Gundy mourns passing of father-in-law
Mike Gundy’s weekly press conference was scrapped Monday so he could attend the memorial service for his father-in-law, Danny Strickland, who died late last week.
Mike Gundy’s weekly press conference was scrapped Monday so he could attend the memorial service for his father-in-law, Danny
Strickland, who died late last week.
Along with being the father of Gundy’s wife Kristen, Mike said Danny served as a friend and influence.
“He was one of my best friends,” Gundy said. “We were complete opposites, but he taught me a lot about life and he knew I needed some guidance.
“In his very inconspicuous way, he did that and he and I became very close friends during that time.”
Danny was father to some prominent athletic sons who starred and led football state title runs at Carl Albert: Chad and Craig
Strickland. Kristen was a pretty good prep basketball player before a car wreck ended her career.
Danny, who had been in declining health, often sat with his wife Karen in the back of the room during postgame press conferences at Boone Pickens Stadium.
“It is tough and it all settled in (Monday) night,” said Gundy, who spoke at the service in Midwest City. “Once you’re home from the funeral and everybody showers and you get ready for bed and it hits you.
“He’s in a much better place right now and I couldn’t be any more proud to have spent 39 years of my life with him. We’ll take care of Karen, his wife of 51 years, and she lives in town.”
Can TCU Halt Washington?
SMU wideout Cortland
Sutton is widely regarded as one of the nation’s top receivers and NFL Draft prospects. ESPN’s Mel Kiper
Jr. currently ranks Sutton No. 17 on his Big Board, the first receiver listed.
But against TCU, Sutton was held to one catch for zero yards.
“We had a game plan to take him away,” said Horned Frogs coach Gary Patterson.
So, what does that mean for OSU star James Washington?
“Oklahoma State is very similar when it comes to that,” Patterson said.
Similar, yet different, which was apparent last week at Pitt, when four receivers – including Washington – hit the 100-yard mark and three not named Washington accounted for five touchdown catches.
TCU blanketed Sutton, who was targeted seven times, with double- and even triple-team coverage.
OSU, OSU cooperate on branding
Remember the summer story suggesting conflict between Oklahoma State and Ohio State over each school’s branding of the OSU logo?
As expected, the two OSUs have agreed to continue sharing the mark.
The story of a potential problem began in Columbus and was picked up by SI.com, although both schools insisted there was no conflict, despite an extension filed by Oklahoma State with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office with an intent to block Ohio State’s use of “OSU.”
The move was more procedural, as the two schools had operated under concurrent usage agreements for the past 30 years. Both held trademarks, yet with the licensing landscape always expanding, an update to the agreement was necessary.
The extension facilitated that, opening up nationally what had been a geographically limiting agreement in terms of marketing and selling their respective brands. Previously, Ohio State could controlled use of “OSU” in 19 states, and Oklahoma State 17 states, with each additionally sharing separate portions of Iowa.
Now, both schools are free to operate nationwide.
“We appreciate Ohio State’s cooperative approach as we reached a long-term agreement that satisfies the needs of both universities,” Oklahoma State spokesman Gary Shutt said in a statement to The Oklahoman. “This agreement will avoid any confusion for our fans and the public.”