Old School

Warning: Things are about to get real.

If you’re an OU fan under 30, I’m calling you out.

To my generation of Sooner Nation⎯it’s time to know your roots.

Seven is not a movie with Brad Pitt or the jeans you paid too much for.

47 is not your average score on the back nine, the Big-8 is not your top friends on MySpace and half-a-hundred is not your favorite rapper.

Mex is not what you ate last night and Little Red never precedes Riding Hood.

The Game of the Century is not your epic beer pong match in college, the Wishbone is not something you break apart after Thanksgiving dinner and the Option has nothing to do with your side order at Wendy’s.

Your uncle’s trucker hat with the slanted OU logo is not ugly⎯it is vintage and demands your respect.

Owens does not come after Terrell and Vessels is not part of your circulatory system.

You do not think of Barry Switzer as a Dallas Cowboy or Dunkin’ Donuts spokesman.

“Little Joe” is not your morning cup of coffee.

Keith Jackson is not a sportscaster, JC Watts is not just a former Congressman and Billy Sims is not just some guy who likes to yell “Booma!”

Nebraska is not irrelevant. Miami is not to be taken lightly. Notre Dame is not to be pitied.

Mack Brown is no Tom Osborne.

This is a call to action. To my fellow Stoops-era Sooners⎯time to man up. To study up on your Sooner heritage. To take responsibility for your fanhood.

Sure, you were a toddler when Switzer won No. 6 in 1985, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t know where you were when it happened.

Where were you getting your diaper changed when this was happening?

You never witnessed the Sooner greats of old or the birth of Sooner Magic, but that doesn’t mean you don’t ask questions.

How would you like it if your son didn’t know about Rocky Calmus, Quentin Griffin and the “Strip n’ Score?” How would you take it if he drew a blank on Roy Williams, Teddy Lehman and “Superman?” What if he couldn’t tell you about Josh Heupel, Adrian Peterson and Sam Bradford?

If you know more about the 5-star recruit out of Plano West than the careers of The Boz, the Selmon Brothers and the Godfather of the Wishbone, then you’ve got your work cut out.

When your Dad is talking about Switzer, you shut up and listen. He is called the King for a reason.

When your Grandfather is talking about Wilkinson, you take notes. You take thorough notes, and not on your laptop, either. You write them down old school, with a pen and paper.

In fact, stop what you’re doing right now and Google Bennie Owen. You know what? Don’t. Go find a book about him⎯the kind with ink and paper. And read it old school too, from cover to cover.

For the love of God, have an intelligent response when someone asks you what a Sooner is.

Can you name this Sooner great?  You should⎯he’s in the NFL Hall of Fame and never lost a game at OU.

I’m not just picking on you, because I’m starting with myself. My friend recently told me that his favorite play in OU history was “The Catch” from November 22, 1986, a 41-yard strike from Jamelle Holieway to Keith Jackson with a spectacular one-handed grab against Nebraska with 9 seconds left in a 17-17 game (Tim Lasher converted on the ensuing field goal, vaulting the Sooners over Nebraska on the way to a Big-8 title and a berth in the Orange Bowl.)

I hadn’t the slightest idea what he was talking about. Sure, I was three years old when it happened, but I still wanted to go sulk in a corner.

That sort of bush league behavior is reserved for Texas, LSU and the like.

I was suddenly on a mission to become a student of Sooner football history, dedicating myself to my studies, and I recommend each of you do the same.

It’s a matter of pride. A challenge to your fanhood is a challenge to your manhood. Don’t put yourself in a position to have either one called into question.

This isn’t some dog and pony show like Colorado, Arkansas or Oregon. You’re not some Poke or Aggie. You’re a Sooner, and this is Oklahoma football. Be worthy of the program you were blessed to be born and bred into.

The Gators and Wolverines of the world would kill to lay claim to half the records you do. The Horns want you and the Pokes want to be you. You take a back seat to no Domer, Bammer, Trojan or Buckeye, but it didn’t happen over night. You sit in your rightful place on the throne⎯Kings of College Football. It’s time to start acting like it.

Go make your Father’s proud.

Know yOUr roots.

Boomer Sooner.