The rabid fans that populate Norman, Oklahoma have come to expect a BCS berth year-in and year-out from their beloved Sooners. It is both the gift and curse that comes from running one of college football’s marquee programs.
Tulsa Vs. Oklahoma: Game Time, TV Schedule, Odds And More
Landry Jones and the top ranked Oklahoma Sooners open the season against the Tulsa Golden Hurricanes on September 3rd at 8 p.m. ET.
Yet somehow this year feels different. By capping last season’s surprising 12-2 romp with an emphatic Fiesta Bowl victory, Bob Stoops’ squad enters the 2011 campaign firmly entrenched at the top of the polls, and now nothing short of a national championship will suffice.
But don't let the expectations fool you. Led by a Heisman Trophy candidate quarterback -- Landry Jones -- and the NCAA's active leader in receiving touchdowns and yards -- Frank Broyles -- Oklahoma has the raw talent necessary to follow through on their limitless potential. However, with five high-profile BCS losses in their last six attempts, the Sooners will have to overcome recent history before they can reach the mountaintop.
It all starts with Tusla. The Golden Hurricanes ended 2009 with all the momentum in the world, tearing through the final seven games of the season -- including a victory in the Hawaii Bowl -- to give the university it’s first Top-25 finish since 1991, and third 10-win season of the past four years. New coach Bill Blankenship will rely on fifth-year senior starting quarterback G.J. Kinne, who ran roughshod across the league last year to the tune of 3,650 passing yards and 31 TDs, leading the Golden Hurricanes to a top-five total offense throughout the entire FBS.
Still, the Tulsa hasn’t bested the Sooners since September of 1996. Oklahoma’s nation-best 36-game winning streak at home certainly doesn’t bode well either.
Game Date, Time: 8:00 p.m. ET, Saturday, September 3
Location: Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, Norman, Oklahoma
TV Channel: FX
Spread: Oklahoma By 25
For Further Reading, News, Discussion And More: SB Nation’s Oklahoma blog, Crimson and Cream Machine.
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