The Oklahoma Sooners college football team compete as part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, representing the University of Oklahoma in the Southeastern Conference. Oklahoma has played their home games at Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Oklahoma since 1923.[1]
The Sooners claim seven national championships. They have also recorded 50 conference championships,[2] 12 undefeated and untied regular seasons,[3] and the longest winning streak in Division I history with 47 straight victories. The Oklahoma football program is one of the most successful programs in history, having won 944 games[4] and possessing a .725 winning percentage,[5] both sixth all time. As of the end of the 2022 season, Oklahoma has appeared in the AP poll 882 times,[6] including 101 No. 1 rankings,[7] both third all time.
Football was introduced to the university by John A. Harts in 1895. Harts, a student from Kansas who had played the game in his home state,[8] presided over a single game, a loss to a more experienced team from the Oklahoma City High School.[9] The university had its first paid coach in Vernon Louis Parrington, who led the Sooners to a record of nine wins, one loss, and two ties over four seasons.[10] Hired in 1905, Bennie Owen brought Oklahoma to the national stage during his 22-year tenure as head coach. He retired with a 122–54–16 record, including four seasons in which the team went unbeaten.[11] During Owen's tenure, Oklahoma became a charter member of the Southwest Conference, in which they remained for five years before leaving to join the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association.[12] The MVIAA conference would later transform into the Big Six, Big Seven, and finally the Big Eight Conference.
In 1947, Oklahoma promoted Bud Wilkinson, then an assistant coach, to head coach.[13] Wilkinson led the Sooners to national championships in 1950, 1955 and 1956,[14] as well as a stretch of 47 consecutive victories that began in 1953 and ended in 1957.[15] Wilkinson's tenure included a streak of 13 consecutive conference championships (in addition to one by his predecessor).[2] After 17 seasons at the helm, Wilkinson retired with a 145–29–4 record.[14]
Oklahoma continued to perform well after Wilkinson left, but only returned to the national title picture following the promotion of Barry Switzer to head coach in 1973. The Sooners won the Big Eight in each of his first eight years as coach and earned national championships in 1974 and 1975.[16] Switzer added Oklahoma's sixth national championship in 1985 and bested Wilkinson's school record for victories by a coach, stepping down prior to the 1989 season with a 157–29–4 record.[16]
After a decline that lasted more than a decade, Oklahoma again won the national championship in 2000, after coach Bob Stoops had been hired the previous year.[17] By then Oklahoma had joined a new conference, the Big 12 Conference, formed as a combination of the Big Eight Conference and four Texas schools of the defunct Southwest Conference.[18] Stoops coached 239 games during his time at Oklahoma, winning 191 of them. Both figures are the most of any coach in school history.[19] Stoops won ten conference championships[17] and led the Sooners to the BCS National Championship Game four times. However, 2000 remains Oklahoma's most recent championship game victory. Lincoln Riley, who succeeded Stoops as coach in 2017, took the Sooners to the College Football Playoff four times, losing in the semifinal round on each occasion. Following Riley's departure, current head coach Brent Venables was appointed to the position.
Through the 2023 season, Oklahoma has compiled an overall record of 944 wins, 341 losses, and 53 ties. The Sooners have appeared in 57 bowl games,[20] most recently in the 2023 Alamo Bowl, with 31 bowl victories, 25 losses and 1 tie in their history.
