Happy Thursday, friends and fans!

Following an initial report from Pete Thamel, former Oklahoma Sooners defensive coordinator Mike Stoops has been announced as the Florida Atlantic Owls’ defensive coordinator.

Interestingly enough, OU opened its 2018 season against FAU, and as the story goes, Stoops was fired just five weeks later. For the next two seasons, he served as a defensive analyst for Nick Saban at Alabama. That brings us to today, with Mike heading to Boca Raton to run Willie Taggart’s program’s defense.

Considering the pitiful defensive state Mike Stoops left Oklahoma in before he was finally let go, you won’t find an abundance of wistful nostalgia for the younger brother of the legendary Bob among Sooner Nation. Still, if he can revive his coaching career to any degree with this move, it’ll help clear the smear that currently stains his reputation, and I’d love to see it.

Now for today’s Hot Links! Tre Brown leaves practice in Mobile, OU picks up a PWO from OKC, another Houston-based team is set to lose its star player and more!

OU Links

• With Josh Heupel taking the Tennessee gig, one of the names that’s been tossed around as a candidate to take over at UCF is Oklahoma’s Alex Grinch. Will it happen? Personally, I highly doubt it.
• Tre Brown has been making a lot of noise at the Senior Bowl practices this week, but he’s reportedly sustained some sort of injury. Get well soon, Tre!

• Redshirt senior pitcher Jason Ruffcorn and redshirt freshman infielder Peyton Graham have each been named to the 2021 Preseason All-Big 12 Team.

• Senior utility Jocelyn Alo, redshirt senior pitcher Giselle Juarez and redshirt senior utility Nicole Mendes have all been named to the 2021 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Watch List. Congratulations, everyone!

• 2021 WR Kayhon Russell out of Putnam City North HS recently announced his verbal commitment to OU. The 6’4, 215-pound Oklahoma City product will reportedly join the Sooners as a preferred walk-on. Welcome aboard, Kayhon! Boomer!

Around the Sports World

• QB Deshaun Watson has formally reportedly requested to be traded by the Houston Texans after months of alleged dysfunction between the four-year pro and the team that drafted him in 2017.
• ACC Football has officially announced its return to an eight-game conference schedule in 2021. Additionally, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish will return to their usual status as an Independent after spending last season as a league member for the first time in school history.
• The NHL has reportedly borrowed $1 billion from an unknown lender in an effort to help mitigate the losses its 31 organizations have taken since the COVID-19 pandemic came into effect last March.
• After leading the Northwestern Wildcats to the Big Ten Championship Game last season, head coach Pat Fitzgerald has signed a contract extension that’ll keep him in Evanston through 2030.
• Future Hall of Fame TE Jason Witten has officially called it a career (for the second time) and is now re-entering retirement as a player. After spending most of his 17-year pro career with the Dallas Cowboys, his plan now is to sign a one-day contract with his former team in March so that he can formally sign off as a Cowboy. Great stuff.

Follow Crimson & Cream Machine on Twitter!