This fall has truly been special for Oklahoma State Athletics.
The women's soccer team has proven to be the best in the Big 12 by winning a conference championship. The men's cross country team is poised to have one of the most successful finishes in its history. Our Cowboy football team is preparing for a final push through a special season.
Bowl officials have remarked about the dedication of our fans as they have witnessed the transformation of Boone Pickens Stadium. We will soon find out about our bowl destination for this year, and I hope you can join us as we celebrate another successful year in football.
Kurt Budke and Travis Ford have their teams ready for a winter of exciting basketball. Both of their squads are excited to get into conference play and test their abilities against the best in the country. John Smith and the Cowboy wrestlers are prepared to battle through a challenging schedule as they take their place among the great teams from this storied program.
As always, we appreciate your support of Oklahoma State University. I hope to see you at all our events this winter.
Go Pokes.
DEPARIMENTS
It should come as no surprise to you that in order to participate in a sport at the NCAA level you must be an amateur athlete. So what would cause an individual to lose their amateur status? Glad you asked! According to the NCAA, an individual loses his/her amateur status if he/she:
• Uses his/her athletics skill (directly or indirectly) for pay in any form in that sport;
• Accepts a promise of pay even if such pay is to be received following completion of intercollegiate athletics participation;
• Signs a contract or commitment of any kind to play professional athletics, regardless of its legal enforceability or any consideration received;
• Receives, directly or indirectly, a salary, reimbursement of expenses or any other form of financial assistance from a professional sports organization based on athletics skill or participation, except as permitted by NCAA rules and regulations;
• Competes on any professional athletics team, even if no pay or remuneration for expenses was received;
• After initial full-time collegiate enrollment, enters into a professional draft; or
• Enters into an agreement with an agent.
The good thing is that even though you might be a professional in one sport, you can still be considered an amateur in a different sport. For example, there are numerous student-athletes that have signed professional baseball contracts before moving on to play collegiate football. Can you name the current OSU football student-athlete who followed this path to Stillwater? The answer will be provided in the next issue of POSSE.
Thanks for reading!
Ben Dyson Assistant AD for Compliance
Ben. Dyson@okstate.com
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GOAL: 10,000 MEMBERS
Your generosity as a POSSE member has been noticed, and others are following your lead - in record numbers.
For 44 years, the POSSE has been the team behind the teams, enabling alumni, supporters and friends of Oklahoma State to fund athletic scholarships and support operating budgets, directly impacting all 18 varsity sports. Annual donations from POSSE members are critical to our mission of providing financial assistance to the wortl1y student-athletes at OSU.
Many of these young men and women, who proudly competed for Oklahoma State before becoming successful citizens and parents, would not have been able to attend college, or earn degrees, if not for the unselfish scholarship gifts provided by loyal supporters. Scholarships are the gateway to life-altering experiences for OSU studentathletes, and POSSE members have made many opportunities available for generations of Cowboys and Cowgirls.
RECORD GROWTH
Due to new tools and outreach efforts, but most importantly the incredible generosity of many new difference makers, the POSSE recorded a 36 percent jump in membership (5,911 to 8,058), which led the Big 12 last year. That is a 44-year record level of support.
However, there is still work to do.
Why? Because increasing tl1e number of POSSE members will afford student-athletes an even greater opportunity to receive a quality education and compete at the highest level (OSU's annual athletic budget is ranked 9tl1 in the Big 12).Generally, financially fit organizations have more chances to be successful.
This is certainly true in college athletics. If you take a look at national budget survey data, you'll see that institutions that have experienced consistent national success are also the ones with large operating budgets. Private support plays such a major role in our operating budget. That is why a broad-based annual membership program is imperative to the future ofOSU Athletics.
AMBITIOUS GOAL
The department recently launched a fundraising drive that seeks to increase the number of POSSE members to 10,000 in 2009. To achieve the goal, it is going to take a team effort (as of October 1, we have reached 8,300).
Internally, we are committed to the mission of the POSSE. One-hundred percent of full-time employees (coaches, staff, etc.) are members - we understand tl1eimpact each of us, as members, have on changing student-athlete lives. We embrace Mike Holder's vision for NCAA championships beyond our current 48 national titles.
If you are receiving this magazine, you are already a POSSE member. We genuinely appreciate your generosity, but we need your help. Encourage a friend, a colleague, or a family member to follow your lead and join the POSSE. Giving levels start at $150 and can be spread over monthly payments.
For more information about how you can make an even greater impact, contact the POSSE atposse@okstate.edu or 877-2BPOSSE. You may also directly callJason Penry, Director of POSSE, at 405-744-3275.
GO STATE!
Craig Clemons
Hard Work, Education & the AMERICAN DREAM
"We feel if you're going to recruit student-athletes, the best thing you can give them in return is an education."
-Joe Mitchell
Joe and Connie Mitchell didn't get to where they are today being lazy. They worked for it.
A strong work ethic is something the Mitchells have always shared. And by "always," we mean for at least the last 45 years.
The Mitchells were high school sweethearts. Well, technically,junior high sweethearts.
"When we started going together, she was 13 and I was 14," saysjoe. "We were married right out of high school, so I made a good decision early in life."
They've been together long enough that they often finish each other's thoughts, or at least that was the case during their POSSE interview. They present a unified and happy front. They also have five chidlren, three of which are adopted. One child has cerebral palsey and has special needs.
The Mitchells moved to Alva right after high school and attended Northwestern Oklahoma State University for a year before transferring to OSU.
"We just needed a bigger school," says Connie. "We moved when we were sophomores. I graduated with a business degree in 1972.Joe graduated in architectural engineering in 1974."
Getting that education was important to both of them.
"Neither of our parents went to
college," saysjoe.
"I was the first of63 grandchildren in my family to get a degree," say Connie.
"Connie's dad was the only one of our parents to even graduate from high school," says Joe.
"Since we've gotten out of college, our parents have gone back and gotten their GEDs," says Connie. "My mother is a nurse now."
"My parents didn't have an education, and they knew how it limited them in life, so they always impressed upon me its importance," says Joe. "My clad knew there were things like accounting and math that he didn't know, and that limited how successful he could be."
"Our parents were never on welfare or anything," says Connie. "They were just honest, hard working people who provided for their kids. They'd get a second job. Whatever fed four children."
Since graduating from OSU, it's been nothing but work for the Mitchells, and they wouldn't have it any other way. Connie went into teaching,Joe went to work for Conoco. At any time, either one or both of them would have more than one job.
"Seriously, we each had a couple of jobs at a time," says Joe. "Connie would teach during the day and be the administrator at the technical school at night."
"That's something we've always had in
common," Connie says. "The hard work and never quitting. Stick with what you're good at and never quit."
"We both wanted to progress," says Joe.
They have what could be called an entrepreneurial imperative.
"My dad is one of the constant entrepreneurs, except he didn't have the education to really do things right," says Joe. "In 1959, he started his first grocery store. We'd call it now a convenience store. He made the mistake of giving people credit. In those days, the grocery stores gave everyone credit. You had a book and you had a tab. Can you imagine a conveniencestore giving credit? Well, he had a big, bad debt problem.
