One of the tougher moments in college football comes when nonconference games get overwhelmingly lopsided.
Such was the case on Saturday for No. 20 Oklahoma’s season-opening bout with former Tennessee head coach Butch Jones and Arkansas State.
Well, the visiting Arkansas State struggled mightily against the Sooners, falling 73-0 in the contest. While upsets can happen all the time in the sport, often the results fall like this when a much bigger program takes on a smaller one.
Toward the end of Saturday’s game, Jones looked visibly shaken on the sideline by the pending result set to befall his team, and safety Justin Parks came over to comfort his coach on the difficult afternoon.
Justin Parks consoling his head coach Butch Jones during a tough afternoon ❤️ pic.twitter.com/88TZvgmywl
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 2, 2023
After the loss, Jones commented on Parks’ gesture as a sign of the dedication that he feels lives in his team’s locker room.
“There’s a lot of players on our team that care,” Jones shared.
I asked Arkansas State head football coach Butch Jones about safety Justin Parks consoling him in the 4th quarter. https://t.co/NFuQxNikWj pic.twitter.com/sqCc4OISdd
— Chris Hudgison (@ChrisHudgison) September 2, 2023
This is the pinnacle of sportsmanship and is such a testament to Parks’ character. Even if Jones’ team lost in dramatic fashion on Saturday, it’s clear that the Red Wolves have each other’s backs during the hard moments.
In a sport where focus so heavily on winning, this moment shows that you can still find wins in the most difficult of defeats.
Feature image courtesy of ESPN.
