After leaving Grettie Mae and Harold Dean, the Grimms decided to wander through the forest some more in hopes of finding their way back home.

As they were walking along, they came upon another little girl.. This one was wearing a crimson hat with an OU logo on it and a matching sweatshirt.

"My goodness, do all of the children in this strange land wander around alone in the woods?" Wilhelm mumbled.

"It would appear so," Jacob said. "Who are you, little girl?"

"My name is Bobbie Jean Baker," she said. "Everyone calls me, ‘Little Crimson Cap,’ though, because I always wear this OU hat that my grandmother gave me."

"I see," Jacob said. "What does the O and the U stand for?"

The girl stared at him in shock.

"I guess you don’t watch football, do you?" she said. "I can’t believe you’ve never heard of OU."

"What does OU have to do with soccer?" Jacob asked.

"OU doesn’t play soccer. We play football," Crimson Cap said. "You’ve never heard of Sooner football? You’ve never heard of Bob Stoops or Barry Switzer or the wishbone?"

"Isn’t the wishbone part of a turkey?" Wilhelm said.

"No, it’s a football play," Crimson Cap said. "I’d draw it out for you, but I don’t really have time. I’ve got to get to my grandmother’s house because Coach Stoops is coming to convince my cousin Jim Bob to sign a letter of intent to play football for the University of Oklahoma, and I want to be there to see it."

"I see," Wilhelm said. "May we come along with you? I’d like to meet someone who plays this game of football."

"Sure," Crimson Cap said. "Just don't ask him for his autograph, he gets really nervous about stuff like that."

The three of them walked along for a little while, and then they saw a man in a white visor and a crimson shirt.

"Oh my gosh," Crimson Cap said. "It's Coach Stoops! Let's see if he wants to walk to grandmother's house with us!"

Crimson Cap ran up to the coach.

"Coach Stoops, come with us to my grandmother's house!" she said. "I want to be there when you sign my cousin Jim Bob!"

"Don't worry, little girl," the coach said. "I'm going to watch some game film with Jim Bob before I sign him. Why don't you and your friends just enjoy the scenery for a little while, and then come by for the signing?"

"Well, okay," Crimson Cap said. "I'll show Jacob and Wilhelm some more of the forest and then we'll come right over."

Crimson Cap and the Grimms began exploring the forest.

Meanwhile, Coach Stoops, who was really University of Texas head coach Mack Brown in disguise, ran toward grandmother's house. He immediately had Jim Bob sign a letter of intent that really said he was going to play for the University of Texas Longhorns.

Crimson Cap and the Grimms arrived a few minutes later, just as the coach was about to leave with Jim Bob for spring practice.

Crimson Cap was disappointed that she had missed the signing, and began to take a better look at Coach Stoops.

"Oh Coach Stoops, what a cool visor you have!" she said.

"The better to keep the sun out of my eyes, my dear," he said.

"Oh, Coach Stoops, what beautiful championship rings you have!" she said.

"The better to impress recruits with, my dear," he said.

"Oh, Coach Stoops, what beautiful Nikes you have," she said.

"The better to run away to Texas with your cousin Jim Bob!" he said, and then he stripped off his crimson gear to reveal that he was really Mack Brown.

Brown grabbed Jim Bob with one hand and Crimson Cap with the other hand. He tied their hands together so they couldn't escape and started to drag them out the door.

"I'll bet you'll make a great water girl!" he said to Crimson Cap. "How'd you like a nice, new burnt orange cap?"

"AHHHHHH! NO! Anything but that!" Crimson Cap said. "Someone save me!"

Thinking fast, Jacob Grimm grabbed Coach Brown and kept him from getting away while Wilhelm picked up some nearby scissors and cut Jim Bob and Crimson Cap lose. Then all of them, including grandmother, who until this time had been in the other room calling relatives to tell them about her grandson's signing, threw rocks at Mack until he went back to Texas where he belonged.

Then they all sat around watching an ESPN Classic replay of last year's OU/Texas football game until Coach Stoops arrived so Jim Bob could sign his real letter of intent.

Author's note: This week I did a rewrite of Little Red Cap (also known as Little Red Riding Hood), once again putting the Grimms into the story. I focused this week's story on Oklahoma football.

Image Information: This is my own version of what Little Crimson Cap looks like.

Bibliography

"Little Red Cap"
Website: Tales Collected by the Brothers Grimm
Weblink: http://www.ucs.mun.ca/~wbarker/fairies/grimm/026.html.
From Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, Household Tales, trans. Margaret Hunt (London: George Bell, 1884), 1:110-114.