Jenni Carlson chat: Oklahoma State's quarterbacks, college coaches' pay and Tiger Woods
Jenni Carlson 10:46 a.m. C'mon and send those questions! We'll get started at 11 a.m.
11:00 a.m. Do you think college football coaches and sometimes basketball coaches are paid too much money? I know the job is tough and the future uncertain for them, but cannot one live comfortably on $500,000 a year (about ten times what I make)?
11:01 a.m. Go time! (Meant to type that first, but apparently, my coffee has yet to kick in enough!!!)
11:01 a.m. Now, to Billy Bob!
11:02 a.m. Can a college coach live on 500K a year? I think we all know the answer to that. But much like pro athletes are paid tens of millions a year and actresses and actors are paid tens of millions for major motion pictures, college football and basketball coaches are paid a lot. Why? ...
11:03 a.m. Because that's what the market allows. Salaries started going up, and now, the top coaches can demand higher and higher numbers. And schools feel like they have to pay those higher numbers to get and/or keep coaches. ...
11:04 a.m. It's supply and demand, and right now, the market demands that major jobs pay millions of dollars.
11:04 a.m. Take OU for example. If the salary cap for coaches was $500,000 a year, that would free up approx.$6,000,000. If OU has 200 scholarship athletes in total, that 6 mil would pay each athlete about $30,000 a year. Are not the athletes the ones drawing the crowds, blowing out their knees and suffering the effects of concussions?
11:05 a.m. Well, if OU set a salary cap for coaches and no one else did, I suspect you'd see a lot of coaches leaving for other higher paying jobs. Maybe not all of them, but some of them for sure. ...
11:06 a.m. Now, if colleges around the country agreed that they were ALL going to do a coach salary cap, then it might work, but for one or two schools to do it, they would likely struggle to draw and retain coaches. ...
11:07 a.m. A salary cap for coaches would free up money for athletes, but lot of folks would say that athletes are receiving compensation already. Scholarships. Room. Board. In addition to the opportunity to train to get to the next level and expose themselves to scouts. ...
11:07 a.m. We can argue the compensation question all day, but there are people on both sides who have extremely compelling arguments.
11:07 a.m. I am not saying I am for turning college athletes into professionals, but should they not get something more than they do, like a good meal outside the dorm? And what about ticket prices? How far would 6 mil go to lowering ticket prices for the fans?
11:08 a.m. Again, I can see where you're coming from, but I guarantee that if one or two schools arbitrarily set a salary cap, it would hurt them.
11:08 a.m. You and Berry have done nice work on the OSU stories. What's going on with the Grahams? Do you know what happened to them?
11:09 a.m. Thanks, Mal. It's been a lot of fun to catch up with those 2004 Cowboys. I've talked to Ivan, Joey, Bobik, Terrence and Janavor. Good interviews, all. ...
11:09 a.m. The Grahams are both currently living in Tampa. Joey hurt his Achilles' and has been working to rehab it for about the last year and a half. He hopes to get back into the NBA, though he's not sure if it'll be through the D League, overseas or what. ...
11:11 a.m. Stevie is in Tampa because he was playing in Venezuela and the political turmoil there forced him to leave. Joey told me that Stevie took a flight out right before travel restrictions were placed on flights out. So, he left at a good time. But I assume that Stevie is now looking for his next option. Overseas. NBA. Or wherever.
11:11 a.m. Marcus Smart hasn't announced his intention to enter the NBA draft. Any significance to that?
11:11 a.m. None from where I'm sitting. He said before the season that he was going pro, and after the Gonzaga loss, he was asked if the end to the season had done anything to change his mind about going pro. ...
11:12 a.m. He basically said, No. ...
11:12 a.m. Marcus Smart is going pro. No question about that in my eyes. He hasn't announced anything lately because he ALREADY announced his intentions.
11:13 a.m. Hey, all, keep sending in those questions. Spring football. NBA. Final Four. Anything is on the table. By the way, any OSU fans going to Saturday's Blitz, which is the replacement for a spring game?
11:13 a.m. I asked darnell yesterday about empty seats. in 1st 2nd and 3rd quarter through out the game empty seats against below 500 teams..he said coming back from restrooms con. stands, BEER etc. I don't buy that,,I think thunder up fans like the teams that are above 500...maybe it reflects OU football
11:14 a.m. I agree with Darnell that there are definitely empty seats coming back from halftime. Lots of folks in the lower bowl go out for bathroom, snacks, whatever, and they aren't getting back when the game is going. That much is clear to me. ...
11:15 a.m. But I was there Sunday for the game against the not-very-good Jazz, and the place was full as near as I could see. Are games against better opponents more likely to have butts in seats more? Sure. But I don't think there's been a big drop off in attendance or anything like that.
11:15 a.m. DOWN GOES TIGER!! What's up with Tiger Woods?
11:16 a.m. Well, he's just not the dominator that he once was. And I largely think it's because of injuries. ...
