Oklahoma Sooners
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11:39 p.m. | Sealing the Deal Oklahoma misses the pass on fourth down and it appears Florida has the game in the bag. 11:22 p.m. | Kick Returns OU's offense has enjoyed excellent starting field position after great play by OU's kick return team. Juaquin Iglesias and Mossis Madu have been extremely valuable on special teams tonight. 11:19 p.m. | Momentum That was a big stop for the OU defense holding Florida to a field goal after the big yardage by Percy Harvin. You can feel the momentum surging back and forth. Undoubtedly, Sooner fans here in the stadium, across the nation and around the world are on the edge of their seats. It's time for the offense to put together a drive... 11:16 p.m. | Attendance The press box just announced the attendance at 78,468 for tonight's FedEx BCS National Championship Game. That's a record for a football game at Dolphin Stadium. 11:12 p.m. | Chaney Bowling Quick note from David Bassity of OU Athletics media relations: Chaney is now just the third receiver in OU history to have over 200 yard receiving in a bowl career. Juaquin Iglesias and Corey Warren are the others. 11:04 p.m. | Touchdown Sooners Gresham gets into the end zone but one shoe didn't get to enjoy the red paint. Gresham's little hesitation after catching the ball was caused by the loss of right shoe. One shoe down, Gresham scores his 14th touchdown of the season. It also marked Bradford's 50th TD pass of the season. Kind of gives a new meaning to "hanging half a hundred" doesn't it? 11:02 p.m. | Time to Drive It's time for another hard-charging drive with plenty of highlights from Chris Brown and that appears to be what we're going to see here in the fourth quarter from the Sooners. 10:56 p.m. | Getting Off the Field Oklahoma's defense has been forcing the Gators to third-and-medium situations all night long. The outcome of the game will likely be decided by whether they can get off the field on third downs. For the most part, they have been able to do that, as they displayed on that last critical stop. Every one is going to be key from here on out. 10:51 p.m. | Another Note on Chaney From David Bassity in media relations: Chaney is now just the third receiver in OU history to have over 200 yards receiving in a bowl career. Juaquin Iglesias and Corey Warren are the others. 10:47 p.m. | Turning to Chaney Again A long pass from Sam Bradford to Quentin Chaney has OU back on the offensive again and looking to answer. Chaney's continues his productive bowl performances. With all the other weapons the Sooners possess, perhaps he simply gets overlooked in opponents defensive gameplans. 10:43 p.m. | Heavy Dose of Tebow A direct snap to Percy Harvin gives Florida the lead back at 14-7. The Gators went 75 yards in 13 plays in 5:22. Much of the damage was done using the legs of Tim Tebow. 10:41 p.m. | Heavy Dose of Tebow Florida has turned to the much-hyped running ability of its quarterback for much of this drive. Tebow has busted loose for a couple of big gains, and the Sooners haven't been able to bottle him up quite like they did throughout the first half. Let's hope we can reverse that trend. 10:36 p.m. | Plenty of Contact Neither team is holding back the physicality in this one. There has definitely been no shortage on contact, and both teams have been delivering some big hits. Another correlation to the heavyweight fight-type atmosphere we alluded to earlier. 10:27 p.m. | Big Play by Knall A great job by punter Mike Knall just to get that punt off, and he certainly didn't have to do any acting following the hit. Florida was clearly going for the block. A number of OU senior leaders have been stepping up tonight in their final game in a Sooner uniform. Knall is one of them, and he showed his cool under pressure on that play while backed up near his own end zone. 10:21 p.m. | Continuing to Amaze Us With how good he has been all year, Sam Bradford continues to amaze us every time out. In the word's of one Jason Matheson, he has simply been "surgical" tonight. Even on his incompletions, Bradford has been pinpoint with his accuracy, placing the ball in the perfect spots. Though Juaquin Iglesias was unable to make the difficult catch on that last deep attempt, the ball was right where it needed to be. 10:18 p.m. | Reserves Doing Their Part We've noticed throughout the game how OU's reserves on the bench are still much involved in the game. They're constantly jumping up and down, waving towels and doing everything else they can to get the crowd fired up and engaged in the game. In a game like this, it's all those little things that add up to make the difference. 