A Sooner great passed away on Friday, Jerry Tubbs. From SoonerSports.com:

The University of Oklahoma was saddened to learn of the passing of Jerry Tubbs, who earned consensus football All-America honors in 1956.

Not only a great blocker, Tubbs established himself as one of the top pass defenders in the country with his three interceptions against Texas in 1955. During 1956, Tubbs was the first Sooner to receive the Walter Camp Award, given to the player of the year, and was also named Lineman of the Year by UPI.

After the Sooners soundly defeated the Maryland Terrapins in the 1956 Orange Bowl to win the national title, Miami Daily News writer Ralph Warner wrote: “Jerry Tubbs took the decision over Bob Pellegrini, the Maryland All-America, in the battle of the centers. Pellegrini was outstanding, but Tubbs was even more so with a brilliant all-around performance.”

He was the third player taken in the 1957 draft by the Chicago Bears. He became the 12th Sooner player to be inducted into the National Football Foundation Hall of Fame on Dec. 10, 1996.

With Tubbs, the Sooners won 31 games during his 3 years at Oklahoma.  Tubbs spent a majority of his NFL career as a Dallas Cowboy and after retiring from the NFL, he went on to be an assistant to Tom Landry in Dallas. He coached in 5 Super Bowls. He not only won National Championships under the great Bud Wilkinson at Oklahoma, but got to play and coach at a professional level under one of the best NFL coaches of all time.

Condolences to the Tubbs family.

Dallas Cowboys New Rookie Tight End, James Hanna

After the first three players were selected in rounds 2-3, the Sooners had a productive NFL draft day on Saturday. Strangely enough, Detroit seems to be on the radar for quickly becoming a Sooner fans favorite.

In the second round, Ryan Broyles was drafted to Detroit and the Lions later drafted linebackers Ronnell Lewis (4th) and Travis Lewis (7th). They also picked up Sam Proctor after the draft in free agency. So that’s 4 Sooners heading to Detroit together.

The Dallas Cowboys drafted tight end James Hanna in the 6th round. Hanna, like Donald Stephenson who went to Kansas City, gets a chance to play in front of a hometown crowd. Hanna is rom Flower Mound, Texas, a suburb of Dallas/Fort Worth.  DE Frank Alexander was drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the 4th round. And as I mentioned on Saturday, Jamell Fleming is headed to Arizona.

After the 2012 NFL Draft, the Sooners have had players drafted in 75 of the 77 drafts, missing only 1962 and 1995. The only 2 schools close are Notre Dame with 74 and USC with 72. Bob Stoops has sent 59 players to the NFL. The only NFL team in history to not draft a Sooner is the Houston Texans.

Fun Draft facts from SoonerSports.com:

*Since the first NFL draft in 1936, 357 Sooners overall have been selected.

*Oklahoma’s 357 all-time picks rank OU first in the Big 12 and fourth overall nationally.

*Forty-two Sooners have been selected in the first round (including a program-record four in 2010).

*OU has three overall No. 1 picks: Sam Bradford (2010), Billy Sims (1980) and Lee Roy Selmon (1976).

*OU’s Brian Bosworth was the No. 1 pick in the 1987 supplemental draft by the Seattle Seahawks.

*OU supplied the first overall No. 1 pick (Sam Bradford, 2010) in Big 12 Conference history.

*The first Sooner ever drafted was All-American J.W. “Dub” Wheeler by the Packers in 1936.

Congrats to all the players who made it to the next level. The real work is about to begin! Boomer Sooner

Barry Switzer on the cover of SI after taking the Cowboys job

The legendary Sooner coach, Barry Switzer remembers beloved Cowboys assistant coach, Joe Avezzano on Thursday after hearing about his sudden death in Italy. Coach Avezzano was with the Cowboys during their 90′s heyday run. He was on Switzer’s staff during the Cowboys last Super Bowl appearance.

Barry had known Avezzano for forty years before getting to be on the same sidelines during Switzer’s time with the Cowboys. Switzer says that football isn’t the first thing he thinks of when thinking about Coach Joe.

“Joe would rather have been a country western music star or on-stage performer than a football coach if he had a choice. Joe did a great job coaching, was highly ambitious and a hard worker, but Joe always thought he could sing. I got a kick out of that.”

In true Switzer fashion, he had a great story to tell about Avezzano. He remembered a party he hosted after a Cowboys game once that included Charley Pride and other country stars as guests. It didn’t take long before the music started, with Avezzano right in the middle of the group, and as Switzer said, “They were picking and singing.”

“That’s what Joe liked to do, pick and sing. That was his passion.”

R.I.P. Coach Joe. From this Sooner and Cowboys Fan. You will be missed.

The NFL draft concluded Saturday afternoon with four Sooners being selected overall.

The only surprise was how late Jeremy Beal ended up being selected.

As reported on Friday night, DeMarco Murray was selected in the third round by the Dallas Cowboys. Here is how the other Sooners fared:

Quinton Carter-4th round-Denver Broncos

Jeremy Beal photo credit Ty Russell

Jonathan Nelson-7th round-St. Louis Rams

Jeremy Beal-7th round-Denver Broncos

Sooner Nation is very proud of our Sooners who made it to the next level!

You can read more press coverage about the new pros over at Oklahoma’s official website SoonerSports.com

Former Arkansas QB Ryan Mallett

I am a big Ryan Mallett fan. For some reason, I loved watching him play while he was at Arkansas. He might not be the most graceful on the field, but I can watch him throw the ball all day long.

So this brings me to my issue, if you are an NFL owner, do you take a chance on him?

He seems to have gotten a bad rap the last couple of years and recently, Ryan has been very open to his past drug use and wanting to step out of that bad boy shadow.

The party scene speculation goes back to his short-lived days at Michigan, even some reports stating frequent  use of cocaine among other things, which is a shame.

Now, according to a the Star Tribune’s Minnesota Vikings Blog: Access Vikings, Mallett  has been telling NFL executives who are sitting down with him, all about his past issues.

Some NFL executives have come out and said that even with the confessions, they still would not consider drafting him due to being a “high-risk”. Others have said, they appreciate his honesty.

In my opinion, I think this helps his draft stock or doesn’t change it at all.  He has not had a positive drug test since his days at Michigan. The kid has one helluva arm and should be commended for coming out and being honest to future employers. Honestly, there have been more than one occasion that NFL execs could consider a future draftee to be “high-risk” and still decided to give him a chance. A perfect example would be the Dallas Cowboys giving Dez Bryant his chance after his collegiate suspension.

With the NFL draft starting next week, Ryan has had several sit downs with quite a few NFL teams. Most recently today, with the Tennessee Titans.

Ryan Mallett needs to be given his chance. There has been far more risky draft choices then a guy who actually admits to his past problems.

Do you think Mallett should be given a chance or is he a risk factor?