| National Champions † | Conference Champions * | Division Champions | Bowl game berth | College Football Playoff game § | Shared standing T | Not applicable |
| Season | Head coach | Division | Season results | Championship and postseason results | Final ranking | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conference | Overall | AP | Coaches' | ||||||||||||
| Finish | Win(s) | Loss(es) | Tie(s) | Win(s) | Loss(es) | Tie(s) | |||||||||
| Oklahoma Sooners | |||||||||||||||
| Independent (1895–1914) | |||||||||||||||
| 1895 | John A. Harts | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||||||||
| 1896 | No coach | 2 | 0 | 0 | |||||||||||
| 1897 | Vernon L. Parrington | 2 | 0 | 0 | |||||||||||
| 1898 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 1899 | 2 | 1 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 1900 | 3 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 1901 | Fred Roberts | 3 | 2 | 0 | |||||||||||
| 1902 | Mark McMahon | 6 | 3 | 0 | |||||||||||
| 1903 | 5 | 4 | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 1904 | Fred Ewing | 4 | 3 | 1 | |||||||||||
| 1905 | Bennie Owen | 7 | 2 | 0 | |||||||||||
| 1906 | 5 | 2 | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 1907 | 4 | 4 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 1908 | 8 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 1909 | 6 | 4 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 1910 | 4 | 2 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 1911 | 8 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 1912 | 5 | 4 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 1913 | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 1914 | 9 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Southwest Conference (1915–1919) | |||||||||||||||
| 1915 * | Bennie Owen | T–1st | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | |||||||
| 1916 | T–3rd | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1917 | 3rd | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 1 | ||||||||
| 1918 * | 1st | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1919 | 3rd | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 2 | ||||||||
| Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association (1920–1928) | |||||||||||||||
| 1920 * | Bennie Owen | 1st | 4 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 1 | |||||||
| 1921 | T–7th | 2 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1922 | 6th | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | ||||||||
| 1923 | 6th | 2 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1924 | 6th | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 1 | ||||||||
| 1925 | 5th | 3 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 3 | ||||||||
| 1926 | 5th | 3 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 1 | ||||||||
| 1927 | Adrian Lindsey | T–7th | 2 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | |||||||
| 1928 | T–2nd | 3 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 0 | ||||||||
| Big Six Conference (1929–1947) | |||||||||||||||
| 1929 | Adrian Lindsey | 4th | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | |||||||
| 1930 | 2nd | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 3 | ||||||||
| 1931 | T–5th | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 1 | ||||||||
| 1932 | Lewie Hardage | T–2nd | 3 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 1 | |||||||
| 1933 | 3rd | 3 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 1 | ||||||||
| 1934 | 3rd | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | ||||||||
| 1935 | Biff Jones | 2nd | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 0 | |||||||
| 1936 | 4th | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | ||||||||
| 1937 | Thomas E. Stidham | 2nd | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 2 | |||||||
| 1938 * | 1st | 5 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 0 | Lost Orange Bowl against Tennessee, 17-0 | 4 | ||||||
| 1939 | 3rd | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 19 | |||||||
| 1940 | 2nd | 4 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1941 | Dewey Luster | T–2nd | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 0 | |||||||
| 1942 | 2nd | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 2 | ||||||||
| 1943 * | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1944 * | 1st | 4 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 1 | ||||||||
| 1945 | 2nd | 4 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1946 * | Jim Tatum | T–1st | 4 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 3 | 0 | Won Gator Bowl against NC State, 34–13 | 14 | |||||
