“Coach, I'm your guy”

Really, when one thinks about it, one would expect nothing less from this person when asked by his head coach if he would consider returning to the QB position after the starter was kicked off the team. After all, few athletes at the University of Oklahoma have given up more and not even a peep of complaint from him.

Even though the shock waves are still rumbling, after listening to Coach Stoops’ press conference on Thursday, I still have every bit of the anticipation that I had for this upcoming football season than I had a week ago. In some ways, maybe a bit more! Some of the more enjoyable Sooner seasons have been when much of the media and public persona have ‘written off’ the Sooner football team.

But maybe what really gets me exited about this season, is the person who will be under center for the Crimson and Cream. Paul Thompson has made many sacrifices throughout his OU Football career. From removing his red-shirt in a ‘meaningless’ game his Freshman year, to ‘re-redshirting’ his Junior year after Heisman Trophy winner stayed for an additional season, to changing to the Wide Receiver position last year after just a handful of games. His coaches, and more importantly, his teammates respect him. They look up to him for his leadership, something that is beneficial at the QB position. No ‘fist pumping’ when scoring a TD late in the game of a double digit loss, no ‘raising of the arms’ in disgust after a dropped pass, and no ‘spiking’ of the ball after the final play of a Bowl victory.

So yesterday, a few things popped in my head when I heard the news of what Thompson’s answer to the Bob Stoops’ question of ‘will you return to the QB position’? And the answer was ‘Coach, I am your guy’. One is that I am happy that you are getting a 2nd chance (even though the 1st chance really wasn’t much of one) to be the starting QB at OU. Two, is that I can’t wait till the half time ceremony at ‘senior day’ when you receive the ‘Don Key Award’. Paul Thompson should very well go down as what being a Sooner is all about. one can only hope that even if he struggles and doesn't get the Sooner faithful where we want to be this year, they well support this man’s endless integrity and what he has given to this program. He's the Anti-Bomar. It's all about the team, the University, the program and NOTHING about what's in his own best interest.

Marc and Felecia must be very proud of their son these days.