By Jason Fleck
Every year Texas and Oklahoma meet up at the neutral Cotton Bowl in Dallas to play in their annual Red River rivalry game. It is one of the biggest rivalries in college football and rarely disappoints. No matter how good or bad each team is doing each year the game is always competitive, bragging rights and school pride being what they truly playing for even when nothing else matters. Usually one or both of the teams is ranked in the top-20 in the polls when they meet, this year is no exception with Oklahoma coming in ranked No. 13 and Texas No. 15. This battle has produced some of the most memorable game, since the result always has both a huge impact in the Big 12 and National picture, since both teams are almost always on the top in both. This will mark the 107th annual meeting between the two teams with Texas having an edge in the series with an overall record of 59-42-5, and has also four out of the five of the last meetings. Their streak ended with disappointing 55-17 thrashing to Oklahoma last year.
This year is looking to produce another one of those great games everybody is used to seeing from this rivalry. While both teams are out of the national race with their losses, this game will definitely have an effect on the Big 12 standings. The winner will put themselves right in the middle of the race, while the loser will most definitely miss out on the chance for the Big 12 title. They are both coming into this game into the game with a 1-1 record in the conference. Oklahoma suffered their first defeat in their conference opener against Kansas State, but bounced back with an easy 41-20 win against Texas Tech. Texas is just coming off a loss to West Virginia in an emotionally draining game in which the defense played so well while the offense literally dropped the ball when quarterback Davis Ash botched a snap after the defense came up with a huge fumble recovery in West Virginia territory. The kicker then missed the ensuing field goal attempt and West Virginia marched down the field to score and put the game away. If Texas plays like they did the past weekend, they can win this game. The biggest stat will be if they can rebound and not come out showing any ill effects of that loss.