"All through his life, he started businesses,from home building to barbecue shopsto convenience stores. I guess I got that out of him. Kind of a genetic thing."
There have been a lot of stops for the Mitchellssince their modest beginnings. At one point, they ran a telecom company that had more than 8,500 employees. That companystarted on their kitchen table. ,
They've also been involved in the oil and banking industries.
Their hard work has certainly paid off. And as they've become more successful, they've looked for ways to provide others the same opportunities they've been afforded. Providing financial assistance to Oklahoma State was at the top of their list.
Like many others, they were inspired by Boone Pickens.
"The guy is 80 years old, but he has drive," saysjoe. "He has passion to make this university the best it can be. It's his legacy. He's out working every day. It's not about the money. Bill Gates could give us a lot of money, but it wouldn't mean anything. The passion Boone puts behind it is really making a difference. And it's contagious."
Five years ago, when the Mitchells decided to contribute to OSU, they wanted to address an area of need. They ended up contributing to what would become thejoe and Connie Mitchell Academic Enhancement Center.
"Our university has a lot of needs, whether it's scholarships or endowing a
chair," says Connie. "What attracted us back to the academic enhancement center was that it provided a real benefit to the students of multiple disciplines and needs.
"The AEC director, Marilyn Middlebrook, maximizes a gift. She turns it into computers and tutors."
"The whole goal of the university is education," saysjoe. "We feel if you're going to recruit student-athletes, the best thing you can give them in return is an education. It's not just the scholarship or the attention. Realistically, how many of those athletes are going to earn money as pros? Not many.
"Ifwe don't give them an education, they're going to have a substandard life. Ifwe do give them an education, not only are they going to help themselves and their families and children, but they're going to give back to the university later on."
"We hope to challenge all OSU family members to give back on whatever level they can," says Connie. "We are all common people doing uncommon things."
>>Khash SAGHAFI
Hometown » Cleveland, Ohio
Sport» Wrestling, 1991-1996. Competed at 134-142 lbs.
Degree » B.S., Biology
Current Job » President, Cardinal Banc&Mortgage Corporation.
Life after OSU » Entered the Case Western Reserve School of Medicine in 1997, but changed directions in 1999. I began in the mortgage industry and opened up my own company in 2002. Today, I own a mortgage lending company, and I am a licensed mortgage banker in five states.
Hobbies/Interests » I enjoy wrestling, lifting weights and watching football.
Honors & Awards » 1994-96 OSU Academic Achievement Award, 1996
Academic All-Big Eight, 1996 OSU Inspirational Wrestler of the Year.
Best OSU memory » I don't have one single memory that stands out the most. As dumb as it might sound, my best memory is going into the wrestling room every single day to train with the greatest athletes in the world. I take the greatest pride in saying that I wrestled at Oklahoma State.
Cowboy Wrestling is the standard for collegiate programs. What was it like starting out as a walk-on? » It was terrifying. I was surrounded by people who I read about, who won every title and award that you can think of, legends in tl1esport, Olympians and then there was me. The fact that I survived for five years is testimony to the fact that even with tl1estatus of my teammates, no one had an ego too big to help everyone else in the room.
What was it like to wrestle for John Smith?» Coach Smith used to turn me into a pretzel while he was training for the 1992 Olympics. I never really wanted to go work out with him, but I was afraid to get yelled at, so I would go anyway even though I knew better. No one else would go to workout with him because it absolutely destroyed you mentally. After a workout with him, I would go back to the dorm and want to look into doing something else. I'm not joking! After '92, he lightened up, but the period that he was training was probably the worst torment that I was ever put through - worse than any practice or anything.
What did wrestling at Oklahoma State teach you about life in general? » Work harder. Come earlier. Stay later. Believe in what you are doing. Commit to what you are doing. Never give up. Stay intense. Stay focused. Never make excuses. I can go on forever ... Do you keep in touch with former teammates? » Just about everyone I wrestled with. Some of my best friends to this day were my teammates. I still speak to some of them almost daily. How closely do you follow the current Cowboy Wrestling team?» I still follow OSU WrestJjng since I enjoy seeing the new wrestlers carry on the tradition of the program. Do you keep up with other OSU sports? » Yes, I am a big fan of OSU Athletics. I love the university and everything it gave me the opportunity to do. Anything else to add? » There is no better place to have experienced college and competed 0 in wrestling than Oklahoma State. My teammates were the greatest teammates you can possibly hope for. We stuck together on everything and everyone had a common·goal - to win. It was incredible to be around people who truly wanted to be there. There is absolutely nothing that I would change about my experience. I owe my coaches from that time-period everything that I have today.
800NEPIC
StDick Soergel was Oklahoma State's last three-sport letterman.
Let that sink in for a moment. Three. Sport. Letterman. He played football, baseball and basketball for Coach Iba.
For the football team, he played quarterback and defensive back.
"That's a difference in the eras," he says. "When I played, you had to play both ways. The rules at the time were that if you came out in a quarter, you couldn't go back in during that quarter."
He quarterbacked the football team to a victory in the Bluegrass Bowl, triumphing over Florida State.
And then there was baseball.
"I was walking down the hall in Gallagher one day and ran into Toby Green, the baseball coach," he says.
"I'd always wanted
to play basketball for Mr. Iba."
"He asked me what size shoe I wore. I told him. He told me to go to the equipment room and get
some baseball shoes. So I started playing baseball."
As a sophomore pitcher, he was undefeated. His junior year at OSU, the team won the NCAA National Championship.
"I was very fortunate to get the win in the final game against Arizona," be says.
"I got to play in a bowl game in football, in the Elite Eight in basketball, and I got to win a national championship in baseball. I was fortunate to have good teammates."
Remember how when Barry Sanders would score a touchdown and just toss the ball to the ref, seemingly unimpressed with his accomplishment? You get that same feeling of humbleness talking with Soergel. He was just a guy who enjoyed playing sports. Fortunately, he did so for OSU.
He could've ended up at OU.
"I was a high school All-American basketball player," says Soergel. "I'd always wanted to play basketball for Mr. Iba. They recruited me, to some degree, though Mr. Iba was never big on recruiting. OU tried to recruit me. TU tried."
At the time, Soergel says, there were no restrictions on scholarships, and OU used that to its advantage.
"OU had been so dominating at football, it was almost
unreal. There weren't any scholarship limitations, so they recruited everywhere," he says. "A lot of times, if a kid was going to Oklahoma A&M, OU would give them a scholarship just so A&M wouldn't get them.
"My oldest brother had gone to OU. My middle brother had gone to OU for six weeks, before he quit and joined the Navy. So they were still kind of in the picture," says Soergel. "But when I visited the OSU campus, the people were so nice. And that's what it came down to."
Shoyld you run into Mr. Soergel at a game, engage him in conversation. He has some of the best stories about OSU athletics you'll ever hear.
» What's your favorite OSU sports memory?
