The 2023 national championship University of Oklahoma softball team offered a touching tribute to recently deceased country music legend Toby Keith, who had been a loyal fan.
“We are forever grateful for a true friend and passionate supporter,” the team wrote in a post to X on Saturday.
“Our time spent celebrating with TK will always remain in our hearts,” they added.
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𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐓𝐨𝐛𝐲. ❤️
We are forever grateful for a true friend and passionate supporter. Our time spent celebrating with TK will always remain in our hearts. pic.twitter.com/6cXZlfgHP9
The team honored the Oklahmoa native with a decal on their helmets that showed an outline of the state of Oklahoma, with “Toby” and a heart symbol inside the outline.
The post also included images of Keith posing with the team and at a game.
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“Keith died earlier this month after battling stomach cancer,” Oklahoma’s KOCO reported Saturday. “He was an avid and loyal Sooner fan even as he fought cancer.”
The day after Keith’s death, OU President Joseph Harroz Jr. wrote in a statement that the country singer’s absence “leaves a void” at the school and elsewhere.
“Personally, I will miss Toby’s laughter, warmth, and everlasting love for the University of Oklahoma,” he wrote.
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“His spirit will live on through his timeless music, the memories he created, and the countless lives he touched by sharing his talent, generosity, and his Oklahoma spirit with the world.”
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George Upper is the former Editor-in-Chief of The Western Journal and was a weekly co-host of "WJ Live," powered by The Western Journal. He is currently a contributing editor in the areas of faith, politics and culture. A former U.S. Army special operator, teacher and consultant, he is a lifetime member of the NRA and an active volunteer leader in his church. Born in Foxborough, Massachusetts, he has lived most of his life in central North Carolina.
George Upper, is the former editor-in-chief of The Western Journal and is now a contributing editor in the areas of faith, politics and culture. He currently serves as the connections pastor at Awestruck Church in Greensboro, North Carolina. He is a former U.S. Army special operator, teacher, manager and consultant. Born in Massachusetts, he graduated from Foxborough High School before joining the Army and spending most of the next three years at Fort Bragg. He holds bachelor's and master's degrees in English as well as a Master's in Business Administration, all from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He and his wife life only a short drive from his three children, their spouses and his grandchildren. He is a lifetime member of the NRA and in his spare time he shoots, reads a lot of Lawrence Block and John D. MacDonald, and watches Bruce Campbell movies. He is a fan of individual freedom, Tommy Bahama, fine-point G-2 pens and the Oxford comma.