Oklahoma Bedlam Beginnings - Guthrie, OK
Posted by: 
hamquilter
N 35° 52.127 W 097° 25.594
14S E 642049 N 3970537
One of Oklahoma's most beloved institutions is Bedlam Football. Every fall, fans from both sides have their eyes glued to the gridiron, cheering their team on.
Waymark Code: WMDC0Q
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 12/22/2011
Views: 4
Located in Guthrie, in Mineral Wells Park, on the south side of the pavilion, is a black granite monument memorializing the beginning of Bedlam Football. Formerly named Island Park, this park is a contributing property for the Guthrie Historic District, and was the site of the celebration for Oklahoma statehood on November 16, 1907 when Guthrie was named its first capital.
But, even before statehood, this park was the site of the first football rivalry game between the Oklahoma A & M "Tigers" (now the OSU Cowboys), and the Oklahoma University "Rough Riders" (now the OU Sooners).
The colorful story of this first game is etched forever in this granite slab which shows a football, and reads:
Sooners vs Aggies
BEDLAM Nov. 5, 1904
Bedlam Beginnings
The date was Nov. 5, 1904. The place was old
Island Park, later named Mineral Wells
Park, in Guthrie, OK. The event was a football
game---the first game ever between the
Oklahoma A&M Tigers of Stillwater and the
Oklahoma University Rough Riders of NormanThe day was bitterly cold with blustery
winds out of the north. The boundaries were
vaguely defined. And one of the oddest
touchdowns ever recorded in football
history occurred when an Aggie punt was
carried backward by the wind until it bounced
into Cottonwood Creek. Players from both
teams pursued the evasive football into the
deeper chilly waters of the creek, but it
was a Rough Rider who prevailed and climbed
ashore with the football
Incidentally, every player on the OU squad
scored that day, soundly defeating the
Aggies 75-0. Thus, Bedlam Football in
Oklahoma was born.
(Arrow)
Actual game site