Boy, that's a tough one. There are several of them. When OSU beat Kansas in Stillwater in 1957,when Wilt Chamberlain was playing for Kansas and Mel Wright hit a shot right at the buzzer.He was a little All-American guard.
Then I remember, again, winning the NCAA baseball championship. That's a great memory.
And I have such a fond memory ofOSU beating OU when Charlie Durkee kicked the winning field goal down in Norman in 1965. I'll never forget that ballgame, because OSU hadn't beaten OU in a long time. I can remember the peoplein the stands were just paralyzed. I have many,many great memories of athletics at OSU.
» What athlete, living or dead, do you wishyou could see play?
My hero in baseball was Bob Feller, and I got to see him play. Babe Ruth. I would have loved to haveseen him play.
I played against Oscar Robinson andJerry West.They were two of the all-time greatest. In football,Barry Sanders ... I used to think Gayle Sayerswas the best, but Barry Sanders was the ultimate.
I've gotten to see a lot of my idols. I guess Jim Thorpe was one I would have loved to see play, but I've been able to see a lot of them.
» What's something that gets you riled up?
I'm too congenial.
» What's your proudest accomplishment?
Selecting OSU as my school, because it's been so good to me. And I've had so many teammates, friends and family who have been a part ofOSU. People make the world turn.
» What are three things you would have to have with you if you were stranded on an island?
I'd want my wife. We've been married almost 52 years, and I can't imagine being without her. She's been my friend and my teammate. I'd like to have a bible, so I could read the word of God. Third, I dunno, maybe my daughter, my son and all my grandchildren. My family.
» Whom do you admire (and why)?
I admire a lot of people. I always admired Mr. Iba tremendously. He was such a good friend. I've always admired Margaret Thatcher. I was fortunate enough to get to hear her speak one time during her term in England.
Harry Truman was another. He had enough courage to stand up and take a stand. Those are some of them. A lot of other people I've admired
Another great friend of mine was Allie Reynolds. He was such a solid guy. Not only a great athlete, but a great person.
» You have one wish. What is it?
I guess my one wish would be for my grandchildren to grow up and have happy and successful lives.
» What's your favorite type of music and where do you listen to it?
I like a lot of different music. I enjoy western music. I like some classical. I love the music at our church. I love religious music. I don't care for hip hop. I don't like the loud music. I~ fact, I don't even enjoy that at the ballgames. The music is too loud for me.
» Who had the biggest effect on how you turned out the way you did?
Of course, my parents were certainly the ones who got me started. I was fortunate I grew up in a home where my parents loved me. My brothers were very important to me. They both taught me a lot, encouraged me a lot. And then my wife. She's been very instrumental in helping me.
Mr. Iba was a great influence. I used to spend hours talking with him. He loved to talk. He had a lot of wisdom. At one time, I'd venture to say he was probably the best known Oklahoman in the world. For anybody who coached four Olympic basketball teams, no one will ever be able to do that. It'll never happen again. For him to be selected, he had to be a phenomenal person.
So I've had a lot of people who've encouraged me.
» How big an OSU fan are you? As big as I can be. I pull for them all the time.
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It's
&s and Billie McKnight have message for 40-something OSU alumni: your time is coming, if it's not here already.
This wi II be a revelation to you, just as it was for him.
Ross remembers visiting campus when Jim Garner was athletic director. McKnight was in his 40s. They were strolling around Lewis Field during a football game, checking out the various sponsors.
"He said this game was sponsored by Johnsons of Kingfisher. He asked me, 'do you know who they are?' I said, 'I was the best man in their sister's wedding, so yes, I know who they are. You mean to tell me, they're doing that?'
"He said, 'don't you realize that it's your time?' And I hadn't realized that.
"I had been student body president, so I met a lot of the supporters of the university when I was in school. In meeting these
Time
people, I always thought it was they who would carry the university. The Burke Healeys, the Raymond Youngs ofTG&Y. These people who were the heart and soul of the alumni at the time.
"And that was what made me realize that my time was here. Burke Healey was gone. People I had thought were carrying the university financially were gone.
"We didn't jump in big right then," says Ross. "We still didn't have the ability to do that much. It was a gradual 20-year engagement and involvement with the university we love. ,i\le're lucky both ofus went to school here and that both of us love the university."
Ross and Billie came to OSU for different reasons. For Billie, it was a family tradition.
"Both of my parents went here," she says. "My dad played football and baseball here." The family tradition has carried on through the next generation as well since both McKnight children, Trent and Meggan graduated from OSU.
Ross came to OSU because he was looking for family. His father died when he was 15, and he was left pretty much on his own.
"I ljved by myself from my ophomore year on," says Ross. "When it came time for college, I wanted to go to an ag school. I didn't want lo go to Texas Tech, because it would've been like going to high. school again. I didn't want to go to A&M because, at the time, they didn't have girls. I wasn't anybody's dummy.
"I found what I wanted at OSU - a university that had a small-town atmo-
sphere, a caring atmosphere, and a can-do atmosphere. It wasn't like I was going to go up there and just be a number."
"It was a family atmosphere," says Billie.
Placing their future in the hands of OSU has turned out to be a good decision for the McKnights, who currently live in Throckmorton, Texas. After college, they tried to make a go of farming and ranching on the small amount ofland McKnight had inherited from his father.
"It didn't take very many years to realize we couldn't make that work," says Ross.
"As in, the first one," adds Billie.
"We ended up getting into the oil and gas business when no one else wanted to get into it," says Ross. "And then the market sort of took care of us."
Their first venture was the Romac Oil Company.
"We started buying production when no one else wanted to buy it. Oil was cheap. Then the oil went up and again the market kind of took care of us in the early '80s," says Ros~. "We learned the business. In the mid '80s when oil went down again, we got real lucky in that we were able to buy a lot more production."
After that, they got into another business no one wanted any part of at the time: banking. Again, it paid off for them.
"Those investments have been good to us," says Billie. "We've been very fortunate. The things we learned at OSU contributed greatly lo the success we've had."
"Mike Holder said one day that people who go to OU get a real good professional degree," says Ross. "They're a doctor or a lawyer, but they're always working for someone. Somebody comes Lo OSU, what you'll find is that we're not the ones who have the jobs. We're the ones who make the jobs. ,i\le're the ones who create the jobs. We're the optimists."
"And a lot of people go back to their small towns," say Billie. "You can be
successfulin a small town where as in Oklahoma City or Tulsa, it's more difficulL.You can go back and start a business or several businesses and be successful. OSU people aren't afraid to go back to a mall town."
Though their time has been occupied by raising their families and running succe ful businesses, the McKnights never lost touch with their university. Athletics playedan important part of keeping them in touch with campus.
"I didn't start off as an athletic fan," Rosssays. "I started off as an OSU fan. I don't remember ever going to a basketball game while I was in school. It was basketball, specificallythe Poke ' 1995 Final Four run, that captured the McKnights for good. They got caught up in NCAA Tournament feverand went to Seattle on a whim.
