Happy Valentine’s Day, friends and fans!

After years of repping for the walk-ons, redshirt senior QB Tanner Schafer is now on scholarship for the Oklahoma Sooners. His buddy and former TE Grant Calcaterra broke the news in a congratulatory tweet.

For his career, Schafer has seen action in two games. The first of which against UTEP in ‘17, where he completed 3 of 5 passes for 18 yards with no TDs or INTs. He also saw the field against Florida Atlantic in ‘18, but did not record any stats on the day.

As it stands now, OU is looking at four scholarship QBs on its roster for the 2020 season in Schafer, Spencer Rattler, Tanner Mordecai and incoming Chandler Morris, barring any unforeseen transfers or other shake-ups.

Congratulations, Tanner!

Now on to this week’s Friday edition of Hot Links! Two Sooner squads on the diamond are on deck, Coach Murray makes his pick for greatest RB ever, Hopper lost his hair working on the railroad and more!

OU Links

• OU baseball opens the season today against Virginia at the Wahoos Classic in Pensacola, Fla., with Cade Cavalli taking the hill for the Sooners. The game will be played at Admiral Fetterman Field at Community Maritime Park, which is without a doubt one of the most picturesque settings in all of baseball. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT, and you can watch all the action on CST/Yurview, or listen live on air with Sportstalk 1400 AM. Check your local listings for channel details.

• It’s a double-header game day for OU Softball out west in the desert. The Sooners get the Hillenbrand Invitational started with Bryant at 12:30 p.m. CT, then take on Northern Iowa under the lights around 8 p.m. CT. Oklahoma will look to improve upon its 4-0 record with another strong showing in non-conference play.

• The Norman Transcript’s Joe Buettner recently wrote about Sooner pitcher Shannon Saile and how she’s taken the next step as a player and a leader in the circle since arriving to OU last year. Going forward, Patty Gasso will be counting on her and Giselle Juarez to pace Oklahoma back to the postseason.
• Bleacher Report’s Brad Shepard picks Spencer Rattler as one of 15 players college football fans will fall in love with in 2020. Something tells me it’s actually going to be the opposite feeling for a lot of opposing fans, but either way, this guy is getting ready to ball out.
• Now when it comes to the greatest running back the game has ever seen, DeMarco Murray might be accused of being biased when he says it’s Adrian Peterson. While he acknowledges the other-worldly greatness of Barry Sanders, he can’t put anyone else above AD, writes OU Insider’s Joey Helmer.
• The Oklahoman’s Berry Tramel recently wrote about Oklahoma’s struggles with filling the seats inside the Lloyd Noble Center. It’s been a problem for the Sooners for quite some time now, but it’s part of a larger issue that’s sweeping throughout college basketball. It’s not enough to simply sell tickets when many ticket holders don’t even show up.
• A limited edition Bedlam-themed bobblehead has been unveiled by the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame. The item depicts both ‘Boomer’ and ‘Pistol Pete’ together. There are only 1,000 being shipped, so order yours now if you want to be part of this exclusive club.
• After sitting out the season opener last Sunday while overcoming a knee issue, Bob Stoops recently confirmed that starting QB Landry Jones will start for the Dallas Renegades this weekend.

• Hey everyone, don’t miss Allen’s latest installment of the Blatant Homerism Podcast. This week he explored the attrition troubles that plagued Oklahoma several years ago, and looked at how the current coaching staff is attempting to shore up those problem areas.

• Of course every day spent with your loved ones is special, but try to make that extra effort today to show your appreciation for them and all that they do for you. Sooner Nation is one big family, and family isn’t a family without a little love. Happy Valentine’s Day, y’all.

Around the Sports World

• We’ve made it to the NBA All-Star break, but it’s an uneasy time for Paul George and the Los Angeles Clippers. During Thursday night’s double-overtime loss to the Boston Celtics, the star small forward reportedly re-injured the same hamstring that already kept him out for a bulk of this season. He will continue to be evaluated over the next couple weeks.
• The Washington Redskins are reportedly releasing 32-year-old CB Josh Norman after four seasons. The former Coastal Carolina Chanticleer was named to the Pro Bowl and a First Team All-Pro in 2015.
• New Orleans Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson followed up a career-high scoring performance with another, going for 32 in a losing effort against the Oklahoma City Thunder. It’s unreal how good this young player is already.

• I hope I don’t have to remind any of you to not follow in this guy’s footsteps. Reportedly, a soccer fan in Glasgow, Scotland went on a horse-punching spree, leaving multiple animals and police officers injured in his wake. He’s since been arrested and will spend 10 months behind bars. Goodness, mate.
• The Baton Rouge Zoo has named a baby giraffe ‘Burreaux’ in honor of former LSU Tigers QB Joe Burrow. Over the last year, all this guy has done is win. Very cool stuff.

Stick to Sports!

• An official teaser for the fourth season of ‘Stranger Things’ dropped on Friday. The last time fans of the popular Netflix series saw the lovable Deputy Hopper, he was locked up inside a Russian prison. Fortunately, his story isn’t ending there, and neither is the arc of this show that has captivated audiences around the world. Filming is currently underway, and a release date is still to be determined.

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