Oklahoma has played most of the season in a mild climate. But it will get a heavy dose of winter at the Big 12 championship game. Forecasts are calling for temperatures to be below freezing in Kansas City, Mo., by Saturday’s 7 p.m. kickoff at Arrowhead Stadium.
For a roster full of players from Oklahoma and Texas, it’s going to be a different experience.
Running backs coach Cale Gundy was joking with wide receiver Malcolm Kelly about the forecast Monday.
Kelly’s lone cold-weather experience was earlier this year against Colorado. Temperatures were in the mid 40s that night with gusty north winds. The sophomore receiver was wondering if it was going to be worse Saturday.
“Coach Gundy said it’s going to make the night of the Colorado game feel like it was about 80 degrees,” Kelly said.
OU coach Bob Stoops was asked if anything could be done to prepare for the weather.
“Ride up to Minnesota and have some practices, I guess,” he said. “That’s not going to matter. I think more than anything, wind matters in games more than cold does. Like last year when we played Nebraska, I thought the wind was a factor more than cold was by a long shot.”
The forecast calls for calm winds.
History lessons
Oklahoma-Nebraska was the centerpiece of the old Big 8 Conference. Dating all the way back to the 1950s, the teams have met on numerous occasions with the conference title at stake.
However, the teams have only met six times since the Big 12 began in 1996.
“It kind of maybe died a little bit lately because we don’t play them every year, but if you look back on the Big 8, it was pretty much Nebraska and Oklahoma every year,” OU quarterback Paul Thompson said. “We’re definitely real aware of the tradition between the two schools and hopefully we can keep it going.”
The Sooners lead the series 42-37-3 and have won the last two.
Not interested
Miami and Alabama both have coaching vacancies. Stoops has been mentioned as a candidate by media outlets that cover both teams. But Stoops put the rumors to rest Tuesday.
“I’m not interested in any jobs,” he said. “It’s amazing. Every coach finds out through all of you guys they’re a candidate. No one ever knows. Whoever has a winning record, he’s a candidate. It’s silly the way it all works.”
Stoops a Robinson Award finalist
Stoops is one of nine finalists for the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award. The honor is voted on annually by the Football Writers Association of America.
The are finalists are Arkansas’ Houston Nutt, Rutgers’ Greg Schiano, Wake Forest’s Jim Grobe, Houston’s Art Briles, Hawaii’s June Jones, Michigan’s Lloyd Carr, BYU’s Bronco Mendenhall and Boise State’s Chris Petersen.
The FWAA Coaching Award is named after Robinson, a coaching legend who led Grambling State University for 55 years. He has more Division I victories (408) than any other coach.
John Shinn
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jshinn@normantranscript.com
OU Sports
It should be cold at Arrowhead
John Shinn's Oklahoma Football Notepad
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