NORMAN - OU running back Joe Mixon faced the music Friday by standing up and taking questions about the incident in which he punched a woman a little more than two years ago. He asked for a second chance.
Mixon said punching Amelia Molitor in a Norman restaurant haunts him every day and if he could, he would take it back. He told the media that he wasn't going to run from the problem, and he wanted to stick by head coach Bob Stoops.
Just Thursday, Stoops had his own press conference and told the media that the atmosphere two and a half years ago was different than today and that if the punch happened today that there would be no other consequence other than dismissal from the team.
Mixon told the media that he still seeks counseling on his own beyond what is required of him.
Stoops has mixed feelings about the incident as was evident at his press conference.
"Two and a half years ago, thought we had a significant penalty, a strong penalty," Stoops said at his press conference. "Now, it isn't enough. These individuals can't have a second chance. Just not acceptable. And they know it anymore, and they've been told enough. We have more meetings and things of that nature that instruct and let them know what appropriate behavior is and isn't and what the consequences are."
Stoops went on to say, "Dismissal is really the only thing that is possible. A young guy having an opportunity to rehabilitate and to have some kind of discipline and come back from it is really not there anymore. Hopefully that message goes down even to the high school level that these things are just unacceptable to any degree and there's no recovering. I guess...it never has been acceptable. What I'm saying is, there's no recovering from these incidents any more."
Stoops said Mixon needs to apologize and a day later that appeared to be the star runner's intent. Stoops also said that he understood that this would be a part of his legacy at OU and it would be something he would have to deal with.
Mixon, in the 27-minute press conference, admitted to wanting to apologize to Molitor on several occasions and said that "is never OK to hit a woman."
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