Toby Rowland discusses Josh Heupel’s permanent spot in Oklahoma football history

Toby Rowland discusses Josh Heupel’s permanent spot in Oklahoma football history.

No. 3 Oklahoma (2-0) will host Nebraska (2-1) Saturday.

Kickoff is slated for noon EDT. FOX will televise the renewed rivalry.

The Sooners and Cornhuskers have not played since 2010. Oklahoma holds a 45–38–3 record against Nebraska.

Ahead of Saturday’s contest, the voice of Oklahoma football Toby Rowland joined the show “Football Two-A-Days” and discussed the rivalry and matchup.

Rowland discussed Josh Heupel leading Oklahoma to victory against Nebraska in 2000.

Heupel completed 20-of-34 passes for 300 yards and one touchdown. The Sooners’ 31-14 victory ended a seven-game losing streak to Nebraska. Oklahoma would finish the 2000 season undefeated and BCS national champions.

“I was talking with Bob Stoops yesterday, he is going to be in town with FOX this week, and we were talking about some of the great OU-Nebraska memories of the past,” Rowland said. “I think, in my opinion, there could be some historians out there who could make a case for a different game, I think it is the biggest game that has has ever been played on Owen Field, or the biggest win that Oklahoma has ever had in Norman. You have got to remember what Oklahoma had been through during the entire decade of the 1990s. They really were irrelevant for the entire decade, and it was Bob Stoops that kind of turned that around when he was hired in 1999.

“Had a good year in 1999, got them back in a bowl game after a drought, and then in 2000 they got off to a great start, rocketed up the rankings, but here came No. 1 Nebraska and Eric Crouch into Norman. They were significant underdogs, Oklahoma was on their home field, and fell behind 14-0 in that game. Then shutout them the rest of the way to go ahead and win. That’s the game that kind of put Oklahoma back on the map, stormed the field, tore down the goalposts, bunch of fans got peppered sprayed. There are stories about it from everyone. There are 300,000 people that say they were at that game that day. It put OU back on track as a contender and they went on to win the national championship that year, haven’t won one since then, but certainly have been a contender many times since then. Huge game, Josh Heupel has a permanent spot in OU football history as being a part of the resurgence, huge part of the resurgence, of Sooner football.”

The entire show with Rowland can be listened to here or below.

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Oklahoma radio play-by-play announcer out for Cotton Bowl with COVID-19

Voice of the Sooners Toby Rowland announces he has tested positive for COVID-19 and will miss the Goodyear Cotton Bowl.

Oklahoma will have a different radio voice for the Goodyear Cotton Bowl on Wednesday night.

Voice of Sooner football Toby Rowland has announced that he has tested positive for COVID-19, and thus won’t be able to call the action from Arlington when Oklahoma faces off with Florida.

Rowland became the full time voice of Sooners football, men’s basketball and baseball in 2011 after being a sideline reporter for the football broadcast starting in 2009. Now, current sideline reporter Chris Plank will slide into Rowland’s role for the Cotton Bowl. Plank is currently the voice of Oklahoma softball.

Rowland is still intending to be a part of the pregame and postgame coverage from his home, so Sooners fans will still get a chance to at least hear his thoughts on the game even if he won’t be calling it.

Oklahoma is set to tee it up against the Gators Wednesday night at AT&T Stadium in Arlington at 7:00 p.m. CT.

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