Oklahoma football history: seasons, coaches, rivalries, bowls

Zeitgeist staturePower Program I#1 all-time– holding

scores like a Blue Blood — held without a national title in over a decade

Stature and coaches, 1936–2026

The program’s standing over time, with every coach’s tenure beneath it — read down to see who was there for each rise and fall.

Oklahoma is Power Program today. Dynasty tier in 1956–1957 and 1975–1976.

TexasOklahoma State#1 nationally

DynastyBlue BloodPower ProgramNational ProgramRegional Program

Run↔pass identity, by season

Every coach, tenure by tenure, on the coaching page →

All-time 52-62-5 since 1902 · .436 win rate

Streak W1 Oklahoma won the last meeting

Trophy Golden Hat In play each fall

Next 2026 season date set by conference

No fan reading for this rivalry yet this week. The heat trend and each side’s mood appear when fans start talking about it.

The last 5 · year-by-year

W 2026 Win 27-24
L 2025 Loss 6-23
L 2024 Loss 3-34
W 2023 Win 34-30
L 2022 Loss 0-49

Who thinks about whom

It runs both ways, but a bit more from Oklahoma toward Texas.

Oklahoma fansTexas fans

How we know

We compare how many different fans on each side bring up the other team, spring months only so bowl and playoff weeks don't tilt it, adjusted for how much each team gets talked about anyway. Only fans with a team flair are included.

Program outlook

Oklahoma made the Playoff in year three of the SEC — the vindication the move demanded. Then the Sooners led Alabama 17-0, gave up 27 straight points, and lost 34-24. The doubt came back, wearing a different jersey.

Since Oct 28: L 25-42 vs South Carolina. 4-4 this season.

Read the full essay — 4 more paragraphs

Seven national titles and the highest winning percentage of the modern era. The 47-game winning streak Bud Wilkinson built from 1953 to 1957 is the longest in major college football history and has never been seriously threatened. Barry Switzer's wishbone dynasty. Bob Stoops' 2000 championship over Florida State. Seven Heisman winners — tied for most of any program in the sport. The Sooner Schooner, two white ponies pulling a covered wagon at 25 miles per hour around Gaylord Family Stadium after every score, the only mascot of its kind anywhere. Oklahoma is not a program that performs confidence; it carries the standard as a structural fact and organizes its public life around the conviction that it belongs at the top of the sport in whatever league it joins.

Year three of the SEC answered the first question. Brent Venables and transfer quarterback John Mateer — 2,885 passing yards, 431 rushing yards through a midseason hand injury — built a 10-3 team that returned to the 12-team Playoff, the program's first postseason appearance since the Lincoln Riley era. The 5-0 start, Ben Arbuckle's redesigned offense, the rebuild after the 6-7 2022 season that invited every 'they don't belong in this league' take: the berth itself was the answer. Then the Fiesta Bowl arrived, and Oklahoma led Alabama 17-0 in the first half and lost 34-24, dropping Venables to 0-5 in the postseason and turning a vindicating year into a half-game the fanbase cannot unsee.

Mateer returns for 2026, and the season's first real test went the wrong way: a 51-0 opening rout of UTEP, then a 17-10 road loss at Michigan as a 5.5-point favorite, Oklahoma's offense held to ten points against a marquee non-conference opponent. Michigan isn't the SEC test this crown is built around, but the scoreline reopened the same doubt the Fiesta Bowl raised in January. The open question, the one the 2026 SEC schedule will actually adjudicate, is whether the Sooners can win the league they chose to join. The eighth title that would make the realignment look like destiny — not a gamble, not an ego play, but a coronation — requires Oklahoma to do in the SEC what it did in the Big 12: be the program everyone else measures itself against. The standard doesn't negotiate about which conference it travels through.

Update (Oct. 28, 2026): Oklahoma is 4-3. Since then it lost 41-13 at Georgia on Sept. 26 and 21-13 to Kentucky on Oct. 17. The Oct. 17 loss to Kentucky came as a 7-point favorite.

On the field

Crown-program-in-transition: historically tempo-driven and explosive, now reconfigured for SEC line-of-scrimmage demands. Arbuckle's system under Venables uses Mateer's dual-threat ability as the operating lever — quick-game RPO concepts, designed QB runs, and play-action off the threat of it. The defensive identity is 4-2-5 under Venables, built on speed and assignment discipline, still developing the depth required to hold leads in SEC fourth quarters. The Sooner Schooner rides after every score; the standard is still the standard.