10:14 p.m. | Good Start for the Defense The Sooner defense did a nice job of forcing the Gators into a three-and-out on their first possession of the second half. You can credit linebacker Travis Lewis for the big play on third down. His pressure on Tebow forced the Florida quarterback to get rid of the ball sooner than he wanted to. The lightning-quick Percy Harvin still nearly caught up to it. 10:08 p.m. | Something Missing? We noticed when Florida ran back out for the second half that the team's spirit squads carry plain orange and blue flags without any logos. It just looks a bit unfinished. Both teams are now back on their respective benches and ready to get the second half underway. 10:01 p.m. | Heavyweight Fight Popular opinion leading up to tonight's game was that this was going to be a shootout. However, with the contest tied at seven apiece through two quarters, it's turning out to be more of a heavyweight fight. The second half will undoubtedly be a battle of wills. 9:53 p.m. | Coming Up Empty Oklahoma left two scores on the field in the first half. If you're a Sooner fan, you can't feel good with that fact. However, you have to like OU's momentum going into the second stanza. The Sooners have to be oozing confidence in the halftime locker room that they can play with the SEC's best. 9:48 p.m. | Gresham's Gravity Hands Although Jermaine Gresham made what we think was one of his most impressive catches earlier in the game (it came back due to penalty), Gresham has his gravity hands switched on. 9:44 p.m. | OU's Torrid Pace Oklahoma's speed on getting off plays is impressing the folks in the Dolphin Stadium press box. It's also causing them issues staying on top of the game as they attempt to call the down, distance and related stats to the assembled media. We get a sense that there are a few Gator fans in the local media up here in the press box but there's also a lot of folks who aren't pulling for UF. Interesting mix. 9:40 p.m. | Tebow Touches It's a good thing that Tim Tebow is a big guy. He's certainly going to feel this game tomorrow. OU's defensive line is getting touches on No. 15. Now, the key is just to pull him down. Not easy. 9:36 p.m. | Musberger & Herbstreit We're situated in the 50-yard line press box here at Dolphin Stadium and the ESPN Radio booth is immediately to our right. We can see Brent Musberger and Kirk Herbstreit calling the game through the divider glass. They both seem extremely animated in their calls. 9:33 p.m. | OU's Game Plan Doesn't it seem like this is exactly what Oklahoma wanted to force Florida's offense into? Basically, take away the run game and make the 2007 Heisman winner beat you with his passing skills. 9:30 p.m. | Forget About It Although Florida stopped Oklahoma on fourth down, you have to forget about it and get back down to business. OU's defense, maligned for much of this month leading up to this game, has come to play. They're certainly bottling Florida's run game up the middle and playing receiver at times for Tebow. 9:28 p.m. | Adrian Taylor The last INT by a d-lineman was Adrian Taylor last year against Baylor. Coincidentally, Taylor was also back in coverage with McCoy on that zone blitz. 9:25 p.m. | Tebow to Gerald McCoy Oklahoma defensive tackle Gerald McCoy notches his first career interception and OU's second of the night. Amazingly, that wasn't McCoy's first-ever INT. Earlier this season in his weekly video series on SoonerSports.com, McCoy talked about how one of his favorite football memories all-time was a long interception return he had in high school for Oklahoma City Southeast.  McCoy High School Highlights & Comic Relief 9:23 p.m. | Tebow to Harvin Tebow and Harvin know exactly where they need to get the ball for the first down. Seems like Harvin is Tebow's short-yard answer here early in the game. 9:21 p.m. | OU's Answer Includes a Q Nice to see Quentin Chaney with a key catch on OU's scoring drive. Doesn't it always seem Q comes to play in bowl games for the Sooners? Chaney amassed 129 yards on just four catches last year in the Fiesta Bowl. Chaney also scored a TD in the game. 9:19 p.m. | Sam Threatening Gundy With that TD pass to Jermaine Gresham, Sam Bradford now has three career bowl passing TDs. That puts him in a tie for second on the OU list with his current QBs coach Josh Heupel. The player in the lead with five career passing TDs in bowls stands a few feet away from Heupel on the sidelines, OU RBs coach Cale Gundy. 