OU-Miami deal near finalization
By Jenni Carlson
The Oklahoman
With the temperature soaring and the summer dragging, there is a far-off oasis for college-football-starved fans in our fair state.
Marquee matchups
A look at the best of Oklahoma?s future non-conference opponents:
2005: UCLA
2006: Oregon; Washington
2007: Miami *
2008: Washington**
2009: Miami *
2010: Florida State
2011: Florida State
2013: Notre Dame
2015: Notre Dame
2018: LSU
2019: LSU
* Tentative.
** Currently scheduled for 2007. Expected to be moved to 2008.
Oklahoma vs. Miami.
The proposed two-game series has yet to be formalized. Contracts need to be signed, and details need to be finalized. Yet insiders say that the blockbuster deal between the powerhouse programs is almost done.
The Hurricanes would come to Norman in 2007, and the Sooners would make the trip to Miami in 2009.
Not only is this the resurrection of one of the best series in all of college football ? OU-Miami was the matchup of the mid-?80s ? but it is also an example of how to do business. Athletic directors across the country should take note. Just because the NCAA added a 12th game to the schedule doesn?t mean it has to be a cupcake.
The Sooners are leaders in that regard. Under the direction of Joe Castiglione and Bob Stoops, they have already set up future series against Washington, Florida State, Notre Dame and LSU. A couple of those programs are down right now, but all are among the most successful in college football?s annals.
Because of their financial resources and gridiron passions, who knows what might become of the likes of Washington and Notre Dame in the next few years? They have a chance to be national contenders again by the time OU plays them.
Mind you, OU isn?t packing its non-conference schedule with top-end opponents. It doesn?t need to. No Big 12 team does. The conference provides enough challenges that a team doesn?t need to prove itself with a stacked non-conference slate.
One marquee matchup in non-conference play every season is sufficient for programs and satisfying for fans.
OU-Miami should more than fit that bill. Every time they?ve played, after all, it?s been a classic.
The first two meetings were decided by a combined seven points, the Sooners winning by four in 1973, then by three in 1975. But those were the days when OU was established and Miami was up-and-coming.
By the time the teams got back together in the ?80s, though, they stood toe to toe. It made for three of the most memorable games ever played.
When the teams played in Norman in 1985, OU had a young gun at quarterback named Troy Aikman. He was supposed to be the Sooner savior.
That afternoon in October, OU lost Aikman and the game.
Aikman broke his leg, opening the door for Jamelle Holieway. The two quarterbacks couldn?t have been any more different ? Aikman a pocket passer, Holieway a wishbone wizard ? yet the switch was key to the Sooners winning the program?s sixth national title.
The rematch a year later in Miami pitted No. 1 against No. 2 and featured a who?s who of college football. Many had played in the ?85 game, but by ?86 they were stars.
Vinny Testaverde. Michael Irvin. The Blades brothers.
Brian Bosworth. Keith Jackson. Holieway.
A bench-clearing, fourth-quarter brawl might have stolen the show if not for Testaverde. He threw for 261 yards and four touchdowns against an OU defense that had allowed only three touchdowns in the nine previous games. That performance propelled Miami to victory and all but secured the Heisman Trophy for Testaverde.
Despite the drama in 1985 and 1986, the Sooners and Hurricanes played their biggest game at the end of the 1987 season. They were again ranked No. 1 and No. 2.
The site: the Orange Bowl.
The spoils: the national title.
The Miami quarterback changed ? Steve Walsh was taking the snaps then ? but the result stayed the same. The Hurricanes continued their dominance in the decade against the Sooners.
The teams haven?t played since.
If everything goes as planned, that will change in 2007. That day is still a long ways off, but where these two teams are concerned, the anticipation could be every bit as exciting as the game.
By Jenni Carlson
The Oklahoman
With the temperature soaring and the summer dragging, there is a far-off oasis for college-football-starved fans in our fair state.
Marquee matchups
A look at the best of Oklahoma?s future non-conference opponents:
2005: UCLA
2006: Oregon; Washington
2007: Miami *
2008: Washington**
2009: Miami *
2010: Florida State
2011: Florida State
2013: Notre Dame
2015: Notre Dame
2018: LSU
2019: LSU
* Tentative.
** Currently scheduled for 2007. Expected to be moved to 2008.
Oklahoma vs. Miami.
The proposed two-game series has yet to be formalized. Contracts need to be signed, and details need to be finalized. Yet insiders say that the blockbuster deal between the powerhouse programs is almost done.
The Hurricanes would come to Norman in 2007, and the Sooners would make the trip to Miami in 2009.
Not only is this the resurrection of one of the best series in all of college football ? OU-Miami was the matchup of the mid-?80s ? but it is also an example of how to do business. Athletic directors across the country should take note. Just because the NCAA added a 12th game to the schedule doesn?t mean it has to be a cupcake.
The Sooners are leaders in that regard. Under the direction of Joe Castiglione and Bob Stoops, they have already set up future series against Washington, Florida State, Notre Dame and LSU. A couple of those programs are down right now, but all are among the most successful in college football?s annals.
Because of their financial resources and gridiron passions, who knows what might become of the likes of Washington and Notre Dame in the next few years? They have a chance to be national contenders again by the time OU plays them.
Mind you, OU isn?t packing its non-conference schedule with top-end opponents. It doesn?t need to. No Big 12 team does. The conference provides enough challenges that a team doesn?t need to prove itself with a stacked non-conference slate.
One marquee matchup in non-conference play every season is sufficient for programs and satisfying for fans.
OU-Miami should more than fit that bill. Every time they?ve played, after all, it?s been a classic.
The first two meetings were decided by a combined seven points, the Sooners winning by four in 1973, then by three in 1975. But those were the days when OU was established and Miami was up-and-coming.
By the time the teams got back together in the ?80s, though, they stood toe to toe. It made for three of the most memorable games ever played.
When the teams played in Norman in 1985, OU had a young gun at quarterback named Troy Aikman. He was supposed to be the Sooner savior.
That afternoon in October, OU lost Aikman and the game.
Aikman broke his leg, opening the door for Jamelle Holieway. The two quarterbacks couldn?t have been any more different ? Aikman a pocket passer, Holieway a wishbone wizard ? yet the switch was key to the Sooners winning the program?s sixth national title.
The rematch a year later in Miami pitted No. 1 against No. 2 and featured a who?s who of college football. Many had played in the ?85 game, but by ?86 they were stars.
Vinny Testaverde. Michael Irvin. The Blades brothers.
Brian Bosworth. Keith Jackson. Holieway.
A bench-clearing, fourth-quarter brawl might have stolen the show if not for Testaverde. He threw for 261 yards and four touchdowns against an OU defense that had allowed only three touchdowns in the nine previous games. That performance propelled Miami to victory and all but secured the Heisman Trophy for Testaverde.
Despite the drama in 1985 and 1986, the Sooners and Hurricanes played their biggest game at the end of the 1987 season. They were again ranked No. 1 and No. 2.
The site: the Orange Bowl.
The spoils: the national title.
The Miami quarterback changed ? Steve Walsh was taking the snaps then ? but the result stayed the same. The Hurricanes continued their dominance in the decade against the Sooners.
The teams haven?t played since.
If everything goes as planned, that will change in 2007. That day is still a long ways off, but where these two teams are concerned, the anticipation could be every bit as exciting as the game.
