From Their Backyards to Back Home: The Sooners Finally Get a CFP Reward in Norman

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The week before Christmas will feel different around the Oklahoma football program.

OU isn’t just lining up against Alabama in the opening round of the College Football Playoff. After years of walking into hostile stadiums to secure either a big bowl win or a national title, the Sooners finally get to chase a championship with Oklahoma Memorial Stadium as the backdrop.

This was never a possibility before last season, when the 12-team playoff format was implemented. This season, the Sooners navigated one of the toughest schedules in the country and earned the right to continue playing for a national championship. That's what blue bloods are supposed to do.

Jan 1, 1988; Miami, FL, USA; FILE PHOTO; Miami Hurricanes receiver Michael Irvin reacts against the Oklahoma Sooners during the 1988 Orange Bowl. Miami defeated Oklahoma 20-14 to win the national championship. Mandatory Credit: Photo By Imagn Images | RVR Photos-Imagn Images

Being a blue blood means you've sustained greatness over generations, and Oklahoma has more than lived up to that standard.

Now remember, Oklahoma’s bowl draws, annual neutral-site games and destinations are not the result of some grand conspiracy. These games have benefited the Sooner program greatly over the decades. No one sat in a back room and decided the Sooners had to face Miami in the Orange Bowl or LSU in New Orleans, just down the road from campus — it's football and sometimes you get dealt a tough hand.

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Bowl games began as postseason exhibitions, a reward for standout seasons rather than a path to a title. Not until the mid-1960s did major polls consistently wait until after bowls to crown a national champion. As a result, bowls were held in warm-weather, destination spots in the South and on the West Coast.

OU's history is jam-packed with bowl games and national championship games in environments where the opponent felt at home.

Oklahoma's Bowl Games Played in Opponent's Home State

1950 Sugar Bowl vs. LSU — OU 35-0
1965 Gator Bowl vs. Florida State — FSU 36-19
1968 Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl vs. SMU — SMU 28-27
1980 Orange Bowl vs. Florida State — OU 24-7
1981 Orange Bowl vs. Florida State — OU 18-17
1981 Sun Bowl vs. Houston — OU 40-14
1983 Fiesta Bowl vs. Arizona State — ASU 32-21
1988 Orange Bowl vs. Miami — Miami 20-14 (National Championship)
1993 John Hancock Bowl vs. Texas Tech — OU 41-10
2001 Orange Bowl vs. Florida State — OU 13-2 (National Championship)
2004 Sugar Bowl vs. LSU — LSU 21-14
2009 BCS National Championship Game (Miami, FL) vs. Florida — UF 24-14
2013 Cotton Bowl vs. Texas A&M — A&M 41-13
2022 Cheez-It Bowl vs. Florida State — FSU 35-32

Some of those examples are blatant — Sugar Bowls against LSU, an Orange Bowl against Miami — while others are softer edges, like Sun Bowls against Texas Tech or Houston. Even so, this Dec. 19 date in Norman feels like a long-overdue payoff, not just for the 2025 Sooners, but for generations of Oklahoma fans who made those trips to swim through swarms of opposing fans who felt closer to home.

The Sooners have only played in three Dallas-based Cotton Bowls — 2002 vs. Arkansas, 2012 against Texas A&M and 2020 vs. Florida — where OU fans may have felt a sense of playing in friendly confines.

Speaking of Dallas, to further drive the point home, Oklahoma meets its arch rival in the Cotton Bowl every year. The neutral site is well-documented with the 50/50 split at midfield. Norman is technically a few miles closer to the game's site than Austin, even.

The game is billed as a neutral-site showdown, but playing it on the fairgrounds during the Texas State Fair tells a different story. The setting only reinforces the sense that, historically, Oklahoma has had to go the extra mile to validate its place among college football’s blue bloods.

Cotton Bowl, Oklahoma Sooners — Oct 10, 2015; Dallas, TX, USA; | Matthew Emmons-Imagn Images

Notre Dame rode east coast media favor and great teams during football’s early days, carving out a lasting legacy. Texas stands tall as the crown jewel in a state overflowing with talent. USC has long offered the allure of Los Angeles and sun-soaked beaches alongside its football pedigree. And Alabama? Just look at any map showing where NFL players come from — it's clear why the Crimson Tide has ruled the college football landscape for so long.

Oklahoma? Well, they're close to Dallas or they have a lot of oil money. The true answer is that the Oklahoma football program made a point to build a football monster long ago. It was sculpted by great coaches, players and an equally great level of investment. Often times, Oklahoma proved it in hostile environments in some of college football's biggest games.

Now they have the reward of earning a right to play more meaningful postseason football in Norman.

The privilege of hosting a playoff game reflects not just a successful season but a recognition of Oklahoma’s enduring legacy in college football. It’s a chance for the team and its fans to celebrate not just this season's success, but to honor the history of the program forged, often times, away from Norman.