11:17 a.m. Now, is some of it mental? Sure. No doubt about that. But the way that Tiger played the early years of his career, injuries were bound to happen. Did you ever watch him swing? The torque on his body was EXTREME. And it took a toll on his joints and muscles and all of that. ...
11:18 a.m. And since he had to have surgeries, I suspect he has had to change some of how he swings. I have to think he isn't swinging as hard as he used to. It has changed his game and taken away some of his advantages. ...
11:19 a.m. There may come a time where he adjusts to the changes and starts dominating again. But that time may not come, too. We'll just have to wait and see.
11:19 a.m. The Spurs are hot, but the Thunder take them down. Everyone is gonna be amped up for that game.
11:20 a.m. There's no doubt The Peake will be hoppin' on Thursday night, but it's going to take a great effort by the Thunder, not the Thunder fans to beat the Spurs. The Spurs aren't going to be intimidated by a rowdy environment. ...
11:20 a.m. Here's what it will take to stop the Spurs: great defense. You absolutely have to be on your game for 48 minutes on the defensive end against San Antonio. ...
11:20 a.m. Without Perk and Thabo, can the Thunder do that? We'll see.
11:20 a.m. Why does Gundy want someone with a big arm all the time? I think JW is pretty good, but he didn't get enough of a chance to shine. Chelf got his shot and did pretty well and he didn't have the best arm.
11:21 a.m. JW and Chelf were the guys last year because there weren't really any other options. The dropoff from those two was pretty extreme. So, it was either one or the other. ...
11:22 a.m. And I disagree about JW. He got AMPLE opportunity. He stunk at West Virginia and cost OSU that game. Then when he stunk even worse against TCU, the coaches decided that they HAD to make a switch. He left them no choice. ...
11:23 a.m. Gundy and Co. would like a big arm because that stretches the field, opening up the run game and the short pass game. But more than a big arm, you need an accurate arm in that offense. That is No. 1. That's why Chelf played last year instead of JW.
11:23 a.m. So has any of the media seen Dax throw the ball? What is your gut tell you about Dax and his playing impact?
11:23 a.m. I have yet to make it to OSU for any spring stuff, but I believe there has been some media access when Daxx was throwing. ...
11:24 a.m. Could Garman play? Sure. But my gut still says Rudolph will be the guy. Just has a lot of upside from what I've heard, read and seen.
11:24 a.m. Which game does Russell sit this week?
11:24 a.m. Not sure. Depends on whether Reggie Jackson plays. If he's out again, Russ will have to play all of them. Can't play Fish for 48 minutes. ...
11:25 a.m. But if Reggie is available, I assume Russ sits out the Houston game.
11:25 a.m. Does Brooks sit guys during the final few games and let Lamb and the bench get some playing time or are they still playing for seeeding till the end?
11:25 a.m. They're trying to win every game they play. If you saw Darnell's story this morning, you read that Brooks said he'd prefer the top spot in the West. That means playing to win. No bench guys getting playing time just because.
11:26 a.m. Gundy mentioned that the offensive line practiced pretty good the other day... how has the line work looked from the media's perspective? I am so worried about the Wickline loss.
11:26 a.m. Again, I haven't had a chance to get up to any OSU stuff and see with my own eyes yet. Too much basketball, apparently. ...
11:27 a.m. But I, like you, am skeptical that the offensive line coaching will be as good without Wick. That's not a knock any of the guys working with the Cowboys now; that's a reflection of how unbelievably good Wickline is at his job. ...
11:27 a.m. He's the best in the country, in my estimation. Can't lose the best and think everything is going to be the same moving forward. There will be growing pains, I suspect.
11:27 a.m. the peake will be hoppin but the score board will be sad..Spurs 114 thunder up 109
11:28 a.m. Sure could be, Harry Man. I think I'll wait a day or so to make a prediction. After all, the Spurs play tonight, so who knows what happens?
11:28 a.m. How badly does OU beat Okie State in Norman this fall?
11:28 a.m. Listen, I'm not making a prediction on the Thunder-Spurs this week, so I darn sure am not predicting Bedlam in December! No thank you!
11:28 a.m. How is the defensive backfield sorting out in practice? I know Gundy has named a few guys saying good things about them but how much of the defense is here now and how many still to come with the fall? Any one coming in the fall that might have a impact?
11:29 a.m. The secondary is going to have new faces for sure, but I liked what I saw out of younger guys last year. Kevin Peterson is obviously the anchor, and a good one at that. ...
11:31 a.m. Lampkin and Miketavius Jones should compete for the other CB spot. ...
11:32 a.m. Safety is the big question mark, of course. They got so many snaps the past few years out of Lowe and Lydell Johnson that it's going to be tough for those young guys.
11:32 a.m. All right, sports fans, that's all the time I have. Be sure to join Thunder beat writer Anthony Slater for tomorrow's Power Lunch. He'll be talking Thunder, Spurs, playoffs. Don't miss it.
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Jenni Carlson
Jenni Carlson, a sports columnist at The Oklahoman since 1999, came by her love of sports honestly. She grew up in a sports-loving family in Kansas. Her dad coached baseball and did color commentary on the radio for the high school football... Read more ›