"We didn't have tickets. We didn't have hotel reservations. We didn't know what was going on," says Billie. "But we tookour kids, went up there and got into the spirit of it."
"Since then, I've realized the importance of athletics to the university," says Ross."Athletics is the 'front door' to the university.It' how most people view OSU or Texas A&M. It's not 'Academics at IO,' it's 'News, Weather and Sports at 10.
"That's what gets our attention. It's howwe've followed our university."
But the McKnights have done more thanjust follow OSU. They've gotten involved.In addition to serving two years as chairman of the OSU Foundation, Rosswa co-chair of the Boone Pickens tadium Next Level campaign.
"The Next Level was the single largest campaignin Oklahoma State's history," saysCraig Clemons, Associate Athletic Director."Ross' input was invaluable and wecommunicated with him weekly. With hi guidance and the help of a few other leaders,the department designed and executeda plan representing 2700 donors committing$104 million."
"I'm a member of the OSU Athletic Foundationand an honorary trustee of the 0 U Foundation," says Ross. "Every time therehas been a campaign, we've been in a positionwhere we could step up, so we've donethat."
Eddie Sutton talked Ross and Billie intotheir first contribution, which went to theexpansionof Gallagher-Iba Arena.
"Wegave a half-million to Gallagher-Ibawhen we didn't have a halfmillion,"saysRoss. "But we figured over a
period of time, we could scrape it together."
The McKnights feel a sense of responsibility toward the university in no small part because of the things it has given to them.
"The connections we've made have been worth it, both financially and every other way," says Ross. "It's just been very rewarding for us in our lives. The greatest things we have are relationships. Our best relationships, every one of them, tie back to OSU in one way or another."
Ross feels now is the best time in OSU's history to be a donor.
"We're more responsive to the needs of the donor than we've ever been," he
says. "We're more responsive to the needs of the university than we've ever been. Our responsibility as philanthropists is to match the needs of the university with the passion of the donor, whatever that is."
Which brings us back to you 40-something alumni.
"Whatever your passion," he says, "recognize that you can help the university. Maybe you can't do a lot today, but you can evolve into that next philanthropist who supports the university in a major way,just as Boone has, asjohn Clerico has, and as we've been lucky enough to do."
02. Malone & Amy Mitchell
03. Sherman & Eloise Smith
04. Karsten Manufacturing
05. Walt & Peggy Helmerich Ill
06. John Clerico
07.Ed & Jana Evans
08. W & W Steel Co
09. Robert A. Funk
10.Ross & Billie McKnight
11.Gary & Jerri Sparks
12.AJ & Susan Jacques
13.ONEOK, Inc
14.Joe & Connie Mitchell
15.Mike & Robbie Holder 42,526 Men's Golf
16.Harold & Joyce Courson
17.Home National Bank Men's Golf
18.Patrick & Patricia Cobb Wrestling
19.Joullian & Co
20. Richard & Barbara Bogert
21.StillwaterNational Bank
22. Jim & Mary Barnes
23. Vickie & Tucker Link Foundation
24.Dennis & Cindy Reilley
25.OSU President's Office
26. OG&E
27.Chuck & Kim Watson
28. Flintco, Inc
29.Chad Clay
30.SemGroup, LP
31.UnitedSupermarket
32.Lew & Suzanne Meibergen 23.545
33.Andy Johnson
34.Phillip & Shannon Smith
35.Jon & Suzanne Wiese
36.Anonymous
37.Sandra Lee
38.David Bradshaw
39.Sparks Financial
40.Sally Sparks
41.Bob & Kay Norris
42.Jameson Family LLC Spirit Squad
43.Garland& Penny Cupp
44.BerkeleyManor Enterprises
45.Les Dunavant
46.OSUFoundation
47.KNABCOCorp
48.Greg& Rhonda Casillas
49.DavidLeNorman
50.John& Gail Shaw
51.Richard& Joan Welborn
52.Jay& Connie Wiese
53.Jerry & Lynda Baker
54.Ed& Mary Malzahn
55.Thomas& Barbara Naugle
56.K.D.& Leitner Greiner
57.Anonymous
58.Scott& Kim Verplank Men'sGolf
59.Kent& Margo Dunbar
60.Mark& Lisa Snell 13.655
61.BryantJ. Coffman
62.Harvey& Donna Yost
63.LarryBump
64.Russ& Julie Teubner
65. Johnson's of Kingfisher
66. Austin & Betsy Kenyon
67. James D. Carreker Football
68. Bank of Oklahoma
69. Brent & Mary Jane Wooten Men's Track
70. Jim & Vicki Click, Jr.
Football
71. Chandler USA, Inc
72. Russ Harrison & Natalie Shirley
73. Chesapeake Energy
74. Norman & Suzanne Myers
75. Bill & Claudean Harrison
76. John & Jerry Marshall Men's Golf
77. Jay & Fayenelle Helm
78. Jack & Joyce Stuteville
79. Dennis & Bonnie Smith Spirit Squad
80. Ike & Mary Beth Glass
81. Lambert Construction
82 Bob & Tammie Tway Men's Golf
83. John & Sue Taylor
84. A-Cross Ranch
85. Titleist & FootJoy Worldwide
86. Brad & Margie Schultz
87. American Fidelity
88. The Siegenthaler Family
89. Greg & Kay Massey
90. Bill & Laurie Dobbs
Baseball
91. Darton & Jamie Zink
92. Emricks Van & Storage
93. John & Patti Brett
94. E.K. Gaylord
95. David & Marellie Littlefield
96. AEI Corporation
97. Larry & Shirley Albin
98. Ed & Kathy Raschen
99. Tom & Patricia Maloney
100. The Oklahoman
101. Griff & Mindy Jones
102. Tom & Cheryl Hamilton
103. Mark & Susan Morrow
104. Ron & Marilyn McAfee
105. Bruce Smith
106. Donald Coplin
107. F & M Bank & Trust
108. John & Terri Smith
109. Bob & Mary Haiges
110. Spirit Bank
111. Midfirst Bank
112. Pixley Lumber Co
113. Southwest Filter Co
114. Bancfirst
115. Henry Wells
116. Jerry & Rae Winchester Football
117. Drummond Investments
118. Judith Mace
119. Phillip & Susan Ryan
120. Jack Allen, Jr.
121. Bill & Karen Anderson
122. Max & Lynn Elsberry
123. Southern Cross Alliance, LLC
124. Ed & Marilyn Keller
125. Justin & Karla Hoose
126. Bank of America
127. Lonnie Jay & Sally Lamprich
128. Melvin Jones
129. Z-Equipment, LLC
130. Wentz Oil Company, LLC Football
131. Kirk & Jan Jewell
132. Harriett Phillips
133. Randy & Patti Thurman 6,861
134. Jim Williams
135. Roy & Norma Townsdin
136. Chris & Julie Bridges
137. Jack Bowker Ford
138. Fred & Kellie Harlan
139. Steve & Judy Thurman
140. Steve Tuttle
141. Sem Materials
142. Edd Bellatti
143. Connie & Stephen Tatum
144. Robert Fletcher Family
145. Walter & Alma Duncan
146. AT&T
147. Bryan & Becky Brady 6 425
148. Robert C. & Martha Buford
149. Stan & Shannon Clark
150. John & Delone Hessel
Former athlete or coach
OSU Athletics Priority Point System
The PriorityPointSystemprovidesa fair,consistentand transparentmethodof providingbenefitsto donorsin exchange for their financial investments in OSU Athletics.
