Mike Gundy Can Kick off 2017 by Winning Big 12 Media Days

In less than two weeks, the Big 12’s head football coaches will round up a handful of carefully selected student athletes, assign them matching garb and board a plane for Frisco, Texas to take part in the conference’s annual media days.

Every year there seems to be some new bit of intrigue cast on the event. It could be Big 12 expansion. Or a certain school’s “off-the-field” issues. Or another’s College Football Playoff snub. This year’s media days comes with a built-in story line. The historic bell cows of flyover country each have new head men at the helm.

First-year Big 12 coach Tom Herman made the jump from Houston to the University of Texas last November and looked poised to be the Big 12’s next golden boy. That was until the shocking retirement of long-reigning conference king Bob Stoops in June. Now another up-and-comer is making his bid for the throne in Lincoln Riley.

The two schools haven’t boasted new coaches in the same year in seven decades. Could this be the beginning a great new chapter in their rivalry? While most of the Red River questions are already etched in notepads, the mullet grows.

What’s the big deal with media days, anyway? Nothing is really learned after league commissioner Bob Bowlsby finishes his address. Not much is really learned during his address. Aside from the occasional jab between rival coaches during their time at the podium, you just get a bunch of coach speak like “we’re just trying to improve each practice and go from there” or “we’ll know more about this team in November.”

Last year’s edition was an exhibition in dis-functionality. Bowlsby couldn’t decide what the conference thought about Baylor or how much or little they should do/knew about it. Then there was the talk of expansion or death. Expansion or death. Expansion or death. The singular light note of the week was Mike Gundy’s new hairdo.

But in the last twelve months that sprig of a mullet has gone from a side note to a full-blown social media phenomena with several parody accounts and even its own remote on SportsCenter. The head coach who was once most famous for his tirade as a 40-year-old now saunters into the room in proverbial singlet (and in actual cowboy boots), rattlesnake in hand, ready to see his name displayed on the left side of his Twitter app.

Mike Gundy’s “newfound” persona is an enigma to most. He’s just seeking attention, they say. But Gundy is who he is by way of confidence. The country-fried shadow he casts over sports pop culture comes more from a place of apathy than contrivance. He is who he is and always has been. He just no longer cares what people think. And they love him for it.

These media interactions equal press. Press gives exposure and exposure drives the brand, which can help in your recruiting footprint and overall relevance in the national landscape. That’s just a part of “the world we live in” now. Something the 12th-year head coach has embraced as of late.

While Texas looks to rebuild and Oklahoma hopes to retool in the coaching game, Oklahoma State sits at the top of the Big 12 coach pecking order. Kyle Porter wrote about Mike Gundy’s opportunity to take his seat atop the mountain for what his team does on the field. But Gundy can start in mid-July with what he says into a microphone.

Mike Gundy can walk into a group of reporters hanging on every Herman and Riley syllable and secure his first victory of 2017, the room. It doesn’t have to be something silly or frivolous. Sure, he may field a question or two about hair products or reptiles. But it’s about confidence. About swagger. And with the lofty expectations surrounding his team and the crimson monkey possibly off of his back, Mike Gundy’s brimming with both.

Get your bingo cards ready.