The annual Texas-Oklahoma rivalry at the Cotton Bowl is always a grudge match. Today's game between the No. 3-ranked Longhorns and the No. 20 Sooners also carries national title implications and promises to be extra spicy after what happened last season.
Forgot? Here's a rundown.
Texas beat then-No. 1 Oklahoma 45-35 to vault to No. 1. A few weeks later, the Sooners, Longhorns and Texas Tech were in a three-way tie in the Big 12's South Division. The border battle then became the banner war.
A plane circled the stadium at Oklahoma's regular-season finale with a banner: "Texas 45 OU 35 - Settled on a Neutral Field." A few days later, a flying message over Austin teased Texas with "Hey Mack, quit whining. U knew the rules."
The Big 12 tiebreaker went to Oklahoma. The Sooners went to the BCS title game against Florida and Texas got bumped to the Fiesta Bowl, though OU then lost and Texas won.
Still seething months later, the Texas staff claimed the 2008 Big 12 title on the champions wall in the team complex, putting an asterisk next to the year before coach Mack Brown ordered it taken down.
So now Texas will be out for revenge against a team it beat last season.
"I'm sure they're a little bitter," said Oklahoma quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford. "We're a little bitter that they beat us last year. I'm sure both sides are going to be pretty amped up come Saturday."
The Longhorns (5-0 overall, 2-0 Big 12) insist they've put the past in the past and that today is about trying to win league and national titles in 2009, not replaying 2008.
"OU had nothing to do with keeping us out," Brown said. "We lost at Tech. It was on us. We should have been mad at ourselves for letting it get out of the control of our own destiny."
The Longhorns opened this season at No. 2 eyeing three goals: the Big 12 and national titles and a Heisman for senior quarterback Colt McCoy. The first two still are in reach if they keep winning. McCoy's trophy campaign needs a boost.
McCoy, runner-up to Bradford for the 2008 Heisman, has 1,410 yards passing with 10 touchdowns but also has six interceptions. Some early missteps led to slow starts and the Longhorns had just two offensive touchdowns in the first half of three games this season.
McCoy has played some of his best games against the Sooners the last three years and knows another big game could vault him into the favorite's role again.
"These four games I've played in have been some of the most fun. They're the ones that you remember because of the tradition, the rivalry and what it means to your conference and your season," McCoy said.
Oklahoma (3-2, 1-0) and Bradford were in the mix for the same goals when the season started. Then Bradford hurt his throwing shoulder in the first game against Brigham Young and missed the next three.
Bradford returned last week in a win over Baylor and played well. The losses might have ended their national title hopes, but with Bradford back the Sooners are very much in the hunt for a seventh Big 12 title in 10 years.
"How can he not make a difference? Last year he was the best player in college football," Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said. "In the end, we're not talking about just any old guy. He's been pretty special over and over."
For McCoy and Bradford, it will be the last time the friends face each other on the field in college. McCoy is a senior and Bradford, a fourth-year junior, likely will leave for the NFL after this season.
Brown said he's glad Bradford made it back in time to play Texas.
"I thought it would be great for college football if it was Sam and Colt again," Brown said.
Today will be the 104th meeting between the schools in a rivalry that dates to 1900. Since 1912, they have met in Dallas, about halfway between each campus.
The Cotton Bowl sits amid the rides, food and livestock shows at the State Fair of Texas, giving the game a carnival atmosphere unrivaled in college football.
The game kicks off at 11 a.m. but fans still come early to taunt each other while chewing on turkey legs, corny dogs and trying to stomach the latest fried concoction. This year, it's fried butter, a scoop of pure butter frozen and covered with dough.
"It was crazy," said Texas safety Earl Thomas, who was a freshman last season and got his first taste of the rivalry. "You would think it's like 5 p.m., but it's 11 in the morning. Everybody's out there being rowdy."
