Toby Rowland named Oklahoma football sideline reporter: Oklahoma will be adding a new voice to its football radio broadcast team. KWTV's Toby Rowland will be the Sooners' new sideline reporter, the school announced Wednesday. "I am truly honored," said Rowland, who replaces former OU tight end Trent Smith on the sidelines. "Working with OU has been a thrill the last several years. And to get the opportunity to join the broadcast team during such an exciting time for Sooner athletics is humbling." (The Oklahoman) More on Sooner Radio Network on the media page.

Stoops visits Nick Saban: Bob Stoops had defensive coordinator Brent Venables and secondary coach Bobby Jack Wright accompany him on the private flight to Alabama. The three OU coaches spent "an entire day" watching video tape with Saban and his assistants. "We also worked on different wrinkles in each other's defense that should help both teams," Stoops said. When the Stoops-Saban Summit was confirmed, most assumed the two defensive gurus had huddled to discuss ways to stop the offensive expertise of Florida head coach Urban Meyer, who has won two of the last three BCS national titles. "They've always played really good defense," Stoops said of Saban-coached teams. "And we have that same reputation. "But it's funny how sometimes you see something differently through someone else's view. Or how they project it to you, and it makes sense." It's long been a practice for coaches to swap information in the offseason. Earlier this week, Stoops sent his entire staff to spend two days in the training camp of the NFL's New Orleans Saints. (Tulsa World)

Proactive prevention: Tulsa World

Labels: Bob Stoops, Defense, Oklahoma Sooners, Radio

Oklahoma Sooner Football Articles and Notes

Coach Stoops on The Dan Patrick Show: Oklahoma's Bob Stoops appeared on The Dan Patrick Show to discuss a variety of topics from Brett Favre to Big 12 football including former Sooner Josh Jarboe.

Coach Stoops on..

Reaction to seeing the video:
"Just disappointed. I understand there are different styles of music. In the end, it was the two of them together, the fact that he came in with an arrest already and with the understanding from us, nothing but exemplary behavior was going to be tolerated. And the expressions, regardless how its music its rap or whatever.

When asked if he fought to keep Josh Jarboe on the team:

"No. It was something that needed to be thought through and discussed.

Jarboe's reaction to the news:

"It was very difficult. He was very hurt and crushed. But understood where we had to be."

Full audio of the interview can be found at DanPatrick.com under interviews.

Labels: Bob Stoops, Josh Jarboe, Radio

Oklahoma Sooner Football Articles and Notes

Thin air no excuse in OU's Colorado loss, Stoops says: It's been suggested that one reason for OU's second-half collapse at Folsom Field was because the Sooners fell victim to the thin air in the 5,335-feet altitude. A few tired players making a few sloppy mistakes, perhaps? "That's ridiculous. That makes no sense," Bob Stoops said. "Why would that be? I don't get that. Offense wasn't tired. They were fresh as a daisy. On (46) plays? No. That's not accurate." "The altitude had some affect," said offensive tackle Trent Williams, who platooned on an offense that ran just 46 plays. "But I don't think it affected our play that much." (Tulsa World)

Switzer's XM radio show broadcasting from the Cotton Bowl: Former OU coach Barry Switzer and T.J. Rives will have special editions of their XM satellite radio sports show (channel 144) from 5-8 a.m. Friday and 9-11 a.m. Saturday from outside the Cotton Bowl. XM also will carry the OU-Texas game. (NewsOK.com)

Baker may sub for less than 100% Reynolds: Defensive coordinator Brent Venables said he might sub starting strongside linebacker Lewis Baker for weakside Ryan Reynolds more to give Reynolds some rest.Venables said Reynolds, who missed part of the spring and was limited during two-a-days after undergoing knee surgery, was hurting late against Colorado. Venables did put Baker in, but said he probably should have done it earlier. (Star-Telegram)

