Contractor claims OSU coach Mike Gundy fired him because he wore an OU shirt

[BBatesokc]

http://newsok.com/article/3593942

[Easy180]

Would be a dumb reason to fire him but it was an even dumber move by the contractor to wear the shirt...Like working at Chase coming in wearing a B of A shirt

[MikeOKC]

What if he had simply said, "Hey, my parents said you did a really good job on their house. You came highly recommended. Which is surprising - I see you're a Sooner (laughs). We're looking to have a big year at OSU, have you seen the pix of our new uniforms?"

Really, what a dumb thing to fire a contractor for.

[MustangGT]

Not a good reason to fire him. However if he did no work he lost no money. Tough rocks for him.

[OKCisOK4me]

Git em Spikey Mikey!!

[RadicalModerate]

I'm not sure of the veracity of this bit of trivia . . . But I think I heard--or read (maybe it was in Alexander McCall Smith's "First Ladies Detective Agency" series?)--that in one of the African dialects--I think it is one of them found in Botswana--the word "gundi" means "person with head made of [alt."full of"] cattle manure."

Pretty amazing coincidence, huh.

[ljbab728]

He seems to be a very good coach but, if there is any truth to this, it appears that he may sometimes have anger management issues. It's not impossible, but I can't imagine a similar incident happening with Bob Stoops.

[Double Edge]

I've worked on a number of OSU construction projects around the state. Absolutely no OU insignia of any kind is allowed by OSU. They make a big deal about it. You can ask anyone who has been there. It's stupid and petty. (They do not do that at OU or anywhere else in my experience and I've worked at quite a few.)

Edit to add: Okay, just read the article, thought it was at one of the schools. He can do what he wants at home, I guess. Why be different there?

[earlywinegareth]

Think the pressure to beat OU has gotten to him? Wound awfully tight and the season hasn't even started.

[onthestrip]

Dumb reason to fire him and couldnt see Bob Stoops doing something like that..? Please. It's obvious most of you are OU fans. Gundy can fire his contractor for whatever reason he wants and this seems like a valid reason to me. This was an obvious show of disrespect by the contractor to wear something like that, and no way I believe that he didn't know what shirt he had on.

[OKCisOK4me]

Oh my gawd, all you guys are OU fans... you would at least say some kind of crap to an OSU fan you saw walking around in OSU gear. I wont lie, I'll jive OU and Texas fans for wearing their fan gear when I'm behind the counter at my job. Maybe the man went a little far as in firing the guy but that same guy knew who Mike Gundy is and he knew he was in Stillwater, which you'd have to be blind and deaf to not know that that is Orange Country!

[ljbab728]

Oh my gawd, all you guys are OU fans... you would at least say some kind of crap to an OSU fan you saw walking around in OSU gear.

I am an OU fan and one of my best customers is a huge OSU fan. He often wears OSU gear when he comes into my office and it doesn't bother me in the least. Mature people are able to get past things like that and get along. If an OSU fan was doing some work in my home and wearing an OSU shirt I might tease him a little but the odds are that I wouldn't even mention it. To fire someone for something like that is just plain silly and immature.

[onthestrip]

I am an OU fan and one of my best customers is a huge OSU fan. He often wears OSU gear when he comes into my office and it doesn't bother me in the least. Mature people are able to get past things like that and get along. If an OSU fan was doing some work in my home and wearing an OSU shirt I might tease him a little but the odds are that I wouldn't even mention it. To fire someone for something like that is just plain silly and immature.

You're just some guy in an office. A little different than someone going into the house of the head football coach wearing the rivals shirt. Night and day difference.

[Spartan]

You're just some guy in an office. A little different than someone going into the house of the head football coach wearing the rivals shirt. Night and day difference.

Yeah, to be honest, I think this is kind of embarrassing for OU, as an OU fan myself. I like OU as someone who studied there and knows where Norman is, but let's be honest, a lot of raging fans need to be calmed down. If you get a contractor job (contractor obviously did not go to OU) at Mike Gundy's house, you should probably try and be respectful to your employer. If you can't be respectful to your employer, and because this IS an at-will employment state, you risk being terminated with your boss's mood swings if you're not going to suck up and be respectful at least.

If I was the head coach ANYWHERE I would of course fire some little twerp who does something uber tacky like wearing my main rival's stuff while I'm paying him.

However anytime OSU comes up in the news it does seem rather embarrassing for them on some level. That is tragic.

[MikeOKC]

Yeah, to be honest, I think this is kind of embarrassing for OU, as an OU fan myself. I like OU as someone who studied there and knows where Norman is, but let's be honest, a lot of raging fans need to be calmed down. If you get a contractor job (contractor obviously did not go to OU) at Mike Gundy's house, you should probably try and be respectful to your employer. If you can't be respectful to your employer, and because this IS an at-will employment state, you risk being terminated with your boss's mood swings if you're not going to suck up and be respectful at least.

If I was the head coach ANYWHERE I would of course fire some little twerp who does something uber tacky like wearing my main rival's stuff while I'm paying him.

However anytime OSU comes up in the news it does seem rather embarrassing for them on some level. That is tragic.

They are two state university schools. The ridiculous athletic rivalry shouldn't carry over to such petty things as who wears a t-shirt and it being seen as "disrespectful" if somebody wears a t-shirt from another state school to do work at an employee of another state school. Gundy and Stoops aren't Gods. They go to the toilet the same as anybody else. It takes somebody really insecure who can't just say, "I see you're a Sooner - you know my brother works there; but we'll whip your butts this year (laughs)."

I can't believe this thread has gone on as long as it has. What petty silliness.

