Oklahoma
SEC Media Days 2024: Alabama’s Kalen DeBoer debuts, Oklahoma and Texas joining league lead storylines to watch
SEC Media Days begins Monday on a new frontier, as the freshly expanded conference gathers in Dallas to usher in a new era for a league that now includes Oklahoma and Texas. The arrival of the Sooners and Longhorns makes the SEC a 16-team super conference replete with an even greater share of college football’s top brands.
That’s only the beginning of the changes for the league entering the 2024 season. Gone from the sidelines — and from the speaking podium — is Nick Saban. The absence of Alabama’s retired legend and his annual headline-grabbing address to the college football world will leave a void that no single coach can fill.
But as Saban departs, fresh blood enters. In addition to the arrivals of OU’s Brent Venables and Texas’ Steve Sarkisian to the league’s coaching vanguard, three schools are welcoming new head coaches. Among them is Alabama’s Kalen DeBoer, who will take the podium on Wednesday during the event’s third day.
The other new coaches are Mike Elko of Texas A&M and Jeff Lebby of Mississippi State. While both are familiar with the SEC from their time as coordinators in the conference, they’ll be making their SEC Media Days debuts and establishing the narratives surrounding their teams for the upcoming season.
It’s a new day in college football and in the SEC. Here’s a deeper dive into what to watch for at SEC Media Days which begins Monday and concludes Thursday.
A new frontier
Oklahoma and Texas grew accustomed to being the top attractions at Big 12 Media Days. They were the standard-bearers of their old league, combining to win seven of the last nine Big 12 championships. Now, the Sooners and Longhorns have something to prove as they embark on Year 1 in the SEC.
OU won 10 or more games 19 times in the first 24 seasons of the millennium while members of the Big 12. Will they be able to maintain that elite standard in the SEC? The Sooners took a big step forward last season in Venables’ second season by finishing 10-3. But Venables is replacing both coordinators and his starting quarterback while preparing to face a daunting schedule. Will he try to moderate expectations?
Texas is entering the SEC fresh off its first Big 12 title since 2009. The Longhorns reached the College Football Playoff and return a Heisman Trophy contender at quarterback in Quinn Ewers. The Longhorns have also drawn a favorable conference slate for their first season in the league, and it will be interesting to see how much bravado they project as SEC Media Days rolls through their home state.
DeBoer’s debut
Three years ago, DeBoer was heading to Mountain West media days as Fresno State’s head coach. The lights are a bit brighter now as DeBoer’s rapid rise through the coaching ranks reaches its zenith at Alabama. DeBoer just led Washington to a 25-3 mark over a remarkable two-year stint and has amassed a 104-12 record across nine seasons as a head coach at the NAIA, Group of Five and power conference levels.
But DeBoer has never worked in the SEC in any capacity, and following Saban places him under a level of scrutiny unlike anything he’s experienced. His first SEC Media Days appearance is a meaningful milestone that offers DeBoer a chance to steer the national conversation around his tenure and Alabama’s 2024 team.
Stars in the making
A handful of SEC quarterbacks who have bided their time as backups in the conference will get the chance to shine in 2024. Among them are Oklahoma’s Jackson Arnold and LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier, who will be on hand for SEC Media Days.
Arnold, a sophomore, is a former five-star prospect who started OU’s Alamo Bowl loss to Arizona in December after playing sparingly in mop-up duty behind Dillon Gabriel as a freshman. With Gabriel gone to Oregon, the job is his. Venables’ decision to bring Arnold as the lone player representative from Oklahoma’s offense illustrates how important he’ll be to the Sooners’ hopes of early success in the SEC.
Nussmeier, a redshirt junior, brings more experience to the table but has even bigger shoes to fill than Arnold. His job is to replace Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels, who accounted for 50 touchdowns and nearly 5,000 total yards in 12 games last season. He’s waited his turn. Now, before he faces the onslaught of pass rushers, he’ll face an onslaught of questions as one of LSU’s three player representatives at media days.
