FORT WORTH, Texas — The Oklahoma Sooners gymnastics team stood huddled in a circle, staring only at one another, as the crowd at Dickies Arena was transfixed on the balance beam.

The Sooners’ day was over, capped off by yet another high-scoring floor routine by senior Faith Torrez, and it all came down to LSU sophomore Kailin Chio on balance beam.

While the rest of the arena cheered and gasped, no one from the Oklahoma huddle seemed to even steal a glance. The Sooners remained with their arms around one another for the next several moments. Head coach K.J. Kindler later said she told her gymnasts how proud she was of them but admitted she didn’t know what would happen next.

“Boy, as we were meeting after our last floor routine, I did not know,” Kindler said. “We did not know what position we would end up in, but what I told them was, ‘You did everything you could.'”

That everything was enough.

And when Chio’s beam score — a 9.90 — flashed on the screen, their fate was sealed and the reality seemed to sink in.

Oklahoma had won its eighth national title — all since 2014 and under the helm of Kindler — with a 198.1625 total score. It was .0875 of a point better than LSU, and nearly a half point better than third-place Florida.

Minnesota, making its championship meet debut after playing spoiler against Utah in the regional finals and UCLA in the semifinals, finished in fourth. Soon after the final scores had been announced, there were “Boomer Sooner” chants with the crowd, long hugs and tears of joy, confetti tosses as “We Are the Champions” played over the loudspeaker and balloons featuring the No. 8 in the stands and on the floor.

Winning national titles has become synonymous with the Oklahoma program in the last decade, but Saturday’s title was hardly guaranteed. The Sooners were narrowly edged out for the SEC championship title last month by Florida and had to reconfigure their lineup this week after sophomore Addison Fatta, an all-around staple for the team all season, injured her hand and was restricted to only beam. And on Saturday, the Sooners had a challenging beam rotation — which saw a fall from Keira Wells and had to count a 9.735 from Fatta — and trailed LSU entering the day’s final rotation after having held the lead for the rest of the meet.

But after beam, which ended with strong showings from freshman Ella Murphy, who Kindler later said called it “the most nervous” experience of her life, Lily Pederson and Torrez, the Sooners came together and regrouped.

“We just reminded ourselves to go for it, leave it all on the floor,” Torrez said. “As K.J. said, ‘Leave it all on the floor for floor. Just be aggressive, don’t play it safe and you know what we have to do.’ But we did a good job at staying in our bubble, so we were really laser focused on us.”

Pederson added she was able to relax, despite the pressure, because she knew it was somewhat out of their hands.

“None of us were really paying attention to the score because at the end of the day, if we do our best gymnastics, that’s all we can ask for,” Pederson said. “We can’t control the score. And I think that’s what we all did.”

On floor, an event Kindler and her staff chose to end on, the Sooners dominated. Anchored by Torrez’s 9.95, and not needing to count a score under 9.90, Oklahoma left little to chance.

Meanwhile, the Tigers, the 2024 champions, had a fall of their own from Lexi Zeiss on beam and simply couldn’t make up the difference with their rest of their lineup.

Kindler credited LSU for “making it extra, extra difficult” and “pushing us to our limit.”

For Torrez, who had been limited throughout the season with injury, the weekend was a fairy-tale ending for a storied collegiate career. After not being able to compete in the all-around during the season, Torrez was able to do all four events for the first time in Thursday’s semifinal. Despite her lack of experience this year, she won the individual national title, stunning Chio and a slew of other talented gymnasts, and helped give the Sooners the highest score entering the championship.

“It’s a dream come true,” Torrez said about her final two meets as a college gymnast.

With Saturday’s victory, the Sooners passed UCLA in the all-time standings for sole possession of third place. Georgia still owns the record with 10 national titles, and Utah has nine. The mark also ties the team with Oklahoma’s legendary softball team for the most championships among women’s programs at the school.

Kindler told reporters she would have never believed it if someone had told her when she took the job in 2006 how successful she would be — but insisted she did not take the feeling of winning a national championship for granted.

“I mean, I was in disbelief today,” Kindler said. “We were just on the edge of our seats. I honestly could not believe it. So, they’re all different. They’re all unique, and they’re all incredibly special. You don’t get immune to the feeling of having an accomplishment like this.

“And all the credit goes to the athletes. The things that we have been through this year … all those [championship] teams are special in very different ways. You have different memories based on who’s part of that [specific] personnel, but that euphoric feeling never goes away.”

Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum reportedly said at a Bank of America reception Thursday that he thinks President Teddy Roosevelt will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame next year, according to the New York Post.

“Roger Goodell was in the White House in the Oval Office. I had a chance to be with him there, because we, the National Park Service, control the National Mall,” Burgum said, according to the outlet. 

“The draft for the NFL is being held on the Mall a year from now, (and) the Capitol will be in the background.

