SEC commissioner Greg Sankey gave the Oklahoma Sooners two options, and neither of them should have ever even been on the table.
Finally, after midnight and hours of wondering, the SEC didn’t even give the answer we all needed, but it was Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger who reported that Oklahoma’s game against No. 19 Ole Miss has been rescheduled for noon CT on Sunday in Norman. The game was originally scheduled for 3:15 p.m. on Saturday on SEC Network. It's unknown which channel the game will be on Sunday.
Apparently, everyone but the Rebels could get to where they needed to be to play on Saturday, even if it meant kicking off later.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a rare nationwide ground stop on Friday afternoon that delayed all U.S. flights for about four hours and disrupted travel for college football teams across the country, including Ole Miss.
The ground stop was lifted at about 7:30 p.m., and many teams immediately boarded a plane to leave or had already hopped on a train to get to their destination in time to play on Saturday. The Rebels did not, though, as they are not set to leave Oxford until Saturday, which ultimately caused a standoff between the two schools and the SEC over when the game should be played.
Roger Denny blasts SEC for Sunday game decision
OU athletic director Roger Denny released a statement at 12:12 a.m. CT Saturday morning, apparently after hours of fighting with Sankey to not reschedule the game to an entirely different day. Denny made it clear that the SEC forced OU to agree with the decision by stating the Sooners could either play on Sunday or forfeit, even though it was Ole Miss that failed to make the necessary travel arrangements to show up.
"But, unlike every other team traveling for competition tomorrow (Saturday), they were unable to find a solution," Denny said in his statement. "After multiple conversations with the league office, Commissioner Sankey informed us of his decision to move our game to Sunday, over our strong objection. After continued discussions, he further informed us that our failure to play on Sunday at the directed time would result in a forfeit."
Ole Miss was not the only team that needed to wait until Saturday to leave instead of Friday night, yet the Rebels were still the only ones who needed their game to be moved to Sunday. Sankey then obliged. According to Dellenger, Ole Miss won't be able to depart until after 4 p.m. on Saturday. Again, Ole Miss was the only team with this issue, as OU-Ole Miss will be the only Week 11 matchup played on Sunday after all this chaos from travel delays.
Kick time is Noon CT Sunday.
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) November 14, 2026
Ole Miss can’t depart Oxford until after 4 pm Saturday due to charter/pilot issues and time expirations. https://t.co/QNrtvihZym
The Sooners had actually gone to bed Friday night not even knowing when they would play. SoonerScoop's George Stoia had reported at 10:42 p.m. that OU players were told to go to bed as if they would wake up on a game day. Many fans and even people set to work at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on Saturday also fell asleep with the same assumption, with many likely finding out when they wake up that the Sooners won't actually play today.
OU is still staying at its team hotel in Norman tonight. Players were told to go to bed and prepare as if the game will be played at 3:15 p.m. CT tomorrow.
— George Stoia III (@GeorgeStoia) November 14, 2026
Though, there is some skepticism that will actually happen at this point.
"Rescheduling the game has a significant impact, particularly on our fans. Those who have made travel arrangements, accommodations, and personal plans around a Saturday game now face unnecessary disruption and hardship. Their time, commitment, and investment deserve greater consideration than they were afforded in the conference's decision tonight," Denny said.
"I understand that difficult decisions sometimes must be made under extraordinary circumstances. But those decisions must also consider the impact on everyone involved. Put simply, this decision isn't fair to our athletes, our institution, or to Sooner Nation. But we've been given no other choice. We are obligated to play the game when directed, but we remain steadfast in our belief that the wrong outcome was reached this evening."
— Roger Denny (@Oklahoma_AD) November 14, 2026
Denny has made plenty of wrong decisions during his short time as the Sooners' AD, but he's correct here. The SEC couldn't have handled this situation any worse or come to a worse conclusion. That should have been obvious to Sankey, considering it's the only game being moved to Sunday.
It was not only the wrong solution, but also the most difficult, as the TV slot now competes with the NFL, travel arrangements must be rearranged for thousands, and the weather will be miserable in the 40s with a 100% chance of rain.
The Sooners are still new to the SEC, and Sankey made it clear in the early hours of Saturday morning that OU still hasn't earned the conference's respect, nor does the SEC care about OU's best interests.
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