Program outlook · as of Oct 28, 2026

Oklahoma has won 7 national titles since 1936

1950, 1955, 1956, 1974, 1975, 1985, 2000

How titles are counted

The final AP poll from 1936 and the Coaches poll from 1950 through 2005, then the winner of the BCS and College Football Playoff title games. A program may claim others, named by selectors we do not count.

1950: AP poll and Coaches poll
1955: AP poll and Coaches poll
1956: AP poll and Coaches poll
1974: AP poll
1975: AP poll and Coaches poll
1985: AP poll and Coaches poll
2000: AP poll and Coaches poll

Oklahoma has won 70% of its games since 1902 — 80% at home, 61% on the road.

917-347-47 all-time · 125 seasons · 1902–2026

Home 524-112-23

Away 344-199-23

Neutral 49-36-1

47%

1900s

70%

1910s

48%

1920s

52%

1930s

69%

1940s

89%

1950s

60%

1960s

86%

1970s

76%

1980s

53%

1990s

82%

2000s

81%

2010s

67%

2020s

Era record 122-43 13 seasons

Best season 12-2 2019

Top-10 finishes 6 AP polled only

Trajectory · quality-score line · AP rank dotted · CFP bids marked · coach regimes ribboned

Program quality AP rank (inverted) CFP appearance

Swipe left for earlier seasons

Chapters · 13 seasons · tap to open the archive

'14 8-5 '15 11-2 '16 11-2 '17 12-2 '18 12-2 '19 12-2 '20 9-2 '21 11-2 '22 6-7 '23 10-3 '24 6-7 '25 10-3 '26 4-4

Oklahoma’s 2014–2026 record is 122-43.

Brent Venables

Brent Venables has held the program for 5 seasons — the era is established.

Era Brent Venables · 2022–presentPrev: Bob Stoops (2021)OC: Ben ArbucklePrev OC: Joe Jon Finley (co) / Kevin Johns (co) (interim) / Seth Littrell (2024)DC: Todd BatesPrev DC: Todd Bates (co) / Jay Valai (co) (2025)

The full CFP-era story →The full coaching lineage →

5 years · era

Oklahoma and Texas, meeting by meeting

Texas leads the series 62-52-5 (since 1902); in the last 10 meetings, Oklahoma is 6-4

2026: Oklahoma won 27-24. After this game, Texas led 62-52-5.

Last 25 meetings: ▲ Oklahoma won, ▼ Texas won, by how much

Each step is one meeting: up when Oklahoma wins, down when Texas wins, flat for a tie. Counts every game in our records since 1902. Tap the line for any season.

Biggest stories

The stories fans talked about most for Oklahoma.

Oklahoma fires offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle Nov 2, 2026 · National argument
At long last, Oklahoma releases details of Brent Venables's latest contract extension Oct 16, 2026 · Talked about · Short note

All Oklahoma stories

Oklahoma in History

Oklahoma 34, Texas 30Game · Oct 7, 2023
Lincoln Riley leaves Oklahoma for USCCoach change · Nov 28, 2021
Oklahoma 55, Texas 48: Brooks runs 33 yards with 3 seconds leftOct 9, 2021
From a Big 12 notice to an SEC vote: Texas and Oklahoma's weekConference change · Jul 26, 2021

Moments in Oklahoma history

Oklahoma beats Texas in four overtimes after Texas ties it lateGame · Oct 10, 2020
Texas beats Oklahoma on a field goal with nine seconds leftGame · Oct 6, 2018
Georgia beats Oklahoma in double overtime in the Rose Bowl, and Oklahoma's coach says no one play lost itGame · Jan 1, 2018

On this date, Nov 4, 2017: Oklahoma 62, Oklahoma State 52

1957

The 47-game streak

Wilkinson's Sooners run off the longest winning streak in major college history

1985

The Switzer era

Three national titles under Barry Switzer — 1974, 1975 and 1985, the last of six Oklahoma won between 1950 and 1985

The 2000 national title

Stoops beats Florida State in the Orange Bowl for the program's seventh championship

2025

The 34-24 Playoff collapse

Oklahoma leads Alabama 17-0 in its CFP game, then loses 34-24 at home

Heartbreak

Moment of the year · 2026

Won 27-24 vs Texas

Week 6 of 2026. Beat a top-1 opponent on the field. It turned on one snap in Q4 — Arch Manning, a 43-point win-probability swing.

Oklahoma’s chance to win through the game; the line turns dark at the play.

That looked like Mateer threw that......r/CFB game thread

Upset · was a 7.5-point underdogvs Top-5 (#1)

2022–2026

Oklahoma has sent 24 players to the NFL Draft since 2022 — 2 of them in the first round.