[Midtowner]

Yeah, to be honest, I think this is kind of embarrassing for OU, as an OU fan myself. I like OU as someone who studied there and knows where Norman is, but let's be honest, a lot of raging fans need to be calmed down. If you get a contractor job (contractor obviously did not go to OU) at Mike Gundy's house, you should probably try and be respectful to your employer. If you can't be respectful to your employer, and because this IS an at-will employment state, you risk being terminated with your boss's mood swings if you're not going to suck up and be respectful at least.

If I was the head coach ANYWHERE I would of course fire some little twerp who does something uber tacky like wearing my main rival's stuff while I'm paying him.

However anytime OSU comes up in the news it does seem rather embarrassing for them on some level. That is tragic.

Contractors are not employees.

[OKCisOK4me]

I am an OU fan and one of my best customers is a huge OSU fan. He often wears OSU gear when he comes into my office and it doesn't bother me in the least. Mature people are able to get past things like that and get along. If an OSU fan was doing some work in my home and wearing an OSU shirt I might tease him a little but the odds are that I wouldn't even mention it. To fire someone for something like that is just plain silly and immature.

My mom's boyfriend is a diehard OU fan and I asked him about it and be thought the contractor was d-bag! Lmao. Dude claims he gets dressed in the dark and doesn't figure out what he's wearing til he's ringing the doorbell??

I guarantee you your buddy makes sure he wears that OSU gear when he goes and sees you. He doesn't mistakenly put it on. I know this cause I 'mistakenly' wear opposing teams colors when OU is playing someone to see if my friends notice..haha.

[ljbab728]

My mom's boyfriend is a diehard OU fan and I asked him about it and be thought the contractor was d-bag! Lmao. Dude claims he gets dressed in the dark and doesn't figure out what he's wearing til he's ringing the doorbell??

I guarantee you your buddy makes sure he wears that OSU gear when he goes and sees you. He doesn't mistakenly put it on. I know this cause I 'mistakenly' wear opposing teams colors when OU is playing someone to see if my friends notice..haha.

I don't know the contractor so I can't speak to his motives and you don't know me or my customers so don't dare to think you know anything about our motives. I have mutual respect with the customer (not a buddy) that I'm talking about and there is never any joking or kidding about the other person's school or team. Many times he may be wearing some school apparel and the subject is never even brought up. He is just a fan of his school and I respect that.

If the contractor was fired for the reason stated, even if the contractor dressed that way on purpose, it is still immature on Gundy's part to not be able to see above that and act like a 40 year old man.

[OKCisOK4me]

...so don't dare to think you know anything about our motives...

Are you threatening me? Because I'm an OSU fan? Wow, you're about as mature as Gundy... Get over what Gundy does on his own personal property, at his own residence.

My mom's boyfriend (AGAIN, OU FAN AND GRADUATE) brought up another point. Oklahoma is a "right to work" state. Mike doesn't have to pay the guy anything.

[RadicalModerate]

(Announcer--excited): It's time to play . . . FIND THE AGGIE!!!
(Announcer--semi-whispered, golf-coveragesque, voice): Here is The Situation . . .
Contractor (A) lines up "$30,000 worth of work" at a well-known coach's house, then "accidentally" puts on a shirt from a rival university and wears it to the job.
Coach's Wife (B) gets upset and offended (even though it isn't clear that she knows what the two letters on the offensive shirt spell or how to pronounce it).
Coach (C) comes unglued, goes ballistic and fires Contractor (A).
Contractor (A) considers a lawsuit for "lost earnings" based--probably--on nothing more than a verbal agreement, (if that).
Lawyers (D) and (E) mumble a bunch of clichés . . .

(Announcer--excited again): So . . . FIND THE AGGIE!!!

(Announcer--conspiritorial tone): Is it . . . Contractor (A) . . . Coach's wife (B) . . . Coach (C) . . . Lawyer (D) . . . or Lawyer (E) . . .?

(Announcer--excited): Trick Question!!!: The Answer is ALL OF THE ABOVE!!!!

[bluedogok]

I think the hair gel overdoses have led to rage issues.......

It is pretty stupid for someone of his stature to go off on someone for something like that, an action like that is to be more expected from an unhinged fan, not the head coach of a major college football program. I know all about unhinged fans living in the middle of Whorn country and have run across a few that would act the same way, but they also weren't officially associated with the university in any way. The contractor was recommended by his parents so it isn't like the guy was hired out of the yellow pages. Sometimes it pays to consider your surroundings though, my wife can't have her Texas Tech marker board up on her office door like some have UT boards up because she is right by the major conference room where many of the donor meetings are and "it might offend" some ultra-sensitive UT fans. Thankfully most people aren't that stupid and have realized that Austin is no longer a UT only town as there are a lot of us from everywhere now.

[BrettM2]

I guess the automatic assumption here is that Gundy actual did this? I'd like to see a little bit more proof than just what a contractor says after he lost his job.

[Easy180]

Probably right Brett...Contractor likely left out the OSU Sucks hat he also had on

[RadicalModerate]

So . . . Are you suggesting that a "40 year old man" doesn't have the right to "release his inner child" within the confines of his own home? No. I didn't think so. =)

This whole episode is very nearly "Onionworthy."

[ljbab728]

So . . . Are you suggesting that a "40 year old man" doesn't have the right to "release his inner child" within the confines of his own home? No. I didn't think so. =)

This whole episode is very nearly "Onionworthy."

Yes, the whole thing would have been very silly without the "firing" and lawsuit. I'm sure Gundy just wishes the whole thing would go away but when you're a high profile football coach in Oklahoma it's part of the territory.