Red-River Rivalry to show what Big 12 fans will miss in coming years
AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Longhorns find themselves back in the AP Top 25 after beating TCU 32-27 in Fort Worth on Saturday. Now the No. 21 Longhorns begin their preparation for the No. 6 Oklahoma Sooners in what will likely be a fierce battle in one of the last Red-River Showdown inside the Big-12 Conference following the announcement both teams will join the SEC by 2025.
In a matchup that dates back over 100 years there are few college rivalries that bring the same kind of excitement, and hatred as the Red-River Showdown. Although Texas holds a lead in the series, Oklahoma has dominated in recent years only losing three out of their last 12 matchups.
The Longhorns, searching for their first win against the Sooners since 2018, are fully aware of the difficulties they will encounter at the historic Cotton Bowl on Oct. 9.
“Clearly, we’re facing a really good opponent in Oklahoma. I’m excited for our fans. We’ve got our work to do. We need a good week of preparation to put our best foot forward Saturday at 11 a.m.,” said Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian.
Texas has won their last three games since making a change at the quarterback position, opting for junior Casey Thompson over freshman Hudson Card. Thompson enters the game with nine touchdown passes and three interceptions. The Longhorns will need Thompson, a native Oklahoman, to have another solid game with limited mistakes if they want to upset the Sooners. Up to this point, Thompson has shown he can protect the ball and move the offense down the field, but if the Longhorns want to come out victorious against Oklahoma, they will need to win the turnover battle.
On the other hand, the Oklahoma Sooners walk into the Red-River Showdown with a 5-0 start to the season after three close calls against Kansas State, West Virginia and Nebraska, each win coming within a touchdown or less. Despite multiple close calls in recent weeks, the Sooners still hold a No. 6 ranking going into the matchup.
Lincoln Riley and his squad will have more on their plate this week against rival Texas. If Oklahoma wants to squeeze out another victory, they will need clean up their play on defense.
“We didn’t tackle very well in the open field. Made way too many very simple mistakes that frankly we haven’t been having. Got to play more complete there,” Riley said.
The Sooners defense has yet to face an offense that can put up points like the Longhorns and they will need to clean up mistakes from previous weeks to keep them under wraps. Oklahoma is used to having a foot up on the competition when it comes to offensive prowess, but Texas is averaging 43.8 points a game to the Sooners 38.4. Neither side will be able to lean on their offensive. Instead, this game will likely hang on the play of the defense, something unfamiliar in the land of the Big-12 Conference.
The Big-12 is known for two things: high-scoring offenses, and poor- to-optional defenses. Both should combine for a high scoring affair in what may be the last Red-River Showdown to be held inside the Big-12 Conference.
Whether a Longhorn fan or a Sooner fan, expect an intense battle followed by either ultimate joy, or devastating despair.
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