Donorsgain pointsthreeways·
• Contributions:All currentand lifetimecontributions (cash or stock) are worth 3 points per $100 donated. Planned (deferred) gifts in the new Leave a Legacy Endowment Campaign will receive 1 point per $100.
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• Connectionwiththe University:Donors(ortheir spouses) who are OSU Alumni receive a one-time 10 point bonus, as do OSU faculty/staff and letterwinners. Pointsneverdiminishandwillcarryoverto subsequentyears. Donorsretaina11previouslyearned PriorityPointsin theirgiving history.
For questions about the POSSE Priority Point System, e-mail posse@okstate.edu or call us at 405-744-7301.
"Ultimately, I need ~o make a decision ifl'm • redshirting everybody and
• _goingwith hat we have ava,il-,_ jble, or if! fe;l like we have a _cha~e cobuild into a championship ·' tea"'rriby taking redshirts out. I don't give up hope on us being a championship leam at the end of the year. If! see _progress toward that, attitudes moving in the right direction, and if it becomes very visible to me that a championship is a possibility and need some better-guys in the lineup, then we'll rnake.that decision. We aren't giving up ~'o_epo:;:tYJJ-ity,but we could have a very ...,good year arid'not get.there."
Smith says another part of his criteria for pull'ing a wrestler out of redshirt is based on the effort he's getting out of the starters.
"We want to see much more of an aggressive style and much more heart than I saw last year. If! see any athlete this year without an attitude of aggressive behavior on the mat or not wrestling with his heart, I'm not going to watch it," he says. "I'll be patient. Wins and losses aren't important. I don't care how many times a guy loses, if he's showing me heart
out there on the mat, if he's out there ~aking mistakes because he's wrestling aggressively, we can get that ironed out eventually. But wrestling with no heart, I ca,__n'tstomach that."
Ideally, Smith says he'd prefer to let his newcomers develop in the wrestling room and save a year of eligibility.
"I think it would be best for our program to try and keep them in redshirt all season long and really focus on what's available to us, which is good athletes with good experience. People who've been in our program should be ready to go. If we have injuries, everything changes. It may mean a true freshman would have to be pulled out."
In 2007-08, OSU averaged just over 2,500 fans per home dual, including more than 4,000 for Bedlam. This season, Smith says he's making a concerted effort to get more fans in the stands at Gallagher-Iba Arena for all home wrestling events - not just the big-name opponents.
"We want people to make OSU wrestling matches part of their entertainment. We encourage people to put all seven home dual dates on their calendar - not just the Bedlam and Iowa matches.
"I think some fans have got in the habit of not coming to wrestling events," mith says. "If you haven't been a part of our wrestling program or been in attendance in a while, this is a great season to comeback. I think you're going to see a lot of young guys trying to find their way. It may be a tough year for us for part of the seasonas we develop into a team that can win every dual meet. This is a team that's not going to go undefeated - I haven't said that very often. You're going to see a lot of youth,young wrestlers you'll get to watch developover the next three or four years. And you're going to see those kids out there fighting hard in a Cowboy singlet."
mith is asking for fans to give his sport a chance. In return, the coach promisesto put an exciting product on the mat.
"Feel free to get all over me if you're notentertained and we're out there just sloppin'around," he says. "That means puttingstudent-athletes on the mat who are aggressiveand hungry and fighting forthird-period takedowns, fighting for wins.Nobody wants to see somebody stand aroundand not do a thing."
trong attendance is important to the
program for several reasons, Smith says.
"I've never seen a team that has won championships year after year without attendance. \Nhen you look across college sports, NCAA champions come with great support. We still have good attendance when you compare us across the nation - most programs would be thrilled with the attendance we have - but it's not near the top over the last couple of years. OSU should be setting the standard for what people look at as a program, not only athletically and academically, but also in our attendance and our support. We have a chance here in Stillwater to do that."
Large, enthusiastic crowds help attract top talent to Stillwater, he adds.
"Attendance does more for us in recruiting and trying to keep our level of excellence than anything else. You look at our program and you see that we have set a standard where mediocrity is not accepted. Being at or near the top year after year is important to us. But it's not a given. I think people assume we can sign anyone we want. That is so far from the truth. When I'm asking a kid to come from California to Oklahoma from New Jersey, Pennsylvania or Florida and
giving them reasons to choose OSU, I'm going to work very hard to make sure one or those reasons is because we've got great attendance."
The fans can also motivate a wrestler to dig deeper during a close match.
"There isn't any question when we need a third period takedown that it's nice to hear the roar or the crowd. It gives you a little bit extra strength. This group really needs it."
Smith says OSU wrestling has always had a loyal following.
"VIie have some of the greatest fans in the sport or wrestling," he says. "The most loyal people I know are wrestling fans. Year after year, regardless of what happens, they've been there for our program. It started long before I got here."
Maintaining that tradition is a responsibility Smith doesn't take lightly.
"It's bigger than ourselves, it's bigger than our personal goals. People want to come watch Oklahoma State wrestling and visualize it as guys going out there and wrestling for their colors, for their school, for their tradition ... and whatever happens at the end of the match, we're proud of."
It started with sports talk radio. It spread to Internet discussion boards and became a force that officials, site owners and users say helped change the face of college athletics .
Drawn by the chance to talk sports with others, fans flock by the thousands to discussion forums such as OrangePower. com, a popular site for Cowboy fans. Users catch up on their team outside oftradi·tional media. Coaches read them and sports reporters troll them for stories.
The sites' forums feature many of the same topics and users. Depending on the day's news, discussions can range from
recruits to rival teams. Posters debate everything from stats to players and coaching decisions. Some users ask for help finding broadcasted games, and others look for ways to donate to their favorite program.
The craze has spread to mainstream media as well. Many newspaper sites offer the chance to comment anonymously on stories. But anonymity allows for people to say some crazy things, and a few bad
applesruined it for everybody, says 0SU Associate Athletic Director Kevin Klintworth.
"I think a vast majority of posters havetheir hearts in the right place," says Klintworth, who works with the media to setup coach and player interviews. "I don't believethat message boards by definition are the problem. I believe their anonymity leadsto all of our issues."
Some sites such as OrangePower.comand Rivals'affiliate O-StateIllustratedhave user agreementsand rules that make their users behave.They have moderators who take downoffensiveor potentially libelous posts.
But rules and moderators aren't a cure-all.Before someone removes a post ona discussion board, a rumor could alreadybe loose. For example, Cornhusker fanjames Conradt posted in July on his fanpage a fabricated newspaper story reportingthat OU players were arrested fordealing cocaine. The story copied the templateof the Oklahoman'sweb page and featureda sportswriter's byline.
