http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/big12/stories/MYSA112907.sambradfordfeature.en.29433f3.html This is a nice write up. The newspaper carried a good picture of Sam instead of the advertisement you will be looking at on line but wanted to share with you. See you at the game! Remember to bring your noise!
College football: OU's Bradford making impression sooner than later Web Posted: 11/28/2007 11:45 PM CST John Whisler San Antonio Express-News NORMAN, Okla. — Sam Bradford hasn't appeared on too many lists as a Heisman Trophy candidate. But you better get used to the name. The Oklahoma redshirt freshman quarterback figures to contend for the award next season. Maybe even the next three. "He's just been phenomenal," OU coach Bob Stoops said. Just how phenomenal? Bradford leads the nation in passing efficiency — 70.2 percent. His 32 touchdowns are a Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) record for a freshman. And he's thrown just seven interceptions in 282 attempts in leading the No. 9 Sooners to a 10-2 record and a berth in the Big 12 championship game against No. 1 Missouri on Saturday at the Alamodome. But the numbers are only part of his story. Bradford is a registered member of the Cherokee Nation. And in a state with the second-largest American Indian population in the country — that has the words "Native America" emblazoned on its license plates — that's significant. In football-crazed Oklahoma, he's fast becoming a household name. It's probably only a matter of time before the rest of America catches up. Bradford is believed to be the first starting quarterback with American Indian heritage at a major-college program since the days of Sonny Sixkiller at Washington and Jim Plunkett at Stanford in the early 1970s. That won't hurt his future Heisman chances, either. "It's a great story," OU quarterbacks coach Josh Heupel said. Heupel was the 2000 Heisman Trophy runner-up at Oklahoma, when he threw for 3,392 yards and 20 touchdowns with 14 interceptions. Bradford's totals compare with those in all areas but yardage — 2,670 — with two games still to go. "He's way ahead of where I was at a similar stage," said Heupel, who praised Bradford's competitiveness and toughness. A week after suffering a concussion in the loss at Texas Tech on Nov. 17, Bradford returned to throw for 150 yards and four touchdowns in OU's "******" victory over Oklahoma State. Afterward, when told he had set a record for TD passes by a freshman, Bradford shrugged it off. "I was not aware of that," he said. "That's just a compliment to the whole team." Stoops has continued to shelter his rising star, allowing him to talk to the media only after games. While he mostly has downplayed his Cherokee heritage during interviews, Bradford recently told The Oklahoman newspaper: "It is important to some people. If it affects someone in a positive way, then I'm all for it." Right now, Bradford's heritage draws as much attention as his athletic achievements. His great-grandmother, Susie Walkingstick, was a full-blooded Cherokee. His father, Kent, also part Cherokee, lettered as an offensive lineman at OU in 1977 and '78. Bradford grew up in a middle-class neighborhood in nearby Oklahoma City. After his senior season at Putnam City North High School, where he passed for 2,242 yards and 19 touchdowns as a senior, Bradford followed in his father's footsteps at OU. Stoops said if Bradford weren't a freshman, he'd likely be mentioned alongside other Heisman candidates, such as Missouri's Chase Daniel. Daniel has thrown for one more touchdown than Bradford this season but with two more interceptions. "I think that should get Sam some consideration," Stoops said. Just wait until next year.
Nice write-up. It did fail to mention that he has a 4.0 halfway thru his sophomore year (business major) -- NOT easy to do as it is, certainly not as the team leader. Great young man. He also had a 4.0 throughout high school and lettered in everything known to man (including chess I'm sure).
We realize that most fans think they are playing for the MNC when their team steps on the field with OU, but you're jumping the gun.
