Former Oklahoma quarterback Patrick Fletcher has reportedly passed away, according to JD Runnels, a former Sooners fullback. Fletcher was part of the 2000 national championship team.
“Man… I was never teammates with Patrick Fletcher, but he always made me feel like I was,” Runnels wrote on Twitter. “He will be missed, the truest Sooner.”
Fletcher played 28 games as a quarterback for Oklahoma from 1998 to 2000. Over the course of his career, he completed 23 of 41 passes for 364 yards, four touchdowns, and four interceptions. He also authored a book, Sixteen Red: Living the Dream, which chronicled his Oklahoma experience from 1996 to 2000, including the final year in which the Sooners won the consensus national championship by defeating Florida State 13-2 in the Orange Bowl.
“P-Fletch? Yeah, I loved him, too. Listen, you gotta know the story,” said former head coach Bob Stoops in a 2013 interview with The Oklahoman. “Patrick Fletcher was a backup quarterback when we got there—a great guy. We loved him as coaches. Everybody loved him. The team loved him. He backed up Josh Heupel.
“One game, we had a perfect setup for a fake punt—actually a fake field goal—against Texas A&M on homecoming. We told everyone about the play, but the kicker didn’t know. It worked perfectly—the middle of the field was wide open. But when we looked for the kicker, he was nowhere to be found. Patrick saw no kicker, so he ran for 12 or 14 yards and got the first down, even though he wasn’t supposed to. It was a huge play, and we went on to score a touchdown. We ended up winning 56-6.
“Every time I see him, I grab him, give him a big hug, and say, ‘You saved my butt, buddy. You’re the best.’ He knows it. He’ll tell you.”
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