Oklahoma State Football

Oklahoma State football coach Mike Gundy apologized Saturday for his recent comments about getting players back on the field despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic:

For what it’s worth. pic.twitter.com/ekyK5cPz89

— Ralph D. Russo (@ralphDrussoATH) April 11, 2020

Gundy told reporters Tuesday he wanted his staff back in the building by May 1 with the players soon to follow despite health concerns:

"The NCAA, the presidents of the universities, the Power 5 conference commissioners, the athletic directors need to be meeting right now and we need to start coming up with answers. In my opinion, if we have to bring our players back, test them. They're all in good shape. They're all 18, 19, 20, 21 and 22-year-olds. They're healthy. A lot of them can fight it off with their natural body, the antibodies and the build that they have. There's some people that are asymptomatic. If that's true, then we sequester them. And people say that's crazy. No, it's not crazy because we need to continue and budget and run money through the state of Oklahoma."

The Big 12 has suspended all in-person team activities through at least May 31.

During this time, coaches are only allowed to take part in virtual group activities, including film study.

The 2020 college football season remains in jeopardy because of the lost time, with Ross Dellenger and Forde of Sports Illustrated reporting there could be a truncated season that begins in October. Other scenarios are being discussed, which include beginning the year in January of 2021.

Gundy wants his players to return well before that, despite the noteworthy health risks.

As of Saturday, there have been over 500,000 cases of COVID-19 in the United States, leading to more than 20,000 deaths, per CNN.com. There have been 94 deaths within the state of Oklahoma.

Though the respiratory disease has a greater effect on older citizens, it can still impact younger people. At least 45 people in their 20s have died from the coronavirus in the United States, Chris Mooney, Brady Dennis and Sarah Kaplan of the Washington Post reported this week.

Those who aren't affected can also help spread it to others more at risk.

Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy is optimistic the Cowboys football program can get back to business May 1 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gundy offered his comments Tuesday during a teleconference with reporters, per ESPN's Heather Dinich:

"How fast that can happen based on the tests that are available, I can't say right now, but that's the plan. We have to have a plan, and the plan right now is for them to start on May 1. It might get backed up two weeks. I don't know, I can't make that call, but if it does, we'll start with the employees of this company, the ones that come in this building. Then we'll bring the players in, and slowly but surely we'll test them all in."

Gundy went on to say the program would order anybody with the coronavirus to self-quarantine and potentially seek treatment. In general, he emphasized the need to return to work.

"Maybe they don't come back," he said of older employees or anybody with an underlying condition. "But the majority of people in this building who are healthy ... and certainly the 18, 19, 20, 21, 22-year-olds that are healthy, the so-called medical people saying the herd of healthy people that have the antibodies maybe built up and can fight this? We all need to go back to work."

Oklahoma State released a statement in response to Gundy's comments:

"Everyone wants to return to some degree of normalcy as soon as possible. As for Oklahoma State University,  we will adhere to the advice of public health experts who are making informed decisions in the best interest of the citizens of our nation and state based on sound scientific data.  We will also abide by the federal and state mandates as well as Big 12 guidelines. We will not compromise the health and well-being of our campus community. This virus is deadly and we will do our part at Oklahoma State to help blunt the spread."

The World Health Organization has confirmed more than 1.4 million cases of the coronavirus, and the United States has seen the most cases so far (386,800), per CNN.

The disease's fatality rate has so far been higher for older populations compared to younger groups, especially those of college-age like the members of Oklahoma State's football team.

Along with the general concerns about exposure, however, one worry in this case is that a football player could become an asymptomatic carrier of the coronavirus and unknowingly spread it to other people.

ESPN's Brian Windhorst reported the Chinese government halted the planned return of the Chinese Basketball Association in part because of fears over asymptomatic carriers.

Gundy isn't the first coach to address the pandemic and strike a hopeful tone. Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney told reporters last Friday he's still planning for the 2020 season to kick off as scheduled with fans in attendance.

ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit, on the other hand, questioned whether either the NFL or college football will be able to get underway.

