Oklahoma football will be officially underway one day sooner than expected. Instead of an early Saturday kickoff, the lights will be bright on a Friday night with the Sooners kicking off their season against Temple in Norman on Aug. 30.
The move was announced on Tuesday by OU, coming after discussions with ESPN.
As mentioned, ESPN will air the game — which will mark the first time a Friday night game will be played at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. The 6 p.m. CT kickoff does add a unique wrinkle to the weekend, sliding the Sooners’ first contest as a member of the SEC to a primetime slot.
“We were asked to consider moving up the season opener by a day so ESPN could televise our first game as a member of the SEC in a primetime window,” Director of Athletics Joe Castiglione said in a press release. “It’s a unique and exciting opportunity for us, as it will be our first Friday night game in the history of Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium and will give our team tremendous visibility nationally. Another major plus is, given the kick time, our players and fans should benefit from a cooler temperature.”
One of the benefits of the Sooners leaving the Big 12 for the SEC is a change in the time of kickoffs. After being continually stuck with 11 a.m. kickoffs, Oklahoma gets an evening game to start the new era.
“It’s reasonable to expect that playing in the evening will significantly mitigate some of the heat issues we typically deal with during early season day games. Our first-ever ‘Friday Night Lights’ will undoubtedly be one for the books, and we’re excited to open the season and our first year in the SEC in such a spectacular fashion.”
With the program officially joining the SEC on July 1, 2024, a new era will begin in an interesting fashion in Norman. The turnout of a Friday night contest will be intriguing to watch.
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