9:16 p.m. | Quick Answer Oklahoma wasted no time providing an answer to Florida's initial score. OU went six plays and 65 yards in 2:13 -- most of the yards provided by OU's blocking and the hard-charging legs of Chris Brown. Gresham notches his 13th touchdown catch of the season and Bradford goes to an amazing 49 TD throws this year. 9:13 p.m. | Oklahoma Goes to the Ground Three consecutive runs by Chris Brown set up a pass to Quentin Chaney and put the Sooners in scoring position. Nice to see the offensive line get physical and of course, Brown always runs hard. Wouldn't it be nice to see No. 29 churn away? 9:07 p.m. | Florida Strikes First Tebow connected with Louis Murphy on the touchdown pass for a 7-0 Florida lead. The drive went 12 plays for 86 yards and consumed five minutes and 50 seconds. 9:05 p.m. | Getting to Tebow The Oklahoma defense has gotten to Florida quarterback Tim Tebow a number of times already tonight. It's something they've talked about as one of the biggest keys in the weeks leading up to the game. So far, both Gerald McCoy and Travis Lewis have been credited with pass breakups for their hits on Tebow while attempting to deliver the football. 9:01 p.m. | Scoreless First While the Gators are knocking on the door, we have a scoreless first quarter here in Miami. Sooner fans haven't seen one of those yet this year. Tonight's game marks the eighth time this season the OU defense has held an opponent scoreless through the opening stanza, while it's first time the Sooner offense has been kept off the scoreboard in the first quarter. 8:52 p.m. | Receivers Coming to Play It's also worth mentioning some of the nice catches made by OU's receivers already tonight. Manny Johnson moved the chains with his diving catch to stay in bounds on Oklahoma's first drive, while Juaquin Iglesias hauled one in close to the near sideline. It's too bad Jermaine Gresham's fingertip catch on the last possession was nullified... probably one of the most difficult catches the junior tight end has made in his career. 8:44 p.m. | Mr. Reliable So far tonight, running back Chris Brown has been establishing his reputation as Mr. Reliable, pounding his way for three or four yards nearly every time he touches the ball. Florida has been stacking the line of scrimmage against the run, but so far it hindered the Sooners. 8:41 p.m. | First Momentum Swing You hear it all the time from coaches, big games are often characterized by swings in momentum. Nic Harris just delivered the first one in OU's favor. The senior picked a good game for his first interception of the season, picking off a Tebow pass near midfield. It's the seventh interception of his career. 8:36 p.m. | Lewis a Freshman All-American Assistant media relations director David Bassity just passed this along: redshirt freshman linebacker Travis Lewis has been named a Freshman All-American by the Football Writers Association of America. For a complete list of the FWAA team, visit this link. 8:33 p.m. | Tough to Get Into a Rhythm We've already had a couple of stops for both reviews in addition to a media timeout. With less than five minutes off the game clock here in the opening quarter, it's probably been tough for either team to get into much of a rhythm as of yet. 8:29 p.m. | Defense's Turn The intensity was evident on both sides of the ball on OU's first drive. Now it's the Sooner defense's turn to match it against Tim Tebow and company. We heard rumors before the game that Florida's Percy Harvin might be out of tonight's lineup. Apparently it was all just speculation. He has been on the field since Florida's second snap. 8:26 p.m. | New to Them Some folks here in the press box have already mentioned how impressed they are with the tempo of OU's offense. Before the press box review on Manny Johnson's first catch, the PA announcer next to us was having trouble keeping up with the action. We even caught him saying under his breath, "Wow, they're fast!" 8:21 p.m. | Great Seats Not only are we situated right near the 50-yard line, we are also right next to the internal PA announcer, who is continuously receiving play-by-play information from the stat crew. This will only enhance our ability to provide accurate, up-to-the second information throughout the night. 