OU vice president David Surratt heard the gasps from people sitting in the Lloyd Noble Center on Friday night as he walked alongside a student about to be awarded a master’s degree in human relations:
Jalen Hurts.
You can understand the astonishment. That feeling when you see a familiar face in an unfamiliar place. Like a neighbor on vacation, or your postal carrier on the golf course.
Why did a National Football League quarterback, who just signed a five-year, $255-million contract, finish off his master’s degree at a school he attended for one year?
But the answers are clear. It made Hurts’ mother happy, and she has a son who seems committed to personal development.
“Just a huge testament to his character, the value of higher education and his commitment to his personal development,” said Surratt, OU’s dean of students and VP of student affairs. “I think it’s great.”
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So, apparently, did Pamela Hurts.
"I Know Momma Proud Of This One," Jalen Hurts said in an Instagram post Saturday, accompanied by photos of him holding his diploma and wearing his graduation regalia.
Pamela Hurts was a special education teacher who became a counselor. Jalen’s father, Averion Hurts, is a high school football coach in Channelview, Texas.
In April, “Essence” magazine quoted Jalen Hurts as saying his mother went back to college for her master’s degree “to become a counselor. That’s a living testimony for me.”
If it’s all the same, Sooners will claim Hurts as a living testimony for the university. Hurts graduated from Alabama in three years, with a degree in public relations and information sciences. Then in January 2019, Hurts transferred to OU and quarterbacked the Sooners to the College Football Playoff. He placed second in the Heisman Trophy voting.
A former Sooner administrator contacted me over the weekend and said seeing Hurts get his master’s from OU meant more than all the hero-sized Heisman statues east of Owen Field.
The graduate transfer rule was the pioneer for immediate-eligibility in college football transfers. These days, immediate eligibility is virtually guaranteed for everyone, but until a couple of years ago, only graduates had that freedom.
The rule was enacted under the guise of academics – allowing players to pursue their master’s elsewhere and play immediately, if the new school offered a program unavailable at the original school. But that became a mockery, and the rule in effect was used almost solely for athletic purposes.
Now along comes Hurts, showing that even the most serious-minded football players – and Hurts is nothing if not a serious-minded football player – can be committed to academics, too.
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“It was absolutely great,” said Surratt, who himself holds a master’s in human relations from OU (along with a bachelor’s degree in English literature from OU and a doctorate degree in higher education from George Washington University). “I know I benefitted from that (similar) degree.
“I can speak, as a graduate, that particular program has emphases in organizational development, multi-cultural communication, some counseling.”
Sounds like every NFL quarterback could benefit from such a skill set.
And for historical relevance, the master’s in human relations program was developed by George Henderson, the pioneer professor who in 1967 broke the color barrier for home ownership in Norman.
Surratt says to not buy into the stereotype that athletes don’t care about academics.
“You’re going to find some who are differently motivated, who understand the intangible value of a degree,” Surratt said.
He noted the example of former Sooner safety Patrick Fields, who graduated from OU a year ago and transferred to Stanford to pursue a master’s.
"Pat was one of those guys, again, tremendous character, lot of success on the field, but always wanted to have plenty of options,” Surratt said.
Surratt said Hurts’ fellow graduates were thrilled to share their way with such a celebrity. Surratt received texts from students asking to be introduced to Hurts.
“They were absolutely excited,” Surratt said “It’s so funny, we walked out together, you could hear the audible gasp and excitement from the crowd. Pretty awesome.”
At least one of the Hurts graduation photos that hit social media included Surratt, who heard from former colleagues all over the country, including those at Penn State, one of his former schools.
“This is one of our many tremendous graduates,” Surratt told them. “Excited to cheer them on. Just proud of all of them. He’s one of many.”
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Champion Bob Stoops expects to be back in XFL
Launching a spring football league is not terribly difficult. It can be expensive, but not otherwise difficult.
But relaunching a spring football league is not easy at all. And sustaining a spring league never has been accomplished, despite many endeavors.
But the XFL seems to have a fighting chance. At least in Bob Stoops’ estimation.
Stoops’ Arlington Renegades won the 2023 XFL championship with a 35-26 victory over the D.C. Defenders in San Antonio on Saturday. Then Stoops said he knows of nothing that would prevent him from returning to the XFL for a third season.
“Yeah, if all things remain positive on my end with my family and everything I’m doing, I intend to be back,” Stoops said. “But you never know what the Good Lord’s going to bring you.”
Stoops won a national championship in his second OU season as coach, 2000. Stoops won an XFL championship in his second season as the Renegades coach – but in his first opportunity. The first XFL season, in 2020, was canceled at the halfway mark, by the pandemic.
Stoops remains bullish on the XFL, the spring league that conceivably could serve as a developmental outlet for the National Football League and absolutely has served as a spring football fix for fans.
“I didn’t know what was going to happen, whether it was going to come back or not, but once they asked me, I was all in,” Stoops said of returning to the XFL after the interrupted launch three years ago. “I think it shows our ownership is incredible, and our upper management. They do a great job.
“I see this as very viable and is going to continue to go and move forward.”
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Stoops’ Renegades went 4-6 in the regular season but advanced to the four-team playoff because their division was much weaker. Then the Renegades beat the Houston Roughnecks 26-11 in the XFL semifinals and the 10-1 Defenders in the title game.
Stoops said the quality of play and the quality of the league should get better.
“The good thing about it is, all these players that have been picked up, going to NFL camps,” Stoops said. “We’re done playing now. All our guys can go, whoever gets picked up. And that’s a positive thing. They like that.
“So I think the timing of what we’re doing has been great. Fan support has been great. And it’s only going to improve.”
