Daily Bullets (July 13): Most Viewed of the Week, Gundy’s Policy Vindicated

I spent the evening in Stillwater, Minnesota last night – wonderful town (get ice cream here) but I’d rank the Oklahoma variety more highly.

Bullets Rundown

• Gundy thought it through with recruiting
• Boone lands on the sunnyside of unknowns
• Fiesta Bowl talk

OSU Bullets

• Most Viewed of the Week (No. 1): Gundy’s Recruiting Policy Vindicated?

Mike Gundy took some flack for pulling an offer of a committed recruit but I’m all for it. What does it communicate to a player when you say one thing and do another? Namely that your word isn’t’ worth a whole lot. I like the principles in play here and think it’s the right move for Gundy. I think when a kid learns of the policy could bear some weight – is it after he commits that he hears of this?

Now – here’s a question: if Spencer Sanders had taken another official visit, do you think the same policy is in place? Boone refers to a situation with an OU recruit where they flirted around and ended up leaving the fold. I would guess there’s a quality (rank/stars) of a recruit that may be exempt from the policy.

• Most Viewed of the Week (No. 2): Why Boone’s Pumped for 2019

More often than not, these takes were centered on optimism about unknowns – I need Boone to rub off on writers who cover all things I read. Quarterback play, new coaches (both coming in and developing continuity after a year), new coaches in the Big 12 and somewhat of a new offense are all unknowns that would all ideally break in OSU’s favor.

But if you’re looking for true optimism, soak in point number ten. Gundy coming off a 7-6 season with no bullseye on his back is a fun place to be historically speaking.

• Most Viewed of the Week (No. 3): When the Offense Stalled Against Stanford in the Fiesta Bowl

This was truly a stage-setting piece by Marshall, queueing up the magic that was Blackmon’s second quarter (see below) and the Stanford kicker’s worst nightmare. But how the offense struggled to get going for a quarter and a half was mindboggling. It wasn’t Andrew Luck keeping them off the field, it was strong defensive play. And it wouldn’t last.

A brief sidebar here – how missing those two Fiesta Bowl kicks affected the Jordan Williamson (the Stanford kicker) as an opportunity to learn and grow was fantastic.[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOF9ivQ9HWk&w=1050&h=591]

• Most Viewed of the Week (No. 4): When Blackmon Took Over the Fiesta Bowl

My goodness… I had forgotten how much Justin Blackmon was a man among boys. When he shucks off the defender on the second touchdown and hit the burners, you just get a sense of how something about Blackmon’s work ethic and natural talent was head and shoulders above the level of play.

• Most Viewed of the Week (No. 5): How Matthew Wolff Won the 3M Open

The incredibly unique thing about Wolff here isn’t just that he’s the third golfer to ever win the NCAA title and a PGA Tour event in the same year, it’s that he’s facing sky-high expectations (mega endorsement deals) and meeting them out of the gate. For a 20-year-old to come out and nail that eagle putt to take back the lead and clinch the win was Blackmon-grown man stuff.

Non-OSU Bullets

• Godin’s blog on lining up with the competition threw me

• Lowe looks at the impact of the Westbrook trade on OKC

• Faith-based look at considering the idea of quitting Netflix (for tech addiction reasons)

Loved this Brett McMurphy tweet congratulating Berry Tramel on Russ Westbrook moving on:

Congrats to @BerryTramel

— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) July 12, 2019