Happy Thursday, friends and fans!

On Wednesday, Lincoln Riley spoke on the status of the three Oklahoma Sooners (WR Trejan Bridges, DE Ronnie Perkins and RB Rhamondre Stevenson) potentially facing further suspensions after missing the Peach Bowl CFP semifinal last December. For now, it’s still possible that said trio remains sidelined for the first five games of the 2020 regular season.

While Riley didn’t have much of an update about the suspensions, he did provide some insight on the wave of attrition within Oklahoma’s program this offseason. In total, eight Sooners have entered the NCAA Transfer Portal since the 2019 season ended. Albeit for a variety of reasons, those players include freshman S Ty DeArman, redshirt sophomore LB Levi Draper, redshirt sophomore DT Troy James, redshirt junior WR Mykel Jones, redshirt sophomore LB Ryan Jones, freshman LB Jonathan Perkins, redshirt sophomore K Calum Sutherland and redshirt freshman OL Michael Thompson.

While the exodus raised eyebrows for some fans, the fourth year head coach says that he and his staff ultimately expected the moves to happen. Our own Allen Kenney actually covered this topic earlier this week.

Check out the rest of the links below for clips and soundbites from newly hired assistant coaches DeMarco Murray and Jamar Cain during Wednesday’s presser.

Now for today’s Hot Links! The OU baseball season starts in one day, Grant Calcaterra inspires the next generation, the Asterisks Astros are annoying and more!

OU Links

• Lon Kruger has his Sooner squad firing on all cylinders right now, but a tough stretch of competition awaits. The next home game comes against Baylor — the No. 1 team in the land. OU fans, you need to do your part and pack the LNC by any means necessary. Tell your family and friends, tell your coworkers, and tell your neighbors about the many tickets that are still available for purchase. This group has played their tails off and could very well be dancing next month. Show your support and treat yourself to a great time by watching them work live and in person. Boomer!

• On Wednesday, running backs coach DeMarco Murray talked about returning “home” to where his professional career in football kicked-off — at the University of Oklahoma.

• OLB/DE coach Jamar Cain talked about how the opportunity to work with Lincoln Riley and Alex Grinch at OU was too great for him to pass up.

• Here’s more from Coach Cain talking about what fuels his drive to be the best recruiter and coach he can be. His blunt honesty is refreshing, and definitely echoes something similar to the what we’ve heard from Grinch over the last year.

• The 2020 Oklahoma Baseball season gets started this Friday, Feb. 14. To prepare you for what should be exciting campaign for the Sooners, check out John Rohde’s in-depth preview of this year’s team from every notable angle you could ask for.
• At least 22 of this season’s OU Softball games will be broadcast live on TV, including four games on the national stage. For a rapidly growing sport, it’s fantastic to see the Sooners near the front when it comes to general exposure. Keep in mind that these figures do not take into account the postseason, which is also nationally televised.

• Former Sooner TE Grant Calcaterra may have had to retire from the gridiron early, but his drive to positively impact the next generation is running at full speed. It’s great to see him talking to young students and sharing his story with them so they can learn about what it takes to achieve their dreams. Well done, ‘Calcutta’!

Around the Sports World

• Houston Astros owner Jim Crane is like that stubborn child in class who only says sorry for stealing another kid’s crayons because the teacher is standing there making him do it, but everybody watching knows he’s not actually sorry, nor does he even know how to tie his own shoes. I wish the media would just shun this guy for the next 30 years. Too harsh? I don’t care.

• Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker will finally have a chance to shine on the NBA All-Star stage as he’s replacing Portland Trailblazers guard Damian Lillard (groin injury) in both the Three-Point Contest and the ASG itself.

• The Brooklyn Nets ended the Toronto Raptors’ franchise record 15-game winning streak with a 101-91 home victory.

• Unsurprisingly, the Cincinnati Bengals are expected to select former LSU Tigers QB Joe Burrow with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Reportedly, the team is also going to work with Andy Dalton in finding a new franchise to call home. Both intentions appear to be the correct moves.
• ESPN’s Bill Connelly has unveiled his Preseason SP+ College Football rankings going into 2020, and although they missed the CFP last year, the Alabama Crimson Tide top the chart.

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