OU on the Road to Face Ohio State Sunday

THE MEET

• No. 1 Oklahoma travels to Columbus, Ohio, to take on No. 5 Ohio State on Sunday at the Covelli Center. The meet is set to begin at noon CT. Admission is free.

• The teams will compete head-to-head on each event, beginning with floor exercise, alternating gymnasts on each apparatus.

• The Sooners won all three meetings with the Buckeyes last season. OU won 411.500 to 400.600 in Norman on Feb. 3, then topped OSU in the NCAA Qualifier (418.957 to 408.725) and in the NCAA Finals (399.122). Oklahoma also claimed a 410.000 to 397.600 win over Ohio State in Columbus in 2023 (March 18) and in the 2023 NCAA Qualifier (415.491 to 404.492).

WATCH AND FOLLOW

• The meet will be televised on Big Ten Network+.

• Live scoring will be available via OUStats.com.

STICKS

• Oklahoma moved up to No. 1 in the national rankings this week with a 325.367 average, after registering the nation's highest score so far this season against Illinois last Saturday. The 330.700 also represented the highest collegiate men's team score in the four-up, four-count meet format introduced for the 2025 season. The Sooners scored 318.200 against Air Force in the season opener on Jan. 12 and 327.200 at the Rocky Mountain Open on Jan. 18 in Colorado Springs, Colo. OU was also the top-ranked team after opening weekend; the Sooners have been ranked No. 1 at some point in every season since 2001.

• Junior Kelton Christiansen was named the CGA Co-Specialist of the Week. It was his first career CGA weekly honor. He won the high bar title with his stuck-dismount 14.350 and added a 13.050 on pommel horse to lead the Sooners against Illinois last week. Both scores were season highs for the Arvada, Colo., product. His 14.350 is the best high bar score in the country this season, and he ranks second nationally in high bar average. He shared the weekly award with Illinois' Brandon Dang.

• Redshirt freshman Arthur Ballon was named the MPSF Freshman of the Week for the second time this season after he notched a career-high 13.900 on floor exercise and a 14.000 on vault to lead Oklahoma against Illinois. He placed second on floor exercise in the meet, and his score was 0.35 points higher than his previous high this season. Ballon is ranked 12th nationally on floor exercise (13.617 average) and vault (14.183 average), helping pace OU, which leads the nation on both events.

• Five current Sooners have earned qualification to USA Gymnastics Winter Cup, which will be held Feb. 21-23 in Louisville, Ky.: redshirt junior Fuzzy Benas (all-around), junior Kelton Christiansen (high bar), senior Brigham Frentheway (floor exercise), sophomore Tas Hajdu (still rings) and junior Ignacio Yockers (pommel horse). OU signees Sasha Bogonosiuk and Nathan Roman and alumnus Yul Moldauer are also qualified for Winter Cup. Benas and Moldauer will be unable to compete at Winter Cup.

• Mark Williams is in his 26th season aas Oklahoma head coach. He has led the Sooners to 593 victories (593-58-1 [.910]), nine national championships and 18 MPSF conference titles since his first season in 2000.

• Ohio State is led by former OU assistant coach Rustam Sharipov, who is in his 14th season as head coach of the Buckeyes. Sharipov was an assistant coach for Williams from 2005-11, during which the Sooners won three national titles (2005, '06 and '08). Former OU gymnast Jamie Henderson (2003-06) is an assistant coach at Ohio State.

LAST TIME OUT

• Five Sooners won event titles, and Oklahoma registered a season-high score in its 330.700 to 325.500 victory over No. 3 Illinois in front of a crowd of 1,527 last Saturday night at McCasland Field House.

• Senior Emre Dodanli won the floor exercise (14.050) and vault titles (14.350), senior Matthew Burgoyne won the still rings title (14.100), sophomore Colin Flores won the parallel bars title (13.650) and junior Kelton Christiansen won the horizontal bar title (14.350).

• The Sooners claimed team titles on five of the six events: floor exercise (55.200), still rings (55.750), vault (56.200), parallel bars (52.900) and horizontal bar (55.900). OU set season-high scores on floor, pommel horse and high bar, and tied its season best on rings.

