Oklahoma football: Five games that could have changed OU gridiron history

2. Oklahoma vs. Notre Dame, Nov. 16, 1957

In 1957, Oklahoma was coming off back-to-back national championships and riding a 40-game winning streak. The last time the Sooners had lost a game was the season-opening game in 1953, a 28-21 home loss to No. 1-ranked Notre Dame.

The Sooners won their first seven games in 1957 to extend their NCAA-record winning streak to 47 games, and here came the Fighting Irish, unranked this time, making their first visit to Norman since the 1953 season. The year before, in the Sooners’ 1956 national championship season, they had destroyed Notre Dame and its Heisman-winning halfback Paul Hornung 40-0 in South Bend.

Oklahoma, ranked second in the country at the time, was a heavy favorite over the Irish and expected to extend its unprecedented consecutive-game win streak.

The Sooners had the ball deep in Notre Dame territory several times in the first half, but failed to score. Notre Dame had its chances too, but the game remained scoreless at halftime.

Neither team was able to do much on offense in the third quarter, and the game went to the fourth quarter as a scoreless tie.

With 3:50 remaining on the game clock, Notre Dame completed a 20-play, 80-yard drive, when quarterback Bob Williams faked a handoff to fullback Nick Pietrosante and pitched the ball to halfback Dick Lynch, who skirted around right end and into the end zone untouched to break the scoreless tie and deliver what would prove to be the game-winning score.

Oklahoma had one last opportunity to tie the game late, but a pass by Dale Sherrod to Prentice Gautt was intercepted in the end zone, ending the nation’s longest winning streak as well as the Sooners’ chance of becoming the only team in the Associated Press era to win three consecutive national championships.

A stifling Notre Dame defense limited mighty OU to under 100 yards rushing and less than 50 yards passing. It was the first time the Sooners had been held scoreless in 123 games, dating back to 1945.

OU head coach Bud Wilkinson was quoted after the game as saying:

"“We played a fine game, but they played a better one. They were just better than we were today.”"

Perhaps we can blame the infamous Sports Illustrated cover jinx for what happened in this game. The week of the OU-Notre Dame game, OU All-American halfback Clendon Thomas was featured on the Sports Illustrated cover along with the headline, “Why is Oklahoma Unbeatable?”

This is one game that older Sooner fans will never forget.