Tuttle alumna named first female Native American to drive the Sooner Schooner

Tuttle alumna Brianna Howard drives the Sooner Schooner onto Owen Field during OU’s Sept. 20 home game against Auburn. Howard, a sophomore and Lil’ Sis member, recently became the first female Native American to serve as a Schooner driver. Photos by L&B Visuals

By Jayson Knight
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When Brianna Howard climbed onto the driver’s seat of the Sooner Schooner for the first time, everything else disappeared.
“I had done several practice field runs before I did it officially during a game, so I knew slightly how it would feel,” Howard said. “All of those practices don’t do the real run justice, though. Once I started driving, it was like everything went silent. All I could think about was the ponies and making that turn. It happened so fast that afterwards it didn’t even feel real. I was overwhelmed with emotion and pride for finally doing what I had put so much work into accomplishing.”
Howard, a 2023 Tuttle High School graduate and member of the Choctaw Nation, is now a junior at the University of Oklahoma and a member of the Ruf/Nek Lil’ Sis. This fall, she was promoted from her role as a Lil’ Sis to driver trainee, and she made history when she became the first female Native American to take the reins of OU’s most iconic tradition.
Not bad for someone once crowned ‘Worst Driver’ by her senior class.
Driving the Schooner isn’t a privilege handed out lightly either. Even among Lil’ Sis members, it’s not guaranteed.
“When I first became a Lil’ Sis, I knew that I would work my butt off for the opportunity to be a driver,” Howard said. “It wasn’t a guaranteed thing, so I put in the work and showed I was capable of doing whatever was asked of me. From there, my hard work was recognized, and I was promoted to Driver Trainee. After months of training and being constantly at the farm, I got to make my first official field run.”
That field run cemented her place not only in OU tradition, but also in school history.
Howard didn’t grow up around horses. In fact, she admitted she had “little to no experience” before she joined the Lil’ Sis program.
“All of my current knowledge is information I have learned over my time in the club,” she said. “I had to start basically from scratch and learn through mistakes and experience.”
The Sooner Schooner’s ponies, Boomer and Sooner, are stars in their own right. But their calm appearance on game day is the product of a lot of behind-the-scenes work.
“As for the ponies’ training, we make sure that they are well-trained and equipped to handle game days and any other events they’re at,” Howard explained. “We hold multiple practices with the owners of the farm and the driver trainer to ensure that the ponies are trained and handled appropriately.”
Now that she’s officially a driver, Howard will continue to guide the Schooner onto Owen Field this season.
“I will definitely get to do it again; in fact, I made another run at the most recent football game,” she said. “Every driver is scheduled to make a field run at every home game. The schedule for who drives goes by touchdowns and scores, so I am confident that the Sooners will score a lot this season and get us plenty of field runs.”
For Howard, the significance of the role extends far beyond the stadium walls.
“The part about being a driver I am most proud of is making other Native people proud,” Howard said. “I had an older Native American gentleman approach me before a game and express how happy he was to see me on the box. Knowing that I bring pride to my tribe, other Natives, and my family is enough to make all of my hard work worth it.”
For her parents, Matt and Kisha, this is another milestone in a journey that began when their daughter was just a little girl. Last fall, Kisha recalled that Brianna once posed for a picture on the Schooner at three years old and said she would one day ride it for real.
That prediction has now come true, and then some.
From running alongside the Schooner as a Lil’ Sis to steering it across the field as a driver, Howard has shown what determination, pride, and community support can accomplish. She is still studying Elementary Education with a minor in Spanish and plans to become a first-grade teacher after graduation, but for now, she has another responsibility: carrying on one of the most cherished traditions in college football.
And every time the Sooners score, she’ll be there in the driver’s seat, turning a childhood dream into living history.