| 1947 * | Bud Wilkinson | T–1st | 4 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 16 | ||||||
| Big Seven Conference (1948–1958) | |||||||||||||||
| 1948 * | Bud Wilkinson | 1st | 5 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 0 | Won Sugar Bowl against North Carolina, 14–6 | 5 | |||||
| 1949 * | 1st | 5 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | Won Sugar Bowl against LSU, 35–0 | 2 | ||||||
| 1950 †* | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 0 | Lost Sugar Bowl against Kentucky, 13-7 | 1 | 1 | |||||
| 1951 * | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 11 | ||||||
| 1952 * | 1st | 5 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | ||||||
| 1953 * | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 1 | Won Orange Bowl against Maryland, 7–0 | 4 | 5 | |||||
| 1954 * | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | Consecutive bowl appearances prohibited by conference[21] [22] | 3 | 3 | |||||
| 1955 †* | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | Won Orange Bowl against Maryland, 20–6 | 1 | 1 | |||||
| 1956 †* | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | Consecutive bowl appearances prohibited by conference[23] | 1 | 1 | |||||
| 1957 * | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 0 | Won Orange Bowl against Duke, 48–21 | 4 | 4 | |||||
| 1958 * | 1st | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 0 | Won Orange Bowl against Syracuse, 21–6 | 5 | 5 | |||||
| Big Eight Conference (1959–1995) | |||||||||||||||
| 1959 * | Bud Wilkinson | 1st | 6 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 15 | 15 | |||||
| 1960 | 5th | 2 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 1 | Ineligible due to N.C.A.A. probation[24] | |||||||
| 1961 | 4th | 4 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1962 * | 1st | 7 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 3 | 0 | Lost Orange Bowl against Alabama, 17-0 | 8 | 7 | |||||
| 1963 | 2nd | 6 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 8 | ||||||
| 1964 | Gomer Jones | 2nd | 5 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 1 | Lost Gator Bowl against Florida State, 36–19 | ||||||
| 1965 | 5th | 3 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1966 | Jim Mackenzie | 5th | 4 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 0 | |||||||
| 1967 * | Chuck Fairbanks | 1st | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 0 | Won Orange Bowl against Tennessee, 26–24 | 3 | 3 | ||||
| 1968 * | T–1st | 6 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 4 | 0 | Lost Bluebonnet Bowl against SMU, 28–27 | 11 | 10 | |||||
| 1969 | 4th | 4 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1970 | T–2nd | 5 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 4 | 1 | Tied Bluebonnet Bowl against Alabama, 24–24 | 20 | 15 | |||||
| 1971 | 2nd | 6 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 0 | Won Sugar Bowl against Auburn, 40–22 | 2 | 3 | |||||
| 1972 * | 1st | 6 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 0 | Won Sugar Bowl against Penn State, 14–0 | 2 | 2 | |||||
| 1973 * | Barry Switzer | 1st | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 1 | Ineligible due to N.C.A.A. probation[25] | ||||||
| 1974 †* | 1st | 7 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | Ineligible due to N.C.A.A. probation | |||||||
| 1975 †* | 1st | 6 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 0 | Won Orange Bowl against Michigan, 14–6 | 1 | 1 | |||||
| 1976 * | T–1st | 5 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 1 | Won Fiesta Bowl against Wyoming, 41–7 | 5 | 6 | |||||
| 1977 * | 1st | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 0 | Lost Orange Bowl against Arkansas, 31–6 | 7 | 6 | |||||
| 1978 * | T–1st | 6 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 0 | Won Orange Bowl against Nebraska, 31–24 | 3 | 3 | |||||
| 1979 * | 1st | 7 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 0 | Won Orange Bowl against Florida State, 24–7 | 3 | 3 | |||||
| 1980 * | 1st | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 0 | Won Orange Bowl against Florida State, 18–17 | 3 | 3 | |||||
| 1981 | 2nd | 4 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 4 | 1 | Won Sun Bowl against Houston, 40–14 | 20 | 14 | |||||
| 1982 | 2nd | 6 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 0 | Lost Fiesta Bowl against Arizona State, 32–21 | 16 | 16 | |||||
| 1983 | 2nd | 5 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1984 * | T–1st | 6 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 1 | Lost Orange Bowl against Washington, 28–17 | 6 | 6 | |||||
| 1985 †* | 1st | 7 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 0 | Won Orange Bowl against Penn State, 25–10 | 1 | 1 | |||||
