Good news for those whose Saturdays in the fall depend on the Cowboys’ performance: it doesn’t seem like 2024 will start like 2023 did.

This time last year, we needed the media guide handy to know who was who on the field for Oklahoma State. On offense, there was a three-quarterback rotation going on to decide who should be QB1. That got the headlines, but even future Doak Walker winner Ollie Gordon wasn’t OSU’s top running back until Week 4 of the season. Then on defense, Bryan Nardo was trying to implement an entirely new scheme as players shuffled in and out. It was madness.

But, in 2024, those growing pains have meant, well, growth for the Cowboys. OSU coach Mike Gundy said at his first media luncheon of the season Thursday that there’s not a position battle, at least not for the No. 1 spot, shaking out right now for the Pokes. On OSU’s first two-deep depth chart of the season, the only “or” listed at the top of positions were on the defensive line, one in the secondary, and at punter and kickoff specialist. There is, at least according to the depth chart and Gundy, no position up for grabs on offense entering the 2024 season.

“Not really, because we play so many skilled skill guys at once,” Gundy said. “Then we have more linemen than we have had in the past. And then defensively, we roll guys in. So we really don’t have position battles going on.”

It wasn’t until Week 4 against Iowa State — OSU’s Big 12 opener — that things seemed to be organized last season for the Cowboys, even during the loss. That’s when Alan Bowman essentially took over as QB1, becoming the first quarterback in 2023 to start and finish a game. Gordon got double-digit carries for the first time all season, rushing for 121 yards on 18 carries. And, even defensively, the Cowboys held Iowa State to 14 points in the second half.

After that Week 4 loss, the Cowboys went on a five-game winning streak and finished the season 10-4 with a Big 12 championship game appearance after starting the season 2-2. A year later, Gundy says the Pokes are already to that point heading into Week 1 against South Dakota State.

“Well, we didn’t get to this point last year until close to the fourth game,” Gundy said. “We just had so many unknowns and position battles going on with so many players that came in. As you know, last year we had 30 new players. This year, that number has been cut considerably because we had so many players that were able to and wanted to come back. A little different this year.

“From that standpoint, next year, we’ll probably be back in the other boat. The free agency market in December based on all the veteran players we have leaving could put us in a position where we’re bringing in 30 new players that could potentially play in the first game next year. But as of now, we’re much further ahead from a practice standpoint and understanding than we were this time last year.”

Oklahoma’s dismal bottom 10 rank in education outcomes highlights a need to think differently about how we’re educating our children who continue to struggle with academic performance, chronic absenteeism and emotional and behavioral issues.

It’s time for our education leaders to take a hard look at the evidence-based benefits that come from increased investments in the community school model.

Community schools provide students with “wraparound services.” They focus on holistic approaches to educating children, understanding that for a child to thrive in school an integrated support system is also needed for their families at home. The model focuses on student and family engagement, collaborative leadership, enriched learning opportunities and integrated support systems.

Fortunately, in part by the pandemic and federal Covid funding, the Federation of American Scientists found that in 2023, “60% of public schools were utilizing a “community school” or “wraparound services model.” That was up from 45% the year prior.

If you think this model won’t work in a state that has an abundance of charter and private schools and is known for perpetually underfunding our public school systems, think again.

Tulsa Union is an example of an Oklahoma public school district that has successfully integrated the model. As one of the earliest adopters, the district received national attention for its student success.

Education expert, David Kirp, wrote in a New York Times opinion piece that contrary to the pressure to focus on rapid academic test score growth, former superintendent Cathy Burden understood that “focusing entirely on academics wasn’t enough, especially for poor kids.”

Instead, Union, which at the time reported 70% of students received free or reduced-price lunches, laid a foundation for meaningful learning by offering a “cornucopia of activities — art, music, science, sports, tutoring — that middle-class families routinely provide.”

Kirp wrote that the district opened its schools early. It helped families access health care. It worked to connect parents with job-training opportunities. It provided clothing, furniture and food to struggling students. It even offered daycare for teen mothers so they could graduate.

U.S. News and World Report now ranks Union High School as one of the nation’s top high schools.  It is over 70% minority, and nearly 50% low-income, but it is basically tied with Oklahoma’s high schools for academic achievement.

Other districts have also experimented with the model.

In 2017, when a bus load of Oklahoma City partners visited Rosa Parks Elementary School, we toured their health center, the “Tinker Lab” for hands-on learning, and their organic gardens built around the theme of “Peace.” The key to success was teamwork. The students selected the crops they wanted to grow and built a kiln in the garden. A teacher created “Wind Wonders” to teach aeronautics.

My favorite story was about the Rosa Parks teacher who rushed out of the building, saying she had to go to Jiffy Lube. The teacher had been trying to track down a parent for a conference and she’d just learned that the mom was about to take her lunch break.

Drawing on Tulsa Union’s success, a scientific consensus, and the work of Linda Darling-Hammond’s Learning Policy Institute regarding the benefits of community schools, a grassroots movement created the David R. Lopez Community School at Edgemere.

Despite its great success, Oklahoma City School Public Schools shut it down during the implementation of its Pathway to Greatness plan.

In spite of that setback, I see the community school model as being one that could increase our academic outcomes by acknowledging a holistic model is needed for our children — and their families — to thrive in a post-pandemic landscape.

But in order to achieve greatness, we’d need visionary leadership. We need leaders who are patient enough to lay the groundwork today in hopes of netting substantial gains years down the road.

The model won’t succeed if our leaders are looking for a short-term, easy political victories and immediate results because wraparound services are more expensive and take considerable resources to get off the ground.

I’m hoping we have some visionary education leaders.

Because I don’t see a path forward for improving the academic and social outcomes for low-performing schools until we commit to implementing community schools statewide.

The annual Oklahoma City All-City All-Conference football scrimmages at Taft Stadium were canceled midway through the event Thursday night after noises from outside the stadium were mistaken for gunfire.

Oklahoma City Police Department officers at the scrimmages confirmed to The Oklahoman that the gunshots were mistaken for backfire coming from a Chevrolet Camaro driving near the stadium.

People inside the stadium heard the loud sounds of the car backfiring shortly after 8:30 p.m. during the final set of football scrimmages between John Marshall and Southeast High School. Soon after, players, coaches, and others in attendance scattered from the stands onto the field and eventually out of the stadium.

Despite efforts to restart play, the atmosphere remained tense and game officials canceled the remainder of the scrimmages soon after announcers told patrons that the presumed gunshots were a false alarm.

Gun violence at sporting events has become all too common in recent years across the country, including in Oklahoma. A shooting at a high school football game at Choctaw last August left one person dead and several injured.

More: Vote for Oklahoma high school football’s top senior player heading into OSSAA 2024 season

Jordan Davis covers high school sports for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Jordan? He can be reached at jdavis@oklahoman.com or on X/Twitter at @jdavis34_. Sign up for The Varsity Club newsletter to access more high school coverage. Support Jordan’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.