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By Ellis Williams
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Oklahoma will play Ole Miss on Sunday, despite its athletic director’s objections to both the Rebels’ travel explanation and the SEC’s decision to move the game.
Oklahoma vice president and director of athletics Roger Denny challenged the Rebels’ inability to reach Norman after Friday’s nationwide flight stoppage, then said SEC commissioner Greg Sankey warned Oklahoma that refusing to play at the rescheduled time would result in a forfeit.
“But, unlike every other team traveling for competition tomorrow,” Denny said in a statement released by Oklahoma, “they were unable to find a solution.”
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The SEC said the Rebels’ charter company could not accommodate a late-night departure once the FAA lifted its ground stop, according to The Associated Press. Ole Miss is scheduled to travel Saturday afternoon.
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The game now starts Sunday at noon CT, or 1 p.m. ET. It had been scheduled for Saturday at 3:15 p.m. CT. Television information was still to be announced in Oklahoma’s update.
That leaves the visiting team another day to reach the game and the home team explaining an unexpected change to its fans. Denny said Oklahoma objected during discussions with the conference and was ultimately left with no choice about when to play.
His criticism extended beyond the football schedule. Denny pointed to supporters who had already arranged travel and lodging around Saturday’s game. Oklahoma plans to announce logistics and fan appreciation measures Saturday.
For fans, this is not simply a later kickoff on the same afternoon. Anyone who planned a Saturday trip now has to decide whether that trip can extend into Sunday. The teams still have a game to play, but the people who arranged their weekend around it have a different calculation.
The travel disruption affected teams across college football. Auburn took buses to Mississippi and arrived at its hotel in Tupelo late Friday night. The SEC moved its game at Mississippi State from 11 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. CT on Saturday.
Ole Miss enters at 6-3, while Oklahoma is 5-4. The new arrangements preserve the matchup, but they also give it a disagreement that will not be settled.
Denny’s statement put Oklahoma’s objection on the record. The Sooners will host the game at the time they were given. That does not mean their athletic director believes the conference made the right decision.
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