Framed by a steady March rain shower, the Oklahoma football team linked arms and silently walked to their indoor practice facility Monday afternoon.
However, OU’s players and coaches weren’t dressed for their scheduled spring practice, and they didn’t stay in the Everest Training Center for more than a few minutes.
Donning predominantly black clothes, head coach Bob Stoops, the coaching staff, the players and athletic director Joe Castiglione made their stand against the now infamous SAE video.
The players lined up in rows and walked quietly from their locker room to the practice field with Stoops front and center.
Each small row marched onto the field and stood silently before unlinking their arms and huddling near midfield to say a prayer.
The team left immediately after the prayer, and no players or coaches were made available to the media as scheduled.
While OU football is in the midst of its offseason, the Oklahoma men’s basketball team has a Big 12 tournament game to prepare for this Thursday.
Head coaches Lon Kruger and Stoops joined some of their players at OU’s demonstration this morning on the South Oval, but Kruger’s squad was back to work after beating the Kansas Jayhawks this past weekend.
Senior forward TaShawn Thomas attended the protest and was disappointed with the more somber atmosphere campus experienced Monday following a big win for Oklahoma hoops.
“After you win a big game, you usually have everyone saying 'good game,'” Thomas said. “It wasn’t hard. We didn’t get to talk about the win today because of the protest this morning.”
The video also overshadowed a big day for junior Buddy Hield, who won the 2015 Big 12 Player of the Year award.
The guard won the honor after tipping in the game-winning shot against Kansas. However, he wasn’t too upset with the poor timing of the SAE incident.
“I can’t let stuff bother me. People say stuff like that everyday,” Hield said. “It’s not right to say, but I think the university did a good job handling the situation.”
In light of the video leak, OU football lost a commitment from a 2016 recruit. However, on the basketball side, junior Ryan Spangler doesn’t see the video affecting OU’s perception.
“I’m not worried. I think people realize that was a small group that impacted all of us,” Spangler said. “I think they got what they deserved.”
Oklahoma basketball will continue its preparation for the postseason, but it’s unknown when OU football will return to the field.
The football team is slated to have media availability Wednesday, but OU spokesman Pete Moris was unsure how this decision would affect OU’s spring schedule.
