Berry Tramel

Thoughts from The Oklahoman Sports Columnist Berry Tramel

Nebraska football: Husker fans are happy with me July 01, 2011 | Comment on this article

My column about Nebraska generated quite a bit of response from Husker fans. This time, good stuff. Last week, of course, Nebraska fans were outraged at my theory that the new Big 12 goodwill was largely due to Nebraska’s absence. Anyway, I’ve bashed NU fans enough the last year that turnabout is fair play.... Read More

Bedlam football: New coaches await

June 30, 2011 Twenty-three major-college football programs changed coaches since last season. None are in the Big 12, or at least won’t be in 2011. Colorado fired Dan Hawkins and hired Jon Embree, but Embree is now the Pac-10′s problem. And yet, both the Sooners and Cowboys will face two new head coaches each. Both teams... Read More

OU football: Chris Plank new sideline reporter June 30, 2011 Chris Plank has joined the OU football broadcast crew as sideline reporter, and it sounds like a solid move. I like that Plank comes from radio — he’s the program director at Tulsa stations 1430-AM and 1300-AM, the Buzz, and long has hosted sports shows. When the Sooners went to a former player, tight end... Read More

Power Lunch Chat Recap: Berry Tramel June 30, 2011 Power Lunch: Chat with columnist Berry Tramel Read More

OSU football: Jim Click honored

June 29, 2011 Jim Click, the former OSU center who I wrote about for my Wednesday column, (http://newsok.com/how-jim-click-brought-oklahoma-state-arizona-together/article/3581162?custom_click=lead_story_title ) is in the OSU Hall of Fame. Not the athletic hall of fame. The university hall of fame. Click was OSU’s... Read More

College football: Ranking Frank Beamer No. 3

June 28, 2011 We had a good discussion Monday on the Sports Animal about who would rank No. 3 in the current list of college football coaches, behind the obvious top two of Nick Saban and Bob Stoops. Both Mack Brown and Les Miles drew support, and both are solid candidates, since they have national championships on their... Read More

Dodgers: A brand gone bad

June 28, 2011 The Los Angeles Dodgers — the franchise of Koufax and Drysdale; the franchise of Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella; the franchise of Garvey, Lopes, Russell and Cey; the franchise of the O’Malleys; the franchise of Vin Scully; the franchise of Duke Snider and Pee Wee Resse; the franchise of Orel... Read More

Thunder: In search of a two-specialty guard June 27, 2011 The Thunder drafted Boston College’s Reggie Jackson, and we can’t really talk about upside. When the Thunder drafted Russell Westbrook three years ago, no one’s wildest dream had Westbrook as an all-star and second-team all-NBA by 2011. So tread lightly on upside. But here’s what the Thunder would love... Read More

C.C. Sabathia: Indicting himself June 27, 2011 I heard C.C. Sabathia on the Dan Patrick Show this morning, and Sabathia said something that made me think about free agency in a way I’d never thought about before. Sabathia said he signed with the Yankees, instead of his hometown Dodgers, because the Yanks provided him with a better chance to win. Which is... Read More

OU football: Morning kickoff not kind to Sooners June 26, 2011 Fans generally dislike the 11 a.m. kickoff for OU-Texas in the Cotton Bowl. Here’s another reason for Sooner fans to dislike it. It hasn’t been kind to them. Under Bob Stoops, the Sooners are 7-5 against Texas. But they are 2-3 in the early time slot, 5-2 in the afternoon time slot. OU-Texas will be another... Read More

NBA Draft: Winners & losers June 25, 2011 Winners and losers in the NBA Draft. Winner: Dallas. The Mavericks got 26-year-old Spaniard Rudy Fernandez in a trade from Portland. It cost Dallas its two draft picks, including Texas’ Jordan Hamilton, but Fernandez is a ready-made shooting guard who has averaged 9.1 points over three NBA seasons. Loser:... Read More

OU football: FX loves the Sooners June 24, 2011 FX, one of Fox’s cable networks, has signed on for Big 12 football. And FX loves the Sooners. The eventual plan is for FX to stage a weekly nationally-televised Big 12 game at 7 p.m. on Saturdays. Only three FX games have been slotted for television so far. All three involve the Sooners and all three at Owen... Read More

Big 12 basketball: Leading the NBA Draft June 24, 2011 For the second straight year, the Big 12 has produced the most first-round NBA Draft picks. Six Big 12 players went in the first round Thursday night; seven went in the first round of the 2010 draft. Take in the first round Thursday night were Texas’ Tristan Thompson (fourth to Cleveland),... Read More

Power Lunch Chat Recap: Berry Tramel June 23, 2011 Power Lunch: Chat with columnist Berry Tramel Read More

OU football: Switzer enters winery business June 23, 2011 Barry Switzer always has called himself a bootlegger’s boy. Even named his book that. Frank Switzer apparently was in the illegal alcohol business. Now his son has joined the legal alcohol business. Switzer has established Switzer Family Vineyards, a line of wine originating in the Napa Valley and being... Read More

NBA: Will Heat eventually win? June 22, 2011 Dallas coach Rick Carlisle was classy in victory after his Mavericks beat the Heat for the NBA title. Carlisle said the Heat’s time would come. He’s probably right. A team with a trio of Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh will be hard-pressed to not win a championship or three, especially with... Read More

OU basketball: Kruger preaching students June 21, 2011 Lon Kruger preached students the day he was named OU’s basketball coach. He’s still preaching students. Kruger, addressing Sooner fans in Dallas earlier this month, again said student involvement is critical to a rebirth of Sooner hoops. “We’ve got to get the students back in Lloyd Noble” Center, Kruger... Read More

Thunder: Brooks’ longevity in upper third June 21, 2011 Pat Riley says Erik Spoelstra will return as the Miami Heat coach, and even though Spoelstra looks 28 years old and seems like he’s been on the job only since LeBron James took his talents to South Beach, Spoelstra is becoming an elder statesman. Only five NBA coaches have been on the job longer than... Read More

Big 12 football: Ranking non-conference schedules June 20, 2011 The new Big 12 football format calls for nine conference games. Which means just three non-conference games. I thought, uh-oh. There’s going to be a run on more rum-dum games. One more conference game was all the excuse football coaches need to dumb down their schedules. But amazingly, it hasn’t... Read More

College athletics: Football rules June 20, 2011 We always knew football ruled collegiate athletics. Then the point was hammered home last summer, when the Big 12 almost disintegrated and proud basketball schools like Kansas, Missouri and Kansas State had no solid landing place. But in case any skeptics remain, here’s your proof. In the 2009-10 school... Read More