Breaking down the Sooners' 2013 football schedule
Published: 11/20/2012 10:11 PM
Last Modified: 11/20/2012 10:12 PM
A week-by-week look at Oklahoma’s 2013 football schedule, which was released on Tuesday …
* Louisiana-Monroe (Aug. 31): The first meeting between the schools will include the return of Kameel Jackson. The wide receiver was suspended last May and dismissed from the Sooners in early August. He had 12 catches for 165 yards in one year at Oklahoma.
* West Virginia (Sept. 7): The earliest conference game in Oklahoma history, the Sooners will not see quarterback Geno Smith and wide receiver Tavon Austin (graduation) but wide receiver Stedman Bailey returns for a senior season.
* Tulsa (Sept. 14): The Golden Hurricane is expected to be favorites in Conference USA next season, but recently has struggled playing the Sooners. TU has lost by an average of 38.3 points in six games since beating Oklahoma 31-24 in 1996.
* At Notre Dame (Sept. 28): OU’s next starting quarterback – Blake Bell is the leader in the clubhouse – will play his first road game against a Fighting Irish team that could be the defending national champion.
* TCU (Oct. 5): The Horned Frogs will have faced a tough range of games before hitting Norman. TCU opens against LSU, travels to Texas Tech and has a rivalry game against SMU. OU has won seven of 11 meetings against the Fort Worth school.
* Texas (Oct. 12): The bar has been set high for the Sooners, who dominated Texas 63-21 in 2012 and 55-17 in 2011. These two teams are expected again to be a factor in who wins the Big 12 Conference in 2013.
* At Kansas (Oct. 19): Will the Jayhawks be any better in year two of the Charlie Weis era? OU has won eight straight over Kansas, with its last loss being a 20-17 road setback in 1997.
* Texas Tech (Oct. 26): The next-to-last home game for OU in 2013, the Red Raiders have only won twice in 10 trips to Memorial Stadium. But one of those victories was on their last visit, a 41-38 win over Oklahoma in 2011.
* At Baylor (Nov. 9): OU will be coming off the second of three scheduled bye weeks before it makes the journey to Waco. The Sooners have won 21 of 22 contests against the Bears all-time and will be looking to avenge its lone loss, a last-minute road setback in 2011.
* Iowa State (Nov. 16): Senior Day for the Sooners will include a visit from Iowa State. OU has dominated the Cyclones in Norman, holding a 36-3-1 advantage with seven straight victories.
* At Kansas State (Nov. 23): A game to be circled by OU fans, the Sooners and Wildcats will play in one of those conference games that could have Big 12 ramifications. One big thing missing from this game: Collin Klein.
* At Oklahoma State (Dec. 7): Early December. Both teams will have a bye week heading into this one. It’s Bedlam. Enough said.
A few final thoughts: The schedule is front-loaded with four home games in the first six weeks (including a bye week) and ends with three road games in the final five weeks (including a bye week) … OU only has one home game after Oct. 26, a game against Iowa State on Nov. 16 ... Oklahoma will benefit from bye weeks before Notre Dame and Oklahoma State … The Sooners have a tough early five-game stretch – West Virginia, Tulsa, at Notre Dame, TCU and Texas.
Written by
Eric Bailey
Sports Writer
