Stillwater Strong Memorial fundraiser set for Saturday
As part of its fundraising efforts for the Stillwater Strong Memorial Monument, Leadership Stillwater and the Stillwater Community Foundation have partnered for an event to take place at Oklahoma State’s homecoming game against Baylor on Saturday at Boone Pickens Stadium.
At the end of the first quarter, “Stillwater Strong” buckets will be passed through each section of the stadium, giving fans the opportunity to contribute to the memorial honoring the lives that were lost and those that were affected by the homecoming parade tragedy of 2015.
The memorial will be placed at the intersection of Hall of Fame Avenue and Main Street. It will honor the lives of Bonnie and Marvin Stone, Nikita Nakal and Nash Lucas, who died in the crash.
Cowboys rest up on bye week with tough stretch coming
Mike Gundy prefers his team’s bye week fall after the fifth or sixth game of the season, and with the injuries Oklahoma State had been battling, having a few days off last week was more than beneficial.
Gundy looks at the regular season as a fourmonth grind, starting with camp at the beginning of August. So a Saturday off in the first week of October is right in the middle of the season.
What was the most important thing the Cowboys accomplished with their bye week?
“I would say rest,” Gundy said. “We didn’t really practice enough to have anything to talk about. We took some time off and worked on the last two games that Baylor has played. We got the team back (Sunday) night and hopefully got them back in a normal routine.”
It was a good time for a mental break, too, with the toughest stretch of the schedule on the horizon.
After hosting Baylor at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, the Cowboys have road trips to Texas on Oct. 21 and West Virginia on Oct. 28 leading up to the Bedlam showdown Nov. 4.
Gundy unfamiliar, but impressed with Baylor coach
Baylor coach Matt Rhule is new to Big 12 country. A 42-year-old New York native, Rhule has spent the vast majority of his career on the East Coast, with two stints at Temple, plus stops at Buffalo, Western Carolina and a year with the New York Giants.
Because of that, Gundy hasn’t had many opportunities to get to know Rhule, or interact with others who know him.
“I have watched him from a distance,” Gundy said. “He obviously has done very well for himself and had a history of winning. He’s obviously a very capable coach, or the administration down there wouldn’t have brought him in. I just don’t know a lot about him. He was from a removed area from me in the world we live in, in recruiting.”