. We’re getting more offensive guys (in the coaching ranks) that are spreading the ball out and putting you in different formations, and the speed of the game, I think, is fixing to really pick up in our conference. So we want to make sure we stay ahead of that curve.” To that end, Tulsa signed three tall defensive backs — Roland safety Manny Bunch (6-2, 185), Houston cornerback Montray Norris (6-2, 165) and Long Beach Community College corner Keanu Hill (6-2, 185). TU also brought in three linebackers

“All different shapes and sizes in there because of what we were getting,” Montgomery said. “We didn’t have that many linebackers graduate, but in this class right here that are fixing to be seniors, we’ll have four or five that are gonna graduate, so we’ll give them a chance to get a year under their belt and then they’re gonna be able to play.

“I really like Robert Revels as a guy that’s gonna have a chance to possibly come in and play early. … D.J., I think, is gonna be a really good Will backer, just a guy that really brings a lot of passion and energy and will knock the fire out of you. And then Cooper is a really big Mike that his body may turn him into a defensive end/Leo type for us, a more athletic guy from a linebacker that could maybe move down.”

Keenan Johnson two out of Louisiana, and then two JC guys, one out of California and one out of Pennsylvania. So, you know, I think our ties obviously helped us. I think that’s a pretty good ratio, if you will, of Texas and Oklahoma. “Obviously we want kids to stay close to home and be a part of this. But again, we’ve got to do right by the university, and my job is to make sure we’re getting the right kids and the right talent and the right type of kids to be successful here.”

That’s 11 Texas schoolboys in all, a testament to Montgomery’s coaching DNA.

“When you look at our staff, we’ve got a lot of guys that have ties to Texas,” he said. “We have guys that have ties to Oklahoma. And that’s where the majority of our time and effort is gonna be spent. I think our ties to Texas have paid off. … We took five out of Oklahoma,

Manny Bunch

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The University of Tulsa

2015 Tulsa Football Signees 2016 TULSA FOOTBALL SIGNEES

Name DJ Allen Jordan Brown Tiller Bucktrot Manny Bunch* Cooper Edmiston David Fitzwater Rowdy Frederick Clay Greathouse* Keanu Hill Keenen Johnson Deya Mhiesen Waahid Muhammad Jimmy Nelson Montray Norris Robert Revels III Shemarr Robinson Luke Skipper Tyarise Stevenson Josh Stewart Johnnie Williams

Pos. LB WR OL SAF LB TE OL OL CB ATH OL OL DE CB LB DT QB DT WR DE

Ht. 5-11 6-2 6-5 6-2 6-3 6-4 6-4 6-5 6-2 6-1 6-7 6-7 6-3 6-2 6-3 6-4 6-3 6-4 6-4 6-5

Wt. 225 198 350 185 245 230 330 290 185 190 305 295 248 165 234 280 200 320 201 275

Cl-Exp Fr-HS Fr-HS Fr-HS Fr-HS Fr-HS Fr-HS Fr-HS Fr-HS Jr-JC Fr-HS Jr-JC Fr-HS Fr-HS Fr-HS Fr-HS Fr-HS Fr-HS Fr-HS Fr-HS Fr-HS

Hometown San Antonio, Texas Stillwater, Okla. Stroud, Okla. Roland, Okla. Gatesville, Texas Shreveport, La. Broken Arrow, Okla. Wichita Falls, Texas Carson, Calif. Alto, Texas Philadelphia, Pa. Waco, Texas Arlington, Texas Houston, Texas Houston, Texas Tulsa, Okla. Forney, Texas Donaldsonville, La. Cedar Hill, Texas Austin, Texas

Previous School Brennan HS Stillwater HS Stroud HS Roland HS Gatesville HS Calvary Academy Broken Arrow HS Rider HS Long Beach CC Alto HS Arizona Western College La Vega HS Martin HS Davis HS John H. Reagan HS Central HS Forney HS Donaldsonville HS Cedar Hill HS Lyndon B. Johnson HS

*Enrolled at mid-semester

DJ Allen LB 5-11 225 Fr-HS San Antonio, Texas Brennan HS Was a four-year starter at San Antonio Brennan High School . . . played in only five games as a senior and collected 18 tackles, three TFLs, one sack and one interception . . . tallied 113 tackles, including 20 TFLs and four sacks as a junior . . . high school coach was Stephen Basore. Jordan Brown WR 6-2 198 Fr-HS Stillwater, Okla. Stillwater HS Was a four-year letterwinner at Stillwater High School . . . started three years on offense and his final two seasons on defense . . . totaled 50 receptions for 896 yards and 10 touchdowns, while rushing for 298 yards and three TDs during his prep career . . . had nine receptions for 199 yards and three TDs as a senior . . . caught 17 passes for 355 yards and four TDs, while rushing for 279 yards and three touchdowns on 33 carries his junior season . . . caught 25 passes for 342 yards and four TDs his sophomore season . . . received a threestar rating by 247Sports . . . was rated as the No. 14-ranked prep senior in the state of Oklahoma by 247Sports . . . high school coach was Tucker Barnard . . . chose Tulsa over Navy, Southern Miss, Texas Tech and Wyoming. Tiller Bucktrot OL 6-5 350 Fr-HS Stroud, Okla. Stroud HS Was a four-year letterwinner and three-year starter at Stroud High School . . . started on the offensive and defensive lines for three years . . . was on teams that compiled a four-year record of 37-11 . . . helped lead his team to a 10-2 record and the second round of the state playoffs both his junior and senior seasons . . . was named to the OCA all-state team . . . was the District 2A-5 Offensive Lineman of the Year as a senior . . . earned Tulsa World honorable mention all-state honors his senior season . . . selected as a first-team all-district selection for three seasons . . . received a three-star rating by 247Sports . . . was rated as the No. 16-ranked prep senior in the state of Oklahoma by 247Sports . . . was credited with 68 tackles and four QB sacks as a

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junior . . . totaled 183 tackles, 14 sacks and nine fumble recoveries in his career . . . won Oklahoma Class 2A state titles in the discus and shot put as a prep junior . . . lettered four years in basketball and track . . . high school coach was Chris Elerick. Manny Bunch* SAF 6-2 185 Fr-HS Roland, Okla. Roland HS Enrolled at Tulsa in January 2016 . . . was a three-year starter at Roland High School . . . played quarterback and free safety . . . completed his career with 98 touchdowns and more than 7,000 yards of total offense . . . accounted for 3,341 total yards and 44 touchdowns as a senior, while leading his team to a 12-2 record and first-place in District 3A-8 . . . completed 62-percent of his passes (128-of-20) for 1,868 yards and 24 touchdowns and gained 1,473 rushing yards and 20 TDs his senior season . . . received a three-star rating by 247Sports . . . was rated as the No. 24-ranked prep senior in the state of Oklahoma by 247Sports . . . earned second-team Tulsa World all-state honors as a defensive back his senior campaign . . . was credited with 87 tackles, 10 TFLs, 10 pass break-ups and three interceptions totaling 79 yards from his safety position as a senior . . . high school coach was Jeff Streun. Cooper Edmiston LB 6-3 245 Fr-HS Gatesville, Texas Gatesville HS Was a four-year letterwinner and three-year starter at Gatesville High School . . . played tight end and linebacker . . . had 413 tackles and five quarterback sacks on defense and caught 44 passes for 616 yards and four touchdowns . . . was credited with 145 tackles, eight TFLs three PBUs and two sacks as a senior . . . also caught 22 passes for 366 yards and four TDs his senior campaign . . . helped lead his team to the Area championship and regional semifinals his senior season . . . was named to the Centex Top-25 by the Waco Tribune, ranking No. 9, as a senior . . . was named the District co-Defensive MVP and the Killeen all-area MVP his senior season . . . was a two-time all-district first team selection and earned second-team all-district honors as a sophomore . . . totaled 130 tackles, six forced fumbles and three interceptions his junior season . . . high school coach was Kyle Cooper. David Fitzwater TE 6-4 230 Fr-HS Shreveport, La. Calvary Baptist Academy Was a four-year letterwinner at Shreveport Calvary Academy . . . started three years on offense and two seasons at defensive end . . . was the starting left tackle as a sophomore and junior and moved to tight end for his senior season . . . helped lead his team to a 9-3 record his senior season . . . caught seven passes for 78 yards and two TDs from his tight end position as a senior . . . also had 91 tackles and five sacks from his defensive end position his senior season . . . earned first-team all-city honors at defensive end, and first-team all-district merits at tight end and defensive end as a senior . . . was an honorable mention all-state selection his senior season . . . was on state championship teams as a sophomore and junior . . . earned first-team all-district honors at left tackle his sophomore and junior seasons . . . had 192 tackles, eight sacks, two interceptions and two caused fumbles in his career . . . high school coach was John Bachman Sr. Rowdy Frederick OL 6-4 330 Fr-HS Broken Arrow, Okla. Broken Arrow HS Was a three-year letterwinner and starter at Broken Arrow High School . . . earned first-team all-state honors from the Tulsa World and The Oklahoman . . . helped lead his team to the Class 6A-I state runner-up finish as a senior . . . powered the Tiger offensive attack that averaged 222.7 rushing yards and 37.8 points per game his senior season . . . named to the All-VYPE magazine first team as a senior . . . was the fourth-rated prospect in Oklahoma by Rivals.com . . . had a Rivals.com three-star rating . . . received a three-star rating by 247Sports . . . was rated as the No. 22-ranked prep senior in the state of Oklahoma by 247Sports . . . was ranked as the top area offensive lineman by the Tulsa World entering both his junior and senior seasons . . . chose Tulsa over Texas Tech, Hawaii, Houston, Arkansas State and North Texas . . . high school coach was David Alexander. Clay Greathouse* OL 6-5 290 Fr-HS Wichita Falls, Texas Rider HS Enrolled at Tulsa in January 2016 . . . was a four-year letterwinner at Rider High School . . . played offensive and defensive tackle . . . started his junior and senior seasons at left tackle . . . started every snap as a senior, and allowed just one sack in 840 snaps . . . earned second-team AP all-state merits his senior season, and was an honorable mention all-state performer as a junior . . . was a two-time first-team all-district 5-5A performer . . . helped lead his team to a 7-5 overall record and 5-2 mark in Class 5A Region I District 5 during his senior season . . . high school coach was Marc Bindel.

