In case you didn't notice, there was a sports parade and celebration going on in Oklahoma City on Tuesday to honor the NBA champions Oklahoma City Thunder. And it had nothing to do with a University of Oklahoma sports achievement.
You can be sure, though, that thousands of Oklahoma Sooner football fans were in attendance or following the proceedings live on local TV.
Celebrations have been few and far between for Sooner football fans in recent years. In fact, it's been 25 years since Oklahoma fans last celebrated a national championship in football. Moreover, for an athletic program that prides itself for being a national championship contender each and every year, suffering two losing seasons out of the past three leaves a bitter taste in the mouth for most Sooner football fans.
And you have to understand that OU football fans are a group that is highly accustomed to winning and doesn't take losing lightly.
Why does it matter to diehard fans of Sooner football -- or, for that matter, even casual fans -- what the Oklahoma City Thunder does in professional basketball? The two are mutually exclusive of one another, right? No, they really aren't.
Having a professional sports team in Oklahoma City (the Thunder relocated there from Seattle in 2008 after a 41-year existence as the Seattle SuperSonics) has been a huge success in terms of fan support and interest, and it will only get better on the tail wind of a championship.
The Thunder are the only professional sports team in the state of Oklahoma, and because of that, they will also have a strong following from sports fans in the Sooner State. But make no mistake, it will never replace Oklahoma football -- regardless of how many championships the Thunder win -- as the biggest and most important fan following in the state. Sooner football rules the state of Oklahoma.
Because of that, the vast majority of Sooner football fans -- and OU sports fans in general -- undoubtedly are happy and excited for the Thunder's grand success this season and hope for more of the same in the years ahead, but that should have little bearing on the high expectations Oklahoma fans will always hold for their football team.
Missing out on a conference championship or the College Football Playoff is one thing, but fielding a non-competitive or even an average college football team is a non-starter for passionate Oklahoma football fans and members of the Sooner Nation. Nothing, not even an NBA championship -- or two or a dozen -- by the neighboring Thunder will ever change that.
Soften the disappointment and despair of a past season with 50/50 results and an offense that wasn't anywhere close to Oklahoma standards? No way. Not in your wildest dreams. What the 2024-25 NBA success of the Thunder could do, however, is provide some extra fuel, enabling the OU football team and the Sooners' large fan base to feed off that success and go out and deliver the turnaround season that numerous college football analysts have projected that Team 131 of Oklahoma football is fully capable of having.
OU….. why not us next???? pic.twitter.com/HaCm5Sx8lG
— Nate Dreiling (@CoachNDreiling) June 23, 2025
So instead of softening the feeling and disposition of Sooner fans toward their football team as we inch closer to the kickoff of another college football season, the success of the Thunder might just strengthen their resolve and backing of one of college football's blue blood programs.
Show me an athletic team in any sport that isn't highly motivated by the vocal and unconditional support of its fans and I'll show you a team with a record that is well under water.
This is Oklahoma City's first NBA championship, made even more special by the long and winding road the team traveled over the last four years to reach the pinnacle of the sport. The Thunder won an NBA-best 68 games this season. Just four seasons ago, however, the Thunder won a franchise-worst 22 games out of an 82-game schedule.
That is a road to success clearly worthy of celebration. Now, it's Oklahoma football's turn.
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