Oklahoma football: More Notre Dame recollections

Man, what a week. We’ve been writing our butts off about OU-Notre Dame, and the history of the series has prompted all kinds of memories and recollections from readers. We’ve written about some of them, but some didn’t really fall into a category, so I thought I would share them with you.

 
WAYNE BULLARD, Allen

Thanks for your Monday “offerings.” Just what I wanted to see. My dad was a worshipful OU fan and I used to listen to OU games with him in his little grocery store in a place called Centrahoma (southeast of Ada) — a town where I also delivered a paper called The Daily Oklahoman. Just had six customers.

In 1957 I was in my third year of service to Uncle Sam and happened to be at Brooklyn Naval Shipyard. Sometime or other I had discovered that if you looked enough you could discover “foreign” newspapers in places like the newstand in Times Square. So I remember one Sunday morning riding from Brooklyn from my ship over to Times Square where I bought a Daily Oklahoman and riding back I learned to my horror that the hated Notre Dame had defeated OU. I took a lot of abuse that day. I did make it back to Oklahoma and graduated OU pharmacy school in ’63.

“In New York City, the paper sold for $2 weekdays and just a little more on Sundays. I think they were $3. Outrageous!”

PEGGY COOK HOAG, Edmond

On Nov. 16, 1957, I was a freshman in the Pride of Oklahoma band. I will never forget the deafening silence at the end of that OU/Notre Dame game.

About thirty years later I was working in the Personnel Department in a public school district in Orange County, Calif. One of my responsibilities was to interview prospective teachers.

One day a young woman came in and sat down at my desk. She had just graduated from college so had been born at least 10 years plus after that game. As usual, I broke the ice by asking where she had gone to college. When she said “Notre Dame,” I looked at her with my most serious expression and said “I went to the University of Oklahoma.” She gave a little jump and said in a trembling voice, “I’m so sorry!” Evidently, the story of Notre Dame ruining OU’s winning streak back in 1957 is legend there, also. Thought you might get a chuckle out of my story.

ROBERT FERRIER. Norman

Can’t wait for this weekend. As a 16-year-old in 1957, I rode a school bus to Norman with several Hugo High School football players. We would buy a 50-cent ticket and sit in the south stands of Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.

Not on Nov. 16, Statehood Day. Notre Dame had arrived, attracting 500 Catholic priests and nuns in the east stands. They would be loud enough to wake the echoes.