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The University of Tulsa Keanu Hill CB 6-2 185 Jr-JC Carson, Calif Long Beach CC Comes to Tulsa from Long Beach City College . . . totaled 40 tackles, 10 PBUs and two interceptions his sophomore season in 2015. . . his team registered a 10-2 record . . . had a season-best 10 stops and one pass break-up against Riverside CC . . . had a medical red-shirt season in 2014 . . . was credited with 30 tackles, seven pass breakups and one interception as a freshman in 2013 . . . junior college coach was Brett Peabody . . . was a two-year starter at Junipero Serra High School . . . helped his team win the state championship with a 13-2 record his senior season . . . high school coach was Scott Altenberg. (pronounced Key-ah-new) Keenen Johnson ATH 6-1 190 Fr-HS Alto, Texas Alto HS Was a three-year letterwinner at Alto High School . . . started at quarterback as a junior and senior and started in the secondary as a senior . . . helped lead his team to 11-1 records both as a junior and senior . . . rushed for 2,669 yards and 38 touchdowns on 217 carries for a 12.3 average per rush his senior season, while passing for 849 yards and 11 touchdowns . . . also caught one pass for a 55-yard TD . . . record 42 tackles, three TFLs, eight PBUs and three forced fumbles as a senior . . . was a candidate for Mr. Texas Football . . . was named to the East Texas Sports Network (ETSN) Super Team as a senior . . . rushed for 5,257 yards and 73 touchdowns, while passing for 2,488 yards and 29 TDs in his career . . . also had six career receptions for 136 yards and two touchdowns . . . received a three-star rating from 247Sports . . . earned all-state merits as a junior and senior . . . was the ETSN Super Team Offensive Newcomer of the Year as a junior . . . high school coach was Paul Gould . . . chose Tulsa over Louisiana-Lafayette, North Texas and SMU. Deya Mhiesen OL 6-7 305 Jr-JC Philadelphia, Pa. Arizona Western College Lettered at Arizona Western College in 2015 . . . helped his team post an 8-4 record in 2015 yards, while compiling 338.2 yards of total offense . . . was the No. 10-ranked JUCO offensive lineman in the nation and the 46th overall prospect by 247Sports . . . junior college coach was Tom Minnick . . . earned one letter at George Washington High School . . . played on both the offensive and defensive lines as a senior, where his team registered a 9-3 record . . . high school coach was Ronald Cohen . . . chose Tulsa over Akron, Baylor, Hawaii, Houston, UNLV and Oklahoma State. (pronounced Day-ah Mah-high-sen) Waahid Muhammad OL 6-7 295 Fr-HS Waco, Texas La Vega HS Was a two-year letterwinner at La Vega High School . . . started on the offensive and defensive lines as a senior . . . his first year of football was as a high school junior . . . was named to the Centex Top-25 by the Waco Tribune, ranking No. 7, his senior season . . . was credited with 70 pancake blocks and 20 knockdowns as a senior . . . helped lead his team to a 16-0 record and the UIL Class 4A-1 state title as a senior . . . received a three-star rating from 247Sports . . . played basketball and soccer before he began to play football . . . high school coach was Willie Williams . . . chose Tulsa over Navy and Texas State. (pronounced Wah-heed) Jimmy Nelson DE 6-3 248 Fr-HS Arlington, Texas Martin HS Was a two-year letterwinner and starter at Arlington Martin High School . . . helped lead his Arlington Martin team to a 10-3 record both his junior and senior seasons . . . played at defensive end and tackle his senior season . . . recorded 72 tackles, including 52 solos, 16 TFLs, seven sacks, six quarterback hurries, three forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries as a senior . . . was named the District 4A-6 Defensive Player of the Year as a senior, while earning first-team all-district and DFW all-area honors . . . was a second-team all-state selection his senior season . . . tallied 60 tackles, seven QB hurries, six TFLs and four sacks as a junior . . . earned honorable mention all-district honors as a junior . . . was credited with 132 career tackles, 22 TFLs, 13 QB hurries, 11 sacks, and 120 yards off of three fumble recoveries . . . high school coach was Bob Wager . . . chose Tulsa over UConn, New Mexico State and UTEP. Montray Norris CB 6-2 165 Fr-HS Houston, Texas Davis HS Played cornerback and receiver at Davis High School . . . earned second-team UIL all-district 18-6A honors as a senior . . . received a three-star rating from 247Sports . . . high school coach was James Showers. Robert Revels III LB 6-3 234 Fr-HS Houston, Texas John H. Reagan HS Was a three-year letterwinner at John H. Reagan High School . . . started all three years at middle linebacker . . . collected 75 tackles, seven TFLs, three sacks, four fumble recoveries and 10 quarterback hurries as a senior . . . also had three interceptions, while returning two for touchdowns . . . helped lead his team to a 9-2 record as a senior . . . earned honorable mention all-state honors as a senior . . . was a three-time all-district selection . . . 24

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named the District 20-6A Defensive MVP his senior season . . . received a three-star rating from 247 Sports . . . was a first-team all-area selection as a junior by the Killeen Daily Herald . . . totaled 84 tackles and three interceptions as a junior . . . was credited with career totals of 233 tackles, seven sacks, seven interceptions and five forced fumbles . . . high school coach was Stephen Dixon . . . chose Tulsa over Colorado State, Indiana and Texas Tech. Shemarr Robinson DT 6-4 280 Fr-HS Tulsa, Okla. Central HS Was a four-year letterwinner at Central High School . . . started four years on offense and defense . . . named to the Tulsa World all-metro team as a senior . . . earned all-VYPE Class 4A honors . . . was credited with 65 tackles, 16 TFLs and nine QB sacks his senior season . . . high school coach was Don Gibson . . . chose Tulsa over Wyoming, Army, New Mexico and UTEP. Luke Skipper QB 6-3 200 Fr-HS Forney, Texas Forney HS Was a three-year starting quarterback at Forney High School . . . completed 175-of-299 passes for 2,706 yards with 33 touchdowns, while rushing for 1,188 yards and 17 TDs for a 6.0 average per carry his senior season . . . helped lead his team to an 8-4 record as a senior . . . was named the District 12-5A Offensive Player of the Year and earned honorable mention all-state accolades as a senior . . . was a two-time all-district performer . . . received a three-star rating from 247Sports . . . threw for 5,004 yards and 55 TDs in his three seasons . . . also gained 2,357 yards and 26 touchdowns on the ground during his career . . . as a junior, passed for 1,423 yards and 14 TDs, while rushing for 834 yards and seven touchdowns . . . also had a career 37.1 punting average on 14 punts . . . was the District 2-5A Sophomore of the Year in 2013 . . . high school coach was Kevin Rush . . . chose Tulsa over Northern Iowa. Tyarise Stevenson DT 6-4 320 Fr-HS Donaldsonville, La. Donaldsonville HS Was a four-year letterwinner at Donaldsonville High School . . . started on the offensive line all four years, and started his final three seasons on the defensive line . . . was credited with 56 tackles, 13 TFLs, seven sacks and three fumble recoveries as a senior . . . received a three-star rating from 247Sports as a senior . . . earned firstteam all-district honors as a defensive tackle his senior campaign . . . collected 59 tackles, seven TFLs and six sacks his junior season . . . high school coach was Brian Richardson . . . chose Tulsa over Texas Tech, Tulane, UCF and UNLV. (pronounced Tie-air-is) Josh Stewart WR 6-4 201 Fr-HS Cedar Hill, Texas Cedar Hill HS A three-year letterwinner at Cedar Hill High School . . . started at receiver his senior season . . . led his Cedar Hill High School team to a 9-2 record as a senior . . . caught 20 passes for 353 yards and six touchdowns his senior campaign . . . averaged 41.6 punting yards . . . received a three-star rating from 247Sports . . . high school coach was Joey Mcguire . . . chose Tulsa over Air Force, BYU, Kansas and Nevada. Johnnie Williams DE 6-5 275 Fr-HS Austin, Texas Lyndon B. Johnson HS Was a four-year letterwinner and three-year starter at Lyndon B. Johnson High School . . . played defensive end and tight end . . . helped lead his LBJ team to an 8-4 overall record and 7-0 district mark as a senior . . . received a three-star rating from 247Sports . . . earned all-district honors as a junior and senior . . . was named the District 26-5A Lineman of the Year as a junior . . . was credited with 135 tackles and 13 sacks his junior campaign . . . was a second-team all-state selection as a junior . . . high school coach was Andrew Jackson . . . chose Tulsa over Colorado State, New Mexico State, Texas State and Utah State.

