OU President Joseph Harroz previews College GameDay atmosphere in Norman

The Oklahoma Sooners are gearing up to take on the Michigan Wolverines this Saturday, and at OU's campus in Norman, university leaders are preparing for special guests before the game.

On Friday, ESPN reported its College GameDay crew will head to Norman for the top-20 matchup between the two teams.

RELATED: ESPN's College GameDay coming to Norman for OU vs. Michigan, report says

The show previously came to Norman for OU's first matchup against a fellow SEC opponent in 2024, when the Sooners went up against the Tennessee Volunteers.

SEE ALSO: OU Fans Line Up As College GameDay Sets Up In Norman

News 9 spoke to OU President Joseph Harroz about the big event coming to campus to learn more about how the university is getting ready.

There's so much excitement coming, not only this weekend for the game, but also just this year at OU.

Harroz: Yeah, it's incredibly exciting. We've had our fifth record freshman class, but what's really incredible is that class has grown 30% just in the last three years. So the energy on campus before you ever get to GameDay is something we've never seen before. Fastest growth in 50 years.

Including your daughter. Is she giving you the business about anything on campus?

Harroz: Yeah, that was an off-camera conversation. [My] daughter is a freshman, and she has many ideas of how we can even further enhance the university experience.

College GameDay is coming; this is going to be something special in Norman on Saturday.

Harroz: It's going to be epic, and I use that word in every sense. The last time we were together with Michigan, 1976, that year we won a national championship, I'm just saying, and the first ESPN GameDay without Lee Corso. It's the 42nd time that GameDay has been on our campus. We had one last year, again this year. We hope that we have it again. They're so much fun. They bring so much energy, and we're really excited.

Editor's Note: Oklahoma won the NCAA National Championship for the 1975 season, with the title game against Michigan being played on Jan. 1, 1976.

What can people expect for GameDay? Do you know where they're going to set up?

Harroz: We've opened up all the areas. All the things. So they set up like last year, they're going to set up on the South Oval, which is that ridiculously iconic view of the library, the Bizzell Library, which is gorgeous. We do have open this year, for the first time ever, the North Oval for tailgating, which is free. It creates this crazy energy, and I love the optics when you see that shot of the historic South Oval and now the North Oval. So it's going to be an energy like we've never seen before.

What are you asking of students and fans who will be there Saturday morning, come early, and what else?

Harroz: Absolutely. We'll have students who stay overnight to make sure they're there for the ESPN GameDay, but I'd go with "show up and show out." This is a huge stage, a big opportunity. I'm not sure if you've caught it or not. We've got a quarterback in John Mateer and a really great team, and so I think it's going to be a lot of fun.

This is huge not only for OU, but you even mentioned a moment ago how big it is for the state in OU joining the SEC, and then the two biggest days at the airport in Oklahoma City last year were what?

Harroz: Two biggest days in history were the [day] that we played Tennessee; both of our SEC home opponents that year were the busiest travel days in the airport's history. Michigan's going to show up in the same way, and it's going to be great, not just in Norman, but in Oklahoma City, the entire metro. It's a big stage, and it's a great way to showcase. One of the reasons for going to the SEC was showcasing our state. It's a huge stage, one like no other, and I'm excited about it.

What were your thoughts just of the first game from Saturday? What were your impressions of how the team did?

Harroz: We put a lot of time and energy into it. You probably saw since last year, we brought in Randall Stevenson, the former CEO of AT&T to help us restructure. We now have the first and only in college football, pro-style general manager Jim Nagy. So a lot of things have been happening behind the scenes to make sure we're prepared for this new era. And so watching that game after all that preparation since the end of last season, it was so great to see that product on the field and to see how well they played.

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I want to ask you about Huddle with Harroz, this new experience where students could win tickets in the suite to watch a game. What is going on?

Harroz: Listen, my generosity never ends. So it's a chance on social media, on Instagram, for students to, if they're following me, right? Sort of shameless right bait there. Like, follow, share, they have the opportunity to do it. It's so fun. I get to meet these students. There's a winner every game. They get to bring a friend. We take a picture on the field. We then walk around pre-game, which is a blast on the field, and spend a little bit of time with them, and then they go watch the game from upstairs. So it's a ton of fun.

You love the students down there. You are kind of a student president. I mean, they love you, and you love being with them.

Harroz: Yeah, which is a kind way of saying I'm immature. I like young at heart better. So yes, I'm young at heart. No, it's so much fun. There is endless energy, and whether it was being dean of the law school or in this job, I don't know what the fountain of youth is, but the closest I can find is spending time with young people with that kind of energy and optimism.

Do we know who the guest picker is?

Harroz: If I tell you guys in confidence, will you keep it? Robin's already applied sort of almost a responsible pressure to get this from me. I don't know the name yet. I've been speculating privately without a foundation, but once I know and it's announced, I'll tell you.