1950 Oklahoma Sooners football team

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1950 Oklahoma Sooners football
Consensus national champion
Big Seven champion
Sugar Bowl, L 7–13 vs. Kentucky
ConferenceBig Seven Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 1
APNo. 1
1950 record10–1 (6–0 Big 7)
Head coach
  • Bud Wilkinson (4th season)
Captains
  • Norman McNabb
  • Harry Moore
Home stadiumOklahoma Memorial Stadium
(Capacity: 55,647)
Seasons
← 1949
1951 →
1950 Big Seven Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 1 Oklahoma $ 6 0 0 10 1 0
No. 17 Nebraska 4 2 0 6 2 1
Missouri 3 2 1 4 5 1
Kansas 3 3 0 6 4 0
Iowa State 2 3 1 3 6 1
Colorado 2 4 0 5 4 1
Kansas State 0 6 0 1 9 1
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1950 Oklahoma Sooners football team represented the University of Oklahoma in the 1950 college football season, the 56th season of Sooner football. Led by fourth-year head coach Bud Wilkinson, they played their home games at Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, and competed in the Big Seven Conference.

The Sooners finished the regular season 10–0 (6–0 in Big 7), and won their fifth consecutive conference championship, and eleventh overall. Both major polls (AP writers, UP coaches) awarded the Sooners with their first national championship at the end of the regular season. They were invited to the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans on New Year's Day,[1] but were upset 13–7 by the Kentucky Wildcats, halting their winning streak at 32 games.[2]

Five Sooners received All-American honors following the season: Frankie Anderson, Buddy Jones, Leon Heath, and Jim Weatherall. In addition, eight sooners won all conference honors, Anderson, Claude Arnold, Tom Catlin, Heath, Norman McNabb, Harry Moore, Billy Vessels, and Weatherall.[3]

Schedule[]

DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendance
September 30Boston College*No. 6
  • Oklahoma Memorial Stadium
  • Norman, OK
W 28–036,049
October 7Texas A&M*No. 5
  • Oklahoma Memorial Stadium
  • Norman, OK
W 34–2836,586
October 14vs. No. 4 Texas*No. 3
  • Fair Park
  • Dallas, TX (Red River Shootout)
W 14–1375,959
October 21Kansas StateNo. 2
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Norman, OK
W 58–038,546
October 28at Iowa StateNo. 3
  • Clyde Williams Field
  • Ames, IA
W 48–016,883
November 4at ColoradoNo. 3
  • Folsom Field
  • Boulder, CO
W 27–1830,001
November 11at KansasNo. 3
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Lawrence, KS
W 33–1337,621
November 18MissouriNo. 2
W 41–746,463
November 25No. 16 NebraskaNo. 1
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Norman, OK (rivalry)
W 49–3553,066
December 2at Oklahoma A&M*No. 1
  • Lewis Field
  • Stillwater, OK (Bedlam)
W 41–1428,530
January 1, 1951vs. No. 7 Kentucky*No. 1
L 7–1380,206
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster[]

  • QB Eddie Crowder, So.
  • QB Claude Arnold, Sr.
  • HB Billy Vessels, So.
  • T Jim Weatherall

Rankings[]

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. т = Tied with team above or below. ( ) = First place votes.
Week
Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Final 
AP 6 (3) 5 (17) 3 (29) 2 (47) 3 (35) 3 (25) 3 (48) 2 (63) 1 (173) 1 (213)

Game summaries[]

Texas (Red River Shootout)[]

Late in the contest, a low punt snap gives Oklahoma the ball at the Texas 11. Billy Vessels dashes around right end for the touchdown while Texas native Jim Weatherall kicks the game-winning extra point for the 14-13 victory. Minutes earlier, Longhorns defensive back Bobby Dillon had returned at interception 50 yards for a touchdown and a 13-7 Texas lead. Twice during the contest Texas had goal-line scoring opportunities, once stopped by Oklahoma's defense at the one-yard line and another ended with a fumble at the five.[4]

NFL Draft[]

The following players were drafted into the National Football League following the season.[5]

Player Position Round Pick Franchise
Leon Heath Back 1 4 Washington Redskins
Clair Mayes Guard 8 95 Chicago Bears
Nolan Lang Back 9 107 Los Angeles Rams
Frankie Anderson End 11 128 Detroit Lions
Ed Lisak Back 19 229 Chicago Bears

References[]

  1. ^ "Oklahoma choice to grab 32nd grid win". Milwaukee Sentinel. Associated Press. January 1, 1951. p. 4, part 2.
  2. ^ "Kentucky passes upset Oklahoma, 13-7". Milwaukee Sentinel. Associated Press. January 2, 1951. p. 3, part 2.
  3. ^ "2014 Oklahoma Football Records Supplement" (PDF). University of Oklahoma. 2014. pp. 90–5. Retrieved July 20, 2014.
  4. ^ Palm Beach Post
  5. ^ "1951 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
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