8:16 p.m. | The Coin Toss Sooner captains Brody Eldridge, Jon Cooper, Gerald McCoy and Nic Harris just took the field to meet their Florida counterparts at midfield. As the visiting team in tonight's contest, the Gators called heads on the toss... but they were wrong. OU elected to receive and will therefore attempt to strike first. Let's roll! 8:11 p.m. | It's Time! A special treat for Sooner fans. The actual intro video that is traditionally played before the team runs out at our own Memorial Stadium was displayed on the big board here at Dolphin Stadium. The Gators were also welcomed with their own intro video. A nice touch to maximize the environment here in Miami. 8:08 p.m. | Oh Say Can You See An impressive performance by Yolanda Adams for tonight's national anthem. We must admit, however, that our own marketing staff has the routine down a little better than the crew here at Dolphin Stadium... The much-anticipated flyover came much to soon, and personnel on the field had one of the smaller star flags adjacent to the main flag all twisted up. 8:01 p.m. | How's the Weather? The best sign we saw on our way into the stadium this evening came from a less than modest OU fan who wrote: "Hey Texas, How's the Weather?" Here in South Florida, it's a picture-perfect night -- clear skies, 68 degrees and not a breeze to speak of whatsoever. 7:56 p.m. | Heisman Tribute Another salute to the 10 former Heisman Trophy winners in attendance tonight who are now being honored down on the field. The list includes: Doug Flutie, Tony Dorsett, Marcus Allen, Desmond Howard, Danny Wuerffel, Billy Sims, Gino Torretta, Joe Bellino, Ty Detmer and Andre Ware. As I'm sure you can imagine, Wuerffel and Sims received the loudest cheers from the crowd. 7:52 p.m. | Fans in Full Force The stands are really starting to fill in now. As the Pride took the field, we especially noticed the red and white shakers in the OU sections. Look for the impressive display throughout tonight's game. We've mentioned it already, but another special thanks to OU's marketing department and spirit squads for getting up early this morning to distribute 10,000 shakers in the seats. 7:41 p.m. | Excitement is Building The electricity is starting to mount inside the stadium. Both teams completed their pregame warmups and headed off the field to some raucous cheers from their adoring fans. The Florida band is now on the field and will be followed shortly by the Pride of Oklahoma. I don't know about you all, but we're ready to get this thing underway. 7:34 p.m. | Heisman Stomping Ground Though tonight's game is not technically the Orange Bowl, Sam Bradford and Tim Tebow the 16th and 17th Heisman Trophy winners to appear in the South Florida classic. During tonight's game, 10 other former Heisman winners will be honored on the field, including Oklahoma's Billy Sims and Florida's Danny Wuerffel. 7:23 p.m. | Official Kickoff Time In case you're wondering, tonight's game kicks off at 8:19 p.m. ET. We know it's always a bit suspenseful when you turn on the TV when the broadcast begins but aren't exactly sure what the official start time is. Just thought we'd help you out so you can plan accordingly on when to go grab those final snacks or beverages. 7:16 p.m. | Random Observations Members of Oklahoma's band are filing down to their seats behind the South end zone. We should be hearing our first rendition of Boomer Sooner shortly... DeMarco Murray just made his way out onto the field with the assistance crutches. He was promptly greeted by a number of TV cameras out on the field... After a short warmup session, Florida's offensive players departed to their locker room... OU's full squad just made its entrance and the team is now going through its stretching routine with Coach Schmidt. 7:09 p.m. | Jump Around Oklahoma's offensive players just took the field for pregame warmups, but only after jumping around in a huddle to get fired up just outside their tunnel behind the North end zone. 7:07 p.m. | Stadium Configuration Still an hour out from kickoff, both OU and Florida fans are beginning to file in. The Oklahoma sections wrap around the southeast corner of the stadium from midfield behind the OU bench through the back of the South end zone. Florida's following is situated in the northwest corner directly opposite.. 6:44 p.m. | First Sooners on Field The Sooners have officially started warmups on the field. First players out of the chute were senior center Jon Cooper, senior offensive guard Brandon Walker, junior tight end Brody Eldridge and junior holder Carter Whitson. The Sooners were decked in their crimson jerseys complete with helmets. A group of Florida players are also warming up on the field dressed in white. 