Happy Friday, friends and fans!

With the help of a unique formula, ESPN college football writer Mark Schlabach ranked the Oklahoma Sooners as the nation’s most entertaining team in 2019. While subjective, I don’t think many folks around here will necessarily disagree with this take. Even if you’re not an OU fan, the storylines surrounding this program are as good as it gets.

Another team I was intrigued to see on Schlabach’s list was Houston, namely because that’s who Oklahoma opens the 2019 season against. It’s nice to know outsiders find both of these teams entertaining, especially since that’s the only game being played on Sunday.

A few teams that aren’t included in these rankings that I will personally try to watch every chance I get are Army, Iowa State and UCF. The Black Knights could conceivably go 11-1, the Cyclones should challenge for the Big 12 title, and Central Florida wants to make those CFP debates in November interesting once again.

Now onto this week’s Friday edition of Hot Links! Alex Grinch likes the progress he’s seen on defense, Rodney Anderson suffers another knee injury, don’t draft ‘Zeke in your fantasy league and more!

OU Links

• The Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray Heisman House commercials have begun, and judging from this ad, they’re going to have a ton of fun as the two reigning winners. Boomer!

• Barry Switzer is known for his vibrant personality and winning. At every level, he’s been a winner, and at Oklahoma, he’s ‘The King’. All these years later, he’s still close to the program that he took to the top of the college football world. Great work from the Norman Transcript’s Tyler Palmateer.

• If you plan on attending Sunday’s game, this might be the most important thing you can read today. Big props to The Norman Transcript’s Joe Buettner for passing this information along.

• Alex Grinch isn’t making excuses for his defense this season, and certainly not for the opener against Houston’s high-powered offense. At the same time, he’s also feeling much better about where the group is now compared to when he first arrived. The OU Daily’s Vic Reynolds has more.
• Junior WR CeeDee Lamb is poised to have a monstrous season this fall, especially because he’s now in a class of his own when it comes to experience and talent. Expect big things from this future NFL wideout.
• Former Sooners RB Rodney Anderson is believed to have suffered yet another devastating injury, as the Bengals have announced that he has torn his ACL. I don’t have the words.

• Former Sooners’ pass rushing artist Ogbonnia Okoronkwo came up with a nice sack against the Houston Texans during the NFL preseason finale. Do your thing, Ogbo!

• This right here will be the best thing you'll watch all day, I promise you. When former Oklahoma guard Ben Powers was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens, it was announced by Mo Gaba, a young boy who was born blind. Recently, the two of them finally met, and their stories will forever be intertwined. What a special experience for everyone involved.

Around the Sports World

• Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones believes RB Ezekiel Elliott will miss regular season games due to contract negotiations stalling out.
• Buffalo Bills kicker Stephen Hauschka says he would help train two-time Olympic gold medalist and two-time FIFA World Cup champ Carli Lloyd for a job as a kicker in the NFL if she wants to go for it. She certainly has the leg power, so I hope she takes it on!
• 15-year-old Coco Gauff might be the next big thing in U.S. women’s tennis. She’s in the 3rd round of the US Open and could vault herself into the top 100 with another victory.

• The Minnesota Golden Gophers were nearly upset by FCS power South Dakota State, but managed to survive in the end. Check out this amazing one-handed TD grab from WR Rashod Bateman.

• Do I feel bad for the San Diego Padres’ Luis Urias? A little bit, yes, but hey, moments like these build character. What I want to know is what the heck Ty France was doing.

Stick to Sports!

• I don’t know how many of you remember the 1982 fantasy adventure film ‘The Dark Crystal’, but a prequel has been released on Netflix subtitled ‘Age of Resistance’. The original is known for its very creepy puppeteering, but strangely enough that was also part of its charm. Now it’s back and it looks like they kept it true to its beginnings. Still, I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not.

Follow Crimson & Cream Machine on Twitter!