It seems to me, fall collegiate sports is still up in the air. Most colleges are preparing for their sports seasons to begin in August; however, some conferences have already cancelled their entire fall seasons.

The Ivy League announced last week it decided to cancel its fall season, the New England Small College Athletic Conference and the Patriot League have followed suit. However, Patriot League members Army and Navy are exempt from the cancellation. The National Junior College Athletic Association, which encompasses 525 schools, is moving its close-contact fall sports – football, soccer and court volleyball – to next spring.

While none of the Power 5 conferences have yet done the same, both the Big Ten and Pac-12 are limiting competition within their conferences only. All 14 SEC athletic directors are meeting to discuss options for the fall season, while the ACC and Big 12 are expected to determine their plans by the end of the month.

As of right now, I’m preparing to do the live webcasts for ORU men’s and women’s soccer, and looking forward to doing another season of P.A. announcing for ORU volleyball. It appears, as of this writing, that the Summit League is moving forward with fall sports.

Across town, at The University of Tulsa, the football team is preparing for its upcoming season, and a few of the Golden Hurricane players have been named to national preseason watch lists.

Receiver Keylon Stokes was named to the Biletnikoff Award Preseason Watch List. The Biletnikoff Award recognizes college football’s most outstanding FBS receiver regardless of position. The Manvel, Texas, native had a team-leading 1,040 yards and six touchdowns on 62 receptions for a 16.9 average per catch and an 86.7 average per game in 2019. He had four 100+ receiving games last season, including a career-best 144 yards against Houston.

Senior running backs Shamari Brooks and Corey Taylor II were named to the Doak Walker Award Preseason Watch List. It’s the second consecutive season that Brooks and Taylor have been named to the preseason watch list. The Doak Walker Award is annually presented to the nation’s top college running back. The 2019 award recipient was Wisconsin’s Jonathan Taylor.

Brooks and Taylor have combined for 4,190 rushing yards and 45 touchdowns in their careers. Brooks, from Tulsa Union High School, rushed for a team-high 1,046 yards and six touchdowns last year in 12 games. He earned second-team American Athletic Conference honors in 2019. Brooks turned in a career-best 202 rushing yards on 16 carries in the season finale against East Carolina to finish the season ranked 5th in the AAC.

Taylor, a three-year letter winner, from Holland Hall, has gained 1,490 career yards and 22 TDs in 32 games. He tallied 461 yards and six touchdowns on 119 carries last year, after turning in 846 yards and 11 touchdowns his sophomore season of 2018.

The Golden Hurricane is set to open the 2020 football season on September 5, with a home game against the Toledo Rockets, at H.A. Chapman Stadium.

SUPPORT FIRST TEE

I’ve written quite a bit about the First Tee golf program at Mohawk Park, over the years, and it continues to make an impact in the lives of young people every year.

First Tee Tulsa will hold the inaugural The Tradition Golf Event at Mohawk Park Golf Course on Friday, July 31. The Tradition Golf Event gives the opportunity for a team of three to join forces with two First Tee Tulsa students and compete in a 5-person scramble for prizes while also supporting our organization.

Since 2001, more than 99,000 youth have participated in one of the First Tee of Tulsa’s life skills golf training programs, including my two kids. Funds raised from The Tradition Golf Event allows the local program to continue teaching Tulsa’s youth life skills through the game of golf. This event will help offset operational expenses for the program, with all net proceeds going to First Tee Tulsa. The event will include; Tee favors, prizes for 1st place low gross and 1st place low net teams, dinner, awards ceremony, and refreshments following play.

The five-person scramble will be played on the front nine of the Pecan Valley Course, with a 6:00 p.m. shotgun start. Registration before July 25 is $50 per player; $75 per player if registering after July 25. Mulligans will be available for $10, plus a Long Drive contest for $10.

Having both of my children go through the First Tee program, and having known the Executive Director and coach Janice Gibson for over 15 years, I can tell you this is a worthy cause to support.

If you would like to receive a registration form or are interested in being a sponsor, contact Janice Gibson at 918-706-7175, email; jgibson@firstteetulsa.org for more information.