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Oklahoma Kickoff Time Confirmed for Program's First Game Against Mississippi State

The Sooners travel to Starkville for the first time in school history.
Brady Trantham|
Oklahoma offensive linemen Noah Best and Peyton Joseph celebrate after Tate Sandell's game-winning field goal against Texas.
Oklahoma offensive linemen Noah Best and Peyton Joseph celebrate after Tate Sandell's game-winning field goal against Texas. | Carson Field / Sooners On SI

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Oklahoma Sooners

Oklahoma avoids a night game for the program's first trek to Starkville to take on former offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby's Mississippi State Bulldogs.

On Monday, the SEC announced that the Sooners will take on the Bulldogs at 2:30 p.m. CT in Starkville. The game will be broadcast on either ESPN or the SEC Network.

At 4-1, MSU earned a No. 16 ranking heading into their matchup with Alabama two weeks ago. The Crimson Tide thrashed the Bulldogs, winning 56-23 in a sloppy affair by the hosting Bulldogs.

Mississippi State retained their No. 16 ranking during their bye weekend and look to rebound on the road against the LSU Tigers this Saturday.

Meanwhile, Oklahoma is coming off a season-saving 27-24 victory over the No. 1 Texas Longhorns in the annual Red River Rivalry game played at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. The Sooners got contributions from special teams, defense and (just enough) offense to secure the upset victory.

OU returns to Norman for the first time since their 14-6 win over New Mexico in week three. They will host the No. 15 Kentucky Wildcats.

Kentucky is coming off a massive win in a 35-34 overtime thriller over then—No. 10 LSU. The Wildcats earned a season-defining win in Lexington thanks to a successful two-point conversion against Lane Kiffin's Tigers.

First-year coach Will Stein has the Wildcats playing inspired football. Their only loss was a 45-17 loss to Alabama. UK led 17-13 at half and were outscored 32-0 in the second half by the Crimson Tide.

This will Kentucky's second trip to Norman with the first being a 29-7 victory for the Sooners in 1980. Overall, OU and Kentucky have met three times — the first being the 1951 Sugar Bowl with the third being 29-8 victory for OU in 1982 played in Lexington.

Depending on how MSU fares against LSU this weekend, OU's trip to Starkville will see the Sooners take on their fifth ranked opponent of the season, and potentially their fourth consecutive.

This will be the first time Venables has faced a former assistant on the opposing sideline. Lebby spent two seasons as Oklahoma's offensive coordinator during Venables' initial run as OU's head coach from 2022-2023.

Lebby is 11-19 (3-16 in SEC play) during his three seasons as head coach. He has been better at home, going 7-10 at Davis Wade Stadium.

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Brady Trantham
BRADY TRANTHAM

Brady Trantham covered the Oklahoma City Thunder as the lead Thunder Insider from 2018 until 2021 for 107.7 The Franchise. During that time, Trantham also helped the station as a fill-in guest personality and co-hosted Oklahoma Sooner postgame shows. Trantham also covered the Thunder for the Norman Transcript and The Oklahoman on a freelance basis. He received his BA in history from the University of Oklahoma in 2014 and a BS in Sports Casting from Full Sail University in 2023. Trantham also founded and hosts the “Through the Keyhole” podcast, covering Oklahoma Sooners football. He was born in Oklahoma and raised as an Air Force brat all over the world before returning to Norman and setting down roots there.

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