MANHATTAN, Kansas — Oklahoma’s preparation for its game against Kansas State, an eventual 55-0 victory, didn’t go as planned.
Scheduled to depart Oklahoma City at 2:30 p.m. on Friday, the Sooners didn’t leave the airport until about eight hours later.
Mechanical failures to three different United Airlines planes plagued OU’s travel plans and caused them to spend much more time at Will Rogers World Airport than originally planned.
But by the time the fourth plane arrived, OU players and coaches had already enjoyed a night they are sure to remember for a long time.
“We just talked, and honestly I felt like it was a really good team bonding event,” defensive tackle Matt Dimon said. “We stuck with each other.”
Each player seemed to handle the experience differently.
Zack Sanchez took pictures in front of the exotic cars in the parking lot that belonged to Oklahoma City Thunder players. Matt Dimon was “in heaven,” as he puts it, enjoying a buffet of fast food that was brought to the airport in droves by team employees.
And yes, Baker Mayfield danced.
“There was the main room with the lobby and then there was a little conference room, and a bunch of players were in the conference room going crazy,” Dimon recalled. “Every time you opened the door music was blaring.”
Sanchez claims that the team even got Dean of Students Clarke Stroud to join in on the fun.
“I think everybody got in there and started dancing,” Zack Sanchez said. “It could have been a lot worse, but we made the most of it.”
More than anything, it created an environment that forced the Sooners to come together as a unit.
“The thing was all of us dancing and using music to build us up and bring us together, making us closer as a team and not really worrying about the flight delay,” Dede Westbrook said.
As for the spread that was brought in to feed the players, it was all Bob Stoops’ idea.
“It got to where it’s eight o’clock, and our kids haven’t eaten,” Stoops said. “So I asked whoever who was in the building who had a car to just go out and go to any fast food chain you can."
“If we have 10 people go out and get 10 of whatever, we’ll have enough food to feed our players. And that’s exactly what we did," Stoops said.
As for the variety to choose from, it was extensive. Dimon says there were at least six or seven restaurants represented. He enjoyed Whataburger, Sonic and Chick-fil-A. Cornerback Jordan Thomas said he had Jack in the Box, Burger King and Domino's.
After Oklahoma’s dominating win over Kansas State, some players questioned whether or not this should be a permanent installation.
“That will give (Stoops) more of a reason to keep doing it for us,” Thomas said. “We gotta have that junk food to fuel us.”
But even in a perfect world, the evening of splurging on junk food could end up costing the Sooners in a different way.
“Our nutritionist is going to hate us,” Baker Mayfield said.