At the very least, getting the players back to Stillwater by May may be unrealistic.

The Oklahoma State Cowboys essentially earned their first win of the 2020 season before it even started.

On Monday, running back Chuba Hubbard announced he is returning to the Big 12 program instead of entering April's NFL draft. The star running back was one of the best players in the country this season, running for 2,094 yards and 21 touchdowns.

https://twitter.com/Hubbard_RMN/status/1216858030614159361

Bleacher Report's Matt Miller projected Hubbard to be selected with the final pick of the second round in his latest mock draft and ranked the Oklahoma State playmaker as the fifth-best running back for the 2020 draft behind the likes of D'Andre Swift, J.K. Dobbins, Jonathan Taylor and Najee Harris.

While Hubbard likely would have been given the opportunity to earn significant playing time as a rookie if he was a second-round pick, his return means he can play his way into first-round status for 2021 without having to compete against those other runners.

This is welcome news for Oklahoma State. Hubbard was the focal point of its offense and ran for more than 100 yards in every game this season except for a blowout win over McNeese State in which he had only eight carries. He also ran for more than 200 yards four times and scored three touchdowns in three different games.

The Cowboys dealt with injuries to some key players, including wide receiver Tylan Wallace and quarterback Spencer Sanders, but still managed to go 8-5 thanks in large part to Hubbard's brilliance on the ground.

Still, it was a step back from a double-digit win season as recently as 2017. Hubbard's return can serve as a spark plug heading into a 2020 campaign that includes games against Oklahoma, Texas and Oregon State, as Oklahoma State looks to become a Big 12 title contender again.

Mike Gundy has a question. He has an idea what the answer will be, but that doesn't stop him from asking. He's out to prove a point. And he will, momentarily.    

Why shouldn't Chuba Hubbard win the Heisman Trophy?

The Oklahoma State head coach with the signature, flowing mullet—the one who so infamously declared himself to be a man of 40 years of age more than a decade ago—has never been shy. And he's been around long enough to know that no matter how he poses the question, and no matter whom he recites his running back's Heisman numbers to, it probably won't matter.

Still, he knows he's right, so on he goes.

"How many Power Five running backs are going to rush for 1,800 yards this year?" Gundy asks. "Maybe two? On the flip side, how many Power Five conference quarterbacks will throw for 3,500 yards? Maybe 15?"

That looks about right. Last season, 16 quarterbacks made it to 3,500, and two running backs made it to 1,800. This season, 15 quarterbacks have at least 3,000 heading into the final game or two, and only two running backs have more than 1,600. Wisconsin's Jonathan Taylor is one, with 1,685, but even he is well behind Hubbard, who already has 1,832.

So the point Gundy is making is valid. Sure, he's campaigning for his star player, as he should be, but Hubbard's performance does feel worthy of something more. And he's not done.

"I'm not taking anything away from the quarterbacks," Gundy continues. "But if you don't take a running back who's basically dominated to New York, then let's say the Heisman is a quarterback award and be up front about it."

There are more numbers to back Gundy up. Hubbard's 2,044 all-purpose yards also top the nation by a considerable margin (197 over Taylor). He averages nearly 186 yards per game, which is the best mark by nearly 20 yards (also over Taylor). He's scored 20 touchdowns too, putting him behind only three other backs. He averages 6.4 yards per carry, third among those who have at least 200 carries (and he has 285, which ranks second).

But, again, Gundy knows that listing off a running back's numbers probably isn't going to change the way people think about the award, or about his breakout star's accomplishments.

Maybe the story behind that breakout will, though.

The story of a running back who hails from a place in the deep north called Sherwood Park, a suburb outside of Edmonton, Alberta.

The story of an athlete who nearly made the Canadian Olympic team as a sprinter before transforming his body for football.

The story of a man who is forming a nonprofit to help children "get out of a negative environment and put them in a positive one," inspired by his own family's struggles over the past two decades.

The story of a name perfect for the bright lights of New York City.

