All four games are certainly winnable. But OU will be trying to go unblemished in the non-conference schedule for the first time since 2004. And going 4-0 should put the Sooners in national championship contention.

The Big 12 portion should be enough to keep the Sooners interested.

After the conference opener at Colorado Sept. 29, OU faces the preseason conference favorites on successive weeks.

The annual Cotton Bowl showdown with Texas is Oct. 6. The winner will assume control of the southern division and jump into the national title hunt.

Missouri, the preseason choice to win the north, comes to Owen Field Oct. 13. It’s the only home game the Sooners have against a north foe. They travel to Iowa State Oct. 20.

The regular season concludes with three home games in four weeks.

Texas A&M comes to Owen Field Nov. 3 and Baylor follows Nov. 10. The road schedule concludes Nov. 17 against Texas Tech. It will be OU’s first trip to Lubbock since its highly-disputed loss in 2005.

Bedlam, which has become a Thanksgiving Weekend staple, is Nov. 25. The game could very well be for the Big 12 South title. The Sooners have entered the final week of the regular season with a shot at the division title in six of the last seven seasons.

The Big 12 championship game is Dec. 1 at the Alamodome in San Antonio. The conference’s champ is guaranteed a berth in the Fiesta Bowl Jan. 2 in Glendale, Ariz. And if everything goes really well, the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game is Jan. 8 at the Superdome in New Orleans.

“It is a challenge,” Stoops said. “We have got good schedules and exciting games coming.”

John Shinn

366-3536

jshinn@normantranscript.com