Oklahoma Sooners announce date for 2026 spring football game

The Oklahoma Sooners will be having a spring football game once again in 2026, after taking a one-year hiatus in 2025. On Wednesday, OU set a date for the spring game, which will take place on Saturday, April 18th in Norman.

The spring game will be the first opportunity for fans to see the ’26 Sooners, after a run to the College Football Playoff in 2025. Additionally, with no spring transfer portal window this offseason, the spring game will be a pretty good look at what OU’s final roster will look like come the fall.

Oklahoma did not have a spring football game in 2025, instead opting for the “Crimson Combine”, which was essentially just a brief practice in front of fans. Many programs have gone away from traditional spring games in the transfer portal/NIL era of college football, but it looks like the Sooners are going back to the basics in 2026.

Head coach Brent Venables’ team lost a lot from their ’25 squad that made the CFP, but they also return a lot as well. Add in new recruits and portal additions, and there’s plenty of promise for the Sooners in 2026.

It’s been a busy day of news for OU Football. In addition to setting a spring game date, Oklahoma has hired Molly Jacoby as the program’s Director of Recruiting, filling the role left vacant by Jolie Ale, who left for a job at Auburn. The Sooners are also reportedly working to hire LaMar Morgan as the team’s defensive backs coach, though nothing has been finalized as of yet. He would replace cornerbacks coach Jay Valai, who was hired by the NFL’s Buffalo Bills.

This is all in addition to the report that the mayors of Norman and Stillwater are co-authoring legislation to bring back the Bedlam rivalry between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, and make the Sooners and Cowboys play annually. OU also saw a total of ten former players from the 2025 team get invites to the NFL Scouting Combine on Wednesday.

The 2026 spring football game will take place on Owen Field at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, and it will serve as the wrap-up for OU’s spring ball practices to prepare for the 2026 season.

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