University of Oklahoma Athletics

NORMAN — Former University of Oklahoma football head coach Barry Switzer was announced Tuesday as a member of the SEC’s 2024 Football Legends class, a group of former football standouts who will be honored at events surrounding the SEC Football Championship Game in Atlanta in December. As OU joined the conference on July 1, Switzer will become the Sooners’ first SEC Football Legend.

 

The 2024 class is comprised of 16 former stars who excelled on the football field and helped write the rich history of the sport at their respective institutions.

 

As head coach from 1973-88, Switzer led Oklahoma to three national championships (1974, 1975 and 1985) and finished his head coaching career with a 157-29-4 record, good for an .837 winning percentage, the fourth highest among NCAA I-A coaches at the time. His teams posted a winning record in each of his 16 seasons and won 12 Big Eight Conference titles during his tenure.

 

Switzer, who joined the OU staff in 1966 and was promoted to offensive coordinator in 1967, went unbeaten in his first 30 games as a head coach, posting a 29-0-1 record. His Sooner teams were ranked in the AP Top 5 for 148 weeks and ranked No. 1 for 43 weeks, and they finished 12 seasons ranked in the AP Top 10, 10 seasons ranked in the AP Top 5 and nine seasons ranked in the AP Top 3. Switzer posted a 47-21-4 record against top-20 teams and thrived against OU’s biggest rivals, going 12-5 against Nebraska, 9-5-2 against Texas and 15-1 against Oklahoma State.

 

Under Switzer’s leadership, Oklahoma’s wishbone attack produced some of the most prolific rushing offenses in college football history and his teams routinely ranked among the nation’s best defenses. His 1986 and 1987 teams led the nation in scoring offense and scoring defense.

 

Switzer’s squads posted a robust 77-10-1 (.886) home record and were nearly as successful in road games, going 63-9-1 for the most true road wins and the best true-road-game winning percentage (.870) in program history. His players earned 28 consensus All-America honors (12 on offense and 16 on defense), including 1978 Heisman Trophy-winning running back Billy Sims.

 

Under Switzer’s tutelage, OU players won a total of 18 individual national honors, and eight of his players have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, while another (defensive lineman Dewey Selmon) will be inducted Dec. 10, 2024. He produced 94 NFL Draft picks as OU’s head coach, including 16 first-rounders and No. 1 overall selections Lee Roy Selmon in 1976 and Sims in 1980.

 

Switzer served as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys from 1994-97, posting the best winning percentage in franchise history at the time and leading the 1995 squad to a Super Bowl title. He is one of only three coaches to win a college national championship and a Super Bowl.

 

Switzer was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame and the College Football Hall of Fame. In 1999, OU’s football operations facility at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium (The Barry Switzer Center) was named after him.

 

The 2024 SEC Football Legends class will be honored at the 2024 SEC Football “Weekend of Champions” Dec. 6-7 in Atlanta, highlighted by the annual SEC Legends Celebration presented by T-Mobile on Friday, Dec. 6 at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta. The group will also be recognized prior to the SEC Football Championship Game, which will be held at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Saturday, Dec. 7.

 

2024 SEC Football Legends Class

Alabama – Barrett Jones, Offensive Lineman, 2009-12

Arkansas – Ken Hamlin, Free Safety, 2000-02

Auburn – Marcus McNeill, Offensive Tackle, 2002-2005

Florida – Rex Grossman, Quarterback, 2000-02

Georgia – Terrence Edwards, Receiver, 1999-2002

Kentucky – Dicky Lyons Sr., Tailback/Receiver/All-Purpose, 1966-68

LSU – Andrew Whitworth, Offensive Tackle, 2002-05

Ole Miss – Dexter McCluster, Running Back, 2006-09

Mississippi State – Fletcher Cox, Defensive Lineman, 2009-11

Missouri – Chase Daniel, Quarterback, 2005-08

Oklahoma – Barry Switzer, Head Coach, 1973-88

South Carolina – Corey Miller, Defensive End, 1987-90

Tennessee – Eric Berry, Defensive Back, 2007-09

Texas – Vince Young, Quarterback, 2002-05

Texas A&M – Luke Joeckel, Offensive Tackle, 2010-12

Vanderbilt – Ricky Anderson, Punter/Kicker, 1981-84