Strong. 2 first-round picks. Recruits with NFL ambitions notice.

24 picks · 2 in round 1

#27 Anton Harrison Offensive Tackle · 2023 ·

Jacksonville Jaguars

#29 Tyler Guyton Offensive Tackle · 2024 ·

Dallas Cowboys

#40 R Mason Thomas Defensive Edge · 2026 ·

Kansas City Chiefs · #169/420 final season

#12 all-time · 46 first-round picksthe talent factory →

#	Program	Record
1	Georgia	5-1
2	Kentucky	5-1
3	Alabama	4-2
4	Ole Miss	4-2
5	LSU	3-2
6	Missouri	3-2
7	Tennessee	3-2
8	Texas	3-2
9	Florida	3-3
10	South Carolina	3-3
11	Oklahoma	2-3
12	Auburn	2-4
13	Mississippi State	2-4
14	Arkansas	1-4
15	Texas A&M	1-4
16	Vanderbilt	0-5

Oklahoma’s offense and defense, by coordinator

FBS-relative efficiency percentile per season (2014–2026), same population as the Coordinator Mirror board. Dashed vertical lines mark a coordinator change.

Offense2014–2026

2014 · Jay Norvell (co) / Josh Heupel (co)2015–2016 · Lincoln Riley2017–2021 · Bill Bedenbaugh (co) / Cale Gundy (co)2022–2023 · Jeff Lebby2024 · Joe Jon Finley (co) / Kevin Johns (co) (interim) / Seth Littrell2025–2026 · Ben Arbuckle

Defense2014–2026

2014–2018 · Mike Stoops2019–2021 · Alex Grinch2022–2023 · Ted Roof / Todd Bates (co) / Jay Valai (co)2024 · Todd Bates (co) / Zac Alley / Jay Valai (co)2025 · Todd Bates (co) / Jay Valai (co)2026 · Todd Bates

Elite (≥70th pct)AveragePoor (≤30th pct)

Gameday customsThe gameday customs unique to this program.

Rituals

Things this fanbase does every Saturday — none of them invented in the last decade.

Sooner Schooner

since 1964

The covered wagon, pulled by two white ponies named Boomer and Sooner, races across the field after every score. The schooner is a Conestoga wagon — a direct reference to the 1889 Land Rush 'Sooners' who entered Oklahoma Territory before the legal start. The 1985 Orange Bowl tipping incident is part of the lore.

Boomer Sooner (fight song)

since 1905

Written by Arthur Alden in 1905 — set to the tune of Yale's 'Boola Boola' (which OU borrowed and arguably improved). The most-played college fight song per minute of game time. The 'Oklahoma! Oklahoma! Oklahoma! Sooners!' breakdown is the signature; visiting fans learn it by osmosis.

The Crimson Walk (Sooner Walk)

since 1990s

Players walk from Switzer Center through fans into Owen Field. Less codified than Auburn's or Michigan's equivalents but central to the gameday rhythm. Bob Stoops formalized it; Lincoln Riley and Brent Venables continued. The walk passes the Heisman statues — every Oklahoma Heisman winner cast in bronze along the route.

Pride of Oklahoma (band)

since 1904

The marching band's halftime performance — distinguished by the 'Boomer Sooner' fan-tradition culminating in the script 'OKLAHOMA' formation. Less photogenic than Script Ohio but more athletic — the band's fast tempo through OU formations is its signature. Drumline solos are a fixture.

Red River Rivalry Week

since 1900

The neutral-site game vs Texas during the State Fair of Texas. The stadium is split exactly in half — crimson on one sideline, burnt orange on the other. The Golden Hat trophy goes to the winner. Calendar-marker rivalry that organizes the OU season the way The Game organizes Ohio State's.

Cultural identityWhat college football loses if this program didn't exist.

Canon appearancesMoments that made college football's permanent record.

Featured in The Canon

Brent Venables — Oklahoma, December 2021

The 25 Best Coaching Hires of the 2020s

#11

Kyler Murray

The 100 Best Players of the CFP Era

#12

Baker Mayfield

The 100 Best Players of the CFP Era

BowlsLast 5 bowls 1-4, 24-23 since 1970

Recent postseason (1970-2025): 24-23

Most recent: 2025 — loss 24-34 (home). Last 5 postseason: 1-4.

2025 L2024 L 2023 L 2022 L 2021 W

Reddit blowupsThe plays that blew up on r/CFB.

r/CFB moments

4.8k

[Postgame Thread] TCU Defeats Oklahoma 55-24

Oct 2022 · r/CFB

All-time top community posts

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Oklahoma

Stature and coaches, 1936–2026