On the ‘road' again
Sooners are the home team, but Nebraska will have the most fans

By Scott Wright

Published: November 28, 2006

Oklahoma will be the home team at Saturday night's Big 12 Championship game. The scoreboard will say it. The crimson jerseys will show it.

But the Sooners might not feel it.

In fact, the Nebraska Cornhuskers — a.k.a. "the visitors" — will likely feel more at home than Oklahoma.

From media discussions to message boards, estimates of Husker fans flooding Kansas City, Mo. — just a three-hour drive from Lincoln, Neb. — range from 50,000-65,000.

Each participating school received approximately 8,700 tickets, and several thousands more went to corporate sponsors and Kansas City Chiefs season-ticket holders.

What was left became available to the general public in July.

No one, not even the Big 12 Conference office, is keeping track of exactly where those tickets are going. Bob Burda, Big 12 assistant commissioner of communications, said the conference saw a significant spike in ticket purchases as Nebraska got close to and eventually clinched the North title.

And there is no way of getting an accurate count of how many Husker fans will show up until Saturday night.

"We do anticipate the game being a sellout," Burda said. "Nebraska fans have had a couple more weeks to find tickets, so the Oklahoma fans are having to hurry.

"Their best chance has probably been the Texas fans who had bought tickets and are selling them now."

OU and Nebraska each sold all of their allotted tickets within hours of making them available, and would-be buyers are still calling.

"We had several requests before we won the North division," Nebraska media relations director Keith Mann said.

"Other than our allotment, we don't really know how many fans have bought tickets from other sources, but it's been a hot topic around here."

The road atmosphere hasn't been a problem for the Sooners this season.

They played well enough to win at Oregon, and they won all four road games in Big 12 play.

The Texas loss came at the most neutral of neutral sites, with the crowd split down the middle at the Cotton Bowl.

"I get excitement going into road games," OU receiver Malcolm Kelly said. "It's a challenge. You have a lot of people going against you. You make a play, and you hear that crowd; everybody gets quiet in the stadium, it kind of gives you confidence.

"Really, the fans don't matter. What goes on between the lines wins the ballgame."

The temperature in Kansas City also should help make the Huskers feel at home.

Weather.com projects a high near 42 degrees and a low of 21 on Saturday.

At kickoff, it's expected to be near freezing with a 10 percent chance of precipitation — a forecast that would be expected in Lincoln in December, not in Norman.

OU offensive lineman Jon Cooper said he wouldn't mind if it snowed Saturday.

Of course, he's from Fort Collins, Colo., where football and snow often go together.

And Cooper doesn't believe many of his teammates would agree with his feelings.

"No, not many of them," he said. "You'll see them out there with sleeves, but not me."