After pulling off a shocking upset against No. 4 Alabama, Oklahoma football players headed back to the field to celebrate their big 23-21 win. They wanted to take a team photo on the Alabama logo at midfield, which is a common tradition for road teams after a huge victory. However, an Alabama staff member wasn’t having it and was seen trying to block the players from getting to the logo.

On November 15th, a bunch of Oklahoma Sooners players, like senior defensive back Robert Spears-Jennings and sophomore defensive back Jaydan Hardy, walked out to midfield and started posing for photos right on top of the Alabama logo. A female Bama staffer had actually roped off the center of the field to protect the logo and shush away the Boomers. That’s when the situation got a little heated. The staffer confronted the players and told them they needed to be “respectful” and get off the logo. An Oklahoma assistant coach and the players argued back, defending their right to celebrate.

Even though it’s pretty normal in college football to celebrate on an opponent’s field after a massive win, it’s also a touchy subject. The Sooners had every right to celebrate. Brent Venables’ squad snapped Alabama’s 17-game home winning streak, something nobody expected, and it also marked Kalen DeBoer’s first home loss as the Crimson Tide head coach. Oklahoma players were fired up after beating Alabama for the first time since 2000, so their celebrations made sense, but it also explained why the Alabama staffer felt irritated.

That said, the Sooners have definitely made headlines before with some bold post-game moves, like when Baker Mayfield stuck the Oklahoma flag right in the middle of the Ohio State field back in 2017. So while it’s a shared tradition, they aren’t shy about celebrating hard on someone else’s turf. Plus, just last year, during the regional softball tournament, Alabama and Oklahoma had their own mini drama when cleats were left on a team logo after the game, which caused a stir between both sides.

Self-sabotage by Bama?

Even though the Crimson Tide looked like the better team for most of the game, the loss stings because Oklahoma had already embarrassed them last year in Norman. This time, Alabama moved the ball well and had plenty of chances, but a handful of bad moments like turnovers and unnecessary sacks eaten by Ty Simpson kind of changed their game and their season trajectory.

Football can be cruel that way. You can dominate most of the game, but one or two costly plays can flip the result. If Alabama avoids even one turnover, stops the long punt return in the first quarter, or hits the 35-yard field goal before halftime, they walk out with a win. Any one of those moments goes differently, and the Crimson Tide finishes the afternoon victorious.

Instead, they’re left with their first home loss of the Kalen DeBoer era, forced to replay those missed opportunities in their heads. DeBoer said the offense never felt stuck and kept moving the ball, but it was the random, momentum-swinging mistakes that dug the team into an uphill battle. Against a good team like Oklahoma, giving away 17 free points is basically handing them the game.

Now the pressure shifts completely to the Iron Bowl. DeBoer will go to Auburn needing a win to secure Alabama’s spot in the College Football Playoff and likely the SEC Championship Game. But if they lose, Alabama could miss the playoff for the second straight season, and the conversation will immediately shift to criticism and hot-seat talk again.