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In each new edition of Sooner Spectator, we ask legendary coach Barry Switzer to share his thoughts on a variety of topics, ranging from football to food to his favorite anecdotes. In this installment of King’s Corner, we asked Coach Switzer about his Coaches Cabana show and music.

Sooner Spectator: There is a rumor going around that the Coaches Cabana show is going to be live from Campus Corner in Norman this season. Is that true?

Barry Switzer: It’s true. We’re going to do it on Campus Corner this season and we’re all pretty excited about it. We’ll be set up right there on Asp Avenue every home game and right in the middle of 50,000 people who enjoy pregame activities right there at all of the restaurants and shops. We talked to the folks down there like Rainey Powell and got it all worked out for this football season. We’ll have a jumbotron TV set up there by us and we’ll show all the big games before OU plays and after. I think it’s going to be a lot of fun setting up right there in the middle of all that excitement.

SS: OU will be hosting Ohio State in mid-September, which brings back memories of the 1977 OU-Ohio State battle. Besides Uwe von Schamann’s game-winning field goal, what do you remember most about that game?

Switzer: (laughing) I remember we scored 20 quick points and were fixin’ to put a half-a-hundred on them when our quarterback Thomas Lott and best running back Billy Sims both got hurt. We had already proven they could not stop and Thomas was just wearing them out. But when he pulled a hamstring and Billy sprained his ankle, the entire momentum if the game changed. We struggled on offense the next two quarters and that allowed Ohio State to get back into the game.

Obviously, it came down to that last possession and Uwe kicking that field goal to win the game for us, which I’ve heard him say was the biggest play of his career. I told Uwe that he needs to thank Thomas for getting hurt because if he stays in the game and plays, we definitely would not have needed him to win the game for us like he did. But in the end, I’m glad Uwe was on our side that day.

SS: During your time as head coach at OU, your teams faced legendary coaches like Woody Hayes, Joe Paterno, Tom Osborne, Darrell Royal. Bobby Bowden and Bo Schembechler. Your record in those games was 20-5-1. Why were you so successful in those matchups?

Switzer: Honestly, it was because we had better talent at Oklahoma. We played whoever lined up in front us – and we just had some really good teams during those years. We were recruiting all of the best players at all of the positions, and getting a lot of those guys to come to Oklahoma. We had good coaches and great players.

SS: When you are driving or hanging out in your office listening to music, what would we find in your CD player?

Swtizer: I really like a little bit of everything. But one of genres I love to listen to is Broadway and Broadway plays. I’ve seen Jersey Boys probably 10 times — three times on Broadway, once in Chicago and a couple of times in Vegas. Plus, I’ve seen the movie. I love that music. I also love country music, traditional country western. Growing up when and I did, country was what you heard on the radio most of the time. I also grew up listening to gospel quartets and some old blues tunes. So I’m pretty much a fan of all types of music.

(Editor's Note: This story appears in the 2016 August Kickoff issue of Sooner Spectator. To subsribe, call 405-364-4515)