Sooners Accept Cotton Bowl Bid

Dec. 3, 2001

Audio

M. Stoops

N. Hybl

R. Calmus

Norman, Okla. - Oklahoma has been playing football for 107 years and the SBC Cotton Bowl has been bringing together some of the country's best teams for 66. The two are separated by a mere 194 miles, yet this season marks the first that the two college football legends have come together.

OU Athletics Director Joe Castiglione announced today that the Sooners have accepted an invitation to play in this year's SBC Cotton Bowl Classic.

"We're honored to receive and accept this invitation to play in one of only eight bowl games contested in the new year, something that always has been a benchmark of success in college football," Castiglione said. "It's a tribute to the outstanding work of our players and coaches and I know they appreciate the opportunity of playing in a game with the prestige and tradition of the Cotton Bowl.

"It's also a great opportunity for our fans and the families of many of our players to see our bowl game in person. We look forward to a large and enthusiastic following in Dallas."

Sooner head coach Bob Stoops agreed.

"When you consider the great college bowl games that have stood the test of time and annually brought together some of the best teams in college football, the Cotton Bowl ranks right up there at the top," he said. "It is a privilege to be invited to a special game and we will do all we can to represent our university and the Big 12 Conference at the highest level.

"Our fans and our great alumni base in the Dallas-Fort Worth area should look at this as a home game and go to the Cotton Bowl feeling very much a part of what we are trying to accomplish there."

Oklahoma annually plays in the Cotton Bowl when it meets Texas in the Red River Shootout. In fact, this will mark the Sooners' 81st game in the venerable stadium, but its first in the bowl game itself.

"We appreciate the value of a bowl experience," Castiglione said. "It gives us a chance to pursue the goals that we've set for ourselves this season, such as a bowl victory and a top 10 finish, as well as serving as a springboard to the 2002 season."

The OU ticket office will confirm and fill all orders previously submitted by Sooner season ticket holders for bowl games. That will take place by mail this week. The tickets, which sell for $70 each, plus handling, will be on sale to OU students through Wednesday.

If tickets remain after Wednesday, they will go on sale to the public at 8 a.m., Thursday. Orders can be placed in person at the Memorial Stadium office, by phone at 405/325-2424 or on the internet at SoonerSports.com.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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