Tramel's ScissorTales: How OU football & the Sugar Bowl made its way into Thor comic books

Jason Aaron drove into Greater Los Angeles a couple of weeks ago to attend the Hollywood premiere of “Thor: Love & Thunder.”

He noticed the billboards promoting the movie. Jane Foster (Natalie Portmann) and Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale).

“Really strange,” Aaron told USA Today. “Just looking at all that and thinking, ‘That’s here because it came out of my head.’”

And sometimes out of his heart. Aaron was the writer and creator of the Thor comics that begat the latest Thor movie.

The movie gives no credit line for Bob Stoops’ 2013 Sooners, but it should. Aaron drew some of his inspiration from OU’s 45-31 victory over Alabama in that memorable Sugar Bowl from 8½ years ago.

Aaron, 49, grew up in Shelby County, Alabama, a Southern Baptist and a huge Crimson Tide football fan. Let’s let Aaron take up the story.

“There are several sports references that have made their way into my work,” Aaron said. “When I first took over Thor, the status quo was that Asgard (Thor’s homeland) had descended to Earth and was floating above Oklahoma.

“It may not be a complete coincidence that Oklahoma had just trashed Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, and around that same time I destroyed the town of Broxton, Oklahoma. It served the story, but I can’t say I didn’t take some joy from enacting some fictional revenge on the state of Oklahoma.”

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Egads. That’s some serious passive-aggressiveness. But it’s got to put a smile on Stoops’ face.

As for Broxton, small-school basketball fans know the place well. Well, at least the name.

Broxton was an unincorporated community in Caddo County, seven miles northwest of Apache.

Broxton had a post office from February 26, 1903, to June 15, 1906. According to a 1910 issue of the Apachan, Broxton originally was intended to form a town with 50 lots.

The town never made and today is considered out of existence. But Broxton absolutely had a school and consolidated with nearby Fort Cobb in the 1990s. Fort Cobb-Broxton has become a basketball power in the last couple of decades, becoming a regular at the state tournament.

But Class B basketball doesn’t move the needle like Marvel Comics movies.

Class B boys basketball:Roff, Fort Cobb-Broxton move on to state semifinals

In the Thor series, Asgard floats above Broxton, and Oklahomans generally welcomed their new neighbors, despite the Asgardians’ god status. In a 2011 Thor series, Odin, Thor’s father, is wary of human altruism, and sensing the return of an ancient enemy, leads his people back to Asgard’s former location.

Wouldn’t be the first time people fled Broxton.

“My job is always sitting in a room by myself, writing up stories that ultimately are just for my own personal amusement,” Aaron told USA Today. “All I know how to do is write stuff that I want to read.

“And then it goes off into the ether and turns into beautifully drawn art and I go pick it up off the shelves at my local comic book shop. And then sometimes those things have a life beyond that. So it’s really strange to see a thing you made up one day develop a life of its own.”

Alas, I’m told the Broxton storyline doesn’t make it into the movie. Revenge has its limits.

I was a fan of comic books myself. Then I turned about 10 and decided ballgames had more shelf life.

It was a good move. Just as Aaron’s interest in comic books has taken him to Hollywood and beyond, ballgames have taken me to places like New Orleans. I was in the Superdome the night OU beat Alabama, but leaving the stadium, I never dreamed the Sooners’ victory would fictionally cost us the community of Broxton.

NBA Summer League 2022:Five takeaways from the Thunder’s win against the Magic

Holmgren’s uniqueness paying off

Chet Holmgren is four Summer League games into his Thunder career, which means we know virtually nothing new about his future. What we knew 19 days ago, when OKC made him the second pick in the draft, is mostly what we know now.

What Holmgren has done against rookies and free agents and dreamers on Utah, Memphis, Houston and Orlando rosters is largely irrelevant to his career track.

But here’s one thing we have learned about Holmgren in Summer League. Generally, things go well when he’s on the court.

Plus/minus numbers can be misleading, especially in small samples. A banked-in 3-pointer here, a defensive mismatch there, and one team can produce a 10-2 run that has little to do with a particular player’s impact.

But plus/minus over an extended period of time can be instructive. And Holmgren on the court in Summer League has meant good news for the Thunder scoreboard.

Utah + 26: Holmgren played 23:54, during which OKC outscored the Jazz 68-42.

Memphis +20: Holmgren played 25:52, during which OKC outscored the Grizzlies 61-43.

Houston +5: Holmgren played 28:35, during which OKC outscored the Rockets 62-57.

Orlando: +15. Holmgren played 26:53, during which OKC outscored the Magic 63-48.

