It’s game day, friends and fans! The No. 7 Oklahoma Sooners are on the road once again against another top 10 team in the No. 6 West Virginia Mountaineers. There are plenty of compelling storylines in this one, folks. You have two (eventual) Hall of Fame coaches in Lon Kruger and Bob Huggins. You have a stud matchup between Trae Young and Jevon Carter. Plus, it’s a top-10, conference night game with the college basketball nation watching. The Sooners won’t face another team quite like West Virginia this season until, well, they play the Mountaineers again in Norman.

The U.S. Army All American Bowl is also today at noon. The Sooners will be well represented with five signees (Brey Walker, T.J. Pledger, Ronnie Perkins, Ron Tatum and Darrell Simpson) playing in the game. In addition, four-star cornerback ‘Bookie’ Brendan Radley-Hiles will be one of six players announcing his commitment during the game. Bookie is widely considered a heavy Oklahoma lean, but nothing is for certain at this stage in the whimsical world of recruiting.

For today’s weekend edition of Hot Links, you’ll find out what it’s like to guard Trae Young, what challenges await the Sooners against Press Virginia, why Lane Kiffin says Alabama did not want to see Baker Mayfield and more!

OU Links

• Scene Setter time! Sooner Sports and Toby Rowland have done a terrific job, once again.

• Trae Young is undoubtedly the best offensive player in college basketball. On the other side of tonight’s matchup, West Virginia’s Jevon Carter leads the country in steals per game and is regarded as one of the best defenders in the game. Tonight the two collide in Morgantown in a classic matchup between offense and defense, and youth and experience.
• So by now fans everywhere should know what it’s like to watch Trae Young play basketball, but there are only a handful of guys out there that know what it’s like to guard him. ESPN’s Jeff Goodman spoke with some of those players to find out what that experience was like.

• This. This. This.

• Bob Huggins’ Mountaineers are also know as ‘Press’ Virginia because they run a full court press for the entire game, not just situationally. They’re dangerous because of their ability to force teams into tough spots, leading to turnovers and rushed play. Lon Kruger’s Sooners will have their hands full on the road with the No. 6 team in the country.
• If you ask Lincoln Riley, even he would openly tell you that Baker Mayfield should be regarded as one of the best college QBs to ever spin it. The evidence is overwhelming in his favor, too.
• Florida Atlantic head coach Lane Kiffin believes Alabama wanted no part of Baker Mayfield. I agree with Coach Kiff on this one.
• Speaking of Kiffin, his OC is headed elsewhere.

• How are some of the guys who missed the entire 2017 football season doing now? Check out the latest news in their rehabilitation here.
• The Sporting News has revealed its early preseason rankings for 2018. The Sooners check in at No. 5, which is quite respectable considering the departure of one of college football’s best players ever.

Around the Sports World

• The FCS National Championship Game between reigning champ James Madison and FCS dynasty North Dakota State is today at 11 CT. Last season JMU upset North Dakota State on its way to winning it all. As a result, that snapped 5 straight national championship seasons for the Bison of NDSU. This should be a good one folks, so tune in if you can.
• Check out some bold predictions for this season’s NFL playoffs.

• Gronk is in. And he’s still a funny dude.

• The UGA Hummer with a TV on the back is back. I hope you don’t get in a fender bender, buddy.
• As the adage goes, if you ain’t first, you’re last:

• Jon Gruden is finally getting back into coaching, and the deal with the Raiders is 10 years for approximately $100M. We’re talking eight zeros in ten years, people.

Stick to Sports!

• Google reveals it has sold at least one Google Home device every second since October 19th. I was baffled when I first heard this stat, but upon closer examination, it’s completely accurate. Ironically, I asked my Google Home how much money that made Google. Just kidding, I’m still too lazy, even for that.

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