OU football: I’ll be channeling my Dad against Notre Dame

Back in the 1950s, like most everyone else in Oklahoma, Dad was a serious OU football fan. On fall Saturday mornings, he and one of his buddies from Eufaula would load into the Chevy, pull onto Highway 9 and journey to Norman to watch Bud Wilkinson’s Sooners ring up another victory. I know this because

OU football: Why Sooners should care about the loss of Big Tex

Ladies and gentlemen, it’s been a rough week for Texans in Dallas. First, OU laid waste to the Orangebloods’ psyche with a 63-21 victory over their team last Saturday at the Cotton Bowl at Fair Park. Then, Friday came a tougher loss for Texans in general. Big Tex, the icon of the State Fair of

OU wrapup: How long before we experience a Brown-out?

Throughout Texas’ 63-21 loss to OU Saturday, Mack Brown looked angry, like an old man whose lawn had been trampled by 22 college kids wearing crimson jerseys. His 61-year-old face was beet red. His brow was furrowed. Of course, Mack wasn’t the only one upset Saturday. Orangebloods were furious. At halftime, UT fans streamed out

OU wrapup: Landry Jones is the old man on the field now

We’re one-third through the season and, finally, age is on Oklahoma’s side. From here on, when OU plays a regular-season game, Landry Jones will be the oldest quarterback to step on the field.  At 23 years old, he’ll be older than Texas’ David Ash (20). Older than West Virginia’s Geno Smith (22). Until this past

OU football: Sooners are victims of ‘Old Man Ball’

When I was younger, I couldn’t get enough pickup basketball. Playing against guys you knew, your classmates, peers, was exciting. The rules were simple. First to 15 wins. Make it, take it. Winners kept the court. Fun times. But things got dead serious when the “old men” showed up. Dudes in their late 20s. Some

OU wrapup: Are Sooners getting beaten down by prime time?

It was 8 o’clock Saturday night, and I was in a full-blown panic. I had reason to believe it would work: Be at an event at 3 p.m. 30 miles away, make a quick stop at another place, then be back at home in front of TV for OU’s 7 o’clock kickoff. Not so much.

OU wrapup: Instead of wishing ill will on rivals, cheer ’em on

I know someone who’s about as diehard an OU fan as they come. He’s an Oklahoman. He went to OU. He can cite the score of every OU game. He knows who the Sooners are recruiting. From the top of his crimson beret to his Boomer Sooner cellphone ringtone, his allegiance is unquestioned. That’s OK.

OU football: Being in tune with Sooners for 40 years … or am I?

I can trace my OU football consciousness to 1972. Bored with a visit to a nursing home in Eufaula, I retired to the fam’s sedan and began to channel surf AM radio, looking for a way to kill three hours, maybe find some Three Dog Night. What I happened upon was something that, for over

OU wrapup: Sooners struggle but do better than Marty Robbins

As usual, Barry Switzer was right. Barry tweeted that he keeps getting the question, “Am I going to El Paso?” Barry’s reply: Hell no. My friend, Marty Robbins, got his [butt] shot last time he was out there. Against UTEP, OU was winged in the backside. But unlike what happened in the gunslinger’s ballad, OU

OU football: El Paso meant a visit to Juárez for horse-biscuit cigarettes

When I think of El Paso, I think of Ciudad Juárez. I don’t think of the current state of Juárez and the violence. I think of classic Juárez. Mercado Juárez. In the late 1960s, my retired parents had a passion for travel. They’d just load up the Impala, pull onto Highway 9 and drive wherever