Golden: I'll miss Mike Gundy, but also this underrated Texas-Oklahoma State rivalry series
It just didn’t seem fair when the newfangled Big 12 released its schedule last spring.
No Texas-Oklahoma State?
Hey, we all understood that Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark had to figure out a way to incorporate newcomers Cincinnati, Central Florida, BYU and Houston into the mix, but it isn’t a Big 12 schedule if the Longhorns aren’t knocking heads with the Cowboys and longtime head coach Mike Gundy, aka the Mullet.
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Thankfully, we won’t have to think about what could have been when the Horns and Oklahoma depart for the SEC. Texas and Oklahoma State will meet for the first and final time in a Big 12 championship game Saturday, bringing to an end a relatively underrated rivalry when viewed through a national lens.
“I think in a unique way, it's kind of fitting that we're playing Oklahoma State knowing we didn't get an opportunity to play each other in the regular season with us leaving the Big 12 and some of the great games and the matchups that have gone on over the years,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said.
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While a Texas-Oklahoma matchup would have been sexier and more beneficial to Texas' postseason cause since the Sooners are ranked 12th — five spots ahead of their Bedlam rival — it’s nice that the Horns and Cowboys will get one last crack at one another.
The Horns own a 26-11 advantage in the series and while a win this weekend is essential to Texas keepings its College Football Playoff hopes alive, some real fireworks will have to take place for the game to enter the lexicon of great games in the series that dates all the way back to 1916.
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So for old times' sake, I decided to put together my five most memorable games between the two. The Big 12 won’t be the same without this matchup, and the death of Bedlam is like a dagger in the old ticker.
Here goes:
No. 5: Charlie Strong's heartbreak
Oklahoma State 30, Texas 27 (2015): This game will be remembered for two plays. The first was embattled Texas coach Charlie Strong getting flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after protesting a horrible defensive holding call on the Longhorns. The official goaded Strong into the penalty when he followed him to the Texas sideline. I will go to the grave believing that.
The next — Michael Dickson’s botched punt deep in Texas territory — allowed the Cowboys great field position to set up the game-winning field goal.
Charlie never got a lucky break at Texas. This game was a microcosm of his three failed seasons in Austin.
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No. 4: Some late Longhorns magic
Texas 38, Oklahoma State 35 (2007): The Horns showed they had the comeback magic in the rivalry by obliterating a 21-point deficit in a 24-point fourth quarter to win on Ryan Bailey’s 40-yard field goal as time expired. Jamaal Charles, playing his last college season — he left for the pros one year early — scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns, including an 80-yard sprint to cut the deficit to 35-28. Colt McCoy and wideout Jordan Shipley hooked up for the tying score.
"It's just within us," McCoy said after the game. "I wish we could play like that in the beginning, I promise. I hate that it has to come down like that, but it just shows the toughness and shows the fight and shows the character of our team."
No. 3: Cowboys add to Mack's misery
Oklahoma State 33, Texas 16 (2010): The Cowboys caught the Longhorns at the perfect time. It was Mack Brown’s worst season in Austin — Texas went 5-7 after playing for a national title — and worse yet, Oklahoma State ended an 0-12 drought in the series with an emphatic win led by quarterback Brandon Weeden’s 409 yards. The Cowboys went on to finish 11-2 to start an epic 23-3 run over two seasons that included national finishes of being ranked No. 10 and No. 3.
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No. 2: Some Vince Young electricity at DKR
Texas 56, Oklahoma State 35 (2004): That first Rose Bowl appearance doesn’t happen had the No. 6 Horns not come back from a 35-7 deficit to win what was easily the loudest Texas home game I ever attended. DKR was electric that night.
After Bo Scaife scored to cut the deficit to 35-14 at the half, Brown pulled his troops together in the locker room and said, “We’re going to win 42-35.”
They did him 14 better. Running back Cedric Benson scored five touchdowns and sophomore quarterback Vince Young completed 18-of-21 passes for 278 yards with another 123 on the ground. Ramonce Taylor’s 46-yard TD on a reverse took the roof off an outdoor stadium.
Forty-nine unanswered points and the Horns improved to 8-1 en route to a season-ending Rose Bowl win over Michigan.
No. 1: The pump fake to end all pump fakes
Texas 47, Oklahoma State 28 (2005): I remember it like it was yesterday. The Horns were stuck in park at Boone Pickens Stadium and their dreams of playing USC for the national title were about to go up in smoke against an OSU team that entered the game 0-4 in conference play in its first season under Gundy. That is, until the biggest pump fake in program history.
Trailing 28-12, the Horns took the ball to start the second half and Young ran around right end only to see Cowboys safety Donovan Woods coming up to make the tackle. Young faked like he was throwing the ball and Woods took the bait, allowing the Texas quarterback to blaze down the sideline for an 80-yard touchdown run, a season saver.
The Horns outscored the Cowboys 35-0 in the second half, putting a cap on a three-year run of comebacks which Texas owned a 118-0 advantage in the second halves of those games.
So there you have it. Five of the most memorable games in the series. Who knows, this one could crack the top five even if the Horns are expected to win by double digits.
The Cowboys will come in confident, having won nine of the last 13 matchups. Gundy stoked the fire this week when he said the Horns do not play fast and could average 50 if they sped things up. He also indicated Sarkisian will coach in predictable fashion.
“He's going to max protect. He's going to throw the ball down the field eight to 10 times a game,” Gundy told reporters. “He's going to max protect and run those guys down the field and try to throw the ball over your head and get big plays. He's going to run his zone play, he's going to run his counter and he's going to stay in his box. That's what he does.”
Leave it to the Mullet to spice things up with good copy.
I’ll miss the guy.
And the series as well.
Saturday's game
No. 7 Texas (11-1) vs. No. 20 Oklahoma State (9-3), 11 a.m., AT&T Stadium in Arlington, ABC, 1300
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas football and Oklahoma State share a long football rivalry series