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The University of Tulsa

SCHEDULE CHALLENGES ARE UNIQUE TO 2016 of us.”

The non-conference schedule is stiff, too.

Philip Montgomery By John E. Hoover There’s nothing easy about the Golden Hurricane’s 2016 football schedule. From the opener against San Jose State to the Friday night finale against Cincinnati, Tulsa’s schedule is laced with pitfalls.

And the American Athletic Conference certainly did TU no favors.

Tulsa is one of only three AAC teams (UConn and Tulane) that, during the past two seasons, hasn’t had the benefit of playing back-to-back conference games at home. More than that, The American’s schedule makers really levied a challenge by giving TU two long road trips before that Friday night finisher against the Bearcats — who have an open date the week before coming to Chapman Stadium. Ouch.

“It’s good,” coach Philip Montgomery said. “We play who they put in front 26

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After opening at home against San Jose State (6-7 last year with losses to Air Force, Oregon State, Auburn, BYU and Boise State), the Golden Hurricane visit perennial contender Ohio State. The Buckeyes are rebuilding, but will be stacked with five-star talent. Ohio State just set a spring game attendance record with more than 100,000 fans.

“We know it’s gonna be a great crowd there,” Montgomery said. “We’re gonna be young at some spots, but I know our guys will be ready to go play just like they were against OU and some of those other guys.”

they’re a 10-win team (10-2) coming out of the FCS. So our non-conference is really, really tough.”

Conference play begins on a Friday night, too, with SMU coming to Tulsa on Oct. 7. That’s followed by a road trip to defending champion Houston, a home game against Tulane and a visit to Memphis. East Carolina opens November at TU on Nov. 5, followed by the tough stretch of road trips to Annapolis, Maryland, to take on the Midshipmen of Navy, and Orlando, Florida, to visit Central Florida. The finale is Nov. 25 against Cincy. Montgomery says there’s only one way for Tulsa to get respect from schedule makers or TV networks or anyone else. “We’ve got to go win.”

2016 SCHEDULE

The non-conference schedule concludes with Fresno State and FCS contender North Carolina A&T.

“Fresno State’s been good every year since (coach Tim DeRuyter) has been there,” Montgomery said. “They were a little down last year (39), but they’ll be back. North Carolina A&T, which you should feel better about, but

SEPTEMBER 3 SAN JOSE STATE 10 AT OHIO STATE 17 NORTH CAROLINA A&T 24 AT FRESNO STATE OCTOBER 7 (FRI.) 15 22 29

SMU* (ESPN2/ESPNU) AT HOUSTON* TULANE* (HOMECOMING) AT MEMPHIS*

NOVEMBER 5 EAST CAROLINA* 12 AT NAVY* (CBS SN) 19 AT UCF* 25 (FRI.) CINCINNATI* (ESPN NETWORK) *AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE GAMES

HURRICANE TURNED THE CORNER THIS SPRING By John E. Hoover So much improvement was made in the first year under Philip Montgomery, can the University of Tulsa football team possibly expect a similar surge in 2016? Actually, yes.

The growth and development in Year 2 could be even greater because the players are more familiar with Montgomery’s coaching style, his staff, his system, his personality and his expectations.

“I hope so,” Montgomery said. “I feel that way.” Add in that TU officially returns 16 starters from Montgomery’s maiden voyage that finished 6-7 last season — seemingly a million miles from the squad that went 2-10 the year before he arrived — including those who spent last season out with injury, and a total of

20 Golden Hurricane players with significant starting experience are back for 2016. That’s all good for TU fans.

Tulsa went 0-3 against ranked teams last season, but did throw a scare into No. 16 Oklahoma, No. 17 Memphis and No. 19 Navy. TU also made runs at American Athletic Conference champion Houston and league contender Cincinnati. Then, with a postseason trip on the line, Tulsa turned in winning plays at Tulane to return the program to a bowl game. And once at the Independence Bowl, the Golden Hurricane came painfully close (55-52) to handing Virginia Tech legend Frank Beamer a loss in his sendoff.

Jordan Mitchell

“Going 6-6 and getting to our bowl game — even though as hard as it is for me to say it because we didn’t win our bowl game — we still picked up good momentum because our kids played so well in the game,” Montgomery said. Oh, there is most definitely room for growth in 2016, and that’s what the squad did during the spring practice period.

Dane Evans

It would be easy enough to laud Montgomery’s fast-paced offense, especially with quarterback Dane Evans back for his third year as the starter, go-to receiver Keevan Lucas back from injury and four starters back on the offensive line. But at TU, improvement starts on defense. “The thing I think I’m gonna

be most excited about, and I’m not just blowing smoke, I think we’re gonna be much, much better defensively,” Montgomery said.

That’s an easy one, given that TU ranked last or next to last in The American in the four major defensive categories (rushing yards allowed, passing yards allowed, total yards allowed and points allowed), as well as last in first downs allowed. Montgomery compared the 2015 spring to the 2016 spring, and how much easier things are for co-defensive coordinators Bill Young and Brian Norwood — and how much easier things are for their players.

“You’re bringing two guys in that are running the defense, and last year … you’re still kind of meshing two ideas together to form the one defense that we run,” Montgomery said. “So to be able HURRICANE ELITE

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gonna give up some big plays because he’s gonna be a redshirt freshman. But I think he’s got the skill set to be a dominant corner in this league. And when you have a guy like that, that you can match up and do some different things and spin some guys and add some blitz things, I think we’re gonna be much better on that side.”

Ramadi Warren to, after the season, go back and really scale some things back, change some verbiage, make some things a little bit easier from that standpoint, and everybody be on the same page with a year under their belt, I think we’re gonna be a much improved defense.” Several new faces stood out during spring practice, Montgomery said. Most of all, he expects the secondary to be more athletic.

“I’m really excited about what Reggie Robinson’s gonna bring us in the secondary from a length and speed perspective,” Montgomery said. “He’s

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On offense, Lucas and big-play wideout Josh Atkinson sat out the spring recovering from injuries, but Montgomery said the key to this year’s success will be up front, where three starters (center Chandler Miller and tackles Evan Plagg and Willie Wright) are back from last year, joined by 2014 starter Blake Belcher (injured last season) and 6-foot-7 junior college transfer Deya Mhiesen. That’s five, but the competition is fierce. “Really, gelling those five guys, whoever those five guys are up front, that’s gonna be our biggest deal offensively, I think, coming into it,” Montgomery said. “Just finding the right group of five guys.” Evans, a senior, went 14-of-24 for 147 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions in the spring game, and

is set as the starting QB. In fact, if he remains healthy in 2016, he’ll be one of the program’s most prolific passers ever. Going on his second year in Montgomery’s system, Evans showed real growth during the spring.

“Dane’s knowledge right now, he’s really come a long way,” Montgomery said. “And he’s been able to make some adjustments on the field that he wasn’t able to do at this time, obviously, last year, but even at times during the latter part of the season he wasn’t able to do.” There is a raging competition behind Evans.

