 "Photo: Caleb Miller, Daily Texan Staff")
Senior running back Chris Ogbonnaya’s relationship with his father is unique. Ever since his parents divorced in 1996, Chris’ father, Kalu, has been like a single father to him.
Imagine the fear Ogbonnaya must have felt when he could not get ahold of his father for 12 hours after Hurricane Ike hit. Kalu decided to stay in Houston because it took him and Ogbonnaya’s brother 14 hours to get to Austin while evacuating for Hurricane Rita in 2005.
Ogbonnaya’s father was finally able to get in contact with him and told his son he was “OK.” The family’s house didn’t make it through the storm unscathed, though. There was flooding and broken windows, along with some damage outside.
“It was a nerve-wracking deal,” Ogbonnaya said. “For the most part, he’s OK, so I’m glad. That’s what matters.”
Defensive end Brian Orakpo said his family and home made it through the storm without any problems.
Defensive back Ryan Palmer said his teammates in the secondary, Earl Thomas and Deon Beasley, were not as lucky. Much of Thomas’ and Beasley’s hometown of Orange, Texas was flooded, and their families escaped to Austin.
“Deon and Earl are having a rough time,” Palmer said. “So far they are doing a good job of not letting it get to them and working hard on the football field. I’m trying to do as much as I can to help them out and make things easier for them. Everybody on the team needs to keep praying for them and encouraging them.”
Roddrick Muckelroy said that fellow linebacker Rashad Bobino, who hails from La Marque, Texas (near Galveston, where the hurricane hit), thinks Bobino’s house is under water.
Coach Mack Brown refused to discuss which players had families affected by the storm, and none of the players who were seriously affected were brought out for media availability Monday.
“I saw a couple of houses that were under water; they had pictures of them from people that had gotten back into the area [that] had been able to show them,” Brown said. “That’s a devastating thing for young people, but we tell them at least everybody is safe in your family, so let’s see what we can do to rebuild and move forward. The NCAA has done some really good things to try to help kids and families that are in dire need at this time. We’re checking into what we can do to help.”
Players enjoy open weekend
With the sudden emergence of an open weekend, some Texas players took the opportunity to go home while they still had the chance. The majority of the players, along with the coaches, though, stayed in Austin and watched and watch college football Saturday.
Defensive tackle Roy Miller was among the many players watching football on the off day.
“We had a good chance to watch a lot of Big 12 teams,” Miller said. “Oklahoma looks dominating right now. Missouri looked good too; Texas Tech looked good. Baylor looked good — Robert Griffin is doing his thing.”
Junior quarterback Colt McCoy went to watch his brother’s high school game in Abilene. Senior offensive lineman Cedric Dockery went home to Garland, and senior receiver Jordan Shipley went to Coppell, Texas, where his dad coaches and younger brother plays, to catch their game on Friday.
Shipley’s younger brother Jaxon, who is a sophomore, had seven catches for 155 yards.
“It was great to see him play, and he’s going to be really good,” Shipley said. “He’s already as tall as me and almost as quick.”
Brown advised players with families east of Austin not to go home because of Hurricane Ike.
“When there’s a hurricane, you never know what the traffic will be like or whether or not places will run out of gas,” Brown said. “I’ve been at North Carolina and Tulane, so I know just how unpredictable hurricanes are. We needed everybody to be back for a full pad practice at 4:30 p.m. Sunday, so we didn’t want to take any chances.”
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