Oklahoma’s first trip to Starkville now has a kickoff time, and the Sooners will get an afternoon stage for their first-ever meeting with Mississippi State.
The SEC announced Monday that Oklahoma and Mississippi State will start at 2:30 p.m. CT on Oct. 24 at Davis Wade Stadium. The game will air on either ESPN or SEC Network.
It’s a new matchup in every sense. Oklahoma and Mississippi State have never played each other before, and the Sooners have never visited Starkville.
The game also brings a familiar face back into the picture. Mississippi State coach Jeff Lebby will see Brent Venables and Oklahoma for the first time since leaving Norman after the 2023 season. Lebby spent Venables’ first two seasons as OU’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, guiding an offense that went 6-7 in 2022 and 10-2 in the regular season in 2023 before taking over at Mississippi State in his first head coaching job.
Now in Year 3 with the Bulldogs, Lebby has Mississippi State at No. 16 in the latest AP poll. His overall head coaching record stands at 11-19, including a 2-10 debut season in Starkville and a 5-8 mark last year.
Mississippi State enters the stretch at 4-1, with its résumé highlighted by a top 25 win over Missouri. Quarterback Kamario Taylor has also given the Bulldogs a big boost, leading the SEC in passing.
And Lebby’s roster isn’t short on Oklahoma ties. Mississippi State has several former Sooners, including receiver Zion Ragins, who has 11 catches for 184 yards and four touchdowns, defensive back Kendel Dolby, who has 22 tackles, and offensive lineman Isaiah Dent.
The Bulldogs are coming off their first loss of the season, a 56-23 home defeat to Alabama in Week 5. They had a bye in Week 6 and will return to play this weekend at No. 22 LSU in Baton Rouge in a top 25 matchup before heading back to Starkville for Oklahoma’s arrival.
Before that road test, the Sooners will be back home for their SEC home opener at Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Coming off a 27-24 upset of then-No.
1 Texas in the Red River Rivalry, Oklahoma will host No. 15 Kentucky in Week 7.
That game is set for Saturday at 6:30 p.m. on SEC Network.
In Other News...
Kentucky Has A Real Week 6 AP Poll Respect Case
The Week 6 Associated Press poll once again turned into a reminder that rankings are about more than just what happened on the field last Saturday. Texas fell from No. 1 to No. 7 after a close loss, while Kentucky stayed buried lower than several other SEC teams with similar records, and James Madison still could not crack the top 25 despite being unbeaten. For Oklahoma fans, the most glaring wrinkle was familiar in a different way: the Sooners remained unranked even after beating the No. 1 team.
The bigger issue is what the poll seems to reward, and what it seems willing to overlook. Preseason expectations and strength of schedule appear to matter as much as recent results, if not more, which is why some teams get the benefit of the doubt while others do not. For Oklahoma, that leaves a clear opening to keep stacking wins and force the voters to eventually catch up, even if the respect does not arrive as quickly as the on-field resume would suggest. [Read more 🡒]
Sooners Turned Red River Into An SEC Statement Fans Will Love
The Red River Rivalry already carries enough weight on its own, but Oklahoma turned this years meeting at the Cotton Bowl into the kind of result that can linger well beyond October. Peyton Bowen gave the Sooners a huge lift on defense with an interception returned for a touchdown, and Tate Sandell finished the job with a 47-yard walk-off field goal that sent Oklahoma home with a win over the No. 1 Texas Longhorns.
It was the sort of performance that gets noticed well beyond the rivalry itself, and both players were rewarded for it when the SEC handed out its weekly honors. Bowen was named the leagues defensive player of the week, while Sandell earned special teams recognition, a fitting nod for a game Oklahoma turned into a statement in front of a national audience. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma May Have Finally Found The Offense Fans Wanted
For an Oklahoma offense that spent too much of the day searching for rhythm against Texas, the second half offered something closer to the version Sooners fans have been waiting to see. After a quiet opening stretch, the unit picked up 169 yards and put 13 offensive points on the board, with Lloyd Avant giving the ground game a needed spark by piling up 72 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries while also working into the passing game.
The encouraging part for Oklahoma is that this may not have been a one-game blip. The Sooners still have defenses ahead that rank lower nationally in yards allowed, and there is at least a chance the line gets healthier as injured offensive linemen work their way back. If that happens, the second-half burst against Texas could end up looking less like a brief lift and more like the start of the offense finally finding its footing. [Read more 🡒]