Happy Friday, friends and fans!

Since Lincoln Riley has been in charge, the Oklahoma Sooners have seen a major uptick in recruiting. From the players who signed during the 2018 recruiting cycle, true freshman Ronnie Perkins has arguably been the most impressive of the group seven games into the season. He plays with passion and a determination that dates back to his childhood.

The St. Louis, Missouri native has loved the game of football since he first put on the pads. Whenever he’s been challenged with the possibility of not seeing the field, he performs his best.

Even as a rookie, he’s already one of Oklahoma’s better players on defense. That speaks to both his natural talent and his intense work ethic. Perkins may not be a household name just yet, but it may not be much longer before No. 7 is the talk of the town.

Now onto this week’s Friday edition of Hot Links! Creed Humphrey is fulfilling his dream, Oklahoma Baseball is back for an exhibition, DeAndre Hopkins shows the hops and the hands one hand and more!

OU Links

• FOX College Football’s Robert Smith likes Oklahoma as the nation’s top 1-loss team heading into Week 9. He cites Lincoln Riley’s high-powered offense as being the determining factor as to why he gives the Sooners the nod over all the other teams with a single blemish on their records.

• Veteran offensive lineman Dru Samia knew he loved football after his first game as a freshman in high school. Pushing people around came easy to him, given his size advantage. Before football, he admits to landing himself in trouble and succumbing to laziness, but he’s done a complete 180 ever since he made the commitment.
• Speaking of the offensive line, Creed Humphrey is a mammoth at center, but he’s also just a pup compared to the four guys around him. Coach Bill Bedenbaugh knows how supremely talented the Shawnee native is, and he’s only getting better with each snap.
• Out of all the electric receivers in the NFL, which one does Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown remind scouts most of? Tyreek Hill is burning defense left and right, and Brandin Cooks is another player who can take the top off of any defense.
• Jalen Redmond made one tackle against TCU in his season debut last weekend, but his fast recovery from a blood clotting issue is what’s so remarkable about his journey up to this point. The talented in-state defensive end can play in up to three more games this season without burning a redshirt, but if he keeps improving at the pace he’s on, the coaches could choose to keep him on the field beyond that.
• Bill Connelly reflects on the 1984 college football season that was full of twists and turns unlike anything ever seen before its time, and Oklahoma found itself right in the middle of all the absurdity.
• Oklahoma forward Kristian Doolittle had a down year on the court last season, but he’s determined to make this next campaign count. Like the rest of the team, he’s focused on improving his defense and has been shooting with more consistency in practice.
• Sooner Baseball is back at L. Dale Mitchell tonight at 6 p.m. for an exhibition against Dallas Baptist. Admission is free, so if you’ve got a chance to support the team, come on down!

• Make sure to check out Allen’s piece about the K-State rushing attack. While the Wildcats don’t have the most prolific passing offense Oklahoma will see, the running game between tailback Alex Barnes and QB Skylar Thompson could give the Sooner defense fits.
• Also, you can read up on the Q&A Jack did with Kansas State’s SB Nation site, Bring on the Cats. Find out what questions the folks from the Wildcats’ side have about Kyler Murray, Oklahoma’s defense, and the game itself. You can also check out the one they did with us.

Around the Sports World

• Barry Sanders was a once in a lifetime talent. In 1988, the humble, soft spoken running back accumulated over 3,000 all-purpose yards and 44 touchdowns. He was in Tokyo for the Coca-Cola Classic against Texas Tech when he was awarded with the Heisman Trophy, and the tale of No. 21 is kept alive by the stories from those who experienced it along with him.
• Speaking of talented running backs, five-star recruit John Emery out of the 2019 recruiting class has decommitted from Georgia. The Louisiana prospect is expect to be a heavy LSU lean.

• Georgia Tech showed everybody just how lethal option football can be on Thursday night against a Bud Foster led Virginia Tech defense. The Yellowjackets not only rushed for nearly 500 yards, they didn’t even complete a pass the entire game.
• Is this catch by DeAndre Hopkins better than Odell Beckham Jr.’s from a couple years ago? It didn’t count due to an offensive penalty, but my goodness this was a thing of beauty.

• Fans and analysts have noticed a slight increase in scoring across the board two weeks into the 2018-19 NBA season. The reason for this is actually pretty clear, and it doesn’t have anything to do with defense, but rather, some rule changes in how the shot clock operates.

Stick to Sports!

• The world has enough negativity, so here’s a collection of dogs who were good this week.
• Red Dead Redemption 2 is out, and the reviews are in.

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