The U.S. Supreme Court will not hear the NCAAs appeal of the Ed OBannon case, leaving in place lower court rulings that found amateurism rules for big-time college sports violated federal antitrust law but prohibited payments to student-athletes.The justices on Monday rejected the appeal in a class-action lawsuit originally filed by OBannon, a former UCLA basketball star, and later joined by other athletes. The court also rejected OBannons separate appeal that called on the justices to reinstate a plan for schools to pay football and basketball players for the uses of their names, images and likenesses.It means the status quo has been preserved for a while longer, antitrust attorney Robert Boland said.The effect of the high court action is to leave the NCAA vulnerable to more legal challenges that are working their way through the courts, but it also gives the association time to make changes to blunt those possible threats.While we are disappointed with this decision not to review this case, we remain pleased that the 9th Circuit agreed with us that amateurism is an essential component of college sports and that NCAA members should not be forced by the courts to provide benefits untethered to education, including providing any payments beyond the full cost of attendance, NCAA chief legal officer Donald Remy said in a statement.In 2014, a U.S. district judge decided the NCAAs use of names, images and likenesses of college athletes without compensation violated antitrust law. Judge Claudia Wilken ruled schools could -- but were not required to -- pay football and mens basketball players up to $5,000 per year. The money would go into a trust and be available to the athletes after leaving college. Wilken also ruled schools could increase the value of the athletic scholarship to meet the federal cost of attendance figure for each institution.The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last year overturned Wilkens ruling on the payments of $5,000 but upheld the antitrust violation.While we would have liked the Supreme Courts review, we remain pleased with our trial victory and the 9th Circuits decision upholding the finding that the NCAA violated the antitrust laws and affirming a permanent injunction to remedy that violation, which enables NCAA member schools to offer college athletes significant additional funds toward the cost of attendance, Michael Hausfeld, lead attorney in the OBannon case, said in a statement.The NCAA already has addressed one aspect of Wilkens ruling by increasing the amount of aid schools may provide athletes. In 2015, the NCAA passed legislation allowing schools to increase the value of an athletic scholarship to include each institutions federally regulated cost of attendance figures. The cost of attendance includes estimated values for things such as travel between campus and home, and clothing and food.Two cases currently in lower courts present potential threats to the NCAAs amateurism model and its desire to restrict compensation to athletes in ways that would be more akin to an employer-employee relationship.A case led by antitrust lawyer Jeffrey Kessler and originally filed by former Clemson football player Martin Jenkins and another claim first filed by former West Virginia player Shawne Alston but now consolidated with other cases challenge the NCAAs right to cap compensation for athletes at the value of a scholarship.The Alston case also seeks damages for athletes who played college sports before the scholarship was increased to include cost of attendance.I think those cases will probably more determine this issue, but it really has thrown it back into a murky place where we know that amateurism per se as practiced by the NCAA is not protected under the rule of reasoned analysis, antitrust attorney Robert Boland said. On the other hand, what precisely does that mean to student-athletes in this generation and going forward? Highly unclear.These other cases, though, are nowhere near a resolution and time is on the NCAAs side.To some degree you could say thats a strategy for the NCAA and in the interests that are in charge of college sports, said Boland, who is director of the masters of sports administration program at Ohio University. That they maintain the status quo despite litigation is both a practical reality, but also an opportunity for them to begin to reform in a way thats effective. To begin to make some changes that would kind of diffuse the future lawsuits that are coming. Discount Stan Smith . -- Running backs Darren McFadden and Rashad Jennings were back at practice for the Oakland Raiders on Wednesday despite being hampered by hamstring injuries. Cheap Stan Smith Shoes China . 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NORMAN, Okla. -- With his best receiver sidelined, Baker Mayfield still boosted his Heisman Trophy resume.Mayfield passed for 288 yards and three touchdowns, and No. 9 Oklahoma defeated No. 10 Oklahoma State 38-20 on Saturday in a matchup that decided the Big 12 champion and likely guaranteed the Sooners a trip to the Sugar Bowl.Mayfield performed well throughout, despite finishing the game without Biletnikoff Award finalist Dede Westbrook. The speedster caught four passes for 111 yards before being knocked out of the game in the second quarter on a crushing hit by Oklahoma State safety Jordan Sterns. Mayfield threw two touchdown passes after Westbrook left the game, and the offense didnt miss a beat, finishing with 629 yards.He was just fantastic, he was just exactly what he needed to be, Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said of Mayfield. He gave our guys chances to make plays, he handled the ball great himself, had a few key runs for us, threw the ball. The guys really, really talented. To be able to do what he did, theres not many guys who could do what he did today.Mayfield finished fourth in the Heisman balloting last year, but he didnt get an invitation to New York for the ceremony. He wants to go this year, and he wants Westbrook to get an invitation, too.After the game, Mayfield wore a pin from the school with both his and Westbrooks names on it. Mayfield crossed out his own name with a marker to make sure Westbrook wasnt forgotten.Dede is the best player in the country, Mayfield said. I still want to hold Dedes hand all the way to New York.Mayfield should be a Heisman front-runner heading into next season, too. He said after the game that he plans to return for his senior season.Coming back, be here for another year, he said. Opportunity for a three-peat (Big 12). The ultimate goal is why I came here -- to win a national title.Samaje Perine rambled for 239 yards on a career-high 37 carries and Joe Mixon caught a touchdown pass and busted a 79-yard touchdown run for the Sooners (10-2, 9-0 Big 112, No.dddddddddddd 9 College Football Playoff).It was the second straight time the teams met in the regular-season finale to determine the conference champion. Oklahoma beat the Cowboys 58-23 last season.In this years showdown, Mason Rudolph completed just 11 of 25 passes for 186 yards for Oklahoma State (9-3, 7-2, No. 10 CFP). His top target for the season, James Washington, caught just two passes for 50 yards on eight targets.Just a rough day, Rudolph said. Ill take all the responsibility for the lack of production, especially in the second half. Obviously, it needed to be better.THE TAKEAWAYOKLAHOMA STATE: It was an especially bitter defeat for the Cowboys, who have become so close to turning the tide against their biggest rival. The Cowboys, who last won the Big 12 in 2011, fell to 2-10 against the Sooners under coach Mike Gundy. Even with Westbrook out and Perine being knocked out briefly after a helmet-to-helmet hit, the Cowboys couldnt keep the momentum.They made too many big plays, Sterns said. Thats a great football team with big playmakers.OKLAHOMA: The Sooners added a second straight win over a highly ranked opponent, but it likely wasnt enough to get them into the College Football playoff for the second straight year.Probably, realistically, more needed to happen last week to give ourselves a better opportunity, but thats past, Stoops said. Whatever theyre going to decide, theyll decide.POLL IMPLICATIONSOKLAHOMA STATE: Likely wont fall too far with a road loss against a Top 10 team , especially with so many other top teams playing each other.OKLAHOMA: Not much space to move up. The Sooners were already ahead of Colorado, which lost to Washington on Friday.UP NEXTOKLAHOMA STATE: Bowl game to be determined.OKLAHOMA: The Sugar Bowl on Jan. 2 unless the Sooners make the College Football Playoff.---Follow Cliff Brunt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/CliffBruntAP . ' ' '