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“Keep it a secret. Keep your fingers crossed, but I think we’re going to see Theodore Roosevelt inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. … It’s going to be announced on the Mall when Roger Goodell is conducting the draft.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to the secretary, the White House and the NFL for comment.

Teddy Roosevelt is credited with saving football in 1905–1906 by forcing college leaders to reform the game’s rules after frequent injury-related deaths of players. 

The reforms led to the creation of the forward pass and the banning of dangerous formations.

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Fans after a game between the Los Angeles Chargers and the Detroit Lions at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium. (Scott Galvin/Imagn Images)

The 2027 Pro Football Hall of Fame class is headlined by first-year eligible legends Rob Gronkowski, Adrian Peterson and Ben Roethlisberger. Bill Belichick and Eli Manning are also candidates to get in after missing out on first-ballot entry.

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An already-expensive trip to the World Cup just got even more costly, as NJ Transit and the FIFA New York New Jersey Host Committee announced fare hikes to attend eight matches at MetLife Stadium this year.

The East Rutherford, New Jersey, stadium will host those matches, beginning June 13 and ending with the final on July 19, but a roundtrip train ticket to and from New York Penn Station and MetLife Stadium will be $150, up from the usual $12.90. Shuttles are also available for $80.

NJ Transit CEO Kris Kolluri defended the fare hikes on Friday, saying that the ultimate cost to the public transportation company should not be the burden of New Jersey commuters.

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“It is an exciting moment for New Jersey to showcase New Jersey’s diversity as well as its economic standing in the country and in the world. Equally important, she has said that New Jersey commuters cannot and will not subsidize the movement of fans going to the game, because that would not be fair,” Kolluri said, reiterating that the tournament will cost NJ Transit $48 million.

“In order to move 40,000 people and to pay for the cost of $6 million (per game), we have to charge $150.”

The CEO said that if the regular $12.90 fare were put in place, commuters would subsidize the $48 million bill by 92%.

“No one that I have spoken to thinks that’s fair or reasonable. Commuters in New Jersey should not carry the cost years into the future for a wonderful event, no doubt. But the fans going to the games should burden the cost, that’s all we’re trying to say,” Kolluri added.

Days after New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill said that FIFA should pay for commuters’ costs, she did so again shortly after the fare hikes were announced.

“New Jersey is ready and excited to host eight FIFA World Cup matches this summer – including the World Cup Final,” Sherrill began in a social media post Friday.

A general view of MetLife Stadium and the Meadowlands Train Station is seen from a NJ Transit train before the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 semi-final match between Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on July 9, 2025. (Luke Hales/Getty Images)

FIFA SAYS NJ TRANSIT FARE HIKES FOR WORLD CUP WILL HAVE ‘CHILLING EFFECT,’ AGAIN RIPS NJ GOV SHERRILL

“Since I took office, my Administration has been working to prepare for the biggest sporting event our state has ever seen – and today, NJ TRANSIT released their Mobility Plan to move 40,000 fans to and from each match safely and efficiently. In the FIFA World Cup agreement that my Administration inherited, FIFA put zero dollars towards transporting World Cup fans. It also eliminated parking at MetLife Stadium, putting the burden of transporting four times more matchday riders than typical for an event at the stadium on NJ TRANSIT. This agreement will cost NJ TRANSIT at least $48 million, while FIFA is positioned to make $11 billion during the World Cup.

“As I have said repeatedly, FIFA should cover the cost of transporting its fans. If it won’t, we will not be subsidizing World Cup ticket holders on the backs of New Jerseyans who rely on NJ TRANSIT every day.”

The fare hikes, however, did not please FIFA. In a scathing statement to Fox News Digital, World Cup COO Heimo Schirgi said the “current pricing model will have a chilling effect,” including congestion, late arrivals, and “broader ripple effects that ultimately diminish the economic benefit and lasting legacy the entire region stands to gain from hosting the World Cup.”

Schirgi also ripped Sherrill for her “unprecedented” ask to make FIFA pay for the commuting costs.

“No other global event, concert or major sporting promoter has faced such a demand. While FIFA is projected to generate approximately $11 billion in revenue, not profit, as the Governor incorrectly claims, FIFA has always been a not-for-profit organization as per our statutes. Revenues from the FIFA World Cup are reinvested into developing the game of football, particularly for youth and women, worldwide,” Schirgi said.

Commuters move through the NJ Transit section of Penn Station in New York City on May 20, 2025, after NJ Transit resumed operations following a tentative deal to end a three-day strike by train engineers. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

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Parking has been barred from MetLife Stadium, and rideshare will be extremely limited, both of which will result in increased NJ Transit commutes.

New York Penn Station will also only be open to matchgoers beginning four hours prior to the start of games, and fans were urged to avoid nonessential NJ Transit travel on game days.

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