Oklahoma
Puppy Bowl 2025: Meet Redbud, the mini Shepherd, Australian Cattle mix from Oklahoma
Puppy Bowl XXI: Adorable shelter pups compete for ‘Lombarky’ trophy
This year’s Puppy Bowl XXI features a record-breaking 142 dogs, including 11 with disabilities.
Puppy Bowl XXI is back with a new group of pups, including one from Oklahoma, amped for some furry pre-game football action ahead of Super Bowl LIX.
Adorable, adoptable puppies should be a pleasant distraction until the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs take the field for Super Bowl 59.
This year’s event will feature Redbud, a miniature American Shepherd and Australian Cattle mix adopted from the Oklahoma Humane Society.
Here’s what we know about the Puppy Bowl XXI event, how to watch, and this year’s Oklahoman on the roster:
What is the Puppy Bowl?
The Puppy Bowl is an annual program Animal Planet has presented since 2005 to raise awareness about adopting pets from shelters and rescuing abandoned animals.
This year, the Puppy Bowl will host a record number of four-legged athletes with 142 rescue puppies from 80 shelters across 40 states and two countries. It will be centered on their lives, from their births and rescues to their adoptions and the people behind the shelters that make it all possible.
The event is held in a dog-sized football field stadium measuring 19 feet long by 10 feet wide. The game will feature two opposing sides — Team Ruff and Team Fluff — that will play a game resembling football except there is a human “rufferee” keeping score as the dogs drag football-shaped toys into the end zone for a “puppy touchdown.”
When is the Puppy Bowl 2025?
The Puppy Bowl 2025 is scheduled to air at 1 p.m. CT on Sunday, Feb. 9.
It will be simulcast across Animal Planet, Discovery, Discovery+, TBS, truTV, and Max.
Puppy Bowl Teams
The Super Bowl and Puppy Bowl are both full of deja vu as both teams feature a match-up we may have seen before: Team Fluff vs Team Ruff.
The two teams compete for the Walmart “Lombarky” trophy and the MVP (Most Valuable Puppy) title. An online poll decides MVP.
Meet Redbud: Puppy Bowl 2025 participant from Oklahoma
Redbud is undeniably a good girl. She was originally a dog in the Oklahoma Humane Adoption Program before she was adopted.
Redbud is a mixed breed of Miniature American Shepherd and Australian Cattle Dog.
The Humane Society has made some merchandise for Redbud’s biggest fans while she plays on Sunday.
The limited-edition merchandise includes a mug, shirt and sweatshirt with Redbud’s face. Mugs can be purchased at the OK Humane Adoption Center in Oklahoma City, and shirts can be purchased here.
Puppy adoption
This year’s Puppy Bowl will also bring back adoptables segments “featuring puppies – and a few kittens – that will be available for adoption during the game,” Warner Bros. said.
Saman Shafiq contributed to this report.
Oklahoma
Iowa State wrestling adds Brayden Thompson from transfer portal
New Iowa State wrestling coach Brent Metcalf outlines vision for team
New Iowa State wrestling coach Brent Metcalf outlines vision for team
Iowa State wrestling’s first commitment of the Brent Metcalf era will be a transfer portal addition.
The Cyclones added Oklahoma State transfer Brayden Thompson, who announced his commitment on April 18 via Instagram. Thompson is a one-time NCAA qualifier at the 2024 NCAA Championships, doing so as a true freshman. He redshirted in 2024-25, but competed in open tournaments at 184 pounds and was 9-0. He did not wrestle a match in 2025-26 and will have at least two years of eligibility remaining.
Out of high school, Thompson was ranked the No. 3 pound-for-pound wrestler and No. 1 at 182 pounds in the 2023 recruiting class by Flowrestling. He also won Powerade and Ironman titles, two of the more prestigious high school tournaments in the nation. Assuming Thompson returns to 184 pounds where he last wrestled, he should fill in nicely as a potential replacement for Isaac Dean after his graduation.
Thompson is Iowa State’s first transfer portal addition after several departures, including Anthony Echemendia and Christian Castillo, who also entered the portal.
Eli McKown covers high school sports and wrestling for the Des Moines Register. Contact him at Emckown@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @EMcKown23.
Oklahoma
Oklahoma’s Jahsiear Rogers ‘Knew It Was Time to Showcase’ His Talents In Spring Game
NORMAN — The Oklahoma Sooners liked their wide receiver room a year ago. They want 2026 to be even better.
Isaiah Sategna’s return helps that desire. Earning experienced pass catchers Trell Harris and Parker Livingstone via the transfer portal gives you added play makers. But after the Sooners Spring Game on Saturday, an unlikely hero emerged.