So that’s 106 minutes, 14 seconds for Holmgren, during which the Thunder outscored opponents 254-190.

In the 53 minutes, 46 seconds, without Holmgren, the Thunder was outscored 129-103.

Holmgren has a long way to go to reach NBA stardom. Game 4 was Monday night, an 84-81 victory over Orlando in which Holmgren had 16 points, 10 rebounds and made seven of 10 shots.

Holmgren has to get stronger. His ballhandling, while intriguing, needs work if he’s going to keep dribbling in a crowd. His scoring seems elite if dunking or shooting 3-pointers, otherwise he could use a little variety.

But man, is Holmgren effective. Opponents don’t seem to know what to do against him. Pushing him around goes only so far and leads to foul trouble. Aggressive drives into Holmgren have paid off, but they’ve also cost a bunch of possessions as he’s blocked shot after shot.

And all the opponents’ focus on Holmgren has been Thunder bounty. Offensively, the Thunder has found all kinds of backdoor cuts, and that’s with a team that traditionally has gone light on such maneuvers, at least since the James Harden/Nick Collison tandem ended. Defensively, opponents seem fixated on attacking Holmgren.

It’s all added up to surplus for OKC with Holmgren on the court. A whopping +66 in four games. Per 36 minutes, about a +21.

Again, Summer League doesn’t mean much. Players of Holmgren’s skill are rare in Las Vegas.

But players of Holmgren’s size and skill are rare in any NBA arena. The Thunder has a unique player, and we’ve seen the benefits in four Summer League games.

'His future's untapped':Oklahoma State football's Collin Oliver stayed grounded with humility, work ethic

Remembering a rememberer of the Wichita State crash

Dave Lewis died a few weeks ago. You might not know the name. But you remember the story.

Dave Lewis was one of the survivors of the 1970 Wichita State football plane crash.

Thirty-one people died in that crash in Colorado. Four of them were Oklahomans. And the survivors for more than 50 years have honored their friends and colleagues in the greatest way possible. By never forgetting.

Here’s the lede to a story I wrote almost two years ago, near the 50-year history anniversary of the crash:

“Almost every day, Dave Lewis walks out onto his back deck, gingerly, because his left leg remains a medical textbook, after six surgeries and four total knee replacements.

“Lewis lives in Overland Park, Kansas, about six miles south of Interstate 70. He’ll gaze in the direction of I-70, which stretches west through 420 miles of Kansas, then to Denver. And beyond.

“Lewis takes a list with him onto the deck. A list of the 31 people killed in the Wichita State football plane crash on Oct. 2, 1970.

“Fifty years ago Friday.

“‘I honor their memory every day,’ Lewis said. ‘I look up there and think of them.’”

Rusty Featherstone also honors those fallen Wheatshockers, and this week, he honored Lewis.

Featherstone, who went to John Marshall and Edmond Memorial high schools, retired after 34 years of Oklahoma law enforcement. He informed me of Lewis’ death, which came on June 19.

“His health had finally taken a turn and he was placed into Hospice Care the day before, but finally his heart just gave up,” Featherstone wrote.

A memorial service for Lewis will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday at the First Baptist Church of Duncan, Lewis’ hometown and the hometown of Don Christian, one of the Oklahomans killed in the Wichita State crash. A reception will be held later Saturday afternoon at the Elks Country Club.

“We’ve lost a warrior, known as the Big Chief to his many loyal high school friends who still rejoiced anytime he returned home,” Featherstone wrote. “A man full of humility, and with no complaints about all he has been through since the crash.

“I know of no period in his life since that fateful day that he didn’t suffer from his injuries, both physically and emotionally, but you wouldn’t know it to talk with him.”

Two years ago, Lewis recounted the story of the nine survivors on his plane. He was cut and burned; he scooted down a mountain on his butt, seeking help.

“I appreciated your interview with Dave prior to the 50^th anniversary,” Featherstone wrote me. “We talked some months afterward, and he told me it helped him put things in perspective by just getting to tell his story.”

Featherstone thanked me again for helping keep alive the memories of the fallen in their hometowns.

Don Christian, Duncan.

Johnny Duren, John Marshall.

Randy Kiesau, Clinton.

Tom Shedden, Putnam City.

But the people to thank are Dave Lewis, Rusty Featherstone and the Wichita State survivors who refuse to forget.

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The List: British Open venues

The British Open starts Thursday at St. Andrews, and when we talk about the tradition of college football or the history of Major League Baseball, the Royal & Ancient Golf Club just chuckles.

