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University of Oklahoma Athletics
Notable Openers in OU History
August 31, 2009 | Football
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Certainly the return of a Heisman Trophy winner and the expectation that OU will be in the hunt for a national title have some bearing on that matter.
Still, the game itself is ballyhooed enough to attract attention from around the nation.
A top-20 matchup on a neutral field in a brand new stadium between two teams hoping to be in the BCS picture at the end of the season. What more could you ask for?
As the Sooners prepare for one of the marquee games on opening weekend, we take a look back at some other notable openers in OU's storied history:
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OU 49, Indiana State 0 | Sept. 11, 1999 | Norman |
Twenty years after his first trip to Norman (see the fifth game below), the Bob Stoops era began with the 1,000th game in school history.
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OU 30, Syracuse 29 | Sept. 3, 1994 | Syracuse, N.Y. |
OU saw an early 24-0 lead slip away before Scott Blanton booted a 48-yard field goal with 11 seconds remaining to lift the Sooners to victory.
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OU 34, UCLA 14 | Sept. 8, 1990 | Pasadena, Calif. |
In its first-ever appearance at the Rose Bowl, No. 23 Oklahoma capitalized on six Bruin turnovers to defeat No. 19 UCLA.
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OU 38, UCLA 3 | Sept. 6, 1986 | Norman |
The biggest season opener in Memorial Stadium history in terms of rankings, the showdown between between No. 1 OU and No. 4 UCLA was all Sooners. OU's star-studded defense featuring Brian Bosworth stuffed the Bruins behind the line of scrimmage on nearly half of their offensive plays.
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OU 13, Minnesota 7 | Sept. 28, 1985 | Minneapolis, Minn. |
No. 2 OU was supposed to play No. 1 SMU in the season opener. However, the game was moved to the end of the season upon the request of ABC. As a result, the Sooners got off to a later-than-anticipated start in their 1985 national championship campaign.
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OU 21, Iowa 6 | Sept. 15, 1979 | Norman |
No. 3 Oklahoma faced an Iowa team that featured a hard-hitting defensive back named Bob Stoops. The Sooners didn't treat him with a warm welcome his first time around.
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OU 25, Vanderbilt 23 | Sept. 10, 1977 | Norman |
Top-ranked Oklahoma lost seven of 11 fumbles but still beat the Commodores. After trailing 15-0 early, OU responded with 25 unanswered points but still had to dodge Vandy's successful onside kick attempt and block a 53-yard field goal in the final minute to preserve the win.
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OU 48, Wisconsin 21 | Sept. 20, 1969 | Madison, Wis. |
Steve Owens opened up his Heisman campaign with four TDs against the Badgers.
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OU 13, Maryland 3 | Sept. 19, 1964 | College Park, Md. |
In the first game of the post-Bud Wilkinson era, the Sooners trailed 3-0 with less than four minutes to play. Enter backup quarterback John Hammond, who hooked up with Lance Rentzel for a 90-yard touchdown on his first snap. Three plays after the ensuing kickoff, OU picked off a Maryland pass and tacked on another score to seal the victory.
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OU 7, Syracuse, 3 | Sept. 22, 1962 | Norman |
In another nailbiter for the Sooners, Joe Don Looney scored from 40 yards out with just two minutes left in the. Story has it that he demanded the ball in the huddle prior to the play, saying he would score. He wasn't lying.
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Northwestern 45, OU 13 | Sept. 26, 1959 | Evanston, Ill. |
A mysterious illness swept over the Sooners two nights before the game after a team dinner in Chicago and the No. 10 Wildcats rolled over No. 2 OU.
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OU 26, Pittsburgh 0 | Sept. 21, 1957 | Pittsburgh, Pa. |
Top-ranked Oklahoma, notorious for running the football, tossed three touchdown pass to romp past No. 8 Pitt.
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Army 21, OU 7 | Sept. 28, 1946 | New York City |
Jim Tatum and Bud Wilkinson introduced the Split-T formation and Oklahoma arrived on the national scene with a hard-fought loss to the reigning national champs at Yankee Stadium.
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