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Oklahoma State Remembers
Outside the Lines (Sunday, 9 a.m. ET, ESPN)
ESPN.com (Tom Friend’s OTL-branded piece to be posted next week)
Ten years ago, on January 27, 2001, a small airplane carrying 10 members of the Oklahoma State men’s basketball team, including two players, crashed 30 miles east of Denver. There were no survivors. Among the deceased was Nate Fleming, a walk-on point guard beloved by Oklahoma State fans. Fleming was a late addition to the passenger list of the fateful flight when head coach Eddie Sutton had him switch planes with Fleming’s cousin — assistant coach Kyle Keller. Tom Friend has the remarkable story of tragedy.
Following the report, BCS Executive Director Bill Hancock, whose 31 year-old son was an Oklahoma State media relations staffer killed in the crash, and ESPN’s Doug Gottlieb, Cowboys’ point guard who graduated the year before the crash, will discuss the tragedy.
“I saw every one of them looking at me through the window. And it’s not a great feeling to know I was the last person, in my mind, at least, to see them alive.” – Kyle Keller, on having gone back to check on Nate Fleming’s plane – the one he was originally slated to be on
“When I first heard about the loss of those 10 guys, I can remember I had to go off to a room by myself just to try to regain my composure and wipe the tears from my eyes.” — Eddie Sutton, Oklahoma State coach
“Do I know exactly why I wasn’t on the plane? No. God tells me every day. He shows me every day why I wasn’t on that plane. I got to make a difference in kids’ lives, I got to make a difference in my family’s life. I have to make a difference hopefully in the Flemings’ life, somehow, and everybody’s life that I am involved with every day.” – Keller
Dennis Byrd’s Impact
Sunday NFL Countdown (Sunday, 1 p.m., ESPN)
The Jets did a lot of public talking prior to their upset of the Patriots last week, but the most impactful words came from a retired Jet in the privacy of the team’s hotel meeting room the night before the game. Former defensive end Dennis Byrd detailed the November, 29 1992, play in which he suffered a broken neck, and he showed the players the Jets jersey that was cut off his paralyzed body by doctors. Tom Jackson tells the story of Byrd’s recovery and what his speech meant to the Jets.
James Harrison All-Access
Sunday NFL Countdown (Sunday, 1 p.m., ESPN)
Steelers’ LB James Harrison brings quite a resume to this AFC Championship: 2008 NFL Defensive Player of the Year; an interception and touchdown return for the longest play in Super Bowl history; three straight seasons with 10 or more sacks; three sacks in last week’s Divisional win against Baltimore. Countdown gets an all-access look at how the Pittsburgh sack artist gets ready to play each week — in weight rooms, cold tubs and with acupuncturists.
Roethlisberger Works to Rebuild Trust
ESPN.com
Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, his supporters say, has grown up. He had to. The face of the Steelers franchise stood last spring at the precipice of losing everything. Liz Merrill reports.
https://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/2010/columns/story?page=hotread19/BenRoethlisberger
Santos Soccer a Family Tradition
ESPN Deportes SportsCenter (Sunday, 11 p.m.)
Reportajes Especiales piece (ESPNDeportes.com)
The Olvera family’s deep ties to the Mexican first division soccer team Santos began when Guillermo Olvera became the club’s groundkeeper. His son Gerardo would inherit the job, but it was his grandson Antonio who took the Olvera tradition one step further by becoming a professional soccer player, maintaining a legacy they hope will continue into the next generation.
“All my life has been based around the Santos institution, since I was born. My first steps were there at the stadium.” — Antonio Olvera