Redemption narrative?
Georgia completed a third consecutive unbeaten regular season in league play last season but was denied the opportunity at a national title three-peat because of a loss to Alabama in the SEC Championship Game. Are the Bulldogs using the frustration of that missed opportunity as fuel? Or have they put it behind them to focus exclusively on what’s ahead in 2024?
Georgia coach Kirby Smart is a master motivator and is clearly sitting atop college football’s coaching pyramid now amid the departures of Saban and Jim Harbaugh from Michigan. It will be interesting to learn what tactics he’s using to fuel a program that is 42-2 over the past three seasons.
Back for more
Ole Miss and Missouri each enjoyed banner years in 2023, finishing 11-2 with New Year’s Six bowl victories. It was the best win total in program history for the Rebels and the best season in a decade for the Tigers. Coaches Lane Kiffin (Ole Miss) and Eli Drinkwitz (Missouri) are among the league’s more entertaining characters. Now, they have some significant success to tout as they prepare for College Football Playoff runs in the season ahead.
Both teams have enough continuity in key spots to realistically compete at the highest level in the SEC and for CFP access. Will Kiffin and Drinkwitz play it cool? Or are they going to put their cards on the table and declare their grand ambitions for the 2024 season?
Feeling the pressure
A handful of SEC coaches are feeling the pressure entering the season, perhaps none more than Arkansas’ Sam Pittman. On the heels of a 4-8 campaign, Pittman registered as the only “5” in Dennis Dodd’s 2024 hot seat rankings. Category 5 is for those in the position of “win or be fired.” Winning won’t be easy for the Razorbacks, who travel to Oklahoma State in Week 2, in addition to facing the usual SEC gauntlet. Expect one of the top talking points during Pittman’s appearance on Thursday to be his hiring of former Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino as offensive coordinator. Desperate times call for desperate measures.
Pittman isn’t alone on the hot seat. Vanderbilt’s Clark Lea and Florida’s Billy Napier each registered at “4” in Dodd’s hot seat rankings, meaning they need to “start improving now.”
Putnam City West High School will shift to virtual learning on Tuesday after an incident involving two students prompted an investigation by the district and Oklahoma City police, according to Putnam City Schools.
District officials said administrators were alerted near the end of the school day Monday to an altercation involving two students in the school’s arena area.
Officials said the students left campus, and the case was turned over to Putnam City Campus Police and the Oklahoma City Police Department for investigation.
District officials said no students or staff were harmed and there is no ongoing safety threat related to the incident.
What we know
Putnam City West sent the following email to all families and staff at the school:
All PCW students and staff will transition to virtual learning for Tuesday, April 21st.
Today, an isolated serious incident involving two students occurred on school grounds. Near the end of the school day, administrators were alerted to an altercation between two students in the arena area. The individuals involved quickly left campus, prompting an initial fact-finding response by school administrators before the matter was turned over to Putnam City Campus Police and the Oklahoma City Police Department for further investigation. Because this is an active investigation involving students, no further information will be released at this time.
We understand this information may be concerning to students, staff, and families. Please know we are committed to maintaining a safe, secure, and positive learning environment for all students. At Putnam City Schools, student and staff safety remains our highest priority. Therefore, out of an abundance of caution and to allow for a thorough investigation, all PCW students and staff will transition to virtual learning for Tuesday, April 21st. Students will need to check Google Classroom for updates from teachers.
Thank you for your understanding and continued support of PC West.
Putnam City Schools
All students and staff at Putnam City West will transition to virtual learning on Tuesday, April 21, while investigators continue their work, according to the district.
Students were told to check Google Classroom for instructions from teachers.
The district said it is withholding additional details because the case involves students and remains under investigation.
School officials have not said what triggered the incident or whether any arrests have been made.
This is a developing story. Updates will be added as more information becomes available.
