Happy Hump Day, friends and fans!

In three years as a QB for the Alabama Crimson Tide, Jalen Hurts became a folk hero of epic proportions for staying loyal through adversity and playing the savior role when his team needed him most. He’s since brought his leadership to the Oklahoma Sooners, and the support around him has only continued to grow. In the curtain call to his collegiate career, he’ll be the People’s Choice when it comes to success. The Oklahoman’s Berry Tramel has more:

As those of us here who have followed this OU program closely over the years, it’ll be an interesting contrast to see how Hurts is perceived in the national media throughout the season. Judging from the last five months, he’ll be cheered on from all corners, including the southeast.

SEC mouthpiece Paul Finebaum even went on record in saying he wants to see an Oklahoma-Alabama national championship game with Jalen Hurts on the winning side of that contest. Endings don’t come any more storybook than that. However the game played out, I would expect it to be an exciting and emotional journey.

Now onto today’s Hot Links! Kyler Murray and Trae Young are up for ESPYS, Baker Mania continues in Cleveland, Max Scherzer should probably stay on the mound and more!

OU Links

• Kyler Murray and Trae Young have been nominated for ESPY Awards. Murray is up for Best College Athlete, and Young is up for Best Breakthrough Athlete. I feel like both have a legitimate chance to win their respective categories. The ESPYS air on July 10th.
• Speaking of Kyler Murray... in the 13th annual player draft, the world-famous Harlem Globetrotters drafted the Heisman Trophy winner among other famous public figures. If K1 ever shows up for a little court action, you better believe the Washington Generals will be in some trouble (or more trouble than they were already facing).
• The data doesn’t lie, and between the recruiting classes from 2010-2015 and the draft classes from 2013-2019, Oklahoma has been the fifth-best program at developing its talent. Meanwhile, Texas barely makes the list at 20.

• Baker Mayfield has been a Cleveland Brown for about 14 months, but the fans’ frenzy over him hasn’t wavered in the slightest. The Norman Transcript’s Tyler Palmateer details the continued craze in Cleveland.
• Over the last handful of years, the Athletic Communications and Graphic Design departments have vaulted OU ahead of other universities. The things they’ve accomplished has truly been amazing. No wonder the people behind the screen earned 11 awards at the 2018-19 CoSIDA Publications and Digital Design Contest. Boomer!

• Allen Kenney is back with another Blatant Homerism Podcast episode. This time, the Tulsa World’s Bill Haisten joined the show to discuss an article he recently wrote about his visit with Lincoln Riley. It’s definitely insightful stuff from all involved, so I highly recommend you give it a listen!

Around the Sports World

• FS1 personality and Oklahoma City prep basketball legend Skip Bayless has produced plenty of cringeworthy moments during his career, but this morning’s gaffe might’ve been his best work to date. When discussing the rift between James Harden and Chris Paul, Skip cited a “report” from Twitter parody account @SportsTalkBarry (aka Barry McCockiner) that Paul has continuously made fun of Harden for having “manboobs”.

• Boston Red Sox outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. is the real life Miles Morales after this spidey-like pursuit and nab for the out. Now I’m all tingly.

• In less than a couple weeks, the NBA world will be flipped upside down as free agency season revs all the way up. The Los Angeles Lakers figure to be among the more topsy-turvy organizations, especially now that the organization is creating a max salary space available for Anthony Davis.

• Bill Connelly is back at it again with another college football team preview. This time, he’s providing a rundown of the Utah Utes. Head coach Kyle Whittingham is entering his 16th season in Salt Lake City, and with the Pac-12 in a relatively down period, the chance to own the South Division is there for the taking.
• Washington Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer suffered a broken nose during bunting — not batting — practice. C’mon, my guy. Ouch, but c’mon.

Stick to Sports!

• A year from today, many families around the world will be laughing and crying and just plain feeling after seeing Soul, the latest Disney Pixar film. I have no idea what it’s about beyond the small nuggets of information provided here, but judging by the studios’ past work, I’m going to guess it’ll be enjoyable to say the least.

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