NORMAN, Okla. — Baker Mayield knew Oklahoma athletic director Joe Castiglione wasn’t about to allow Mayfield’s Heisman Park statue to be of his famous flag plant at Ohio State.
But, like everything with Mayfield, he had to make a bit of a statement when settling on the pose.
Ultimately, his stiff-arm during a touchdown run during the Sooners’ 2017 Bedlam victory was the choice.
“For it to be a stiff-arm of your little brother, forever they have to deal with that one,” Mayfield said Saturday after the statue’s public dedication at halftime of the OU football spring game.
Mayfield’s NFL future is in flux after the Cleveland Browns acquired Deshaun Watson in a trade with the Houston Texans.
But while Mayfield doesn’t yet know his home for next season, he clearly still has a home in Norman.
Smoke filled the southeast tunnel at Gaylord Family — Oklahoma Memorial Stadium at halftime and the crowd of 75,000-plus roared the way it did plenty of times during Mayfield’s storied OU career.
But instead of sprinting toward the end zone waving his arms wildly, Mayfield strode in a deliberate walk toward midfield, taking in every bit of the adulation from the throng.
“I dreamt about having a statue right there, and now I do,” Mayfield said to the crowd. “It blows my mind.”
Mayfield was joined for the ceremony by not only his family and former Sooners coach Bob Stoops but also fellow OU Heisman winners Steve Owens, Jason White and Kyler Murray.
Though he grew up near Austin, Texas, Mayfield was a Sooners fan from a young age.
His first Sooners autograph came courtesy of Tinker Owens — a signed picture of both Tinker and Steve Owens. Mayfield grew up watching White quarterback the Sooners. Murray was a teammate in 2016 and 2017, won the Heisman Trophy in 2018 and will get his own Heisman Park statue next year.
The night before, during a celebration for Mayfield with former Sooners, Mayfield posed for a picture with White, Murray and Sam Bradford.
“Just thinking about that era of when I really fell in love with Oklahoma football,” Mayfield said of being surrounded by White and Bradford on Friday. “Those were guys that I idolized at that point in my life.”
Mayfield also heaped praise on the large group of teammates who gathered for the ceremonies.
“I love everybody that helped me out so much,” he said. “I’d take a bullet for them. I mean that.”
As Mayfield finished that sentence, an “I love you, Baker” rang out from the stands.
“Love you guys too,” Mayfield said, reaching the cusp of tears.
After starting his career walking on at Texas Tech, Mayfield transferred to OU, arriving after the 2013 season with little fanfare.
Stoops said he hadn’t had contact with Mayfield before a team dinner in January 2014 when he met the quarterback.
After sitting out the 2014 season, Mayfield beat out Trevor Knight for the starting job ahead of the 2015 season — Lincoln Riley’s first as offensive coordinator.
Mayfield quickly turned into a star with the Sooners, leading OU to a comeback at Tennessee in the second game of his first season.
He finished fourth in Heisman voting that season, then third in 2016 before winning by a wide margin over Stanford's Bryce Love in 2017.
A few months later, Mayfield was the No. 1 overall pick by the Browns.
Riley, who left in November to take the USC job, was conspicuously absent from Saturday’s tribute videos.
But Mayfield said his feelings about Riley haven’t dimmed.
“That guy put in some time here,” Mayfield said of Riley. “We had some good years.”
Friday morning, Mayfield spent about 30 minutes with new Sooners coach Brent Venables.
“I’ll say this, this place is heading in the right direction,” Mayfield said. “I was ready to run through a wall. I’ll tell you this, we’re back. We never left, but we’re back.”
So is Mayfield, at least in Norman, and it seemed like he never left either.
“This is home,” Mayfield said, choking up slightly. “It’ll always be home. I mean that.”