TULSA, OKLA (KTUL) — A new program in Oklahoma is giving adults another way to finish high school by allowing them to use past credits and test scores to earn a diploma, an option officials say could help thousands of people and strengthen the state’s workforce.
For years, adults in Oklahoma who did not finish high school largely had one main option: earning a GED. Now, Oklahoma CareerTech is rolling out the Career Readiness Diploma, a pathway designed to build on what students have already completed rather than requiring them to start over.
“So in Oklahoma right now, if you look at the demographics, we have about 279,000 people in our state without a high school diploma. So it’s almost 10% of our population doesn’t have a high school diploma,” said Lance Allee, an adult education and family literacy specialist with Oklahoma CareerTech.
Allee said the program allows adults to apply previously earned high school credit and combine different assessment scores into a single record to qualify for a diploma.
“It allows the student to use previously earned high school credit. So, it’s kind of like a portfolio where you can take multiple assessment scores and put them into one portfolio to get your high school diploma,” Allee said.
The program is open to adults 21 and older. In some cases, officials said, participants can finish in just weeks, depending on how many credits they already have.
CareerTech officials say the program is also aimed at improving job prospects for individuals while helping Oklahoma remain competitive when attracting employers.
“When you’re a company and you’re looking at moving into Oklahoma, you look at the demographics and say, is there a workforce there that we can employ? And you say, well, about 10% of the population doesn’t have a diploma, they may start looking at states that surround us. So, we definitely want to get as many diplomas out there as we can,” Allee said.
The program started issuing diplomas in recent weeks, and officials said dozens more people are already in the process. For more information or to sign up click here.
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NORMAN — Cord Rager’s return comes at a pivotal time for Skip Johnson’s Oklahoma Sooners. Not only do they get their day three starter back in time for big road matchups against Auburn and Arkansas on the horizon, but the Sooners pitching strength, their rotational depth, is primed and ready for the test.
The freshman lefty finished with eight strikeouts and only gave up one hit in only 65 pitches before his day ended in the sixth.
No. 14 Oklahoma earn its first conference sweep of the season, defeating Missouri 8-4. It was OU’s fourth conference series win.
Oklahoma (27-12, 10-8) put their best foot forward as they turn the page to the meat of their schedule where they will do battle against No. 13, No. 20 and No. 16 over the next three weeks — two of those series’ on the road.
Four runs in five hits in the second got things rolling for the Sooners.
Camden Johnson continued his brilliant play of late with a triple in the second. This came after a Brenden Brock solo home run to put OU up 1-0. Deiten LaChance grounded out to short but scored Johnson. Dasan Harris and and Nolan Stevens each found home before the inning ended.
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OU found fortune from the plate again in the fourth. Four runs off of four hits highlighted by a three-run home run by Johnson put Oklahoma up 8-0. It was Johnson’s seventh home run of the season, second on the team behind Brock’s nine.
Trent Collier got the nod in the sixth to relieve Rager.
In the seventh, Missouri finally got on the board for the first time since the ninth inning of Friday night’s Sooner victory. Cam Durnin hit a solo shot — his fourht of the season — to make the score 8-1 in favor of the home team.
The Tigers got their third hit of the game shortly after. From there, Collier’s short day was done. Gavyn Jones came on to relieve
LaChance missed a home run by inches when Tiger center fielder Kaden Peer made a leaping catch, jumping into the fence.
In the eighth, the Tigers continued to chip away. With bases loaded, Blaze Ward hit a basehit to score two Missouri base runners. OU led 8-3 heading into the final inning.
Harris led the Sooners with three hits. His day was accented by an RBI, stolen base and a run.
Oklahoma will travel to Auburn to take on the No. 13 Tigers for a three game series starting on Friday. Before that, they will host Oral Roberts for a midweek game at Kimrey Family Stadium in Norman. The Sooners won 4-0 against ORU earlier this season.
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