Oklahoma
Oklahoma State HC Mike Gundy Says Redshirt Freshman QB Zane Flores is ‘Ready Now’
In 2023, Mike Gundy and Oklahoma State struggled to find their starting quarterback early in the season.
The Cowboys played Alan Bowman, Garret Rangel and Gunnar Gundy through the first four games of the season before Bowman finally took full control of the starting job. Despite the seemingly open competition last fall, then-true freshman QB Zane Flores didn’t see any action, recording zero snaps in his first season of college football.
That could change this year, however, as Flores battles Rangel and true freshman Maealiuaki Smith for the Pokes’ backup signal caller position.
After his team completed practice on Saturday, Gundy commented on his confidence in the redshirt freshman quarterback.
“I think he’s ready now, he’s just not experienced,” Gundy said. “He’s big, he’s strong, he’s fast, he’s smart, he’s tough. His attitude is good. He’s humble, he’s hungry. He hasn’t played. That’s the difference now, compared to this time last year.”
If Flores is able to beat out Rangel and Smith for the Cowboys’ backup quarterback spot, the 6-foot-4 signal caller would finally log his first collegiate action, gaining the experience Gundy alluded to in spot situations.
With the possibility of Kasey Dunn’s offense jumping out to an early lead against Tulsa in Week 3, the Pokes’ backup quarterback may get on the field for a few drives late in the game against the Golden Hurricane.
Additionally, Bowman dealt with injuries during his time at Texas Tech, meaning OSU’s backup QB will have to be ready to step in and run Dunn’s offense, incase he is thrust into action.
While Flores has great size and high upside as a quarterback, beating out the more experinced Rangel will be a tall task. In his two seasons with the Cowboys, Rangel has played in nine games and started four, throwing 147 passes and tallying 883 yards and six touchdowns in his young career.
In addition to earning valuable reps behind Bowman this season, whoever wins Oklahoma State’s backup quarterback job will also have a good chance at starting for the Pokes in 2025 when Bowman’s college career is over.
Flores came to Stillwater as a 3-star prospect from Gretna, NE, rated the No. 27 quarterback in the 2023 recruiting class, according to 247Sports.
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The Oklahoma City Thunder are taking on the Phoenix Suns in Game 2 of their opening-round series. The OKC Thunder are hoping that they can repeat their Sunday afternoon performance in this contest. Game 2 will be an interesting test with the Suns having more time to prepare.
Phoenix was up against a rock and a hard place in the series opener. The Oklahoma City Thunder not only have the talent advantage but the rest advantage as well. Phoenix punched their ticket to the NBA Playoffs on Friday night by staving off the Golden State Warriors on Friday night before landing in Oklahoma City on Saturday and playing on Saturday afternoon to the tune of a 119-84 blowout Thunder victory.
The NBA has seen plenty of upsets already. The Orlando Magic, Philadelphia 76ers and Portland Trail Blazers have all stolen games from the higher seed. The Thunder know they have to keep the foot on the gas in this contest.
“These series are unpredictable. No 2 games are the same. The minute you make an assumption, you are overconfident, or the minute you go down and you’re overly urgent, that can impact your ability to be present in the next game,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said pregame on Wednesday night.
The Oklahoma City Thunder are seeing the Suns make an adjustment with their starting lineup by inserting Collin Gillespie to give Phoenix a trio of ball handling scoring options alongside Devin Booker and Jalen Green. This gives the Suns hope to be able to find better shot quality against this stifling Thunder defensive unit.
Oklahoma City is healthier now than they have been all season. The Thunder only are missing rookie Thomas Sorber (ACL) who is out for the year. This allows the Bricktown Ballers to roll out their traditional first five in this contest.
Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Phoenix Suns, Game 2 Starting Lineup
Oklahoma City Thunder Starting Lineup
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, G
- Lu Dort, G
- Jalen Williams, F
- Chet Holmgren, F
- Isaiah Hartenstein, C
Phoenix Suns Starting Lineup
- Devin Booker, G
- Jalen Green, G
- Collin Gillespie, G
- Dillon Brooks, F
- Oso Ighodaro, C
The series will shift to Phoenix this weekend as the Oklahoma City Thunder hope to head into Saturday afternoon’s Game 3 with a 2-0 advantage in the series.
Stay tuned to Thunder on SI for complete coverage of the NBA Playoff run for the Oklahoma City Thunder.
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OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLA (KOKH) — The Oklahoma City Fire Department responded to a home fire late Tuesday evening, around 10:42 p.m.
According to OKCFD, fire could be seen from a window of the home located in the 4200 block of N. Phillips Avenue.
Firefighters were able to rescue an adult female from inside the home. No injuries were reported in connection with the fire.
Investigators believe that the fire may have originated from an outlet near the refrigerator that had a power strip plugged in that was supplying multiple appliances.
There was also no smoke detector present within the home.
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NORMAN — The Sooners were behind the eight ball for much of Tuesday’s game against Oral Roberts.
But one swing of the bat got them in a more favorable position.
Shortstop Jaxon Willits blasted a grand slam in the sixth inning to give No. 14 Oklahoma its first lead before eventually winning 7-6.
The Sooners trailed by as many as five runs before they rallied late.
In the first inning, Oral Roberts’ Cooper Combs hit a two-out grand slam to give the Golden Eagles a comfortable cushion. OU infielder Deiten Lachance got the Sooners on the board in the second inning with a solo home run, but ORU responded with a solo shot of its own in the next frame.
The Golden Eagles made it a 6-1 run game in the top of the fourth, and they appeared to be on cruise control. But in the bottom of that frame, OU’s rally began.
Dasan Harris made it a four-run game again with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the fourth before Camden Johnson hit a sacrifice fly of his own in the fifth.
Then, in the sixth, the Sooners took their first lead of the game.
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Harris singled before Kyle Branch and Connor Larkin walked to load the bases. Willits then swung at the first pitch he saw, sending it well over the right-center field fence.
Neither team scored after Willits’ home run, as OU relief pitcher Xander Mercurius retired nine ORU batters in a row to seal the Sooners’ one-run win.
Michael Catalano started on the mound for Oklahoma, but his outing was short-lived — he gave up four earned runs on two hits and five walks in 1 ⅓ innings.
After coach Skip Johnson relieved Catalano in the second inning, six different OU arms entered the game. Reid Hensley collected the win, while Mercurius got the save.
OU improved to 28-12 overall with the win, while Oral Roberts dropped to 23-15. The Sooners are 7-3 in midweek games this season, and they clinched the season sweep of the Golden Eagles on Tuesday.
Next, the Sooners will hit the road for a three-game series against Auburn. The Tigers, ranked No. 11 by D1Baseball, are 10-8 in SEC play and took two of three games against Florida over the weekend.
The series will open on Friday, and first pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.
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