Sophomore Chad President, who played in six games as a short-yardage runner last season, and junior Ryan Rubley are the contenders. President hit 7-of-14 passes for 62 yards with an interception in the spring game, while Rubley was 6-of-18 for 45 yards. “Ryan and Chad both are still young, but I thought have really progressed over the spring,” Montgomery said. “They made some better decisions today, and also made some not-smart decisions. But that’s part of playing this position and learning how to do it.”

The University of Tulsa

HURRICANE STAFF SETTLES IN By John E. Hoover Last year at this time, Tulsa players were still getting to know their head coach and all nine of Philip Montgomery’s assistants as well as most of his support staff. This year, the Golden Hurricane spent the spring learning just two new faces: quarterbacks coach Beau Trahan and offensive quality control assistant Jordan Najvar.

It’s probably still a bit unusual for two assistants to leave a job after just one season, but Montgomery sees Sterlin Gilbert and Matt Mattox’s decision to join the Texas staff as a sign of growth for TU.

“I think as a program and as a coaching staff, we’ve got to take a step forward,” Montgomery said. “Any time you have coaching changes like that, you’ve got to be sure that you are moving in a positive direction.”

Mike Bloesch, 30, was TU’s offensive quality control coach last season, and was promoted to Mattox’s old position of offensive line coach. “Mike was already a part of our staff and was a big part of what we were doing in the run game,” Montgomery said. “So that was an easy fix there. And Mike’s done a tremendous job.”

Trahan, 37 (pronounced Trah-hahn), takes over for Gilbert as TU’s quarterbacks coach. The former Longhorn quarterback and safety previously worked under Art Briles at Houston and Baylor, including eight seasons in Waco establishing bonds in high school relations and recruiting. “He and I have worked together for seven or eight years (at Baylor), nine or 10 years (total), and we’ve kind of been in our tree of people so we understand what we do offensively,” Montgomery said. “He’s able to sit in a meeting room and can talk and can step out on the field and be able to coach the things we want him to coach without me having to coach him to get him ready to coach. And Beau will bring a ton of energy and new ideas to the table, which is important. And he’ll do a great job recruiting with his great ties that go all the way past Houston all the way back up here.”

Najvar, 25 (pronounced Nye-var), “may be one of the smartest football players I’ve ever coached” when he was a Baylor tight end, Montgomery said. “A guy that’s extremely smart, has played the position, and as far as connecting with the players, he’s a guy that’s gonna be able to do that, to really bring that kind of game-time experience to what we’re gonna have to have from the tight end spot

in a situation where our tight ends are really, really young. … I think he’s gonna bring some experience and some knowledge to the position.” Montgomery will continue to coach quarterbacks and, as TU’s primary play-caller, will be the offensive coordinator this season.

Beau Trahan

NEW RULE ON SATELLITE CAMPS By John E. Hoover The NCAA ordered an immediate ban on satellite camps, and the move did not sit well with many coaches — Tulsa’s Philip Montgomery among them. Montgomery, a Texas native with deep roots in Texas high school football, had arranged for his staff to participate in scouting camps throughout the Lone Star State.

“Obviously, I’ve had to change my whole camp schedule around again,” Montgomery said. “But we’re offering more camps up here, trying to get more kids to make the trip. But the student-athlete is the one getting killed in all this. If he’s got to choose five schools that he’s gonna go camp at, just from a logistics standpoint, a money standpoint, mom and dad having to take off work, all of those things, you start plugging ‘em in there, it’s hard to get in that list of five schools. Not 30

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every kid has a realistic idea of where he’s gonna play. So they got their dream schools and they’ve got to be realistic about where their talents are gonna take ‘em.

“The good thing about some of the other camps is you were having multiple schools there and they were seen by multiple different levels, and that was allowing that kid to be recruited by a bunch of different people and finding the right niche or fit for him.”

The controversy rages on. Pac-12 athletic directors, for example, voted 11-0 against the ban, but UCLA athletic director Dan Guerrero, who represent the Pac-12 on the NCAA Council, chose to cast the league’s vote in favor of the ban, a move that was criticized as incorrect by Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott. A similar voting inconsistency happened in the Sun Belt Conference as the final tally was 6-4 in favor of the ban. An

online petition to overturn the rule change was initiated by the mother of a five-star recruit and immediately garnered thousands of signatures. “I really think, just to be blunt, they (the Southeastern Conference) got really upset with just one guy (Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh, who had begun conducting camps in SEC territory) and they didn’t think about all the ramifications that were going on with it,” Montgomery said. “They just wanted to get back at him. And so they push-push-pushed and got something passed before they thought about how it was gonna affect the whole landscape of college football. Not just one person or one conference or Power Five or Group of Five or whatever it might be. And they’re getting a lot of backlash. Not just from coaches, but from kids, recruiting, high school coaches, all of it.”

BASKETBALL SIGNINGS 2016 Tulsa Men’s Basketball Signees Name Pos. Ht. Eugene Artison F 6-9 Travis Atson F 6-6 Joseph Battle G 6-3 Corey Henderson Jr. G 6-3 Martins Igbanu F 6-9 Lawson Korita G 6-5 Will Magnay F 6-10 G 6-4 Curran Scott Jaleel Wheeler G 6-3

Wt. 200 195 185 180 225 190 235 205 195

Cl. So-JC Fr-HS Fr-HS Jr-JC Fr-HS Fr-HS Fr-HS So-TR Jr-JC

Hometown Seattle, Wash. Brooklyn, N.Y. Abbeville, S.C. Dallas, Texas Lagos, Nigeria Little Rock, Ark. Brisbane, Australia Edmond, Okla. Newark, N.J.

Previous School College of Southern Idaho Notre Dame Prep (Mass.) Abbeville HS Blinn College (Texas) CCM Academy (Ga.)

Pulaski Academy Australian Institute of Sport University of Charlotte Kilgore College (Texas)

Eugene Artison F 6-9 So-JC Seattle, Wash. College of Southern Idaho Played one year at the College of Southern Idaho . . . averaged 14.2 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game in 2015-16 . . . played in nine games before an injury ended his season . . . also shot 54-perent from the field and 46-percent from three-point range in those nine games . . . averaged 18.3 points, 1.6 blocks and 1.0 assists per game as a senior in 2013-14 at Franklin High School in Seattle . . . was named one of the top-50 high school players in the state of Washington by MaxPreps, and was rated as a threestar prospect out of high school by Scout.com . . . spent one year at Fresno State in 2014-15, where he redshirted, before transferring to Southern Idaho. Travis Atson F 6-6 Fr-HS Brooklyn, N.Y. Notre Dame Prep (Mass.) Played the 2015-16 season at Notre Dame Prep in Massachusetts . . . spent the 2014-15 season at South Kent School in Connecticut . . . spent his first three years of high school at Christ the King High School in Brooklyn . . . led the Royals to two state championships, and was named Most Valuable Player of the state playoffs as a junior. Joseph Battle G 6-3 Fr-HS Abbeville, S.C. Abbeville HS Was named the 2015-16 Gatorade Men’s Basketball Player of the Year, as well as Mr. Basketball for the state of South Carolina . . . averaged 31 points, seven rebounds and three steals as a senior at Abbeville High School . . . earned Class 2A Player of the Year honors . . . led the Panthers to the Class 2A state championship and scored 32 points in the state title game . . . averaged 23 points and six rebounds as a junior . . . shot better than 50 percent from the field in each of his last two years . . . averaged 23 points, 6.6 rebounds and two steals per game for his career . . . set a school record, scoring more than 1,800 points during his career at Abbeville High . . . was the state’s leading scorer as a senior, and also earned Class 2A Region 2 Player of the Year honors . . . was also a prolific dual-threat quarterback, Battle led AHS to the 2015 Class 2A football state title, accounting for six touchdowns in the championship game . . . was the state’s football Offensive Player of the Year. Corey Henderson Jr. G 6-3 Jr-JC Dallas, Texas Blinn College (Texas) Transferred to Tulsa from Blinn College . . . played one season at Blinn after transferring from Wichita State . . . averaged 14.8 points, 3.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 32 games at Blinn College . . . shot 40percent from the field, 38-percent from three-point range and 82-percent from the free throw line . . . appeared in 28 games for the Shockers as a freshman in 2014-15 and averaged 6.8 minutes and 1.9 points . . . averaged 14 points and 8 assists as a prep senior while playing for his father at Episcopal School of Dallas . . . was three-time all-district, two-time all-region and two-time all-state selection . . . was a Rivals.com three-star recruit. Martins Igbanu

6-9

Fr-HS

Lagos, Nigeria

Covenant Christian Ministries

Academy (Ga.)