To Hubbard himself, the Heisman is the least of his ambitions. He has plans. Plans to live out his lifelong dream of playing in the NFL. Plans to change lives and use his newfound platform in the best possible way.

But before then, as rival Oklahoma looms and a 2,000-yard rushing season is within reach, Hubbard is poised for one final push to make his head coach's dream come true.

---

Candace Hubbard didn't want her son to play football. In fact, she told him "no" for as long as she possibly could.

You're too young, she would tell him. It's too violent.

In Alberta, most kids grow up wanting to play hockey, but Chuba wanted to run. Wanted to run track. Wanted to run with a football in his hands—wanted to so badly that eventually, when he was 10, Candace caved.

In his very first practice with the Sherwood Park Sabercats, Chuba cried. Not because of the contact, which was new. But because when he ran a reverse as a wide receiver, he fell short of a touchdown…after going more than 70 yards.

"He apologized that he didn't score," says Ken Buhagiar, who was the offensive coordinator of the Sabercats and has worked with Hubbard his entire football life. "We realized early on that he could run like the wind. We just had to teach him football."

At the peewee level and through high school, Hubbard garnered the reputation of being a track star who moonlighted as a running back. Before he added more than 25 pounds to his frame, he was widely regarded as one of the best young sprinters in the country.

One would think such a reputation would be a positive. But even as Hubbard dominated at Bev Facey Community High School in Sherwood Park, both Canadian and American collegiate coaches were skeptical.

"We find that the Canadian kids never get a legitimate opportunity south of the border because we're kind of the little brother to American football," says Curtis Martin, who coached Hubbard at Bev Facey. "He's not just that Canadian track kid; he's a badass football player who can run the rock."

And the numbers were too absurd to ignore forever. Across three high school seasons, Hubbard rushed for 6,880 yards and 82 touchdowns. Playing Canadian football—on larger fields with 12 players per team rather than 11—he averaged more than 15 yards per carry.

He made his debut for the under-16 Football Alberta team in 2015 against Team USA at the Dallas Cowboys' AT&T Stadium. That, coupled with a junior season in which he scored 40 touchdowns and accumulated more than 3,200 rushing yards, finally generated recruiting interest.

Colorado State was the first to offer. Oklahoma State followed shortly after. Tennessee was next in line, and the floodgates opened after that. Alabama, Georgia, Auburn, Oregon and more than a dozen other programs offered in the weeks and months that followed—a distinct departure from the way most hopeful Canadian football players are recruited.

Hubbard spent time at major programs around the SEC. But no matter how many visits he made, Oklahoma State had an allure that was unmatched.

"I feel like some schools value football more than the other things," Hubbard says. "They just kind of get overshadowed. I felt like Oklahoma State was a good atmosphere, and the people were nice. They cared about you as a person."

Rather than draw out his decision, Hubbard committed on one of the year's most meaningful days.

Mother's Day.

---

The nickname came to Gundy after another long run. The graceful strides. The incredible power. The way he almost glides down the field—like a Gold Glove center fielder tracking down a ball over his shoulder.

Though Hubbard showed promise near the end of his redshirt freshman season, running for at least 100 yards in three of his final four games, it wasn't until this fall that Gundy knew exactly the kind of player he had.

"I call him Secretariat," Gundy says. "He runs effortlessly and gets faster the farther he gets going down the field. He gets stronger the longer he has to run. It's absolutely beautiful."

Chuba Hubbard is on the loose! #okstate pic.twitter.com/meU7QOsqCj

— OSU Cowboy Football (@CowboyFB) April 28, 2018

When he arrived at Oklahoma State, Hubbard was 180 pounds. He had a sprinter's body, which is why he redshirted. Perhaps more important to Gundy than his adding size, though, was changing Hubbard's running mentality.

That he had averaged 15 yards per carry in high school also meant Hubbard wasn't being hit nearly as often as he would be in college. Coaches wondered how he would respond to more contact, but he has turned into maybe the most durable skill position player in the nation. He has carried the ball 20 times in every game this season other than a blowout victory against McNeese State in Week 2, and he has gone for at least 32 carries four times, including 37 against Texas.

