Oklahoma coaching legend Bob Stoops is absolutely fuming. The SEC just made the call to shift Saturday’s Ole Miss-Oklahoma game to Sunday afternoon, and Stoops took to social media, blasting SEC commissioner Greg Sankey’s decision as “absolutely wrong.” This all went down after the Rebels asked to move the game following flight restrictions this week, a request the Sooners’ athletic director Roger Denny strongly objected to.
The FAA Ground Stop That Sparked a Firestorm
So, what happened? A nationwide ground stop by the Federal Aviation Administration on Friday afternoon, right before 3 p.m. CT, messed up air travel across the country. We’re talking communication problems hitting multiple Air Route Traffic Control Centers. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy pointed fingers at overloaded switches and routers that started producing inconsistent data and shut down. That’s the technical stuff. For Ole Miss, it meant their administrators couldn’t secure a charter flight from Tupelo, Mississippi, to Oklahoma City after the ground stop. Their earliest flight option? Saturday at 4:20 p.m., according to a team spokesperson. Rather than hop on a bus for a 500-plus mile trip to Norman, the Rebels waited for that flight. This all led to their request to move the game.
Oklahoma Was Told “Forfeit”
Here’s where things got heated. Sooners athletic director Roger Denny blasted the conference’s move, saying Oklahoma “strongly objected” to the Rebels’ request. Denny was clear, stating that “this decision isn’t fair to our athletes, our institution or to Sooner Nation.” He emphasized that they were given “no other choice” and are “obligated to play the game when directed,” but still believe “the wrong outcome was reached.” And Stoops? He laid it all out there. He pointed out that “All of the Power 4 teams found a way to make it to their games, but Ole Miss wouldn’t?” He even highlighted ASU, who was “flying across country to UCF this AM to play today.” His biggest beef? Sankey told Oklahoma they would forfeit if they didn’t change the day. But according to Stoops, Sankey “could have told Ole Miss they will forfeit if they didn’t find a way to Norman even if game is delayed. But instead he didn’t!!” That’s a huge double standard, if you ask me.
So, the No. 19 Ole Miss will now face the Sooners in Norman, Oklahoma, on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET. You can bet there’s gonna be some extra fire on that field after all this drama.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by CBS Sports.
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