It then continues east, crossing the North Canadian River and meeting SH-51A before turning northeast toward Okeene, where it intersects SH-8.

After crossing I-35, SH-51 becomes a multilane highway and a major corridor linking I-35 to Stillwater, the home of Oklahoma State University.

When this freeway ends at I-244 near downtown Tulsa, SH-51 merges onto I-244 southbound only to exit 1 mile (1.6 km) later, where it runs concurrent with US-64/US-75.

At Coweta, SH-51 turns back east after heading southeast through the Tulsa area.

After crossing the Muskogee Turnpike again and bridging the Verdigris River the highway soon enters Wagoner, where it junctions with US-69.

Returning once again to a 2-lane road, Highway 51 crosses Ft. Gibson Lake and the town of Hulbert.

After spitting with these highways, it heads southeast toward Stilwell, Oklahoma, running concurrent with US-59 for a mile on the way.

[1] ODOT extended SH-51 west to Stillwater and Perry (via a segment of roadway currently serving as US-177).

[8] Like many in the Oklahoma state highway system, SH-51 has short spurs branching from it that bear the "51" number with a lettered suffix: