Fans who planned to watch Oklahoma take on Ole Miss in Norman on Saturday were instead left with a Sunday kickoff—and disrupted travel and personal plans. The University of Central Oklahoma responded by offering those ticket holders free admission to two Bronchos games scheduled for Saturday, November 14.
The offer covered UCO’s football game against Missouri Western and its men’s basketball matchup with Oklahoma Christian. Fans could show a ticket to the postponed Oklahoma–Ole Miss game to gain free entry.
UCO Vice President for Athletics Stan Wagnon announced the offer with a pointed comment about the scheduling dispute. He said that, unlike Ole Miss, opponents elsewhere in the country had been able to find a solution. Wagnon also invited SEC fans with free time in Norman to attend UCO’s games in Edmond.
The Bronchos were not changing their own schedule. UCO’s football team remained set to host Missouri Western at 1 p.m. Central Time, while the men’s basketball game against Oklahoma Christian was scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Hamilton Field House.
## Why Oklahoma’s game was moved
The SEC moved Oklahoma’s home game against Ole Miss from Saturday to Sunday after the Rebels were unable to leave Oxford on Friday. A nationwide ground stop issued by the Federal Aviation Administration delayed their travel plans.
The restriction was lifted later that evening, but the charter company contracted by Ole Miss could not arrange a late-night departure. The team was therefore scheduled to travel on Saturday, prompting the move. The game was rescheduled for noon Central Time Sunday, or 1 p.m. Eastern Time.
Oklahoma had little influence over the final decision, according to athletic director Roger Denny. He said SEC commissioner Greg Sankey informed the university that the game would be moved, despite Oklahoma’s strong objection. Denny also said the university was told that refusing to play at the assigned time would result in a forfeit.
Denny emphasized the effect the change would have on fans who had planned around a Saturday game. Those who had arranged travel, lodging and other personal plans were now facing disruption and hardship, he said.
Wagnon acknowledged that the ground stop had created unusual challenges for teams around the country, but he continued to criticize the circumstances surrounding Ole Miss’s travel. In a further invitation to fans, he suggested that those unable to make it to Edmond could watch UCO’s nationally ranked volleyball team compete in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association championship match at 6 p.m. on the MIAA Network.
## Senior Day remains on the schedule
UCO’s football game was more than a convenient alternative for Oklahoma and Ole Miss fans. It marked the final date on the Bronchos’ 2026 schedule, with Missouri Western visiting Chad Richison Stadium for Senior Day.
UCO entered the matchup with a 4–6 overall record and a 3–5 mark in MIAA play. Missouri Western arrived at 3–7 overall and 2–6 in conference games.
Seventeen UCO players were preparing to play their final game for the program, adding significance to the occasion. The Bronchos kept Senior Day on its original schedule rather than rearranging it because another school’s Power Four game had been postponed.
The men’s basketball matchup offered another option for fans with tickets to Oklahoma–Ole Miss. UCO was scheduled to host Oklahoma Christian at Hamilton Field House at 7:30 p.m. as part of the Central Region Challenge.
The Bronchos began their season with three losses at the D2CCA Midwest Tipoff Challenge. They followed that stretch with two wins, beating Texas A&M–Texarkana 88–65 and Minnesota Crookston 69–60.
UCO’s invitation gave displaced fans another way to spend Saturday while its own teams continued with their scheduled events. At the same time, the offer drew attention to the frustration in Norman over the SEC’s decision to move the Oklahoma–Ole Miss game and the consequences for fans who had made plans around the original kickoff.
