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Happy Hump Day, friends and fans!
There may be 199 days remaining until the Oklahoma Sooners kick off the 2019 football season, but I guess it’s never too early to fire up the preseason rankings. ESPN’s Mark Schlabach put together his first way-too-early top 25 immediately following the conclusion of the national championship game (you can find that here), and since then he’s updated it to include subsequent transfers, NFL declarations and signings.
Oklahoma is No. 3 in ESPN's updated Way-Too-Early Top 25 college football rankings.#OUDNA | #BoomerSoonerhttps://t.co/NqA4SVru4g
— Sooner Gridiron (@soonergridiron) February 13, 2019
As you can see, Schlabach has moved Oklahoma up three spots from No. 6 to No. 3, and that’s largely due to the addition of Alabama grad transfer QB Jalen Hurts. The college football world has already seen what Lincoln Riley can do with talented signal callers who transfer in, and Hurts brings talent, experience and leadership to the picture.
Another factor that led to Schlabach’s decision to move the Sooners up this time around was the hiring of defensive coordinator Alex Grinch. With so much experience returning and plenty of new blood on that side of the ball, one could imagine how much that should help the new DC with a promising track record.
It’s only the middle of February, but we’re all eagerly waiting for it to be the end of August. It’s a transitional era in Sooner football with all the same expectations of winning. In the meantime, put as much stock as you can into early preseason rankings like this one. Why? Because it’s more fun that way!
I’m kidding, of course. This is going to be a very long offseason.
Now let’s dig into some tasty Hot Links! Sooner softball moves up in the rankings, Sooner basketball is somehow still on the bracketology bubble, Joel Embiid says what we’re all thinking and more!
OU Links
- The first weekend of the season for Oklahoma softball could not have gone much better, as the Sooners not only dominated the competition, but also went up a spot in both major polls. No. 3 and climbing!
#Sooners move ⬆ one spot in both the @NFCAorg and @USASoftball weekly polls. #ChampionshipMindset pic.twitter.com/THl2Vh8r2F
— Oklahoma Softball (@OU_Softball) February 12, 2019
- Yesterday, Jack posed an interesting/frustrating question on Twitter. What say you?
If you had a magic wand that would cause any four schools to join the Big 12, who would be your choices?
— C&C Machine (@CCMachine) February 12, 2019
Yes, the folks at Ollivander’s have caught the offseason realignment bug.
- Kyler Murray is likely part of a dying breed as a dual-sport athlete. As players mature, they are often coached into choosing to specialize in one sport over others, but superstars like Deion Sanders, Bo Jackson and Murray have proven that it can be done at a high level. The question now becomes, who’s next?
- Sooner baseball returns this weekend with a home series against Cal Poly. If you plan on attending any of the games, make sure you review the latest carry-in policy to ensure you’re not unintentionally bringing any prohibited items into the park.
Fans, all the game day information you need for the 2019 season, including enhanced security and the new clear bag policy, can be found here:
— Oklahoma Baseball (@OU_Baseball) February 13, 2019
➡️ https://t.co/ADFOd5nQaj#ArriveSooner pic.twitter.com/LXWmpBbR2E
- Cade Cavalli, Nathan Wiles and Levi Prater will be the starters for OU’s season-opening series. Cavalli, who primarily played first base while also making 11 appearances (two starts) on the mound as a freshman, is the team’s ace after an impressive fall.
Your opening weekend starting rotation for the #Sooners pic.twitter.com/J4UNK7GiT5
— Oklahoma Baseball (@OU_Baseball) February 12, 2019
- Unfortunately, Oklahoma will have to play through this season without the services of junior relief pitcher Braidyn Fink, who has been ruled out with a torn UCL. The news was first reported by Kendall Rogers, and OU confirmed it with a press release shortly thereafter.
INJURY NEWS: @OU_Baseball Junior LHP Braidyn Fink, #Oklahoma's top bullpen arm entering the season, will miss the year with a torn UCL. Really tough news for the #Sooners, and for Fink, who was drawing increased #MLBDraft interest. #BoomerSooner
— Kendall Rogers (@KendallRogers) February 12, 2019
- Although Oklahoma has been reeling on the basketball court, Joe Lunardi still projects the Sooners into the NCAA Tournament as a No. 12 seed. For those of you keeping track, that’s squarely on the bubble as one of the last four teams in.
- According to Pro Football Focus, former Biletnikoff Award winner and Heisman Trophy finalist Dede Westbrook was one of the league’s top fantasy receivers working out of the slot in 2018 despite being paired with a brutal passing attack.
Dede Westbrook was one of the top-scoring fantasy receivers out of the slot in 2018. pic.twitter.com/Nf2oQ9rrQd
— PFF Fantasy Football (@PFF_Fantasy) February 12, 2019
Around the Sports World
- No. 5 Kentucky was upset in Lexington at the buzzer by No. 19 LSU. Should this final basket have been ruled offensive goal-tending instead? Some Wildcats fans say yes, but the refs ruled otherwise.
COUNT IT!
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) February 13, 2019
No. 19 LSU stuns No. 5 Kentucky ... AT THE BUZZER. #SCtop10 pic.twitter.com/M8LHpexYxV
- Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown pretty much ended any chance of him staying in Pittsburgh with this telling tweet saying it’s “time to move on and forward.” Wherever he goes, I’m sure he’ll still go highly drafted in most fantasy leagues.
Thank you SteelerNation for a big 9 years...time to move on and forward..........✌ #NewDemands pic.twitter.com/fbIoFNdqK4
— Antonio Brown (@AB84) February 12, 2019
- At an AFC Fylde match, a group of lads successfully pranked the PA announcer into reading off a fabricated license plate number. Bart Simpson is proud.
WANTED: This trio pictured in the middle.
— AFC Fylde (@AFCFylde) February 13, 2019
CRIME: Rather cunningly duped our stadium announcer into asking for a white Nissan Micra NE14 ABJ to be moved last night.
♂️ pic.twitter.com/AmQKNAyGh3
- Here’s the video containing the moment the plate was announced. Pure gold.
UPDATE: The culprits have come forward! Fair play @jaksaunders13 and co - hook line and sinker. pic.twitter.com/Ne2bo9cBIl
— AFC Fylde (@AFCFylde) February 13, 2019
- Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid will likely be hearing from the NBA real soon after his final comments during the post-game press conference on Tuesday. Right before he stood up to leave, he leaned into the mic and said “And the referees [expletive] suck.” Hey, maybe he’s simply spreading awareness of this growing epidemic in pro sports.
Joel Embiid sure knows how to end a post-game presser pic.twitter.com/k7o3Evq2Ea
— ESPN (@espn) February 13, 2019
Stick to Sports!
- The teaser trailer for Disney’s Frozen II has just been released, and it looks like all your favorite friends and heroes are back for another epic adventure. I particularly like the tone they’re going with for this one. Now I’ll admit, I still haven’t seen the first Frozen, but I’ve read the synopsis and uncovered all the spoilery parts to spare myself from the soundtrack, so let it go already. The film hits theaters Nov. 22.
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