Coming off a promising season that ended in heartbreak down the stretch, Oklahoma is back in action in the most pivotal season in quite some time. On Saturday, fans will get their first glimpse of the SEC Sooners.
ESPN announced that the Sooners’ spring football game, scheduled for Saturday, and will stream through their network on ESPN+ (subscription required). Toby Rowland and Dusty Dvoracek will be on the television call. The game itself is set to kickoff at 1 p.m. inside Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, although weather could push the game’s date and time around a bit.
In addition to ESPN+, the game will also be available by radio broadcast on 107.7 The Franchise. The radio broadcast will feature play-by-play announcer Chad McKee, analyst Teddy Lehman, sideline reporter Chris Plank and sideline analyst Gabe Ikard on the call.
Brent Venables led the Sooners to a perfect 7-0 start last year that included knocking off No. 3 Texas after the Longhorns dismantled Oklahoma 49-0 a season before. OU sputtered down the stretch though, dropping two winnable games to Kansas and Oklahoma State, followed by a disappointing Alamo Bowl loss to Arizona.
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Heading into the SEC with a brand new quarterback, offensive coordinator, and defensive coordinator, nobody knows what to expect. Expectations are all over the place, and Saturday will be the first time fans will get a few answers. Jackson Arnold displayed flashes of serious arm strength and star potential against Arizona, but couldn’t keep the turnovers at a minimum. Saturday will be his time to shine.
In addition to the game itself, OU will hold its “Party at the Palace presented by Allstate” pregame fan festival on the lawn just north of the stadium starting at 9 a.m. Per the Oklahoma press release, “many of the usual Party at the Palace elements will be featured, including a variety of food trucks (Midway Deli, Psycho Taco, Supermercados Morelos, Taste of Africa, HTeaO and Kona Ice), interactive games, music, balloon artists, face painters, inflatables, mascot appearances, a mini-football field and other activities (weather-permitting).”
Last season, both the players and the fans had trouble adjusting to Oklahoma’s complicated Spring Game rules. This year it’ll be more of the same.
The rules, according to OU’s press release, are as follows: “Saturday’s game will feature the offense (Red Team) vs. the defense (White Team) and a point-scoring system for each squad. Each quarter will be 12 minutes in duration. At the start of the fourth quarter, a target score will be generated by adding 12 points to the leading team’s score. If one of the teams reaches that target score before the fourth quarter clock expires, that team wins. If the target score is not reached by either team, the team leading when the clock expires wins.”
Central Arkansas Bears (3-8) at Oklahoma Sooners (11-0)
Norman, Oklahoma; Sunday, 1 p.m. EST
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BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Sooners -28.5; over/under is 145.5
BOTTOM LINE: No. 14 Oklahoma hosts Central Arkansas after Jeremiah Fears scored 30 points in Oklahoma’s 87-86 victory over the Michigan Wolverines.
The Sooners have gone 6-0 at home. Oklahoma has a 2-0 record in games decided by less than 4 points.
The Bears are 0-6 on the road. Central Arkansas ranks fourth in the ASUN with 23.8 defensive rebounds per game led by Brayden Fagbemi averaging 4.6.
Oklahoma averages 82.0 points, 5.2 more per game than the 76.8 Central Arkansas allows. Central Arkansas averages 9.0 made 3-pointers per game this season, 2.5 more made shots on average than the 6.5 per game Oklahoma allows.
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TOP PERFORMERS: Fears is scoring 17.9 points per game with 3.5 rebounds and 4.6 assists for the Sooners.
Layne Taylor is scoring 17.0 points per game and averaging 4.4 rebounds for the Bears.
LAST 10 GAMES: Sooners: 10-0, averaging 80.9 points, 29.3 rebounds, 14.1 assists, 10.1 steals and 1.9 blocks per game while shooting 47.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 68.5 points per game.
Bears: 3-7, averaging 73.0 points, 34.3 rebounds, 14.3 assists, 8.8 steals and 1.8 blocks per game while shooting 38.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 75.7 points.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – The Oklahoma City Fire Department responded to a commercial fire near the area of NW 10th and N Western Avenue.
OKCFD were at the scene of a commercial fire around 7 p.m. Saturday night, when they arrived there was heavy smoke visible from multiple floors of a boarded up building.
One adult female was found in the building and taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation.
At this time no cause has been reported.
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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City.
NORMAN — Bowl season is a bit unconventional for Navy.
The Midshipmen annually play against Army six days after the bowl schedule is released. That was the case this year, as Navy beat the Black Knights 31-13 on Dec. 14.
Beating Army is always a highlight for the Midshipmen. But the drawback for them is that they have less time than their bowl opponent to prepare for the game.
In this case, that’s Oklahoma. The Sooners will enter the game with more than two weeks of preparation for Navy’s triple-option offense.
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“It’s just a little different,” Navy coach Brian Newberry told reporters earlier this week. “They’ve known they’re going to play us for a little time now.”
Navy Coach, Oklahoma Native Brian Newberry Grew Up On OU Football
Navy does, however, enter the Armed Forces Bowl with momentum.
The Midshipmen (9-3) eased past Army last week in Landover, MD. They outgained the Black Knights 384-179 and forced Army quarterback Bryson Daily to throw three interceptions.
Navy’s rivalry win was its third in the last four games after the Midshipmen went on a two-game skid in the middle of the season. Newberry cited his team’s physicality in recent games, particularly in the Midshipmen’s drubbing of Army.
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“I was so impressed with how our kids handled the moment,” Newberry said. “Army’s a really, really good football team. I thought we physically dominated the game in the way that we blocked, beat blocks, the way we tackled. I thought we outplayed them in all three phases, so I’m really, really proud of that.”
A stark difference between the teams is the number of players that have entered the transfer portal.
The Sooners have seen 25 players from their 2024 team enter the portal. The Midshipmen have suffered only one departure in the winter portal window with defensive back Lorenzo Vitti.
On one hand, that makes Oklahoma preparation tough for Navy.
“It’s interesting,” Newberry said. “We’re going through their two-deep and trying to figure out who’s going to play and who isn’t. It’s a little bit of a challenge in that regard. And it could certainly change with a different quarterback.”
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But largely, the Midshipmen’s lack of transfers gives Newberry confidence that his team will be bought in for one more game in 2024.
“The portal can affect us, players can jump in the portal — we’re not getting that,” Newberry said. “It’s challenging to build a culture anywhere in college football right now, one that’s built on a certain level of trust. They know each other really, really well. They’ve fought through adversity. They stay the course, they pay the price and they have an opportunity.”
Navy will also play for more than just another win; the Midshipmen are looking to make history.
Navy has reached the 10-win mark just four times in program history. The Midshipmen did so three times under former coach Ken Niumatalolo from 2009-2019.
Having a shot at history while playing Oklahoma — the state that Newberry hails from — excites the coach.
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“It’s the last time that this team gets to play together,” Newberry said. “They want to go out the right way against a storied program like Oklahoma. It’s a great reward to play in a bowl game, but it’s a game we want to win.”
The Midshipmen and Sooners will play in the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth at 11 a.m. on Dec. 27.
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