When Jahsiear Rogers flipped from Penn State to Oklahoma last December, he drew the usual excitement that comes with a new commitment. But few expected him to climb the depth chart this quickly, even with the injuries that hit Emmett Jones’ room.
Rogers did just that and more on Saturday. He led all pass catchers with five receptions for 70 yards in Oklahoma’s annual Red/White game.
“I knew it was time to showcase,” Rogers said after the game. “It was amazing to see the fans and get used to the OU way. I’m a playmaker. They really want to put the ball in playmakers hands. I pretty much knew I had to lead the white team.”
Rogers got the ball rolling early. On the second offensive play for the white team, backup quarterback Whitt Newbauer rolled to his right wide, then stopped and looked towards the middle of the field where he saw Rogers running open. Newbauer connected with Rogers for a 39-yard gain.
Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news.
With Rogers on the white team, he is running against (most of) Oklahoma’s starting defense. As fate would have it, on that 39-yard reception, Rogers beat his favorite teammate to compete against — Reggie Powers.
“He is just a leader, good guy,” Rogers said of Powers. “Me and him go after it every day in practice. Reggie is strong. When I come at him, I have to really come at him.”
Rogers’ big play over Powers was the second-longest catch of the spring game — Sategna’s 50-yard reception that appeared to be a touchdown before coaches pulled it back to set up a red-zone rep. The other four catches weren’t flashy, but they were important in their own way, and Rogers looked like he belonged on the field.
“I love it. As long as I can get the ball, I can be me. I love it,” Rogers said. “When I am on the field, I am ready to go. I am ready to be a playmaker.”
The season is still months away, and Rogers hasn’t earned a spot high on the depth chart yet. A strong spring and an encouraging Red/White Game can only lead to early playing time if he carries that momentum into summer and fall camp.
More experienced players will return from injury and receivers who’ve been in the program for a few years will have an extra leg-up.
But Rogers is taking everything in stride and leaving no stone unturned in his development.
“Just learning from the older guys,” Rogers said. “Manny Choice, Isaiah Sategna, Trell Harris, Mackenzie Alleyne. Really all of them. We lean on each other, learn from each other. That is kind of how our room is.”
Follow
Oklahoma
Oklahoma knocks off Missouri in series opener
The Oklahoma baseball team is back in the mix and trending upward.
After a rough few weeks in Southeastern Conference play, the 14th-ranked Sooners have won three of their last four games to get to .500 at just beyond the halfway point of the league slate. Friday’s 9-6 win over Missouri allowed Oklahoma to move to 8-8, tied with three other teams for eighth in the standings.
Friday’s win wasn’t truly that close, even. OU took a 9-3 lead into the ninth before Mizzou made it somewhat interesting with three runs in the frame. Two of them came with two outs, though, and Mason Bixby induced a groundout with the bases empty to hold on.
The large edge came via a home run-happy night. The Sooners popped four over the wall at Kimrey Family Stadium, including three in a four-run seventh inning that gave OU a four-run lead.
Jason Walk, who hit one of the four homers, had the best day at the plate. He went 2 for 5 with the shot, three RBIs and a run. Camden Johnson, who also homered, went 2 for 3 with a walk, a double and two runs, and Dasan Harris went 2 for 4 with a home run, two RBIs, and three runs. Trey Gambill hit the Sooners’ other jack.
Oklahoma jumped out to a four-run lead in the second behind four hits and a walk. Missouri helped the Sooners out with an error that resulted in a bases-loaded situation and three unearned runs registered to Tigers starter Josh McDevitt.
The runs were more than enough for Oklahoma’s LJ Mercurius, who pitched six strong innings, giving up three runs on six hits with no walks and nine strikeouts.
Game 2 in the series is set for 4 p.m. Saturday and the finale will be played Sunday at 2 p.m., weather permitting.
-
Detroit, MI2 hours agoGame 21: Tigers at Red Sox, Garrett Crochet battles both Detroit and the weather
-
San Francisco, CA2 hours agoWhy do gray whales keep dying in San Francisco’s waters?
-
Dallas, TX2 hours agoDallas Mavericks Owners Might Be Making Big Mistake in Search for New GM
-
Miami, FL2 hours agoDefense dominates, Mensah flashes in Miami’s spring game – The Miami Hurricane
-
Boston, MA2 hours ago
A crowd scientist is helping the Boston Marathon manage a growing field of 30,000-plus runners
-
Denver, CO2 hours agoDenver Nuggets Altitude broadcasts now being offered in Spanish for first time ever
-
Seattle, WA2 hours agoNeed to shred? Free drive-up/ride-up shredding Wednesday at Village Green West Seattle
-
San Diego, CA3 hours agoGame 21: San Diego Padres at Los Angeles Angels