What's it like to be a QB at Texas?: The Oklahoman

What's it like to be a QB at OU?: The Oklahoman

Texas' Chiles means double trouble for OU: The Oklahoman

Sooners young signal-caller off to a strong start: The Oklahoman

Defenses turn up the heat on UT sophomore: The Oklahoman

Under pressure: Norman Transcript

Sooner DE says it will be exciting to pursue Texas QB again: Tulsa World

'Dr. Death' to Dr. Life: Tulsa World

OU Q&A -- Trent Williams: Tulsa World

Texas pressing for turnovers against Oklahoma: Austin American-Statesman

Horns' loss is bargain ticket hunters' gain: Austin American-Statesman

Oklahoma tops Texas in graduation rates: Austin American-Statesman

Big 12 South -- and North -- just ain't what it used to be: Austin American Statesman

Switzer still shoots from the lip: Dallas Morning News

UT's Charles learns from legend: Dallas Morning News

For Sooners, one loss is all it takes: Dallas Morning News

Oklahoma QB an emerging leader: Dallas Morning News

UT and OU fans can expect slow drives to big game: Dallas Morning News

Young Longhorns make ends meat -- at the QB: Ft. Worth Star-Telegram

UT's Sweed, OU's Kelly looking to bounce back: Houston Chronicle

Labels: Barry Switzer, Colorado Buffalo, Lewis Baker, Oklahoma Sooners, Radio, Ryan Reynolds

Oklahoma Sooner Football Articles and Notes

Sooners En Espanol: Saturday's contest with Miami will be the first OU game to be broadcast in Spanish by an Oklahoma station. KTUZ (fm106.7 in Oklahoma City) carries the game with Rene Nava and James Kopelman. (Tulsa World)

Switzer will not attend OU-Miami: Switzer said he won't be at the OU-Miami game Saturday because he'll be in Los Angeles for his work with Fox Sports' NFL pregame show. This season, he's doing a weekly "Coaches Corner" show alongside Jimmy Johnson. "Oklahoma is closer to being like that (No. 1) today than Miami is being close to what they were," Switzer said. (Dallas Morning News Blog)

Former Canes & Cowboys Coach Johnson on 1985 OU game: Former Oklahoma State and Miami coach Jimmy Johnson on the Hurricanes' 1985 visit to Norman to play Oklahoma: "When I was at OSU, I was fighting them with a BB gun. I brought a .357 magnum with me when I went to Norman." (Star-Telegram)

Bradford's fast start impresses Sooners: ESPN.com

Iglesias, Sooners aware of Miami's aura, if not history of series: KFDA

Labels: Barry Switzer, Oklahoma Sooners, OU-Miami, Radio

Oklahoma Sooner Football Articles and Notes

Switzer joins XM Radio lineup: This fall, [Barry] Switzer will co-host XM Sports Nation This Morning, a live call-in show that will focus on college and pro football. "This was a good opportunity for me,” said Switzer, who returned from Washington, D.C., on Friday after meeting with XM officials in time to attend Oklahoma's scrimmage Saturday. "They made it attractive financially, so I'm going to do it.” T.J. Rives — the play-by-play voice for South Florida -- will team with Switzer on Sports Nation This Morning, which will air from 5:30 to 7 a.m. on Mondays and Fridays starting Aug. 20. Rives will do the show by himself Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. The show will broadcast on XM channel 144, airing until sometime in January. Terms of the deal weren't disclosed by XM, but Logan said the agreement with Switzer is for more than one year. (NewsOK.com) Barry Switzer joins the XM lineup of Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Cal Ripken, Jr.,Tony Kornheiser and others on XM Channel 144.

