Those of us media types who will cover Saturday’s Kansas University-Oklahoma State football game in Stillwater, Okla., have been advised not to linger.
Early next week, the press box at Boone Pickens Stadium will be demolished as part of a $20 million renovation project funded entirely by one man.
Do I need to tell you his name?
Oklahoma State officials decided two months ago to change the name of their football stadium — known for decades as Lewis Field — in honor of Pickens, a Texas oil tycoon and 1951 OSU graduate whose total gift to his alma mater was a staggering $71 million.
Along the lines of stadium naming, did you know that Kansas is the only school in the Big 12 Conference without someone’s name somewhere in the title?
Like Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska also call their football facilities Memorial Stadium, but the Tigers and Huskers also play on Don Faurot Field and Tom Osborne Field.
Texas also has a Memorial Stadium, but that name has been buried. Officially, the Longhorns play at — take a deep breath — Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium/Jamail Field.
Oklahoma comes close in the title length sweepstakes. The Sooners’ home now is known as Gaylord Family Memorial Stadium.
That’s it for the Memorial Stadia in the Big 12.
Kansas State probably would be willing to change the name of KSU Stadium if somebody plunked down the big bucks, but the Wildcats still play on Wagner Field, so named for a former winner of the Kansas Lottery who plunked down the loot for new artificial turf several years ago.
Anyway, it’s probably safe to say Kansas University would consider attaching a name to its Memorial Stadium if the price were right.
Meanwhile, don’t linger much longer if you want to enter this week’s Wanna Whack Woodling contest. This is the next-to-last week to go to KUsports.com and try to out-guess me on Saturday’s Big 12 Conference games. Each week’s winner receives a We Whacked Woodling T-shirt.
Here are Saturday’s selections:
Missouri 44, Texas A&M 11 — Tigers rebound from disappointing loss at Colorado and ruin any hopes flagging Aggies had of becoming bowl eligible. Toothless A&M surrendering an average of nearly 54 points a game on road.
Iowa State 27, Colorado 22 — Cyclones score for the first time in three weeks and snap seven-game losing skein on Senior Day. Buffaloes will suffer from lethargy of general disinterest in showing up in Ames, Iowa.
Oklahoma 57, Baylor 14 — OU coach Bob Stoops goes deep into his bench to prove, like Portia, that quality of mercy is not strained like it was last week against A&M. Bottom-feeding Bears will at least beat unbelievably high 53-point spread.
Nebraska 22, Kansas State 20 — Corn dodgers dodge last bullet and take command of Big 12 North, setting up Nebraska-Oklahoma Big 12 championship game and making everyone misty-eyed about those legendary NU-OU games of Big Eight yore.
Texas 61, Texas Tech 34 — Once red-hot Red Raiders can still run up points like a cash register against bad teams, but Longhorns still are hoping for a BCS berth, and Tech doesn’t have enough wranglers to stop a stampede in Austin.
Oklahoma State 33, Kansas 18 — Cowboys anxious to bounce back from back-to-back drubbings at hands of Oklahoma and Texas, and make Jayhawks the bouncee. Kansas has won only two of its last 27 Big 12 Conference road games.