One of the Most Critical Times in Oklahoma State Athletics History and Leadership Missing

I don't know why it has to be a set amount or it needs to be published. Hopefully with an interim president AD Weiberg will make the call.

I have been concerned about this since the Dec. PR fiasco with Gundy's contract and then the questionable Dr. Shrum resignation with what looks like a "good old boy" internal audit. The "leadership" seems more focused on making sure everyone knows who has the power rather than a realization of the volatility of college athletics and working to survive. I also noticed these are powerful OSU grads preying upon and discrediting other OSU grads. That is unacceptable in the Cowboy Culture. It is very disappointing and IMO the higher leadership is failing OSU.

This article should make every OSU fan furious. While the rest of the country's top programs are uniting behind strong leadership to tackle the chaos of revenue sharing, NIL caps, and the portal free-for-all, Oklahoma State is sitting in neutral. Why? Because the OSU Board of Regents-led by cow patty Jimmy Harrel-decided their personal vendettas were more important than the future of our university.
Let's be clear: Dr. Kayse Shrum wasn't perfect, but she showed up. She was present, engaged, and supported athletics with intention. She understood how vital alignment was between the president, AD, and head football coachand she worked alongside Chad Weiberg and Mike Gundy to build that foundation. Now, that entire structure has been blown apart by an incompetent Board more focused on control than progress. Harrel and his cronies didn't just force out a really good president-they blew a hole in OSU's ability to respond to the most critical shift in college sports history.

This interim leadership BS doesn't cut it when you're competing against the Georgias and Texas Techs of the world-programs that already have their revenue share models outlined, NIL channels structured, and recruiting strategies ready to go. Meanwhile, OSU is stuck with an interim president who has no authority, no momentum, and no chance to lead through this mess effectively.

And let's not pretend this was accidental. This was a calculated move by Harrel-who's spent the last few years making back-channel calls, stacking the board with like-minded allies, and treating the university like it's one of his pasture-fed side hustles. This man isn't worried about preparing OSU for the future-he was worried about making sure a woman, that he didn't support from the start, didn't show him up as the mental midget he is.

Now you have a vacuum at the top during the most pivotal moment in modern college athletics. Football coaches don't know what they can offer recruits. Players are getting shopped in Zoom calls like it's an open auction. And OSU? We've got no direction, no unified message, and no leadership to get us through it. This isn't incompetence-it's sabotage, plain and simple. The Regents lit the match, and now they're standing around like they don't smell the smoke. Just sayin.....

GreyGhost said:

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This article should make every OSU fan furious. While the rest of the country's top programs are uniting behind strong leadership to tackle the chaos of revenue sharing, NIL caps, and the portal free-for-all, Oklahoma State is sitting in neutral. Why? Because the OSU Board of Regents-led by cow patty Jimmy Harrel-decided their personal vendettas were more important than the future of our university.
Let's be clear: Dr. Kayse Shrum wasn't perfect, but she showed up. She was present, engaged, and supported athletics with intention. She understood how vital alignment was between the president, AD, and head football coachand she worked alongside Chad Weiberg and Mike Gundy to build that foundation. Now, that entire structure has been blown apart by an incompetent Board more focused on control than progress. Harrel and his cronies didn't just force out a really good president-they blew a hole in OSU's ability to respond to the most critical shift in college sports history.

This interim leadership BS doesn't cut it when you're competing against the Georgias and Texas Techs of the world-programs that already have their revenue share models outlined, NIL channels structured, and recruiting strategies ready to go. Meanwhile, OSU is stuck with an interim president who has no authority, no momentum, and no chance to lead through this mess effectively.

And let's not pretend this was accidental. This was a calculated move by Harrel-who's spent the last few years making back-channel calls, stacking the board with like-minded allies, and treating the university like it's one of his pasture-fed side hustles. This man isn't worried about preparing OSU for the future-he was worried about making sure a woman, that he didn't support from the start, didn't show him up as the mental midget he is.

Now you have a vacuum at the top during the most pivotal moment in modern college athletics. Football coaches don't know what they can offer recruits. Players are getting shopped in Zoom calls like it's an open auction. And OSU? We've got no direction, no unified message, and no leadership to get us through it. This isn't incompetence-it's sabotage, plain and simple. The Regents lit the match, and now they're standing around like they don't smell the smoke. Just sayin.....

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You pretty much summed it up my friend! I am a little older than you but well remember the period between 1989 and 1995 when we had a similar issue with a couple of Regents back then who went through two Presidents (Lawrence Boger who retired in 1989 and John Campbell, who lasted about four years before Jim Halligan came aboard in 1995)! We also went through three athletic directors ( Myron Roderick, who retired in 1990, Jim Garner who lasted about four years and finally Terry Don Phillips who came in 1995)!!! The early 1990s were a period of turmoil for our athletic department because of the severity of the probation dealt to us in 1989 which basically gutted our football program for about 12 to 13 years until Les Miles was brought in! Thank God Myron Roderick had the good sense and foresight to hire Eddie Sutton in 1990 who immediately resurrected the basketball program and saved the athletic department monetarily during the early and mid 1990s! We will have a new Governor after the 2026 elections and my hope is that he/she will do things to stabilize the University and its leadership much like Keating did in 1995 when he literally replaced the entire Board of Regents in his first two years!!!

why don't we start a campaign to get rid of Harrell, why wait for elections

They certainly won't keep this guy around if there are active protests against him

Gov. Stitt appoints them and I sent emails and encouraged others do the same about the PR fiascos. Stitt, an OSU grad, last week "highly encouraged" Mark Goeller, State Forester, resign (or be fired?). Goeller is an OSU grad and had worked for State Forestry for 40 years. This was, in Stitt's opinion, because Goeller failed to use resources to stop the wildfires of March 4. I know Goeller and protested this nastiness from what many fire departments called "pettiness" because one of Stitt's houses on some land near Luther burned. I wrote in my protest to Stitt that no state could have had enough resources that day to stop wildfires with 70+ mph winds, dry conditions and too much fuel from Red cedars. This is just the type of people who are in leadership "power" roles and unfortunately their definition of the Cowboy Culture does not fit what many of us think about. They all need to be replaced IMO as they see OSU/OSU athletics as their little personal playground. I told the OSU Foundation they will get nothing from me, while we were doing some estate planning due to our daughter's death last year, as long as these people are involved. GO POKES!!!

