Former Sooner QB Thompson Reflects On ‘Game Of The Century II,’ Redemption And His Son’s Transfer To Nebraska

When a person turns 80 or 90 years old, some often describe those people as having lived “a full life.”

This adage doesn’t quite apply to Charles Thompson for two reasons. For one, he is still decades away from turning 80. Additionally, suggesting he has lived “a full life” to this point isn’t wrong. It is simply incomplete.

Thompson, now 54, has lived several different lives within his singular life.

Originally from Fort Smith, Arkansas, Thompson moved with his mother to Lawton as a youngster. These were formative years for Thompson, who fell madly in love with Sooner football.

“Back then, you know, you only had one television in the house,” Thompson said. “We had to con our parents into allowing us to watch OU. After every game, we (along with childhood friend Steve Wolf) would go across the street. … I’d put a white T-shirt on and write the No. 6 on it. And he (Steve) would do the same. Steve Rhodes was one of the popular wide receivers, and he (Wolf) put his (Rhodes’) number on his shirt. We’d go out and pretend that we were playing against the opponents that the Oklahoma Sooners just beat each and every Saturday.”

Thompson said he put the No. 6 on his T-shirt as a kid because he gravitated toward Thomas Lott, the program’s first Black starting quarterback.

“When I got to Oklahoma, I was originally wanting to get No. 1. That was my high school number,” Thompson said. “Unfortunately, Eric Mitchel had it. He was a quarterback and a little bit older than me, so I had to pick another number. And I said, ‘Is six available?’ With six being available, it was an easy decision. Thomas Lott wore the bandana. I’m sure everybody remembers that. It was a big deal for me to be able to get a number that I’ve dreamed of wearing back when I was six, seven years old.”

The Sooners and Cornhuskers, as they did often during the 1970s and 1980s, were on a collision course towards another late-season matchup that could decide the Big Eight champion and perhaps one-half of a potential national championship game.

Thompson saw some action as a redshirt freshman behind starter Jamelle Holieway during the 1987 season. As their annual November showdown neared, Nebraska began pulling away as the nation’s top-ranked team while the Sooners pulled in at No. 2.

The game was billed as “Game of the Century II,” a sequel to the original “Game of the Century” in 1971. Nebraska won that game 35-31 in Norman. 

Some Husker players, like starting quarterback Steve Taylor, were more than confident in their ability to knock the Sooners out of the title race.

“The flat-out truth is, Oklahoma can’t play with us,” Taylor told reporters a week before 1987’s OU-Nebraska matchup. “They are not good enough. Let me tell you, it might not even be close, and I mean that.”

Thompson and the Sooners used Taylor’s quote as bulletin board material.

“Let me say this,” Thompson said Wednesday before letting out a brief chuckle. “It’s funny because I’m actually doing a breakfast tomorrow (Thursday) with Steve Taylor (in Lincoln, Nebraska). It’ll be the first time we’ve been around each other since that actual game.

“That (quote) was major motivation. (Nebraska player) Broderick Thomas had said they had the ‘key,’ and they ‘changed the lock.’ That we no longer had the key, and there was no way we were going to come into their house. … We dropped from No. 1. We had been No. 1 all year long. In my first start, we played Missouri at home. We struggled to win the game. Nebraska had played someone and blew them out. … Everyone around the country, not just Steve Taylor, anticipated Nebraska beating us in Lincoln on that day. It was personal.”

Holieway and fullback Lydell Carr were unavailable due to injuries. Even head coach Barry Switzer hobbled on the sideline after he was hurt during the Missouri game a week before.

Oklahoma’s upset and national title hopes rested on the shoulders of a 5-foot-9 19-year-old.

“It was, really, business as usual,” Thompson said. “I expected that out of myself, to go in and be great. I told (offensive coordinator) Jim Donnan -- when I was a freshman at OU, (I) had been on campus probably about a month – that I was better than Jamelle (Holieway), and that I wanted to play my true freshman year. I had a tremendous amount of confidence in myself.”

The Sooners stunned the Huskers 17-7. If you‘re scoring at home, Thompson ran for 126 yards on 21 carries. NU’s Steve Taylor ran for just 54 yards and threw three interceptions.

Thompson’s Sooner career ended abruptly in 1989. He pled guilty and was convicted of selling cocaine to an undercover agent. He spent 17 months in a federal prison and has since turned his life around.

Thompson is now a youth football coach and a motivational speaker. Three years ago, he shared a letter he wrote to his younger self exclusively with News 9.

Related: Former OU QB Charles Thompson Writes To His Younger Self

“There’s not a person in life that wouldn’t say that they wouldn’t change something in their past if they had the opportunity to do so,” Thompson said. “But I also understand now, at this age, that part of what makes you who you are is the thing that you’ve gone through. … I think my experiences have helped my kids. It allowed me the opportunity to be real with them. The do’s and the don’ts, the ups and the downs, the highs and lows. It’s not always going to be peachy. It’s not always going to be clean.”

Two of Thompsons’ sons have played college football. Kendal Thompson split time as a Sooner and Utah Ute from 2011-15. 

His younger son, Casey, started his college career at Texas before he hit the transfer portal following the 2021 season. Current Oklahoma coach Brent Venables told reporters Tuesday that his coaching staff tried to sway Casey to a homecoming in Norman, but he instead elected to sign on with the Huskers.

“We’re Oklahoma people. Casey has grown up his entire life around the University of Oklahoma,” Thompson said. “At the end of the day -- it doesn’t matter where you go -- if you’re not playing, you’re not going to have fun. That’s why, out of high school, he chose the University of Texas. We weren’t focused on the colors of the uniforms. We were focused more on the opportunity.

“There were multiple times he considered Oklahoma when he entered the transfer portal. It was a 1A, 1B situation. Obviously, I would have loved him being at home, but it came down to the business of football. When Oklahoma changed coaching staffs, (with offensive coordinator Jeff) Lebby coming in, I think he had his guy he was familiar with with Dillon Gabriel. It wasn’t smart to go into a situation where you were going to be at a disadvantage with a guy who already had known the offense, was familiar with the coach and knew the lingo.”

Despite Nebraska’s current turmoil in the wake of head coach Scott Frost’s dismissal and elevation of interim head coach Mickey Joseph this week, Casey Thompson has appeared more comfortable than ever operating within an offense. He has posted two 300-yard passing games already this season.

“We felt very comfortable with the opportunity there (at Nebraska) and very comfortable with coach Mickey Joseph,” Charles Thompson said. “We have maintained a relationship since 1988, 89. He was a one-time coach here at UCO and Langston (University), and we’ve stayed in touch. He played a really big part in us looking at Nebraska in a strong way. Also meeting with coach Whip (Nebraska offensive coordinator Mark Whipple) and knowing some guys who have some familiarity with him.”

Thompson doesn’t anticipate a defensive struggle like the OU-NU game brought last season, but he knows where his allegiance lies.

“I’m always going to root for my son. It’s as simple as that for me,” Thompson said. “I want him to go out and have the best game that he can possibly have. At the end of the day, you let the cards lay where they may.”