Pro football can be a funny business. The Renegades were 2-3 in the abbreviated 2020 season, so Stoops’ overall XFL record is 8-9. Yet he’s the league’s only championship coach.
“Feels great,” Stoops said of winning a title. “That’s what you want. If you’re going to do something, you want to win and you want to be the champion at it.
“Fortunately, we did what we needed to do here in the last few weeks to get that done. Again, just feel like we’re just now taking off. Wish we had 10 more games to play, the way we’re playing now.”
As long as the XFL returns for a third season, the Renegades have 10 more games next spring.
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The List: Celtic playoff scoring leaders
Jayson Tatum’s 51-point performance in Game 7 against the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday jumped Tatum from 10th to eighth on the all-time playoff scoring list.
Tatum now is averaging 23.7 points in Celtic playoff games. The all-time Boston leader is Larry Bird, 23.8.
Bird is the all-time Celtic leader in playoff points, with 3,897. Tatum is barely halfway to Bird, with a total of 2,059.
But keep in mind one thing. Bird was 23 years, four months when he played his first NBA playoff game. Tatum turned 25 in March and already has played 87 playoff games. He’s got a lot of post-seasons ahead of him.
Here are the top 10 playoff scorers in Celtic history:
1. Larry Bird 3,897: Averaged 23.8 points over 164 games and 12 playoffs, 1980-92.
2. John Havlicek 3,776: Averaged 22.0 points over 172 games and 13 playoffs, 1963-77.
3. Kevin McHale 3,182: Averaged 18.8 points over 169 games and 13 playoffs, 1981-93.
4. Sam Jones 2,909: Averaged 18.9 points over 154 games and 12 playoffs, 1958-69.
5. Paul Pierce 2,843: Averaged 20.9 points over 136 games and 10 playoffs, 2002-13.
6. Robert Parish 2,683: Averaged 16.0 points over 168 games and 13 playoffs, 1981-93.
7. Bill Russell 2,673: Averaged 16.2 points over 165 games and 13 playoffs, 1957-69.
8. Jayson Tatum 2,059: Averaged 23.7 points over 87 games and six playoffs, 2018-23.
9. Tom Heinsohn 2,058: Averaged 19.8 points over 104 games and nine playoffs, 1957-65.
10. Bob Cousy, 2,018: Averaged 18.5 points over 109 games and 13 playoffs, 1951-63.
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Mailbag: Softball television
The OU-Hofstra softball game at 4 p.m. Friday in the NCAA Tournament will be televised by ESPNU. But that’s not enough for some fans.
Hugh: “I have never emailed anything to a reporter but I am now. Is Big 12 softball not popular enough that television networks across the nation won’t televise their softball games on channels that the fans can easily access? What do network executives think, that everyone can afford to watch ESPNU, ESPN Plus, etc.? I don’t know, maybe I am the only Okie that does not understand why they won’t televise my favorite OU team on a channel that will be easy to get to for the rest of the softball season.
Tramel: Seems like a tall ask. Most cable packages that have ESPN2 also have ESPNU. If ESPN was trying to turn the screws on softball fans, it would keep the Sooners on ESPN Plus as long as possible.
Softball is so popular, that ESPN can make money by sending people to ESPN Plus.
With that said, the super regionals should all be on cable (not ESPN Plus).
And sometimes, in the outdoor sports, things get out of ESPN’s control. For instance, the Big 12 title game Saturday was scheduled for ESPN2. But when the game was moved up from 2 p.m. to noon, due to concern over the weather, ESPN had no available timeslot and had no choice but to move it to ESPN Plus. The network went ahead and televised the replay at 2 p.m. on ESPN2.
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Big Ten over/under victory numbers
In its final season with divisions, the Big Ten remains East-heavy. Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State in one division. Next season, the Big Ten scraps division. Until then, look for a batch of parity in the West, with a major schism in the East.
Today we conclude our series on Las Vegas oddsmakers over/under victory totals for the Power Five conferences, with the Big Ten:
10½ Ohio State: The Buckeyes play at Notre Dame, so the schedule is loaded. But Ohio State has lost more than one regular-season game only once in the previous five seasons. I’d probably go over.
10½ Michigan: The Wolverines have an easy non-conference schedule (no Power Five opponent). I’d go over.
9½ Penn State: To reach 10 wins, the Nittany Lions might have to sweep their non-Ohio State, non-Michigan foes. I’d say under.
9 Wisconsin: The schedule is light, except for Ohio State. But it takes a lot of belief in Luke Fickell to predict 10 wins. I’d go under.
7½ Iowa: The Hawkeyes surely will be better on offense. I’d go over.
7 Maryland: Knock yourself out if you want to believe the Terrapins will win eight games. Not me.
6½ Minnesota: Seems like the Gophers have become a fairly reliable eight-win program. I’d go over.
6½ Illinois: Bret Bielema’s team was surprising last season. I’d expect a fallback. Go under.
6 Nebraska: Lots of belief in Matt Rhule. I’ll buy. Go over.
5½ Michigan State: Turmoil deluxe in East Lansing. Can the Spartans get to six wins? I doubt it.
5½ Purdue: Tough schedule. Three losable non-conference games, plus Ohio State in a conference crossover game. I’d go under.
4½ Rutgers: I’m a believer in Greg Schiano. I’d go over.
3½ Indiana: It’s hard to go 3-9 as a Big Ten program. I’d go over.
3½ Northwestern: Same.
Berry Tramel: Berry can be reached at 405-760-8080 or at btramel@oklahoman.com. He can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including FM-98.1. Support his work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today.