The British Open is real history and real tradition, having started in 1860 at Prestwick in Scotland. That’s one year before the American Civil War started and 74 years before the first Masters in Augusta.

Here are the courses that have hosted the most British Opens:

1. Old Course at St. Andrews, 29: First hosted the British in 1873. Golf first was played on the links at St. Andrews in the early 1400s. And CBS says the Masters has a tradition like no other?

2. Prestwick Golf Club, 24: Alas, not since 1924 has Prestwick hosted the British Open, since its tight layout is not conducive to galleries. But Prestwick, about 30 miles southwest of Glasgow, Scotland, did host the British Amateur as recently as 2001.

3. Muirfield, 16: The Gullane, Scotland, course first hosted in 1892 and as recently as 2013, when Phil Mickelson won.

4. Royal St. George, 15: Scotland doesn’t have the corner on British golf tradition. This Sandwich, England, course first hosted in 1894 and as recently as last July, when Collin Morikawa won.

5. Royal Liverpool, 12: This Hoylake, England, is one of four courses to host in three centuries, having first hosted in 1897. Royal Liverpool last hosted in 2014, when Rory McIlroy won.

6. Royal Lytham & St. Annes, 11: The Lytham St. Annes, England, course first hosted in 1926 and as recently as 2012, with Ernie Els the champion.

7. Royal Birkdale, 10: The Southport, England, club was late to the party, first hosting in 1954, but is making up for lost time. It most recently hosted in 2017, with Jordan Spieth the winner.

8. Royal Troon, 9: Troon, Scotland, first hosted in 1923 and as recently as 2016, with Henrik Stenson the winner.

9. Carnoustie, 8: Carnoustie, Scotland, first hosted in 1931 and as recently as 2018, when Francesco Molinari won.

10. Musselburgh Links, 6: Musselburgh, Scotland, last hosted in 1889. It is a nine-hole course that once was considered the oldest course in the world, though that record was reassigned to St. Andrews. Evidence exists that golf was played at Musselburgh in 1672.

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Mailbag: UNLV to the Big Ten

Real-life conference realignment is not clean. It’s grimy and stressful. But here on the world wide web, it’s sort of fun, speculating about possibilities. And people’s imaginations run wild.

Like this.

Johnny: “You might have already seen this article in the (Cedar Rapids) Iowa Gazette. A modest proposal: Las Vegas to follow L.A. into Big Ten. UNLV is in a good position to get into a power conference. I think there is something to be said: Southern Nevada television market 40th in the nation, Vegas has 3 million residents and over 53 million visitors a year, UNLV is a Tier 1 University with … a medical school, a law school, a dental school, the top hotel administration degree program in the world and one of the top research departments on the West Coast.

“UNLV lacks wins in the football department, (someone has to lose game, Rutgers and Maryland are not lighting it up), however UNLV makes up for what it brings to the table as a conference member. Top-notch facilities, Allegient Stadium (65,000 seats), Thomas & Mack Center (20,000), Cox Pavilion, the $38 million Fertitta Football training center, the $20 Mildenhall basketball center (home to USA Basketball), the Marnell baseball facility, all on campus and in one of the fastest growing sports communities in the nation.

“Not to mention the 150,000 hotel rooms and the 15 million square feet of convention center space in the community. The UNLV football program is a sleeping giant, when it gets going, with all resources they have thrown at it, it will explode!

“Most important thing, the Vegas community is hungry for a top college program.  Remember most of those 3 million people living in Las Vegas are from someplace else. Visiting fans can imagine Elton John singing the national anthem at the conference championship in Las Vegas the first week of December and the next night catching a round or two of the Nation Finals Rodeo while they in town. There’s something exciting going on when five college basketball tournaments all take place in one city over a nine-day period in March.”

Tramel: I don't see it. First off, Elton John, the spirit of Freckles Brown and the Big West hosting a basketball tournament in a convention hall has nothing to do with big-time college football.

There are no Nevada-Las Vegas football fans. They would add nothing to the Big Ten's value. Literally nothing. If Fox is paying $5 billion for a Big Ten television contract, it wouldn’t pay one cent more for UNLV.

UNLV is nowhere near the academic status the Big Ten traditionally has required.

I could name 20 schools ahead of UNLV on the Big Ten’s expansion list. Maybe 30.

The Big Ten didn’t come after Stanford or Oregon or North Carolina or Virginia. It’s not coming after UNLV.

Berry Tramel: Berry can be reached at 405-760-8080 or at btramel@oklahoman.com. He can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including FM-98.1. Support his work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today. 

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU football's Alabama Sugar Bowl inspired part of Thor: Love & Thunder