Coaches set limitations at scrimmage: Offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson said there were some limitations in the first scrimmage. There was no blocking below the waist and he was trying to get the quarterbacks as many passing attempts as he could. He admitted there was another reason for the struggles moving the ball. "Credit it to the defense," he said. "The secondary, in my view today, there were a lot of great tackles by corners and safeties for 1- and 2-yard gains and sometimes negatives gains." (Norman Transcript)

In the huddle, every looking to quarterback to show the way: The Oklahoman

QB waiting game continues: The Oklahoman

Labels: Barry Switzer, Radio, Scrimmage

Oklahoma Sooner Football Articles and Notes

Former Sooner Trent Smith likely to replace KOCO-TV Mark Rodgers: Former Oklahoma tight end Trent Smith is being considered to replace local sportscaster Mark Rodgers [an favorite of Oklahoma Sooners Blog] as the sideline reporter on Sooner football radio broadcasts. Smith said Friday that he hasn't been "100 percent offered the job," but expects OU to make a decision as early as next week. "I've talked to them about it," said Smith, who lives in Yukon and runs Sooner Medical Staffing. "I was just flattered to be considered. [Mark] Rodgers, who had been the sideline reporter for the last five seasons, confirmed Friday that he will not return. He said his job as a sports talk-show host on WWLS radio, owned by Citadel Communications, might have become a sticking point. Citadel and its variety of stations compete directly with Renda Broadcasting, which owns KRXO, the Sooners' flagship station. (NewsOK.com)

Labels: Oklahoma Sooners, Radio

Oklahoma Sooner Football Articles and Notes

Sooners using next generation helmets to monitor head injuries: At first glance, it looked like a typical, run-of-the-mill helmet. Face mask. Ear holes. Hard-plastic shell. But as [OU head trainer Scott] Anderson and members of the NCAA sports science committee watched Rick Greenwald's demonstration at the NFL combine two years ago, it became clear to the OU trainer he was getting a glimpse into the future. "The system does not diagnose head injuries," Greenwald said. "But it does provide an important tool for clinicians on the field. It could prevent further injury caused by repeated head trauma.” Greenwald's helmet is equipped with tiny airbags, scattered in between the foam padding. Each airbag serves as a sensor, the sensors are connected to a transmitter. At impact, the airbags process their signal through a complex algorithm devised by Greenwald. If the impact registers greater than 98G — units of gravity or G-force — the signal is transmitted wirelessly to a remote computer and medical staff receive an electronic page. All in a matter of seconds. "I was immediately intrigued from a head injury standpoint and a heat-related injury standpoint," Anderson said. The helmet is also outfitted with a tiny thermostat to measure head temperature. "We quickly got on board." At first, OU partnered with Greenwald's New Hampshire-based Simbex company on what Anderson called a "base level." The system is expensive -- Anderson estimated a 40-helmet set at more than $60,000 -- and is only available in Riddell Brand helmets. But a year later, almost every player on the Sooners' two-deep was equipped with HITS -- Head Impact Telemetry System. (More at the NewsOK.com)

OU Enters Agreement with KTUZ for first ever Spanish Broadcast: KTUZ-FM, La Zeta (106.7 FM) and Sooner Sports Properties have entered into an agreement for the first Spanish-speaking broadcast of a University of Oklahoma athletics event. The station will broadcast live the Oklahoma-Miami football game from Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on Sept. 8. Sooner Sports Properties is a division of Learfield Communications, which owns OU's athletics multi-media rights. Skip Stow, general manager of Tyler Media, which owns KTUZ, feels the time is right to embark on this venture. "With the majority of students now in the Oklahoma City public school system coming from Spanish dominant households we felt that now was the time to expand our sports coverage and offer our listeners University of Oklahoma football in Spanish," he said. OU Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Programs and Director of Athletics Joe Castiglione said the new opportunity is exciting. "We recognize the presence and impact of the Spanish-speaking media and KTUZ specifically," he said. "It is obvious to us that the marketplace is evolving and we want to pursue these new opportunities. We see this as an avenue to expand a very large fan base and we are pleased that we can partner with Skip Stow. "We want Spanish-speaking citizens to know that we embrace them for our events and we will seek other ways to encourage their interaction with our programs." The broadcast team will be anchored by T-30 Sports Director Rene Nava. Color commentary will be handled by James Kopelman and the stats will be done by Gabriel Ocegueda. (SoonerSports.com)

Harris Belonged on List: The Oklahoman

Life after football: White's new life: Tulsa World

Labels: Next Generation, Oklahoma Sooners, Radio, University of Oklahoma