The Redskins Blog

Brian Orakpo Is A Man Of His Word

For those of you that don’t get to watch ESPN at work, Redskins outside linebacker Brian Orakpo appeared as a guess on ESPN’s “First Take” on September 22nd.  On the program, they discussed the upcoming matchup between Orakpo’s alma mater Texas and Oklahoma, with analyst Skip Bayless taking the Sooners in a landslide.

Orakpo took exception to the prediction, and laid down a friendly wager with Bayless.

Now, Orakpo may be good at on the gridiron, but I wouldn’t take him to Vegas with you.

After a 55-17 thumping of his Longhorns last Saturday, it was time for Orakpo to pay his dues:

Clearly, Orakpo is a really good sport, but it wasn’t necessarily the ESPN crew that gave him the hardest time.  Orakpo happens to be joined on the Redskins by three former Sooners: Trent Williams, Chris Chester, and Jammal Brown.

Williams and Orakpo were both at the game, given that it was the team’s bye week.  Standing on opposite sidelines, the two found a way to interact during the game.

“We was teasing each other from sideline-to-sideline,” Williams said with a big smile.  ”I’d look over there when we scored and give [certain familiar hand gestures].”

Given that the score was 34-10 at halftime, Orakpo couldn’t quite make it to the end of the rivalry, commonly referred to as the “Red River Shootout.”

“Oh hell no, he left right after halftime,” Williams said gleefully.  ”He couldn’t even stand to watch his boys get ran into the dirt.  He didn’t even wanna look at me after the game.  I told him, “It’s called the ‘Red River’ for a reason, it’s not the ‘Orange River.’”

Asked if he thought Orakpo had learned his lesson about betting on the Sooners, Williams said, “I would’ve rather seen him wear an ‘I heart Oklahoma’ shirt, but I’ll settle for Skip Bayless.”