5:56 p.m. | Keith Jackson Sighting Had to run down to Gate F where the OU Ticket Office crew has the Sooner Will Call set up and ran into one of my all-time favorite Sooners. All-American tight end Keith Jackson was there with his family and decked out in crimson. Hard not to think of Jackson's 71-yard TD reception against Penn State in the Orange Bowl that claimed the 1985 National Championship for Oklahoma: Oklahoma TE Keith Jackson TD vs. Penn StateHere, as you have time before the game, review more classic moments from OU's history in South Florida in this feature. 5:42 p.m. | 50-Yard Line Change in venue for the SoonerSports.com crew. We mentioned earlier that we were situated in the East press box behind the end zone, but we have since been moved to South press box for an even better view almost right on the 50-yard line. We'll be able to provide an even better perspective from here. 5:33 p.m. | Field Condition Upon our arrival here at the stadium, the first thing we noticed is the flawless condition of the field. Dolphin Stadium has been a busy place the last week, serving host to the Orange Bowl last Thursday, the Miami Dolphins playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, and tonight's FedEx BCS National Championship Game. Despite the heavy traffic, the field looks beautiful. As we mentioned earlier, the South end zone is painted in the friendly Crimson and Cream colors, while the North end zone features Florida's orange and blue. Also of note, the bench areas are painted in the team's respective colors, as opposed to the large white tarps which typically cover the area. 3:32 p.m. | Bus Convoy We're headed to the buses to depart for Dolphin Stadium. Once we get set up inside the press box, we'll begin providing quicker updates as we count down to kickoff at 8:19 p.m. (Eastern). 2:34 p.m. | Weather Report Another gorgeous day in South Florida. Tonight's game will be played in near perfect conditions with the temp at kickoff at 65 degrees, very light winds and zero percent chance of precipitation. The temperature should slowly drop to around 60 degrees later in the evening. After offensive and defensive meetings this morning, the players are resting in their hotel rooms. Wonder what's going through their minds right now? Less than six hours to go to kickoff... 1:20 p.m. | Sooner Fans in Miami Just made it through the lobby at the Fontainebleau and this place is swarming with Sooner fans. Crimson everywhere including plenty of "Beat Florida" shirts. The Boomer Bash kicks off at 2 p.m. here at the hotel with appearances by former Sooner greats Brian Bosworth, Tony Casillas and Greg Pruitt. Marketing director Dave Haskin passed along the note that OU's spirit and marketing staff distributed 10,000 crimson and cream poms this morning in the OU sections of Dolphin Stadium. It's a tradition carried over from the Big 12 Championship Game and makes Oklahoma fans especially noticeable on the TV broadcast. If you're not already on the edge of your seat tonight's game (and who really is getting any work done today?), check out this video: ESPN Feature on Defensive Tackle Gerald McCoy10:36 a.m. | Player Pre-Game After brunch, Oklahoma holds offensive and defensive meetings this morning at the hotel. The players will rest in their rooms before a pre-game meal, test and motivational. The buses head for Dolphin Stadium at 5:15 p.m. with the Sooners due to arrive at the stadium at 6 p.m. -- a full two hours before kickoff. Remember, FOX has the national TV broadcast of the game. The Sooner Sports Network will have OU's radio call of the game across its affiliates. If you're not near an OU affiliate, you can listen to the game online free at SoonerSports.com. The game will also be live on Sirius Channel 120, XM channel 140 and the ESPN Radio Network. SoonerSports.com will blog live from Dolphin Stadium providing an OU perspective as events unfold on the field. Our Fan Bowl Primer provides complete information for the lucky fans who actually hold a ticket to this game and will be making their way to the stadium. 9:16 a.m. | Gameday Oklahoma plays for the program's eighth football national title tonight in the FedEx BCS National Championship Game. The game will be televised nationally by FOX Sports with kickoff slated for 8:19 p.m. (7:19 p.m. Central) from Dolphin Stadium in Miami.
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