Two strangers nervously approach Phil Owens and shake his hand. They introduce themselves, stating not only their names, but also their Internet usernames.

Though it might appear to be the aftermath of an awkward Internet dating setup, it is evidence of a thriving online community of OU football fans meeting for tailgate parties through message boards. Users have access to exclusive news about football, as well as an opportunity to befriend fellow fans.

"The board has allowed me to meet, both online and physically, some fans and former players, that are very close to the program, who have knowledge of the team and players."

-Jeff Huelskamp

They get to know each other outside of football, too,, through a Sooners support system that originated on Web sites like Soonerfans.com and OUInsider.com.

Owens, creator of SoonerFans.com, said the message board has about 6,700 registered users, with 200 or 300 who post consistently, and 40 or 50 people who consistently come to the tailgate parties. He said talking to people on the message boards is comparable to having a talk with friends over dinner.

"I've gotten to know people through the message board that are some of my best friends," Owens said.

Gameday meetings

OUInsider users meet for basketball and football watch-parties, sometimes meeting in Oklahoma City's Bricktown or at Louie's Deli and Bar, 301 W. Boyd St., said OUInsider user Regina Bell in an e-mail.

Owens said the SoonerFans gameday meetings began with a few people meeting at O'Connell's Irish Pub and Grill, 120 E. Lindsey St., then progressed to having a pop-up tent and a table outside the bar. SoonerFans now rents a yard for $75 a game, often with an RV and two large canopies. SoonerFans spent about $600 for the TCU game's tailgate party, Owens said.

Making the transition from message boards to physical meetings can be a challenge for some users.

"When you are sitting in front of a computer typing, you have plenty of time to think of what you're going to say," said Scott Melton, software engineer and message board administrator for SoonerFans. "In person, people tend to be more quiet. They don't want to look like a complete idiot."

Owens said he thinks most users display the same personalities online and in person, but others see changes when they meet online friends in person.

"Some posters have alter egos that show up online only," said Jeff Huelskamp, OUInsider user and information technology analyst and web developer, in an e-mail. "People can be pretty brave when anonymous and sitting behind a keyboard."

Figuring out who's who in person when you only know other users by their online handles can be tough, Owens said.

"A lot of times, we have name tags for people's usernames," Owens said, referring to the SoonerFans tailgate parties.

Kristi Huelskamp, OUInsider user and pharmaceutical representative, said she was initially confused about whether she should refer to people by their names or their message board usernames.

"It is funny to hear someone yell out your usernames in a crowd," Huelskamp said. "'Hey, Boomersoonerfan!'"

Owens said he still sometimes refers to message board moderator Melton as "Norm" because of his username, "Norm in Norman."

Fans from afar

SoonerFans has regular posters from Alaska, England and Australia, and two users have flown from Japan to attend tailgate parties, Owens said. He said of five volunteer message board administrators on SoonerFans, one is an assistant band director at the University of Arkansas, one is a Nebraska fan who lives in Nebraska and one is a Web site designer from Houston.

"The message board brings people together, so technically, they can come from anywhere," Owens said.

Jim Aux, an IBM employee, said it is his third year driving from Pennsylvania to attend SoonerFans tailgate parties. He said he drives to the parties two or three times a year.

Ten to 15 SoonerFans users in Texas sometimes meet in Dallas for lunch, Owens said.

Online fan sites



o SoonerFans creator Phil Owens said his site has about 6,700 registered users.



o Owens said 200 or 300 users post consistently on his Web site.



o In addition to fans across the country, SoonerFans has members in England, Australia and Japan.

Owens said one regular poster was evacuated from New Orleans because of Hurricane Katrina and came to Oklahoma.

Owens said he has gotten to know people well through the football message boards, even if he has not met them in person.

"I don't ever get the feeling that it's someone I don't know," he said. "I wouldn't know if it was the guy from New Orleans if he walked up to me and kicked me in the shins, but I still invited him to dinner."

Finding friends

Kristi Huelskamp said in an e-mail that OUInsider users have helped each other deal with the deaths and illnesses of close friends, such as when an OUInsider member was killed in a car accident a month ago.

"We take our strengths and share them with fellow Sooners," Bell said.

She said OUInsider users pray for sick family members, help each other find jobs, wish each other happy birthdays and celebrate good grades on their children's report cards.

Users also help each other with more mundane things.

"We have some weather forecasters on the site and they keep us up to date on what to wear to the games," Bell said.

Bell said she was able to use the boards to connect with old friends with whom she had lost contact.

Owens said he knows of a couple who met through the message boards.

He said a year ago, SoonerFans users raised over $2,000 to support a software and server change for the message boards.

Users also donated about $400 for a fellow user whose father died in a car accident.

Jason Naimi, a corporate attorney from Las Vegas, said in an e-mail that he has unofficially organized a trip for OUInsider friends, going from Oklahoma to Las Vegas to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif.

He said he has spent time with a fellow OUInsider user who recently moved to Las Vegas from Florida.

"We're a pretty tight group," said Christine Dennis, a certified public accountant and OUInsider user, in an e-mail. "We all met through the boards, but we have many other things in common--job changes, babies, marriages, divorces, losing parents--all those major life moments."

Meredith Summers, 35, said in an e-mail that OUInsider message boards allowed her to find other female Sooner fans.

"The great thing about the message board is, for the longest time, no one even knew I was female and discussed the team with me without prejudice," she said. "It gave me anonymity and also a feeling of not being weird."

Some users use the boards to make new friends.

"I used to be the only female who could talk football, and now I have a whole group of friends who are as obsessed as I am," Dennis said. "I have new people to hang out with and watch games with and even travel with."

The inside scoop

Some users seek the message board for news about the team.

"They let me in on everything, whether I want to know it or not," said Stan Price, who drove from Bartlesville Saturday to tailgate with other SoonerFans users.

Price said there is an advantage to keeping in touch with people who live on campus.

"The board has allowed me to meet, both online and physically, some fans and former players, that are very close to the program, who have knowledge of the team and players," Jeff Huelskamp said. "Through them I get tons of 'insider' information not known to the general public."

That online community compares to some common information-sharing hot spots, Owens said.

"It's sort of like standing around a big water cooler," he said.
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