The 1itlsa Worldstated that, before Conradtremoved the story, Texas radio stationsreported the arrests as fact. The Oklahoman'spublishing company and the writerhave sued the fan.
The effects could be far reaching. Thoselimitations also affect traditional media,says Roy Clark, vice president of thePoynterInstitute, a nonprofit media watchdoggroup that runs Florida's St. Pe/e,sbwgTimes.
"This has an important implication forsportsjournalism because lots of organizations,not just ones involved in sports, butalsoones in government and politics,likefinding ways around the press to gettheirmessage out," Clark says. "What they'vedone is they've limited access to reporters,which I don't think is healthy for anybody."
F'DWERTD THE J PEOPLE
The origins of the forum craze date backbeforethe rise of talk radio in the 1980s,Clark says.
Radiostations tapped into sports fans' innatedesire to "talk sports." It found successin large cities with pro teams, Clarksays.The keys to their popularity werecall-ins.Fans could have their say andbe heard by thousands.
In the 1990s,internet chat rooms and
bulletin boards trended toward sports topics with a global audience. Their popularity grew, and some universities started their own forums.
They grew more popular, and some sites spun off on their own, such as Greg Bartlett's volunteer-run fan site, OrangePower.com.Growing popularity brought the need for more scrutiny, Bartlett says.
"The general populace didn't care about it, so you could get away with anything," says Bartlett, adding that most universities ended their sites because of content concerns. "It was a lot worse back then than it is now."
Working full time for the athletic department, Bartlett focuses on making okstate.comthe main source for OSU sports news.
But that's an uphill battle because university sites can't provide recruiting stories. Traditional media sites have only recently
seven years ago.
(~_a_m_lH_E_D_B_a_G_)
Fans adore the community that exists online surrounding their favorite college teams. For many, it can be a connection to a distant alma mater and friends hundreds of miles away.
Sean Davis, who lives in Houston and attended OSU from 1988 to 1991, says he uses OrangePowe,:com to keep up with his team. When he left school for a job in Houston media didn't cover OSU sports, which he'd first experienced as a kid, attending football games with bis family when PatJones helmed the Cowboys.
"It was a way to follow the team again, a way to keep in touch with other fans, to get news about what's going on," says Davis, whose screen name is "SLVRBK," a nod to his high school football days. "For me, it happens to be convenient because
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ADY CLaAH
begun to do so. That drives users to sites such as Rivals.com,saysJeffJohnson, the publisher of Rivals' OSU page, O-StateIllustrated.
In addition to recruit profiles and fan forums,Johnson's site features three writers who obtain media credentials each year and cover popular OSU sports. Go Pokes(okla/zomastate.scout.com)offers similar services.
"It's like any member of the media," says Johnson, adding that with Rivals, he and his writers must sign an ethics code that swears them to fairness, forcing them to check their "fan" status at the door.
Users pay a fee for access.Johnson says he hasn't had a year of negative growth since Rivals became subscription-based
I can go one place and read stories from three or four different sources."
Fan David Harrell, "pokes28" on OrangePower.com,was in a similar situation when he moved to Car!Junction, Mo., in the 1990s. He has been reading forums since then because he couldn't find OSU coverage where he lives.
"It allows me, even as far removed as I am to be just as informed a the person living ori North Washington," says Harrell, who also reads Go Pokes.Many of bis friends are on the message boards, and they meet up for tailgating at home games~ a few hours' drive from his Missouri home.
"I want to be a part of this," he says.
http:/ /www.orangepower.com/index.php?
"I see great things coming Fortunately, I've got a wife who is very understanding of this passion."
The dark side to fan forums, says the Poynter lnstitute's Roy Clark, is as clear as a bell. Drawn by the attention, freedom and anonymity of the internet, some posters lose their sense of responsibility, he ays.
"Some of the grossest, most depraved, most racist comments, most sexist comments that I've ever read have been by
some anonymous knucklehead wanting to feel like they're some kind of celeb-
rity on someone else's website," Clark says.
Also, the forums'
success can breed a catch22, he says. By moderating their forums, site owners could be more vulnerable to lawsuits.
"In other words, as soon as you decide to moderate it, you're really taking control, taking responsibility for what's on there," Clark says. However, he adds "I think that ifl'm in front of a jury and I have to
defend myself, I'd much rather do so saying how hard I've worked in order to control the nature of the content."
Johnson says he believes that the poster, as in the case ofConradt's faked Sooner story, takes on legal responsibility once they hit the "submit" button in their browser.
He recalls an incident in which one of his forums' users started a rumor that an OSU football player, defensive end Nathan Peterson, had aggravated a knee injury that forced him to miss the final five games of the 2004 season.
"It turned out to be completely false," Johnson says. "Nate's parents were both subscribers and freaked out for a two to three hour period until they could get a hold of him."
The post was removed, and he launched a new policy banning forum rumors dealing with student athletes.
"Message boards are rumor-ish by nature," Johnson explains. "There were plenty of rumors during the coaching search for basketball, and the majority of those stayed up. But, with student-athlete rumors, it's a different story to my way of thinking."
Instead of posting rumors, he urges readers to email him or his writers.
"We'll find out if there's any truth to it or not."
OrangePower.comusers Harrell and Davis take pride in what they post, so they take pains to be sure it's accurate. They believe most of their peers have similar beliefs.
"People that are very conscientious in their posting are the ones that are willing to put themselves on the line for what they post," Harrell says. "The people that just throw stuff out there for shock value, they don't last very long."
The nature of the Internet has helped lead universities including OSU to limit the public's access to teams and practices that were public a generation ago, Klintworth says.
That's from a man who knows what can happen if athletic departments don't monitor message boards. He can't go into specifics, but the 15-year veteran of his field says, before he came to OSU in 2006, he saw at least one lawsuit because of posters' antics regarding a co-worker. Also.
he knows by reporters' questions that they checkthe boards, so he must be prepared. But,he doesn't spend all day chasing the boards' rumors.
"You would not do anything else, honestly,"he says. "It's the same thing witha lot of talk radio. If you called in and corrected everything they had wrong, youwould not have time to do anything else.Sometimes, you just have to hope that commonsense prevails."
In case something happens, Klintworth says he has contacts with the sites.If they don't get compliance, universitiescan withhold press credentials from sitessuch as Rivals affiliates who have staff writers.
"A lot of people on message boards don'tthink that the athletes or the administratorsor recruits or their parents read thatstuff, but they all do," Bartlett says. "I'vetalked to all those kinds of people whoread the message boards regularly. The regular posters sometimes say thingsthat they wouldn't say if they knew werebeing read by those kinds of people."
Klintworth believes that nationwide morecoaches spend more time on their opponents'forums than on their own. Somefans will post clues to a team's game plan,he says, pointing to a recent incidentin which an SEC fan posted an entire sequenceof plays from their favorite team's practice.Things such as that incident have contributedto practice closings.
