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University of Oklahoma Athletics
Before the Kick: Sooner Pregame Rituals
October 17, 2014 | Football
A group of 10 Sooners explain how they get ready for gameday, including song selection, meal choices and much more.
“I'm not as some would say 'ritual based' but I like to do everything the same. Whether it is putting on my socks before my pants or just a bunch of little things I do. I listen to Taylor Swift on my playlist over to the game. Then I like to go out and anoint the field before the game and just pray at each corner to bless the field, because I know that football is so little but it is my platform to extend the kingdom of God.”
“My pregame ritual is just to read the bible and listen to music. I talk to my brother on the phone usually and then always talk to my father because he is the one that taught me how to play football. We just go through things like what to expect; just really going through the upcoming game.”
“Before the game I always have to take a shower in the mornings, and I always have to listen to the same song, “It's Goin' Down” by Yung Joc, like three times. And then during warm-ups, I always have to find my family and salute my girlfriend.”
“My pregame ritual is that I have to listen to Dubstep music. I have been listening to it since high school when some of my teammates got me hooked on to it. I also have the same prayer I pray when I go into the end zone before the game.”
“Say a prayer, call my wife and tell her I love her is basically it. Just ask God for strength and thank him for blessing me with the abilities that he did.”
Nila Kasitati
“I get together with some of the guys on the team and we just pray before we take the field for strength and confidence. It is something I hold very close to me and is very important that I do.”
"I like to sit on my back with my feet up for like 20 minutes and just concentrate. I think about a lot of things. Sometimes I listen to Miley Cyrus or some heavy metal, like Metallica or something. And then I probably put on some Michael Jackson right before the game starts - "Beat It" or something - that really gets me going."
“I have a million of those. My pregame rituals start on the Monday before the game. First off, I always bring my travel bag in on Tuesday. I can never bring it in Monday or any time else. If I do, we lose. I'm being serious. In TCU I didn't do it and we lost. Oh, and on Mondays for breakfast I always eat Sonic. That's been ever since I started playing football. I always cook on Wednesdays. If I don't I just don't feel right, and I don't play as well. On Thursdays we get our bags back and I have to wash our entire travel bag and pack it all up for Friday.”
“I say the same prayer I've been saying since my sophomore year of high school. It's been the same prayer that I always snuck in before I go out and I say it when I take a knee down on the end zone when we run out. And I always eat some kind of sweet candy. Always. I really like Sour Patch Kids and I love Lifesaver Gummies. It just gets me going.”
“I like to put everything on first with my left side. So I like to put my left sock on, then my right. Then I put my left glove on and then my right. And then I have a superstition about listening to Lil' Wayne before the game.”
Players Mentioned
LB
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LB
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LB
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QB
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WR
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RB
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RB
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