Okay....seriously? I hadn't heard this until now. What a freaking grifter. The Greyghost of X may need to take up this cause.


UPDATED.....

What is a grifter?....."Someone who cons and swindles people for personal gain." Sound familiar? Gov. Stitt keeps running his mouth and flexing his power-hungry tactics, and now even the Fire Department wants him impeached.

Meanwhile, our lawmakers dish out spineless…

— GreyGhost (@greyghostpoke) April 4, 2025

Loading full tweet…

Sorry for you loss!!

Thank you. I appreciate this community a bunch. Have a good weekend. GO POKES!!!

It has been reported the Board of Regents hired the Pinkston Group, a D.C. spin doctor firm, for crisis communication support days before Dr. Shrum resigned. If you are in the right and on firm ground you do not need a high powered D. C. Firm. The Board of Regents obviously had an agenda forcing Dr. Shrum out and they could care less about the fallout. Just pay $10,000 a month for a year and cover it up.

Gary Layton said:

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It has been reported the Board of Regents hired the Pinkston Group, a D.C. spin doctor firm, for crisis communication support days before Dr. Shrum resigned. If you are in the right and on firm ground you do not need a high powered D. C. Firm. The Board of Regents obviously had an agenda forcing Dr. Shrum out and they could care less about the fallout. Just pay $10,000 a month for a year and cover it up.

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Something I have found out from A VERY GOOD SOURCE is that Harrel refuses to use e mail or text information! Yes he is 80 years old but my mother is 86 and is savvy in using tech for such things! No e mail or text etc… leaves NO ELECTRONIC PAPER TRAIL!!! Hmmm!!!

"If I found a Sasquatch behind the Dollar General rummaging through the trash....washed it up with Joy dish water soap....fed it only red dyed Skittles and Sonic corn dogs....educated it only with reruns of Hee Haw and Dukes of Hazard....we would have better and more in tune leadership with the current state of events." -- The Spirit of the Cowboy Culture - Pistol Pete (famous quote).....2025

There is an interesting opinion piece in the Oklahoman today about our illustrious BoR and their excessive spending on meetings that could go for better uses...

"OSU regents shouldn't live high on the hog while serving the public interest | Opinion
Our regents are doing nothing to curtail the expectation that presidents and schools must pay dearly for board members to attend obscenely expensive junkets and entertain them while they're doing the

Janelle Stecklein
Guest columnist/Oklahoma Voice"


.....Maybe it is time there was an "external" audit of their activities. I contacted the State Auditor and they are not allowed by statute to do audits of the OSU BoR activities. "Isn't that special!"....as the Church Lady would say.

A few items noted in the article:

* $69,000 for 13 meetings
* $11,000 for mileage
* Article mentions lavish meals when they meet as 1 in 5 OSU students are food insecure but a recent OSU survey indicated it was more like 50%.....
* All the schools they "lead" have increased tuition.
* Open bars at meetings with "Night Cap Socials" with "Whiskey Tastings" paid for by the OSU Foundation???
* Article mentions these meetings wracking up $50,000 in catering costs and fresh flowers....

All are appointed by Gov. Stitt as the state looks to reduce state services and save tax funds. Seems to me this smells like a load of sanctimony ..."Do as we say not as we do!"....

TUSKAPOKE said:

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There is an interesting opinion piece in the Oklahoman today about our illustrious BoR and their excessive spending on meetings that could go for better uses...

"OSU regents shouldn't live high on the hog while serving the public interest | Opinion
Our regents are doing nothing to curtail the expectation that presidents and schools must pay dearly for board members to attend obscenely expensive junkets and entertain them while they're doing the

Janelle Stecklein
Guest columnist/Oklahoma Voice"


.....Maybe it is time there was an "external" audit of their activities. I contacted the State Auditor and they are not allowed by statute to do audits of the OSU BoR activities. "Isn't that special!"....as the Church Lady would say.

A few items noted in the article:

* $69,000 for 13 meetings
* $11,000 for mileage
* Article mentions lavish meals when they meet as 1 in 5 OSU students are food insecure but a recent OSU survey indicated it was more like 50%.....
* All the schools they "lead" have increased tuition.
* Open bars at meetings with "Night Cap Socials" with "Whiskey Tastings" paid for by the OSU Foundation???
* Article mentions these meetings wracking up $50,000 in catering costs and fresh flowers....

All are appointed by Gov. Stitt as the state looks to reduce state services and save tax funds. Seems to me this smells like a load of sanctimony ..."Do as we say not as we do!"....

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It may lead nowhere but try contacting the Attorney Generals office because THEY HAVE NO SUCH PROHIBITIONS AND CAN INVESTIGATE ANYTHING AND ANYONE BEING THE CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY IN OKLAHOMA!!!

Joe Khatib said:

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It may lead nowhere but try contacting the Attorney Generals office because THEY HAVE NO SUCH PROHIBITIONS AND CAN INVESTIGATE ANYTHING AND ANYONE BEING THE CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY IN OKLAHOMA!!!

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Itis a nothing burger