Men's Basketball Coach Travis Ford sayshe hasn't had any problems with fan forums.He's been a head coach for 11 years,coaching at Campbellsville, Eastern Kentuckyand UMass before coming to OSUlast April. But, he says the Internet hasproduced a mixed bag of benefits and complications.
"Not that you put a lot of stock in it,but itjust keeps you informed on who iswho,"says Ford, who added that he doesn'tread fan sites. "There's no ques-
tionthat there's more publicity about your recruiting.The bad part is,·sometimes it maynot be true."
LikeKlintworth, Ford and his staff mustkeep tabs on what's said so they can headoff any confusion generated by wrong information."You just keep in touch with yourrecruits and make sure they understandthe facts."
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Johnson believes fans sites and discussion boards are here to stay.
"That could change of course, but the trend is strongly towards getting larger, not smaller," he says. Also, "free sites will continue to exist, and will be the choice for those folks who just like to visit with other fans of their team."
He says schools want more control in the future, but he believes a happy medium can be reached between the sites and universities.
"To me, cooperation is the way to get it clone," Johnson says. "If there is .a problematic post on the forums, Kevin, Greg and other administrators know they just have to contact me and voice their concerns, and it will get taken care of."
Harrell says no one has a crystal ball to show the forums' future. The only thing certain is change. He believes that sites' memberships will keep growing as owners find new ways to cater to users, including private instant messaging and peer networking pages similar to Nfyspace.
He believes that the message boards are good for their teams.
"ff it weren't for OrangePowerand the forums in general, I likely wouldn't be as passionate a fan as I am," he says. "There is a peer pressure on OrangePowerto really support your school. I likely wouldn't be a POSSE member, and I doubt I'd have season tickets were it not for the forum community."
Klintworth says at least one thing is certain about the boards' future.
"Message boards can be a great place for fans to celebrate and commiserate and share legitimate information," he says. "But, what will have to be addressed is the anonymity of the boards that leads to personal attacks."
Matt Elliott
ADY CLaAH
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1was sitting at the bar ofan old, blue-collar tavern in Lincoln, Nebraska, the night before the 1988 Cowboys-Huskers game. An older gentleman, probably in his 60s or 70s, sat next to me. Atop his head was an old, well-weathered red ball cap with a tattered, semi-white "I hope we win tomorrow," he said after taking a drink from a longneck bottle of beer. 'But," he added, "I sure hope that Sanders kid win the Reisman."
I was in my fourth year as a staIT photographer for the Stillwater JewsPress, and I always looked forward to football season, e pecially the away games when I could relax with the locals at the nearest walering hole. Life was good in the fall of 1988, mostly because of"that Sanders kid."
vaunted "black shirt" defense for 189 yards and four touchdowns. Sanders' efforts in that game even included a heart-stopping, reverse-field dash. Nebraska's defense, if only for that moment, seemed inept at tackling. Even Cornhusker fans applauded Sanders' effort that cloudy fall afternoon. It didn't end there. Every Saturday brought more photographs, more jaw-dropping highlights and more superlatives as the kid from Wichita, Kan., crushed school and national rushing records. Everyone knew Sanders was a legitimate candidate to be OSU's first Reisman winner.
Most people remember the stats, the scores, the dazzling runs. For me, it's an endle s blur of black-and-white still photographs documenting Sanders' amazing season.
it all began with a kickoff
While many thought Sanders was a legitimate backup to Thurman Thomas,
tnan th -ht . . others probably wondered
oug
left when
was a
on to the nll at the end of the t.987 season
With the Cowboys only four games into the season,ju t the thought of Sanders as a Reisman contender was beyond my expectations, both as a journalist and as a fan. Besides, Sanders' biggest test of the season was still a scant 12 hours away.
The game, a 63-42 loss, wasn't pretty. However, Sanders burned Nebraska's
if the junior tailback could
fill the vacancy left when
Thomas moved on to the
NFL at the end of the I98i
season. Any remaining doubts were relinquished on opening day of the 1988
campaign when Sanders took his first touch of the season JOOyard for a score to open the floodgates on a 52-20 beating of Miami-Ohio in the season opener. As luck would have it, I was standing about 50 yards away when Sanders caught that kickoff at the goal line. As I watched th rough the viewfinder, I saw nothing buta mass of helmets and jerseys. Seconds later, the orange wave of blockers parted and
Sandersdarted through at full speed and intothe open field. I got the shot and several moreas he sprinted into the west end zone.
Photographers quickly learned to be at least 20 yards downfield when Barry •ot the ball. ff not, they'd likely capture nothingbut the 'SANDERS' across the backof his jersey as he faded into the distance.Auto focus in the late 1980s wasn'tas advanced as it is today, which meantthere was the added challenge of notonly getting him in the shot, but also gettinghim in focus.
One of my favorite photos of Barry camein week two of the season against TexasA&M. He scored on a 58-yard touchdownrun, stiff-arming the last defenderwho had a shot at making the tackle.Though it was never published, I likedthe photo because it showed so clearly thesweat and determination on Sanders' face,his eyes fixed ahead on the goal line.
Byweek three of the season, when Barry andthe 'Boys arrived in Colorado, he was alreadygetting plenty of attention, and not justfromopposing defenses. His performance onthat swmy afternoon at Folsom Field only addedto the 'Sander for Reisman' hysteria in Stillwater.While his 65-yard TD run earlier inthatgame is still regarded as one of his greatest,the most memorable moment for me wasn'ta run at all.
With the Cowboys just a couple of yardsfrom the Buffaloes' goal line, I suspectedthat Barry would blast up the middle,so I grabbed the camera with a shortlens and stood near the goalpost, knowingif the play went wide, I'd miss the shol.Sanders took the handoff and went completelyairborne, as ifhe were sprung froma tiny trampoline. I snapped the shutteras he leapt into the thin Colorado air,over the top of the Colorado defense.
Bymid-October, Stillwater was abuzz withSanders fever and the Cowboys were gettingattention unlike any other time. :\Tarionalmedia outlets traveled to Stillwater
to cover the Cowboys. Sports Illustrated, ESPN, The Sporting News and dozens of major newspapers from both coasts came calling. While Cowboys fans basked in the media spotlight, Sanders didn't seem to want such a fuss made about him.
He diverted much of his success to his teammates, especially his linemen, though he was the one slipping through tackles and leaving defenders behind.
On the day Sanders won the Reisman, the Cowboys were in Tokyo,Japan, preparing to play Texas Tech. I opted for a trip to Eskimo Joe's where dozens of fans had gathered to watch the announcement on a small television in the corner of the bar.
The following Monday, Barry and the team returned to Stillwater and were greeted by a throng of frenzied fans and a gaggle of media for a welcome home rally at the practice field. Barry seemed at ease with the fans. He smiled, thanked them and then walked to the parking lot to gather his suitcases. A swarm of television and newspaper photographers followed him every step of the way. Even after spending weeks in the media spotlight, Sanders was still wary of all the attention. I stayed back and watched as he quickly walked to his room at Bennett Hall, never once looking back at the cluster of photographers that followed. His success on the field made him a media magnet, and solidified him as one of the greatest football players not only at OSU, but all of college football. I, for one, was privileged to bear witness to Sanders' amazing season with my camera and with my eyes.