Averaged 19.5 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists his senior season at Covenant Christian Ministries

Academy . . . also had 1.8 steals and 1.0 blocks per game and shot 52-percent from the field as a senior . . . had career averages of 14.0 points and 4.1 rebounds in 74 career games . . . was a three-start recruit by Rivals.com . . .

scored at a 14.1 clip as a junior and totaled10.9 points as a sophomore. Lawson Korita

6-5

Fr-HS Little Rock, Ark.

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Averaged 19.5 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists his senior season at Covenant Christian Ministries

University ofas aTulsa scored at a 14.1 clipThe as a junior and totaled10.9 points sophomore.

Lawson Korita G 6-5 Fr-HS Little Rock, Ark. Pulaski Academy Was a three-year starter at Pulaski Academy . . . averaged 22.5 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.0 steals his senior season . . . earned second-team all-state honors by Arkansas Democrat-Gazette . . . helped lead his team to a 19-7 record as a senior . . . averaged 18.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists as a junior. Will Magnay F 6-10 Fr-HS Brisbane, Australia Australian Institute of Sport At the U20 Australian Junior Championships in February, he was named the top defensive player and a first-team all-tournament selection . . . an anchor on defense, he led all rebounders in the tournament, and averaged 9.3 points, 9.4 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game . . . AIS is the same school that was attended by current NBA players Andrew Bogut, Dante Exum, Joe Ingles and Patty Mills. Curran Scott G 6-4 So-TR Edmond, Okla. University of Charlotte Transfers from the University of Charlotte, where he scored in double figures in 17 games, including five games with at least 20 points . . . averaged 10.5 points and shot 45 percent from the field, including 44 percent on 3-pointers, as a freshman . . . played his prep basketball at Edmond Memorial (Okla.) High School . . . averaged 21.9 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists while shooting 50 percent from the field, earning Oklahoma all-state honors as a senior . . . was ranked among the top-150 players in the nation by MaxPreps and Future 150.com coming out of high school . . . totaled more than 1,500 points in his high school career that included three years at Edmond Santa Fe High School . . . earned three all-district honors and two first-team all-conference honors . . . graduated from Memorial High School in Edmond, the high school alma mater of former Tulsa guard James Woodard.

Jaleel Wheeler G 6-3 Jr-JC Newark, N.J. Kilgore College (Texas) Transferred to Tulsa after two years at Kilgore College . . . earned 2016 NJCAA All-America honorable mention and All-Region XIV first-team honors . . . averaged 22.3 points and 2.5 assists per game as a sophomore . . . shot 51- percent from the field, including .395 on 3-pointers, and 81-percent on free throws . . . attended high school at St. Georgeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s School in Middletown, R.I., where he averaged 16 points and nine rebounds as a senior.

Jaleel Wheeler

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Corey Henderson

Tulsa Women’s Basketball Signees Name Pos. Ht. Cl. Renetha Dickson G 5-9 Fr-HS Kendrian Elliott F 6-2 Fr-HS Alexis Gaulden G 5-6 Fr-HS Addison Richards G 6-1 Fr-HS

Hometown St. Louis, Mo. Wichita, Kan. Broken Arrow, Okla. Bixby, Okla.

Previous School Lutheran North Wichita South Broken Arrow Bixby

Renetha Dickson G 5-9 Fr-HS St. Louis, Mo. Lutheran North Was a four-year starter at Lutheran North High School . . . averaged 24.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.8 steals her senior season . . . led her team to an 18-10 record as a senior . . . selected to the St. Louis American ‘Fab Five” Girls All-Star Team as a senior . . . was named the St. Louis American Co-Player of the Year her senior season . . . was a Class 3A all-state selection as a junior . . . averaged 18.9 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.6 steals her junior season . . . had a No. 25 national ranking by ESPN HoopGurlz. Kendrian Elliott F 6-2 Fr-HS Wichita, Kan. Wichita South Was a four-year starter at Wichita South High School . . . was the 2015-16 Gatorade Girls Basketball Player of the Year for the state of Kansas . . . led her team to the Class 6A state championship in each of her four prep seasons . . . scored at a 15.0 clip and shot 57-percent from the field and 78-percent from the free throw line her senior season . . . was a three-time first-team all-state selection and four-time all-metro performer . . . ranked as the No. 4 player in the state of Kansas by MaxPreps . . . averaged 13.3 points, 12 rebounds and 1.5 blocks as a junior. Alexis Gaulden G 5-6 Fr-HS Broken Arrow, Okla. Broken Arrow Was a four-year letterwinner at Broken Arrow High School . . . part of teams that went 92-20 over four seasons and reaching the state tournament all four years . . . helped lead her team to state championships as a sophomore and junior . . . selected as the Tulsa Metro Player of the Year by the Tulsa World as both a junior and senior . . . earned Tulsa World first-team all-state honors her senior season . . . averaged 14.7 points as a junior and senior . . . scored a career-high six three-pointers as a senior . . . connected on 80 three-pointers her senior season. Addison Richards G 6-1 Fr-HS Bixby, Okla. Bixby Averaged 20.7 points her senior season . . . earned second-team all-metro honors by the Tulsa World as a senior . . . was a Tulsa World honorable mention all-state selection as a senior . . . averaged 15.5 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.4 steals during her junior season . . . also played AAU basketball for OK Blue Star And 1.

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The University of Tulsa

TULSA SPRING SPORTS RECAP TULSA ROWERS RACING THEIR BEST With just one regular season regatta remaining, April 30 against Oklahoma in the Stone Cup, the Tulsa rowers have put together a spectacular season.

TU began the year in a duel vs. Kansas State, where the Golden Hurricane won three of the four races, topping the Wildcats in the Varsity 4+, 2nd Varsity 4+ and 3rd Varsity 8+. Tulsa then moved on to a home regatta featuring Creighton and the MIT Lightweights and won all seven races. After the Lightweights dominated MIT, the Hurricane was ranked sixth by the USRowing Collegiate Poll, marking the highest-ever national ranking for the TU Lightweights. In early April, Tulsa’s Varsity 8+ won a gold medal at the Knecht Cup on Mercer Lake in West Windsor Township, New Jersey. Maria Gearing, Hannah Vissers, Lauren Vander Hoeven, Ashley Lane, Hannah Emnett, Sam Tober, Emily Farrar, Jennifer Casson and Marcia Vidaurri raced the Varsity 8+ to a time of 6:48.61 in the Grand Final, topping second-place Boston College by nearly three seconds. The Golden Hurricane’s 2nd Varsity 8+ finished sixth overall in a time of 6:58.06 in their race.

Most recently, TU captured the 10th Annual Lawless Cup, topping conference foe SMU and NCAA Division II secondranked Central Oklahoma in four races. Tulsa has won all 10 Lawless Cup regattas in the history of the event. The American Athletic Conference Championship will be held May 14 in Sacramento, California. Tulsa will be looking to earn the league’s NCAA automatic bid for their first-ever NCAA Championship appearance in late May, while the Lightweights will be competing in the IRA Championship in early June.

helm.Tulsa had only two seniors to go along with four freshmen, one sophomore and one junior. Junior Nadia Majidizadeh, a local product from Tulsa Union High School, led the Golden Hurricane as she turned in three top-20 performances, as all three of those came in Tulsa’s first three spring tournaments. Majidizadeh completed the season with a 75.7 stroke average. She finished the season with five top-30 performances overall to give her seven career top-30 finishes. The best Hurricane finish on the season was sixth place at the Amelia Island Collegiate to kick off the spring season.

TENNIS TEAMS FINISH 1ST AND 2ND AT THE AMERICAN CHAMPIONSHIPS The Tulsa women won its second straight American Athletic Conference Championship with a 4-0 win over USF, thus earning the league’s automatic NCAA Championship bid. The Golden Hurricane men, ranked 23rd nationally, fell to USF in the conference’s championship match. Both teams await their seeds and location for first- and second-round competition in the NCAA Championship. The 64-team NCAA bracket will be announced at 4 p.m. (CT) for the women and 4:30 p.m. (CT) for the men on Tuesday, May 3. Play begins at first- and second-round sites on Friday May 13, and by Sunday, May 15, the 32 teams coming to Tulsa’s Michael D. Case Tennis Center for the NCAA Championship, May 19-30, will be known.

The Tulsa women, ranked 29th nationally, will head into NCAA action with an overall 21-4 record. Tulsa was led by five 20-match winners, including Marcelina

Cichon, Renata Kuricova, Ksenia Laskutova, Rongrong Leenabanchong and Saana Saarteinen. The women posted an overall 8-3 record against top-75 teams in the International Tennis Association (ITA) rankings. On the men’s side, the Hurricane faced a schedule loaded with ITA top-ranked teams and compiled a 10-10 mark against those squads. Among the wins, Tulsa defeated three teams now ranked in the top-18 including #12 California, #15 Oklahoma State and #19 Arkansas, while some of the losses came against the current No 1-ranked Virginia Cavaliers, as well as #5 TCU, #8 Texas Tech, #10 Oklahoma and No. 11 Southern Cal. MEN’S INDOOR TRACK TEAM TAKES SECOND AT THE AMERICAN

For a second consecutive season, the Tulsa men’s indoor track team narrowly missed claiming the American Athletic Conference title. Houston posted a 152 to 147 win over the Hurricane at the Birmingham Crossplex venue in February. The Tulsa women finished in 10th place.

Bryce Robinson, Tim Rackers, Marc Scott and the men’s distance medley team won individual championships at the AAC Championships. Robinson posted a winning time of 20.78 in the 200-meter dash, Rackers had a 14:31.28 time in the 5,000m run, Scott finished the 1,500m in a time of 4:09.52 and the relay team of Elijah Silva, Charles Johnson, Isaac Sanders and Simon Greiner clocked a time of 9:56.46 The best women’s finisher for Tulsa was Stacie Taylor in the 5,000m run with a

TULSA WOMEN GOLFERS CLOSE OUT SEASON AT AAC CHAMPIONSHIP

Although the Tulsa women’s golf team closed out the 2015-16 season in ninth place at the American Athletic Conference Championships, the turnaround for the program is taking shape as Emilee KleinGille completed her second season at the 34

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Stacie Taylor stands with UCF runners on awards stand for finishing second in the 5,000 meters

time of 16:49.59

Robinson and Scott earned All-America status as the duo participated in the NCAA Indoor Championships. Robinson claimed first-team in the 60m dash after finishing in 8th place at the national meet and was also a second-team selection in the 200m. Scott earned second-team honors with a 13th place national finish in the 5,000m. TULSA SOFTBALL JUMPS OUT TO 21-5 RECORD

An experienced, yet young softball squad jumped out to a 21-5 record before getting into American Athletic Conference play in late March. Among Tulsa’s 21 non-conference wins were two victories against No. 24 Texas and a 10-1 run-rule game over No. 22 Minnesota, as well as wins against Power 5 schools Penn State, Virginia, Iowa,

Arkansas and Oklahoma State. Matchups against No. 9-ranked Oklahoma and Oklahoma State remain on the May portion of the schedule for the Golden Hurricane.

Before a home series against leagueleading and No. 20-ranked South Florida (39-11, 11-1 AAC) the weekend of April 22-24, Tulsa had a 5-4 league record with a 2-1 edge at Houston, a threegame sweep over East Carolina and an 0-3 record at UCF. Tulsa entered the USF series with an overall 28-11 record.

Five seniors, led by the battery tandem of pitcher Caitlin Sill and catcher Catherine Horner, have helped lead a team with seven freshmen. But it has been junior Maggie Withee, freshman Julia Hollingsworth and sophomore Shelby Estocado proving the big bats for the Hurricane.

After 39 games, Withee had a team-best .382 batting average with 47 hits, while Hollingsworth had a .378 average with 23 RBI. The shortstop Estocado batted .336 with a team-high nine home runs and a .636 slugging percentage. The senior Horner batted .303 with 33 hits and 20 walks through Tulsa’s first 39 games. On the mound, Sill posted a 15-4 record with a 1.36 ERA, while striking out 71 batters in her first 21 appearances. Sophomore Emily Watson turned in 131 strikeouts in 94.1 innings pitched, while posting a 10-7 record and 2.23 ERA in 20 appearances. Tulsa’s Collins Family Softball Complex will host the 2016 American Athletic Conference Championship, May 12-14.

NCAA TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIP COMES TO TULSA MAY 19-30 The nation’s top collegiate tennis teams will converge on the city of Tulsa to compete at the 2016 NCAA Division I Men’s & Women’s Tennis Championships, May 19-30, at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center on the TU campus.

All-Session Tickets are now available for the event by calling 918.631.GoTU (4688) or online at TulsaHurricane.com. NCAA Championships feature 16 men’s and women’s teams competing for the first six days of the tournament (May 20-24) to claim the title of team champion. At the conclusion of the team event, a field of 64 singles players and a 32-doubles team bracket for both the men and women will be played out in the final five days of competition (May 25-30).

Both the Tulsa men’s and women’s tennis teams, as well as the Oklahoma State teams and the Oklahoma men have been ranked among the nation’s top-30 for a good portion of the spring season. Those teams will be strong competitors at regional sites to be among the final 16 teams making their way to Tulsa. Men’s teams expected to be in Tulsa for the championship include defend-

ing champion and No. 1-ranked Virginia, 17time champion UCLA and 21-time winner Southern Cal, while North Carolina, TCU and Ohio State, who have been ranked among the top-five nationally, have their sights set on Tulsa in search of their first national tennis titles.

On the women’s side, California has moved into the No. 1 spot in the nation, while Vanderbilt will look to repeat as NCAA champion. The North Carolina women, like the men, have positioned themselves among the top-5 teams in the country, as have Florida and Georgia. The 2016 event is Tulsa’s third time to host the NCAA Tennis Championships that has been played in Tulsa. The Case Tennis Center was also host site for the 2004 NCAA Men’s Championships and the 2008 NCAA Men’s & Women’s Championships.

All-Session Tickets for adults are priced at $125 and $75 for children for the 12day event, which averages to just over $10.40 per adult and $6.25 per child.

All-Session Tickets can be purchased online or at the ticket office.

Individual session tickets will be available on each day of the tournament for $15 for adults and $8 for youth. Purchasing All-Session Tickets for the NCAA Championships will be a savings of $55 for adults and $21 for children. For more information and tickets visit NCAA Championship Central at TulsaHurricane.com.

For tournament sponsorship opportunities, contact Nick Salis at 918.631.3382 or email Nicholas-salis@utulsa.edu. Over 100 volunteers will be needed for tournament operations and those interested in volunteer opportunities can contact Bradi Hinch at 918.631.3403 or email bradi-hinch@utulsa.edu. HURRICANE ELITE

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THE University of Tulsa

TU KICKS OFF “TULSA PLAYS” SUMMER PROGRAM The University of Tulsa athletic department has initiated the “Tulsa Plays” Program for the upcoming summer. The “Tulsa Plays” initiative is a community program designed to encourage kids to play and live a healthy and active lifestyle. TU Athletics is partnering with KTUL Channel 8, Tulsa World, and Scripps Radio to host three free and open to the public events where kids can play with TU student-athletes.

Tulsa Plays is open to all kids 12 & under. Events will include activities from the sports of basketball, football, soccer, softball, volleyball and general athletic skills. THE 2016 SUMMER DATES OF “TULSA PLAYS” ARE:

Thursday, June 2 – 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. – Guthrie Green

Thursday, July 7 – 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. – LaFortune Park Thursday, July 21 – 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. –Hunter Park

Each participant will receive an activity card that they can take to the seven activity stations set up. At each station they will receive a sticker of completion. At the end of the day, kids can redeem their activity card for a Tulsa Plays gift pack. STATIONS

Station #1 – 40 Yard Dash and Shuttle Drill Station #2 – Soccer Dribbling and Passing Station #3 – Football Passing and Catching Station #4 – Volleyball Bumping and Setting Station #5 – Basketball Dribbling and Shooting Station #6 – Softball Hitting Station #7 – Dress Like a TU Player and Face Tattoos

For more information visit www.tulsahurricane.com/ tulsaplays

NCAA RECOGNIZES TULSA SOCCER STUDENT-ATHLETE KATY RIOJAS WITH WALTER BYERS AWARD The University of Tulsa soccer studentathlete Katy Riojas was selected as the 2016 Walter Byers Postgraduate Scholarship, it was announced by the NCAA on April 18.

Established in 1988, the scholarship honors the contributions of former NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. Riojas will receive a $24,000 renewable postgraduate scholarship.

Riojas will continue her education at Vanderbilt for a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering. She is the first female Byers Scholarship recipient from a Top-100 National University since 2009, and the first woman from an FBS program to win the award, also since 2009.

Riojas, from Parkville, Missouri, has maintained a 4.0 grade point average and was awarded with the prestigious Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship for 2015-16. The senior was a four-year letterwinner for the Golden Hurricane women’s soccer team, playing in 72 games during her 36

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career.