"When everyone else is tired, I want to be able to surpass that and just be above everyone that we're playing against," Hubbard says. "That's how you win games. I don't really think about my carries when I'm out there. I just go up there and play."

He has also turned into a perfect blend of size and speed. Now listed at 6'1" and 207 pounds, his days of running the 100-meter dash in 10.55 seconds—something he did in the summer of 2015 at the IAAF World Youth Championships—are behind him. But he still can cover long distances in short amounts of time, as evidenced by his NCAA-leading seven 50-yard plays.

And all that running behind an offensive line that his head coach described as "beat up and makeshift." Hubbard is a mix of workhorse and game-breaker, something he has flashed each and every week this year.

"He has made a lot of money this season," one NFL scout tells Bleacher Report. "He has that first-level quickness, that burst, that can set him apart. He's also a make-you-miss-guy in a league where there aren't many of those, and there's not much wear on his body until this season. That's attractive.

"You love to see those guys who get their chance and then go make the most of it."

---

Perhaps the most difficult part of Hubbard's breakout season has been having his family's life become something for strangers—fans, the media, the NFL—to explore and dissect. There is curiosity in where he comes from, but exploring a life that has been difficult at times is not easy or natural for him or Candace.

Some parts of it they are willing to share. How Chuba's biological father left when Chuba was young. How Candace tried to navigate life as a single mother, going back to school to help provide for her family. How her health issues added to the struggles. How financial issues always seemed to creep back in.

Things are different now. Candace worked her way through school to become a licensed practical nurse and remarried long ago. Chuba is closing in on a professional contract that will change his family's life forever. The stability they were seeking has been found, but Chuba does not forget where he comes from.

Struggles of this sort, of course, are not unique to this family or to so many others who look at football, the NFL, as a potential means to a more prosperous future.

Hubbard is the same. He hasn't just dreamed of playing football professionally because he loves the sport; he has viewed it as a way he might provide his family with financial security. 

"Chuba's always had a big heart," Candance says. "He needs to make sure everything and everyone is OK, which is unfortunate as a young child. But I think it has helped him grow. ...

"He's had to work so hard to get where he is. It didn't come easy."

Over the past few months, Hubbard's life has changed rapidly. The financial comfort he has been searching for is in reach. As his popularity has grown, so has his yearning to create a nonprofit that will benefit children growing up in situations like his own.

It's more than just an idea now. It has a name: Your Life, Your Choice. It also has a purpose.

"I want to help kids get out of a negative environment and put them in a positive one, teaching them life skills and leadership skills," Hubbard says. "Another aspect is just helping families living in poverty, helping them out with food and clothes. Just trying to bring happiness to people.

"My parents struggled and sacrificed a lot when they raised us through some rough times. But they gave a lot for us, and I want to just be able to give back to somebody."

Hubbard worked through the necessary certifications to set this in motion, though the process was much more exhaustive than he ever imagined. Not the mission, which he has been thinking about for some time. But the finer details that will allow it to flourish.

"For every Chuba Hubbard, there are hundreds of kids that aren't going to get the opportunity to try," Martin says. "And I don't think that really sits well with Chuba. With his platform, he wants to try to change that."

---

While No. 99 will always be sacred to Canadian sports fans—fans like Martin who grew up idolizing Wayne Gretzky—a different jersey number is becoming more prominent on youth practice fields, at least in Alberta.

Attending a local peewee football practice a few weeks ago, Martin saw a group of six- and seven-year-olds pretending to be the star running back between drills, fighting over who got to wear No. 30, Hubbard's number.

The moment struck him. Not because he didn't expect it to happen. Perhaps because it came sooner than he envisioned. 

At the end of the year, Hubbard will face a decision regarding his football future—one he's not ready to make just yet.

"It would change my life," Hubbard says of the NFL. "It would change my family's life. It's the main reason why I play. I'm working toward that, and hopefully one day I can make it."