I bet the old guy in Nebraska felt the same way.
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CHINASA.
You might remember his shoe from the last issue. Since then, he's been using those size 16s to run amok in opposing team's backfields.
Toward the end of the Baylor game, Chinasa, a sophomore out of Richardson, Texas, chased down the Bear's freshman QB, a man with sprinter's speed, and sacked him for a loss, squelching any chance of a Baylor comeback.
Two weeks before, he had another play that changed the momentum of the game. OSU's first offensive drive had been stopped. Texas A&M was moving down the field. Aggies' QB Jerrod Johnson took the snap, dropped back
Then, Chinasa happened.
"I dropped back into my zone, and the quarterback couldn't find anything, so he threw it to his tight-end. I broke on the ball and it came through his fingers," says Chinasa.
"I caught it and scored. I was in the right place at the right time."
While we might've been impressed, Chinasa wasn't.
"That's the third time that's happened to me since high school," he says.
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Arvest Bank already has more banking offices in Oklahoma than anyone else, so just about anywhere you live in the state, we're ready to serve you.
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If you're ready to switch to Oklahoma's most convenient bank, stop by your local Arvest Bank today. And if you're in Stillwater, give Don or Chris a call at 405-385-5801.
For men's basketball, it's transition time in Stillwater. And for new head coach Travis Ford, it's one of the most difficult times in his career.
When practice started in October his players weren't used to his system. 'it was his team's first experience with the conditioning required for his up-tempo, barn-storming style of basketball that bad Ford's previous team, UMass, averaging 81. 5 points per game and ranking third nationally in blocks.
Were he a younger coach, he could be frustrated after this week. Taking over a new program could be the hardest point in a basketball coach's career.
Ford has done this before - four times. In his 11 years as a head coach he has carved a career out of turning tea~s around. His first year at Campbellsville, the I 997-98 season, his team finished at 16-17. By his final season in 1999-00 the Tigers were 23-11. He went from the~e to Eastern Kentucky, posting a 7-19 record his first year. His final year there, 200405, his boys finished 22-9. The same went for UMass.
"I've got history, experience to make me understand," Ford says. "When I was a much younger coach, I was very impatlent and didn't understand why players weren't picking things up quick enough."
This time should be easier because he didn't start from scratch in Stillwater. The team he inherited from former Cowboy Coach Sean Sutton was already a winning one, finishing last year 17-16.
Nevertheless, "the first years are always such a transition," he says. "It's hard on the players to pick up a whole brand new system I've got to be patient and understand these kids don't understand my system."
With that in mind, Ford says •~ he has no predictions this year. Despite that this team has many
holdovers from last season, 2008-09 will be a rebuilding one in Stillwater.
Last year's team provided many exciting moments, including a thrilling one-point upset of the eventual national
championjayhawks in February. But they struggled with turnovers and execution as well as teams with strong post player~.
Still, last year's bright spots should be brighter this year.James Anderson will start his sophomore season after leading the Pokes with 13 points per game last year as one of the most exciting fresh men in the country. And coaches are working on 6-11 sophomore center Ibrahima Thomas, improving his rebounding, defense and understanding of the game.
"He's a very skilled player," says Ford of Thomas, the team's lithe and athletic big man who averaged six points and four rebounds last year. "He has an incredible future ahead of him. He can really shoot. He can do some things inside that other bigs can't do. But we also need to get him to play a little more physical because he is our biggest player right now."
During the summer, Ford challenged star point guard Byron Eaton to lose weight and keep it off - something the point guard has struggled with in the past. He says Eaton, who averaged 11.5 points and 3.5 assists last year, is now at his target weight of 215 pounds.
Last year it wasn't uncommon to see Eaton, often the shortest guy on the court at 5-11, falling flat on his face while hitting circus shots with defenders towering over him. He had an eight-game stretch in February and early March during which he averaged 17.5 points and 5.1 assists, including a career-high 26 points in the upset against Kansas. Ford says he doesn't expect the weight loss to change hi3 point guard's barre]jng and physical play.
The Cowboys are joined this fall by newcomers Keiton Page, a former Pawnee High School star and freshman point guard, Sudanese center Teeng Ako!, and junior college transfer, forward Malcolm Kirkland.
Combine the newcomers with an exciting new offense, and it sure to be an exciting season for Cowboy fans.
Matt Elliot!
I LIii ii LOU
Remember the guy you used to always see (and hear) at little league baseball games? You know, the guy who sat on the back bleacher and yelled at the umpire until the veins in his neck popped out?
The same guy who was so obnoxious he made everyone at the ballpark uneasy whether his kid was playing or not. That guy was the same one administrators threatened to throw out of the gym during high school basketball. He got so angry at an official he stormed onto the court and threatened to do bodily harm. He acted like it was the last 20 seconds of game seven of the NBA finals. Remember that guy?
It seems he has been cloned, and he buys a lot of tickets to Big 12 football games. I have seen (and heard) many things at sporting events I thought I would never experience. Recently I've seen fans spitting and throwing objects at players and coaches. And these offenders weren't college students. They were grown-ups son of. Some were
male, some were female. It seems lack of tact is no respector of gender.
I've often wondered how someone would feel if you walked into their office, when they were on the job, and spit on them and emptied the remaining contents of your Coke on their head. You would look like a Neanderthal.
I'm not sure what happened to sportsmanship. I'm not sure it's any worse now than it was 30 years ago. It seems the sport of golf has retained a respectable amount of reasonable behavior. Golfers, locked in battle all day remove their hats, shake hands and set aside their differences. And it's all out of respect for each other, and the game.
But that is the golfers. I'm not sure what is happening "outside the ropes." Maybe the fans of Tiger Woods are verbally abusive to the fans of Sergio Garcia. Does Natalie Gu Ibis dump her bottled water on Paula Creamer? Granted, the environments are a little different, but still.
Have you ever really watched how some people act at a football game? It's not normal behavior. Sigmund Freud would have some serious case study material. Rage. Anger. Disparaging- embarrassing. Unless you
are seated on the first few rows, the players, coaches or officials can't hear you. In fact, chances are, only the people in front of the offender can hear them. But everyone behind them can watch the entire ugly event unfold.
Recently, I was in a football stadium where a man in the front row was screaming such vile, awful things, I had to turn and see if for myself. There he was, in all his glory, a man in his mid-forties. He was decked out in his team colors, standing, foaming at the mouth. Setting next to him hiding her face was his wife and other horrified relatives. Rule of thumb: If you wouldn't do it or say it in front of your mother, you probably shouldn't do it or say it in front of60,000 football fans.
It's nice to hear people from all across the country talk about how great Oklahoma State fans are ... and act. They always mention the Orange, and the way they"were treated in Stillwater.