• Oklahoma started on floor exercise and Illinois began on pommel horse. Despite posting a season-high floor score, the Sooners trailed 56.200 to 55.200 after the first rotation. OU then notched a 54.750 on its pommel horse rotation, while the Illini posted a 53.750 on floor, resulting in a knotted 109.950 total after two events. The Sooners pulled ahead after the third rotation, 165.700 to 164.200, then extended their lead to 221.900 to 219.900, and led 274.800 to 272.100 after five rotations, before pulling away for the final 5.2-point margin.

• In all, Oklahoma registered eight scores of 14.000 or higher, nine routines with 9.0 or better execution and only one sub-13.000 score in the meet, establishing season bests in all three areas. The Sooners netted 16 individual season highs and four career-best marks.

NATIONAL RANKINGS NOTES

• Oklahoma is back atop the national rankings after the third week of the season, in which the Sooners registered the nation's highest score this season in their 330.700 to 325.500 win over Illinois last Saturday. The Sooners are ranked No. 1 this week after spending last week at No. 2. Oklahoma (325.367 average) is followed in the top five by Illinois (322.600), Stanford (322.383), Nebraska (320.450) and Ohio State (319.500).

• Oklahoma is ranked in the top five on all six events and leads the nation on floor exercise (54.733 average), vault (56.333) and horizontal bar (53.850). OU ranks second on still rings (55.067), fourth on parallel bars (52.767) and fifth on pommel horse (52.950).

• Senior Emre Dodanli ranks sixth on floor exercise (13.875 average), tied for fourth on vault (14.325) and third on high bar (13.900). Junior Kelton Christiansen ranks second on high bar (14.075) after notching the highest score in the country on the event last weekend (14.350 to win the title vs. Illinois).

• Senior Brigham Frentheway ranks ninth on floor exercise (13.717) and junior Ignacio Yockers ranks fifth on pommel horse (14.333). Four Sooners rank among the top-10 on rings: sophomore Tas Hajdu (fourth; 13.900), senior Matthew Burgoyne (fourth; 13.900), senior Brigham Frentheway (eighth [tied]; 13.650) and freshman Francisco Velez Belendez (10th; 13.617).

HISTORY AND TRADITION

• Oklahoma has won 12 national championships (1977, '78, '91, 2002, '03, '05, '06, '08, '15, '16, '17, '18), tied for most in NCAA history (tied with Penn State), including nine national titles since 2000. The Sooners have finished first or second in 19 of the last 23 NCAA Championships, and have reached 24 consecutive NCAA finals, or every championship held since 2000 (does not count the 2020 championship canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic). OU has finished among the top 3 in 22 of the last 23 NCAA Championships held, dating back to the 2001 season.

• Mark Williams has led Oklahoma to nine national titles and 18 MPSF conference titles over the course of his 25 full seasons as head coach of the Sooners. OU won an NCAA championship held in Norman three times: 2002, 2006 and 2015.

• The Sooners last won an NCAA championship in 2018 in Chicago, Ill., capping a run of four consecutive national titles (2015-18), then claimed second place in three straight championships: 2019, '21 and '22.

NEXT ON THE SCHEDULE

• Following Sunday's meet, the Sooners return home to McCasland Field House on Saturday, Feb. 8 to face No. 3 Stanford and No. 13 Greenville at 5:45 p.m. (first routine at 6 p.m.).

• Tickets for the meet are available for $7 for adults and $5 for youth and seniors. Educators can receive a $3 ticket by using code: EDU.

• It is OU's annual Cleveland Night, featuring students and families from Norman's Cleveland Elementary School.

• Feb. 7-8 is also OU Gymnastics Alumni Weekend and the Sooners will welcome back their men's and women's alumni (the weekend includes the women's gymnastics meet against Kentucky on Friday, Feb. 7). OU honor its 2015 National Championship squad before the meet.

• Fans can also take advantage of $2 beer, soda and popcorn, pick up a free crimson pom, take photos with national championship trophies. The team will sign autographs after the meet.