Could John Mateer return for the Red River Rivalry? (1:49)Pete Thamel and Tom Luginbill analyze the possibility of John Mateer returning from injury for Oklahoma’s rivalry game against Texas. (1:49)
From the distinctive venue to the storied history, there are few college football staples quite like the Allstate Red River Rivalry.
From the hubbub of the State Fair of Texas ongoing outside to the iconic half-orange, half-red Cotton Bowl split, the annual showdown between the Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma Sooners always brings a memorable atmosphere.
Conference affiliations can change — this year will mark the second season that Oklahoma-Texas will be played as an SEC contest — but iconic moments remain a staple in Dallas. Just two years ago, Nic Anderson secured a permanent place in Sooners lore with a winning touchdown catch with 15 seconds left.
The 2021 edition of the rivalry was one of the games of that college football season, and for good reason.
In addition to being a remarkably high-powered game featuring a combined 1,178 yards of total offense, the stars were shining in the Cotton Bowl. Texas receiver Xavier Worthy caught nine passes for a staggering 261 yards and a pair of scores. On the other sideline, Oklahoma turned to their backup quarterback for a fresh engine — a highly touted freshman named Caleb Williams.
A late Worthy touchdown looked as if it would send the game to overtime, but the Sooners’ offense had one last score left. Williams piloted Oklahoma to the edge of field goal range, before Kennedy Brooks outraced the Longhorns’ defense to the end zone for a winning touchdown with just seconds left.
With 8½ minutes left in the fourth quarter of the 2018 edition of the rivalry, Texas appeared to be on cruise control. The Longhorns’ three third-quarter touchdowns had given them a comfortable 45-24 lead.
The Kyler Murray-led Sooners had other plans. Oklahoma stormed back, with a 7-yard run by Trey Sermon to tie the game with just over two minutes to go. But Sam Ehlinger engineered one final drive for Texas in response, eventually putting the Longhorns’ victory hopes on the foot of true freshman kicker Cameron Dicker.
Dicker, now with the Los Angeles Chargers, answered the call, draining a 40-yard field goal with nine seconds left to secure a win for Texas.
In a battle between top-5 foes, it was the No. 1-ranked Sooners who raced to an early 14-3 lead in Dallas.
With Texas in need of a spark, Jordan Shipley delivered. He raced the kickoff after Oklahoma’s second touchdown 96 yards the other way to the end zone for a momentum-changing score, the longest such return in the long history of the rivalry.
The Longhorns’ offense had punted twice in three drives before Shipley’s return. They would finish six of their next seven drives with points, eventually amassing a 45-35 lead that would power Texas to a major win.
With just over two minutes left in another top-5 edition of the rivalry, the stage was set for yet another iconic ending.
Simms’ disrupted pass fell right into the arms of Teddy Lehman, who intercepted it and rushed into the end zone untouched. The Sooners’ 14-3 lead would hold as the final score.
Could John Mateer return for the Red River Rivalry? (1:49)Pete Thamel and Tom Luginbill analyze the possibility of John Mateer returning from injury for Oklahoma’s rivalry game against Texas. (1:49)
Pete Thamel and Tom Luginbill analyze the possibility of John Mateer returning from injury for Oklahoma’s rivalry game against Texas. (1:49)
Here are some of the other most iconic plays in the rivalry since the turn of the century.
Roy Williams goes Superman mode to secure a Sooners win