Cowboys Have Best Practice of Camp so far as Season Comes into Focus
STILLWATER -- Oklahoma State hit the field inside the Sherman Smith Training Center and the outside practices fields still in use to on Wednesday morning (Aug. 12) and head coach Mike Gundy noticed a difference. For the first time since camp opened on Aug. 5 the Cowboys had a game to actually look forward to, an opponent, a date, everything but the kickoff time. Oklahoma State will open the season with their one non conference game against Tulsa inside Boone Pickens Stadium on Sept. 12. The Big 12 Conference filled in all the blanks on the fall Saturdays with a complete schedule on Wednesday morning.
Voila' the Big 12 football schedule for a pandemic season.
Big 12 Conference
Oklahoma State was on the field for roughly two hours and 30 minutes and Cowboys head coach Mike Gundy as well as several other sources we checked in with called it the best and most enthusiastic practice so far in fall camp.
"We had an awesome practice today." text the head coach.
LD Brown carries the football in practice earlier in fall camp.
Bruce Waterfield - Oklahoma State University Athletics
Oklahoma State still has not been in full pads and they were in helmets and shoulder pads on Wednesday. We are told the focus on practice ranged from the punt game in special teams to more plus field position for the offense and defending minus field position for the defense. Overall, one source told us the defense was pretty stout, but the offense, primarily the running game with Chuba Hubbard and LD Brown had their moments. It's always hard to identify a top play or effort in practice, but Dillon Stoner was said to have had some highlights on Wednesday.
The veteran senior slot receiver and punt returner was one of the three Cowboys players that was on an athlete advisory committee with players from each Big 12 school that has met consistently with Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby. Dillon Stoner, linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez, and receiver Tylan Wallace represented the Pokes.
"We have spent the last week, and basically the last five months, trying to ascertain the best path forward," Bowlsby told the media tuned in Wednesday morning to a teleconference with the Big 12 commissioner. "We've done that mostly talking to our student-athletes and to healthcare professionals and scientists that are working in COVID-19 research."
Bowlsby called the contributions and question asked by the athletes as being bright and very insightful. He considered their contributions invaluable and said those meetings with the athletes and himself will continue as the conference progressed toward what they hope will be kick-off in September. Bowlsby called the league's meeting Wednesday night as clarity on the season, but not confirmation.
Oklahoma State still has several players, primarily bigger players, linemen, that are working on lighter exercises and have yet to be cleared for full participation. Pokes Report has learned from sources at Oklahoma State and talking to other sources in the Big 12 that Oklahoma State was on the front end of using extensive testing including cardiac MRI, EKG, and echo or echocardiogram tests for players that tested positive and recovered from COVID-19. Thoses tests have shown that some players have some scar tissue or Myocarditis, which is a common side effect or lasting effect from having any one of various viral infections. It is one of the major concerns now with athletes that have had the coronavirus.
"Our policy for any students that tests positive bfore they go back to any activity are going to have to have cardiac MRI, an EKG, an echo, and atropedan tests," Bowlsby outlined. "That is the standard that is required and that cardiologist mandate and that will be our case. There will probably be some that will not be back, but we will know that before they get back to any strenous exercise."
Talking to some doctors, the issues almost always recede, but it can take up to six months for that to happen. In a few cases it may continue beyond that.
The good news is Oklahoma State with team dosctor, Dr. Val Gene Iven has been ahead of the game on those post COVID-19 issues.
Bowlsby and the Big 12 have been getting their information from some highly regarded resouces including the team of epidemiolgists at Duke. That includes doctors working alongside Dr. Cameron Wolfe, who was the doctor that told the ACC they could play football earlier this week and that was quoted in The Sports Business Journal on the same day the Big Ten and Pac-12 squashed their fall sports including football.
