Former Florida Gators wide receiver Louis Murphy (9) celebrates with wide receiver Riley Cooper (11) after scoring a touchdown against the Oklahoma Sooners during the first half of the 2009 BCS Championship Game at Dolphin Stadium. (Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports)

Florida, Oklahoma Meet as Regular-Season SEC Foes for First Time

Florida and Oklahoma are not familiar foes by any means.

The No. 24 Gators (5-3, 3-3 SEC) and Sooners (4-4, 2-3) have only met twice, and it took a national championship and Cotton Bowl to get the two teams on the same field.

Now, the meeting will mark a game of firsts: the two teams’ first meeting in the regular season, as well as their initial meeting as SEC rivals. The game will also mark Oklahoma’s first visit to The Swamp in its 118-year history.

The Gators and Sooners first met on Jan. 8, 2009, in the BCS National Championship. Then-Florida coach Urban Meyer led the Gators to a 24-14 win over Oklahoma. Tim Tebow’s 231 passing yards and 109 yards on the ground powered Florida to its third national championship.

The win cemented Meyer’s dynasty in Gainesville and capped a 13-1 season, tying Florida’s record for wins in a year, previously set by the Gators’ 2006 national-championship team.

The game also saw Tebow fulfill his “promise” to Gator Nation, following Florida’s heartbreaking 31-30 loss to Ole Miss on Sept. 27, 2008. After the loss, the Gators closed the season on a 10-game winning streak, including a victory over Alabama in the SEC Championship Game and a win over high-scoring Oklahoma in the national championship.

The Gators and Sooners wouldn’t meet again until 2020, when the pair faced off in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic. The Sooners avenged their national championship loss with a dominating 55-20 win over the Gators, ending a 2020 season filled with uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Sooners would set several Cotton Bowl and school bowl game records in their rout of Florida. Oklahoma’s 684 yards broke the previous record for the game, and its 55 points also tied an all-time Cotton Bowl record for points in a game.

Now, the two teams face off in 2026, with their relationship in a much different place than it was six years ago. The Gators and Sooners now share a conference and will play each other twice every four years. A game only seen in the postseason will now carry major SEC implications.

Saturday will also bring the series full circle for Meyer. The coach who led the Gators to claim the 2008 national championship will be inducted into the Ring of Honor following the conclusion of the first quarter.

Kickoff is set for 7:45 p.m. at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, with coverage on WRUF starting at 4:30 p.m.

Category: Gator Sports, Gators Football