| 1986 * | 1st | 7 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 0 | Won Orange Bowl against Arkansas, 42–8 | 3 | 3 | |||||
| 1987 * | 1st | 7 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 0 | Lost Orange Bowl against Miami, 20–14 | 3 | 3 | |||||
| 1988 | 2nd | 6 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 3 | 0 | Lost Citrus Bowl against Clemson, 13–6 | 14 | 14 | |||||
| 1989 | Gary Gibbs | 3rd | 5 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 4 | 0 | Ineligible due to N.C.A.A. probation[26] | ||||||
| 1990 | T–2nd | 5 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 3 | 0 | Ineligible due to N.C.A.A. probation | |||||||
| 1991 | 3rd | 5 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 3 | 0 | Won Gator Bowl against Virginia, 48–14 | 16 | 14 | |||||
| 1992 | 4th | 3 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 2 | ||||||||
| 1993 | 4th | 4 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 3 | 0 | Won John Hancock Bowl against Texas Tech, 41–10 | 17 | 14 | |||||
| 1994 | 4th | 4 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 0 | Lost Copper Bowl against BYU, 31–6 | |||||||
| 1995 | Howard Schnellenberger | T–5th | 2 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 1 | |||||||
| Big 12 Conference (1996–2023) | |||||||||||||||
| 1996 | John Blake | South | 4th | 3 | 5 | 3 | 8 | ||||||||
| 1997 | South | T-4th | 2 | 6 | 4 | 8 | |||||||||
| 1998 | South | T-4th | 3 | 5 | 5 | 6 | |||||||||
| 1999 | Bob Stoops | South | T–2nd | 5 | 3 | 7 | 5 | Lost Independence Bowl against Ole Miss, 27–25 | |||||||
| 2000 †* | South | 1st | 8 | 0 | 13 | 0 | Won Orange Bowl against Florida State, 13–2 | 1 | 1 | ||||||
| 2001 | South | 2nd | 6 | 2 | 11 | 2 | Won Cotton Bowl Classic against Arkansas, 10–3 | 6 | 6 | ||||||
| 2002 * | South | 1st | 6 | 2 | 12 | 2 | Won Rose Bowl against Washington State, 34–14 | 5 | 5 | ||||||
| 2003 | South | 1st | 8 | 0 | 12 | 2 | Lost Sugar Bowl against LSU, 21–14 | 3 | 3 | ||||||
| 2004 * | South | 1st | 8 | 0 | 12 | 1 | Lost Orange Bowl against USC, 55–19 | 3 | 3 | ||||||
| 2005 | South | T–2nd | 6 | 2 | 8 | 4 | Won Holiday Bowl against Oregon, 17–14 | 22 | 22 | ||||||
| 2006 * | South | 1st | 7 | 1 | 11 | 3 | Lost Fiesta Bowl against Boise State, 43–42 (OT) | 11 | 11 | ||||||
| 2007 * | South | 1st | 6 | 2 | 11 | 3 | Lost Fiesta Bowl against West Virginia, 48–28 | 8 | 8 | ||||||
| 2008 * | South | T–1st | 7 | 1 | 12 | 2 | Lost BCS Championship Game against Florida, 24–14 | 5 | 5 | ||||||
| 2009 | South | T-3rd | 5 | 3 | 8 | 5 | Won Sun Bowl against Stanford, 31–27 | ||||||||
| 2010 * | South | T–1st | 6 | 2 | 12 | 2 | Won Fiesta Bowl against UConn, 48–20 | 6 | 6 | ||||||
| 2011 | T–3rd | 6 | 3 | 10 | 3 | Won Insight Bowl against Iowa, 31–14 | 16 | 15 | |||||||
| 2012 * | T–1st | 8 | 1 | 10 | 3 | Lost Cotton Bowl against Texas A&M, 41–13 | 15 | 15 | |||||||
| 2013 | T–2nd | 7 | 2 | 11 | 2 | Won Sugar Bowl against Alabama, 45–31 | 6 | 6 | |||||||
| 2014 | T–4th | 5 | 4 | 8 | 5 | Lost Russell Athletic Bowl against Clemson, 40–6 | |||||||||
| 2015 * | 1st | 8 | 1 | 11 | 2 | Lost Orange Bowl against Clemson, 37–17 § | 5 | 5 | |||||||
| 2016 * | 1st | 9 | 0 | 11 | 2 | Won Sugar Bowl against Auburn, 35–19 | 5 | 3 | |||||||
| 2017 * | Lincoln Riley | 1st | 8 | 1 | 12 | 2 | Lost Rose Bowl against Georgia, 54–48 2OT § | 3 | 3 | ||||||
| 2018 * | 1st | 8 | 1 | 12 | 2 | Lost Orange Bowl against Alabama, 45–34 § | 4 | 4 | |||||||
| 2019 * | 1st | 8 | 1 | 12 | 2 | Lost Peach Bowl against LSU 63-28 § | 7 | 6 | |||||||
| 2020 * | 1st | 6 | 2 | 9 | 2 | Won Cotton Bowl against Florida 55–20 | 6 | 6 | |||||||
| 2021 | Lincoln Riley Bob Stoops | 3rd | 7 | 2 | 11 | 2 | Won Alamo Bowl against Oregon 47-32 | 10 | 10 | ||||||
| 2022 | Brent Venables | T-7th | 3 | 6 | 6 | 7 | Lost Cheez-It Bowl against Florida State 35–32 | ||||||||
| 2023 | T-2nd | 7 | 2 | 10 | 3 | Lost Alamo Bowl against Arizona 38–24 | 15 | 15 | |||||||
| Southeastern Conference (2024–present) | |||||||||||||||
| 2024 | Brent Venables | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||
| Total | 913< | -- Wins without bowls through 2023 season --> | 317< | -- Losses without bowls through 2023 season --> | 52< | -- Ties through 2023 season --> | (only includes regular season games) | ||||||||
| 31< | -- Bowl wins through 2023 season --> | 25< | -- Bowl losses through 2023 season --> | 1< | -- Bowl Ties through 2023 season --> | (only includes bowl games) | |||||||||
| 944< | -- Overall wins through 2023 season --> | 341< | -- Overall Losses through 2023 season --> | 53< | -- Overall ties through 2023 season --> | (all games) < | --Updated on December 30, 2023--> | ||||||||