“Why are you worried? It’s not like you’re dating anyone.”
“Not the point, jackass,” Tim said.
“It’ll be fine. David will talk to her,” Wolf said and quickly walked away.
I looked at Tim.
“Not it,” he said, and followed Wolf.
You would think we had planned a weekend to Vegas and had hookers lined up the way they were acting. I had received a call from Hayden Walsh, the current starting quarterback for Oklahoma who came in fifth in last year’s Heisman voting. Since this was an unofficial visit, meaning the university wasn’t paying for anything, we were free to do what we wanted. Hayden had invited us to a party tonight to give us a feel for campus life.
I figured it would give me a chance to get his take on going to school at Oklahoma. The rumors were that next year would be his last, and he would move on to the NFL, just like my buddy Ridge Townsend at USC. Part of the appeal for both schools was that I could slide in as a starter my first year on campus.
The early mock drafts had both Ridge and Hayden going in the first round. Another plus in my book. What was it Coach Mason used to say? RSP? Repeat Successful Plays? I was counting on that, meaning that both USC and Oklahoma would continue to produce NFL-caliber quarterbacks in the near future.
Wolf and Tim were convinced that Hayden might hook them up with some college girls. Hence, the need for no witnesses in the form of Cassidy Hope.
Somehow, Wolf was still dating Gina. I’d warned him that communication was the key in a situation like this. Somehow, they always found out.
I, on the other hand, was dating Lisa. The big difference between Gina and Lisa was that I’d never even implied that Lisa and I were exclusive. Believe me, I remembered that conversation. When she’d asked for the same leeway, I’d told her to go ahead. That was when I’d known we were never going to be more than convenient for each other until the end of the school year.
I climbed into the pilot’s seat.
“You know the rules of recruiting trips …”
“Shut up. That just means you have to do the same for me,” Cassidy said.
Well … I guess that solved that.
“Okay, then. Let’s get this party started.”
Cassidy checked to make sure everyone had strapped themselves in. Roy waved to indicate we were all clear, so I turned the engine over. Cassidy contacted the tower as we made our way to the runway. There was no other traffic, so we quickly got clearance.
I looked over at Cassidy, and she smiled. She loved this as much as I did.
“Next stop, Norman, Oklahoma,” I said.
On our first trip to OU, we’d flown into Will Rogers Airport, situated a half-hour from Norman. With a private plane, we could actually fly into Westheimer Airport, which the university owned and operated. I made a mental note of the proximity of the airport to the campus and put that in the plus column for Oklahoma over USC.
◊◊◊
After we landed, the tower directed us to our assigned parking spot. As we got closer to our destination, we saw a crowd of people.
“What in the world is that?” Cassidy asked.
I wasn’t sure until we got close enough to see Oklahoma’s crimson and cream colors. There had to be a couple hundred fans gathered around where we were going.
“That’s our welcoming committee,” I announced to everyone.
“Let Cassidy and me get out first,” Manaia ordered as we came to a stop.
I rolled my eyes at Cassidy, who shook her head. Fritz had had a long talk with me privately about listening to my security after the last time Cassidy had told on me.
I waited to get off the plane until everyone else had disembarked. When I exited the plane, the crowd made their presence known.
Oklahoma really should consider flying recruits into this airport if their fans would greet them the way they did us. The amount of love you felt from the loyalists wanting you to attend their school was impressive. Of all the recruiting tactics I’d experienced, this was one of the most effective.
I watched Tim and Wolf take in the adulation. You couldn’t help but like a school that turned out two hundred people on a Saturday morning to greet you.
Before this turned into a meet-and-greet, John Mercer, the Director of Football Operations and the person who organized campus visits, stepped forward.
The man was good. He remembered everyone’s name with personal welcomes. Then he whisked us away to the football offices. We were to meet with the trio of Head Coach Bob Michaels, Offensive Coordinator and Quarterback Coach Nick Riley, and Defensive Coordinator Tom Michaels.
“Welcome!” Coach Bob Michaels boomed as we entered the building. “You just made my day by walking through those doors.”
That seemed an odd comment, but I waited until we were all in a conference room before asking about it.
“What did we do to make your day?” I asked.
“We just lost our top quarterback recruit to some legal problems that will prevent him from attending college anytime soon,” Coach Riley shared.