Riojas, who hopes to make a career developing innovative medical device solutions, already has taken many steps toward that goal. With two classmates, she founded Make a Difference Engineering, a student-run organization dedicated to the design and fabrication of devices to improve the lives of people with disabilities. As a summer researcher at the University of Pittsburgh, she designed and fabricated hardware and software for a user-centered robotic wheelchair interface. Last summer, Riojas and a professor created Magpie Products LLC, a startup company focused on designing and fabricating affordable devices for people with disabilities. Walter Byers was the first executive director of the NCAA. He served from 1951 to 1988.

Recipients of the Walter Byers Postgraduate Scholarship must demonstrate both academic and athletic

Katy Riojas excellence and have a grade-point average of least a 3.5. They also must show leadership abilities and demonstrate that involvement in athletics has promoted their growth both personally and academically. The scholarship is presented each year to one female and one male student-athlete.

TULSA ROWER EMALIA SETO AWARDED THE JIM MCKAY SCHOLARSHIP BY THE NCAA The University of Tulsa rower Emalia Seto was selected as the female recipient of the NCAA’s 2016 Jim McKay Scholarship, it was announced on April 18 by the NCAA.

The Jim McKay Scholarship Program was established in 2008 to honor one of the most prominent figures in sports journalism. Annually, one female and one male studentathlete are awarded a one-time $10,000 Jim McKay Scholarship for outstanding academic performance and are encouraged to pursue a career in the sports communication industry. Seto, from El Dorado Hills, California, has maintained a 3.617 grade point average in Communication with a minor in sociology, while earning four letters with the Golden Hurricane rowing team. She has competed in 32 career regattas, including all seven events this season. Seto has raced in the Lightweight 2X, Varsity 4X, Lightweight 4+ and Lightweight 8+ this season. In 2013, she represented the United States for the Under 23 World Rowing Championships in Linz, Austria.

The senior earned academic honors from the Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) as a sophomore and added scholarathlete recognition by the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) a year ago as a junior.

Seto will join the Edelman public relations firm in Los Angeles following her graduation in May. She also has been accepted to the master’s program for strategic communications at the University of San Francisco for 2017. She hopes to eventually work in communications for a university athletics department or for an athletics team. Seto already has some real-world communications experience as a news intern at an ABC television station (KTUL) in Tulsa, Oklahoma; as a writing intern at the public relations firm Sharpshooter Communications; and as a communications intern at WPX Energy. This spring, she has an internship at Saxum, a marketing communications agency. Jim McKay was an American television

Emalia Seto sports journalist, who was best known for hosting ABC’s Wide World of Sports (19611998). He was also known for television coverage of 12 Olympic Games, and was universally respected for his memorable reporting on the Munich massacre at the 1972 Summer Olympics. McKay covered a wide variety of special events, including horse races such as the Kentucky Derby, golf events such as the British Open, and the Indianapolis 500.

TULSA TO HOST AMERICAN SOFTBALL TOURNAMENT MAY 12-14 Seven American Athletic Conference softball teams will compete for the league championship at The University of Tulsa’s Collins Family Softball Complex on the TU campus, Thursday-Saturday, May 12-14. Conference tournament All-Session and Group tickets are now on sale.

All-Session tickets are priced at $20 for adults and $10 for youth, ages 2-17. Single Session tickets are priced at $10 for adults and $5 for youth. A group ticket rate is available for Groups of 15 or more for $3 per ticket. Group tickets must be purchased in advance of the tournament. Fans can purchase All-Session tickets online at TulsaHurricane. com, by calling 918.631.GoTU

(4688) or stopping by the Reynolds Center Athletic Ticket Office, Monday-Friday, 8:30-5 p.m. Single Session tickets will go on sale Monday, May 2. CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE

Thursday • May 12, 2016 11am Game 1: No, 4 vs. No. 5 1:30pm Game 2: No. 3 vs. No. 6 4:00pm Game 3: No. 2 vs. No. 7

Friday • May 13, 2016 1pm Game 4: No. 1 vs. Game 1 Winner 3:30pm Game 5: Game 2 Winner vs. Game 3 Winner Saturday, • May 14, 2016 11am Championship Game

The first two days of the tournament will be carried live

on the American Digital Network, while the Championship Game will be televised live on ESPN. The American Digital Network can be accessed through Championship Central at TulsaHurricane.com or TheAmerican.org.

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RECRUITING SPOTLIGHT Inside Tulsa Sports 2017 Prospect Hotlist

Over two months ago, Tulsa inked its class of 2016 on National Signing Day, and the attention is now focused on the rising stars of the 2017 class. The Golden Hurricane coaching staff has deep roots in Oklahoma and Texas, and those fertile recruiting grounds produce most of the initial 2017 Hurricane Hot List, which was recently released by InsideTulsaSports.com. Over the last decade, it became apparent that TU is not afraid of taking up recruiting battles against the nation’s top programs. It appears to have stayed that way under second-year head coach Philip Montgomery and his staff.

During the past 12 years, TU has hosted several 4-star and 5-star prospects on official and unofficial visits. Although most signed elsewhere, Tulsa has pulled in a few of those 4-star recruits, including Rob Boyd in the 2013 class and Chad President in the class of 2015. Most of those players switched their commitment to Tulsa after being committed to programs in the Power Five conferences.

It appears that the 2017 class will be no different. Numerous prospects on the 2017 Hot List are currently listed on the Rivals100 and Rivals250 on Rivals.com. A few of the names on the 2017 Hot List have already given early verbal commitments to programs such as Arkansas and Oklahoma State, but we’ve included them on the initial list since it is so early in the recruiting process and also to provide a true example of the quality talent TU coaches are targeting.

This list contains only players that have been actively recruited by Tulsa coaches, as identified by Inside Tulsa Sports staff through conversations with the prospects and/or their coaches. This is an ever-changing list, as college coaches continue to evaluate prospects and extend scholarship offers. The list will continue to change throughout the recruiting process. Without further ado, we give you the 2017 Hurricane Hot List. Seth Boomer QB Collinsville (OK) Charlie Brewer QB Lake Travis (TX) Ty Brock QB College Station (TX) Jarret Doege QB Lubbock-Cooper (TX) Kaleb Fletcher QB Mesquite Poteet (TX) Brandon George QB Jones (OK) Trey Gooch QB Putnam West (OK) Jeremy Hodge QB Dallas Parish Episcopal (TX) Peyton Mansell QB Belton (TX) Cam Roane QB Colleyville Heritage (TX) Carl Robinson III QB Killeen Ellison (TX) Elijah Walker QB Amite (LA) Jake Wright QB Navarro (TX) Bryson Smith QB John Tyler (TX) Shamari Brooks RB Tulsa Union (OK) 38

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Shamari Brooks

Rajan Cunningham Jordon Curtis Kristian Evans Chance Fisher Davion Ford Daiquain Jackson C. J. Jones Orryn Nicholson Abram Smith Trelon Smith Dominic Williams Joe Williams Kaegun Williams Daniel Young Tre Curry Tanner Ash Willie Cherry Matt Childers Sam Crawford Trestan Ebner Brycen Gibson Shamond Greenwood Gavin Holmes Jaylon Jackson Brayden Klusak Quinton Newton Chris Potts Jayden Smith Cartrell Thomas Ty Hampton Beau Corrales Nick Robinson Mike’quan Deane Parker Eichenberger Michael Goff Camron Horry

RB Mesquite Horn (TX) RB Jenks (OK) RB Waco Connally (TX) RB Mesquite (TX) RB Rockdale (TX) RB Mesquite Poteet RB Cypress Woods (TX) RB Ft Bend Austin RB Abilene RB Cypress Ridge RB Frisco Indepedence (TX) RB Bremond (TX) RB Cedar Hill RB Spring Westfield (TX) RB/LB Lawton WR Evangel Christian (LA) WR Wichita Rider WR Henderson (TX) WR Rockwall (TX) WR Henderson (TX) WR Wilmer-Hutchins (TX) WR Lakeview Centennial (TX) WR Justin Northwest (TX) WR Cedar Hill WR McAlester (OK) WR Klein Collins (TX) WR Putnam City West (OK) WR Killeen Ellison (TX) WR Lancaster (TX) WR El Dorado WR/CB Georgetown WR/DE Putnam City West TE NEO (OK) TE Katy TE San Antonio Johnson TE Katy Taylor (TX)

