John E. Hoover: College football is so much better with Oklahoma-Georgia on the schedule

Steve Owens’ Heisman statue sits in OU’s Heisman Park outside Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium (PHOTO: John E. Hoover / The Franchise)

The future of college football got a little bit better on Monday morning.

Oklahoma and Georgia announced plans to play a home-and-home series, reprising their classic 2018 Rose Bowl showdown.

The traditional powers had never played before meeting in the College Football Playoff semifinal on New Year’s Day at the end of the 2017 season. The Bulldogs prevailed 54-48 in double-overtime.

Now they’ll clash again, with Georgia coming to Norman on Sept. 9, 2023, and Oklahoma visiting Athens on Sept. 13, 2031.

“We are especially excited about this series because it helps us celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in 2023,” OU athletic director Joe Castiglione said in an OU press release. “Greg McGarity and his staff at Georgia helped us navigate an unusual scheduling circumstance and we are grateful for the diligence and patience.

“We understand the return game date is later than usual, but very much look forward to taking our program to Athens to play in one of the country’s great venues. As we have said on many occasions, we understand our responsibility to college football fans and tradition to play iconic games. We welcome opportunities such as this one that reinforce our brand and celebrate the historically great programs.”

Georgia ranks 15^th all-time in college football history with 819 wins (819-423-54), and ranks 13^th in FBS history with a winning percentage of .653. OU ranks eighth in all-time wins (896) and sixth in FBS win percentage (.724).

OU recently announced home-and-home series with Alabama (2032, 2033) and Clemson (2035, 2036). Other future opponents include LSU, Michigan, Nebraska, Temple and Tennessee.

Castiglione has positioned the Sooners among the nation’s elite by playing at least one game each season against a premier opponent: Alabama, Florida State, Miami, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oregon, Tennessee, UCLA and Washington.

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Columnist John E. Hoover is co-host of “The Franchise Drive” every weeknight from 6-8 on The Franchise in Oklahoma City and Tulsa, and appears throughout the day on other shows on The Franchise. Listen at fm107.7 in OKC, fm107.9/am1270 in Tulsa, on The Franchise app, or click the “Listen” tab on The Franchise home page. Hoover also covers the Big 12 for Sporting News and Lindy’s magazine and is a feature writer for Sooner Spectator magazine. Visit his personal page at johnehoover.com.