No matter what happens next year—if he's in Stillwater or if he's in an NFL city to be determined—Hubbard has left his mark. And he's done so in a matter of months, blending talent and desire and an unconquerable spirit.

Gundy thinks that mark is deep enough for Hubbard to earn Heisman consideration. Given his numbers, it's hard to argue.

But no award or trip will reflect Hubbard's impact. Or what it will become.

          

Adam Kramer covers college football for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter: @KegsnEggs.

T. Boone Pickens, the oil tycoon and corporate raider who the Oklahoma State football stadium is named for, died Wednesday at the age of 91. 

The T. Boone Pickens Foundation announced the Oklahoma State booster and alumnus' passing, which was due to natural causes.

Pickens donated $165 million to the Oklahoma State athletic program in 2006.

Per an Oklahoma State press release, the money was targeted to "help build the west end zone at Boone Pickens Stadium, a multi-purpose indoor practice complex, new soccer, track and tennis facilities, a new equestrian center, a new baseball stadium and new outdoor practice fields."

Pickens donated over $1 billion during his lifetime. Per Chris Blake, Frank Heinz and Meredith Land of NBC DFW, more than half of that went to Oklahoma State.

He was a big Oklahoma State sports fan. He had attended most Cowboys home games since 2003 (when the stadium was renamed in his honor) and occasionally provided public comments about the team's play, according to Bill Haisten of Tulsa World.

The entrepreneur's fortune was amassed in part by founding Mesa Petroleum, which became "one of the largest independent oil and gas companies in the United States" per Marty Steinberg of CNBC.com.

Steinberg also outlined his corporate raider days.

"During the early 1980s, Pickens took his corporate raider talents to new levels, investing in chunks of undervalued oil companies, trying to take them over and making big profits even if the buyout failed," Steinberg wrote.

Pickens' lasting legacy also includes founding the Pickens Plan in 2008, which Blake, Heinz and Land described as "a self-funded, $100 million grassroots campaign that would work to end the U.S. dependency on oil from OPEC."

Pickens is survived by five children, 11 grandchildren and "an increasing number of great-grandchildren," per the foundation website. 

Oklahoma State football head coach Mike Gundy told ESPN's Chris Low that he has no plans to lead another program.

"No, I wouldn't have thought I would still be here, but I do now," Gundy said to Low. "This is who I am. This is what I am. This is where I belong. This is me. There's no reason for me to go anywhere else."

The Oklahoma State alum and ex-Cowboy quarterback has led his team since 2005, compiling a 121-59 record. He led Oklahoma State to a Big 12 title, 12-1 record, Fiesta Bowl victory and third-place showing in the polls in 2011.

The Cowboys are coming off a disappointing 7-6 season, although Gundy led three straight 10-win teams from 2015-2017.

His success has led to other big-name programs calling, and the coach told Low that Tennessee has knocked on his door three times, with the most recent occurrence happening in 2018.

"I've had that [Tennessee] job offered three different times," Gundy said. "It's ironic that it's always been Tennessee. I guess it gets to a point where you say, 'Is it time for me to make a change? I'm 50-something years old. Is it time for me to go do things differently?' Sometimes in your life, you think that way.

"Tennessee put together an unbelievable package, and it's hard to tell somebody no when that happens. But I made the right decision."

Gundy, 52, has spent all but five seasons at Oklahoma State since 1986, when he stepped on campus as a freshman. He was the team's starting quarterback for three-plus seasons and played alongside 1988 Heisman Trophy winner and Pro Bowl Hall of Famer Barry Sanders.

After graduating, Gundy stayed on as an assistant, rising to offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in 1994.

He stayed one more year before making a one-season stop at Baylor and coaching four seasons for Maryland. Gundy returned to Stillwater in 2001 and was an associate head coach and offensive coordinator through 2004 until his promotion.

Oklahoma State opens its 2019 season at Oregon State on Friday, August 30. The Bedlam Series will continue versus Oklahoma on Saturday, November 30 in Stillwater.