Reese Leitao Jacob Logan Logan Long Jaylin Martin Jadon McConnell Chance McLeod Coy McMillon Logan Peterson Shay Rodgers Lincoln Adams Kirby Adcock Alan Ali Eleasah Anderson Tyler Barrett Dante Bivens Nick Brahms David Castles Gray Davis Josh Donovan Justin Dutton Jaxon Frazier Andre Harris Joe Heironimus Grant Hill Jared Hocker Hayden Howerton Creed Humphrey Segun Ijiyera Louis Jackson III Brenden Jaimes Tyler Kanaly Derek Kerstetter Kyle Kinyo Gage Mallory Samir Martula Dan Moore Jr. Xavier Newman Kenneth Pleasant Nathan Schaffner William Sherman Chase Slack Rashawn Slater Corbin Smith Jacob Vasquez Casey Verhulst Hyrin White Adrian Wolford Constantino Zuniga David Anenih Joshue Brown Lagaryonn Carson Dondrick Collins Brock Martin Jonathan McCoy Dayo Odeyingbo Isaiah Thomas Alfred Bryant Cade Harelson Brandon Thompson Alexander Duke Anthony Escobar Jaylon George TaQuon Graham Taz Griffins Channing Hawkins Te’ayveon Hill Bryan Jones Noah Jones Wiley Lester

TE TE TE TE TE TE TE TE TE OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL OL DE DE DE DE DE DE DE DE DE DE DE DL DL DL DL DL DL DL DL DL DL

Jenks Deer Park (TX) Woodward (OK) Spring Westfield (TX) La Porte (TX) Victoria East (TX) Abilene Aledo (TX) Tatum (TX) Sand Springs (OK) Nashville (AR) Ft. Worth Timber Creek (TX) Alief Taylor (TX) Lake Travis Klein Collins Navarre (FL) Coweta (OK) Dallas Parish Episcopal (TX) College Station (TX) Guthrie Argyle (TX) Putnam City North Austin Westlake (TX) Edmond Memorial (OK) N. Richland Hills (TX) Katy (TX) Shawnee Lake Dallas (TX) Dallas Bishop Dunne (TX) Lake Travis (TX) Killeen (TX) San Antonio Reagan Klein Oak (TX) Denton Guyer Cypress Ranch TX) Beaumont West Brook (TX) DeSoto (TX) Katy Seven Lakes Collinsville Allen (TX) Azle (TX) Sugar Land Clements (TX) Nederland (TX) Mesquite Poteet Plano East (TX) DeSoto (TX) Meeker McKinney North (TX) Mansfield Timberview Houston Dekaney (TX) Liberty-Eylau Langham Creek Oologah Camden-Fairview (AR) Ranchview Tulsa Memorial Manvel (TX) Davenport (OK) England (AR) Houston Bellaire (TX) Killeen Shoemaker (TX) NEO (OK) Temple NEO (OK) DeSoto (TX) Killeen Shoemaker (TX) Madison Prep (LA) Lancaster (TX) NEO (OK)

Nelson Mbasanor Sammy Ochoa Treston Price Deontre Thomas Milton Williams Toby Ndukwe Dillon Springer Ryder Anderson Corey Bethley Javier Edwards Troy James Junius King Tyreece Lott Jayden Peevy Chase Brown Bruce Bivens Breydon Boyd Kason Franklin Austin Hiller Anthony Hines Levi Jones Carder Key KJ Lee Cade Mashburn Loren Mondy Dimitri Moore Kenneth Murray Chika Nwabuko Dillon Owens Ashton Smith Odessa Thurman Stephen Turner Terrell Williams Amaud Willis-Dalton Chris Walker Adam Beck Kobe Boyce Noah Daniels Akayleb Evans Tyon Merchant Jaylon Monroe Lamarcus Morton Jr. Chris Wilson Chris Bishop Justin Broiles Tre Brown Kamren Curl Tyson Curry J’mari Davis Evan Fields Marcus Green Tavion Hawthorne Matthew Kibbey Marcus Mays Thabo Mwaniki Tre Sterling Justin Williams Quian Williams Demontre Gatewood Tony Rayburn II Chris Hawkins Quindon Lewis Jaylon Mascorro Gervarrius Owens Caleb Powell Bryson Powers Jason Shelley

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Pflugerville Hendr. (TX) Lake Travis Lancaster (TX) Mustang (OK) Crowley George Ranch (TX) Midland (TX) Katy Katy Blinn College (TX) Madison Prep (LA) Mesquite Horn Ardmore (OK) Bellaire (TX) Kerrville Tivy Aldine Davis (TX) Katy Cypress Woods Lake Travis (TX) Plano East Austin Westlake Broken Arrow Wagoner Norman North (OK) Mansfield Lake Ridge (TX) Cedar Hill Ft. Bend Elkins (TX) Mesquite Horn North Mesquite San Antonio Stevens (TX) Klein Oak North Mesquite NEO (OK) Cypress Ranch (TX) Ft. Gibson George Ranch (TX) Lake Dallas (TX) League City Clear Creek (TX) McKinney (TX) A&M Consolidated (TX) West Mesquite Gilmer (TX) Dickinson (TX) NEO (OK) OKC John Marshall Tulsa Union Muskogee (OK) Copperas Cove Muskogee (OK) Midwest City NEO (OK) Killeen Shoemaker (TX) Lewisville Tulsa Edison Denton Guyer Sunnyvale (TX) NEO (OK) Southmoore Midwest City Edmond Deer Creek Mesquite Horn Southmoore Refugio (TX) Southmoore Oklahoma Christian Acad. Cypress Woods (TX) Frisco Lone Star

HURRICANE ELITE

SPRING 2016

2017 PROSPECT TO WATCH: QB SETH BOOMER By Chris Harmon, Publisher of Inside Tulsa Sports As usual, Tulsa is expected to sign a quarterback in this recruiting cycle, and several 2017 signalcallers are on the Hurricane’s radar, including Seth Boomer from Collinsville, Oklahoma. The 6-foot3 and 190-pound pocket passer picked up an offer from TU on April 21st.

“I’m extremely excited and thankful,” he told Inside Tulsa Sports shortly after receiving the offer. “It feels great. I love the (coaching) staff at TU.” Boomer was up close and personal with the Tulsa program recently when he attended a Junior Day on the TU campus in March. “The junior day went great,” he said. “I had gone to a spring practice a few days before the junior day to meet all the coaches. I loved every one of them, they are awesome guys.” Even though he lives just a short distance from Tulsa, Boomer got a better feel for the school and football program.

“I loved it, felt like a tight knit campus,” he explained. “I could for sure see it being a really great home for me. The facilities are super nice.” Boomer led Collinsville to the Class 5A state title game in 2015, where the Cardinals narrowly fell 31-28 to Altus. In the championship game, Boomer completed 17 of 27 passes for 252 yards. For the season, he connected on 108 of 191 throws for 1,987 yards and 22

40 HHU UR RR RI CI CA ANNE E E EL LI TI TE E | | S SP PR RI NI NG G 2 20 01 16 6 40

touchdowns with just 7 interceptions. He also ran the ball 42 times for 186 yards and a touchdown.

“I’m more of a pocket passer than a running quarterback, but I think I have the ability to make something happen when things break down and get it to the guys that can do more with it than I can,” he described. “Leadership is a big role in the position, and I try to get better at that every day.”

Aside from Tulsa, Boomer is also currently receiving interest from Kansas, Temple, Wyoming, Oklahoma State, Louisville and North Texas. After the junior day at TU, he also visited Kansas and OSU.

“Maybe with this offer (from Tulsa), there will be more (schools), but I’m not really worried about it,” he added. While sorting through his college options, Boomer will be looking at depth charts to see which school will provide the best opportunity.

“First, it has to be a good fit for me. I want to feel completely comfortable where I spend four or five

years of my life,” he said. “Then I’m looking for a place where I’m not going to be just tolerated -- I’d like to go somewhere I could potentially get a lot of playing time.” However, recruiting hasn’t really been in the forefront for Boomer. He’s not quite sure when he’ll make his college decision, as he’s been more focused on his senior season.

“I’m just going to pray about it and see what happens,” he explained. “I’m mainly focused on this upcoming football season and the things that our team can accomplish.”

HURRICANE ELITE

SPRING 2016

WHERE TULSA FANS GO FOR DAILY COVERAGE OF GOLDEN HURRICANE FOOTBALL, BASKETBALL AND RECRUITING • Daily information on Tulsa athletics and recruits, including feature articles, team and player notes, recruiting updates and video you won’t find anywhere else. • Access to the most in-depth Tulsa recruiting coverage available for football and basketball. • Hurricane Alley access, where you’ll find breaking news, team and player notes, the latest recruiting tidbits and more. Plus, a Tulsa-fans-only spot to discuss hot topics.

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