OU football: Sooners' season opener against Temple moved to Friday, Aug. 30

OU football's season opener against Temple has officially been moved from Saturday, Aug. 31 to Friday, Aug. 30 and will kick off at 6 p.m., the school announced Tuesday.

SoonerScoop first reported the game would be moved to Friday moments before OU's release. The Sooners announced that ESPN requested the change so their first game as a member of the SEC would be in a primetime window.

"We were asked to consider moving up the season opener by a day so ESPN could televise our first game as a member of the SEC in a primetime window," OU athletic director Joe Castiglione said in a release. "It's a unique and exciting opportunity for us, as it will be our first Friday night game in the history of Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium and will give our team tremendous visibility nationally.

"Another major plus is, given the kick time, our players and fans should benefit from a cooler temperature. It's reasonable to expect that playing in the evening will significantly mitigate some of the heat issues we typically deal with during early season day games. Our first-ever 'Friday Night Lights' will undoubtedly be one for the books, and we're excited to open the season and our first year in the SEC in such a spectacular fashion."

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The game will serve as the first-ever Friday night OU game played inside Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. The Sooners are 5-0 all-time in Friday night regular season contests, all road games.

Playing at night is also expected to benefit both teams with a cooler temperature. According to the school, three of the last four years have produced a heat index high of at least 98 degrees on Aug. 31 in Norman.

OU, which will open its third season under head coach Brent Venables, officially joins the SEC on July 1.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU football season opener vs Temple moved to Friday, Aug. 30