John Shinn
DALLAS — It was like a ride that someone would have paid about 200 tickets to take Saturday afternoon at the Texas State Fair. Some did with scalpers asking $500 for for a ticket outside the gates. Touchdowns, big plays and momentum swung back and forth so violently it almost caused motion sickness.
In the end, it was No. 1 Oklahoma that was sick after a 45-35 loss to No. 5 Texas in the 103rd edition of the Red River Rivalry.
“We weren’t good enough and they were,” OU coach Bob Stoops said after the Sooners became the first top-ranked team to tumble in the Red River Rivalry since 1963.
He pretty much hit the nail on the head.
The Sooners’ up-tempo offense slowed to a crawl in the fourth quarter and its defense wilted late in a game that featured three lead changes in the final 16 minutes and nearly 900 yards of total offense.
It was hardly the low-scoring slugfest OU and Texas had become known for over the last 60 years. But in the end, it came down to the one thing that decides the Cotton Bowl wars.
The team that runs the ball best typically wins. The Longhorns (6-0, 2-0 Big 12) won that battle easily.
Chris Ogbonnaya rushed for 127 yards, including a 62-yard dash midway through the fourth quarter that helped the Longhorns put the game out of reach. All but 8 of it came in the second half.
The Sooners (5-1, 1-1) didn’t match those numbers. They didn’t even come close. Chris Brown managed 29 yards on seven carries. DeMarco Murray had just 6 — 1 more than punter Mike Knall, who got 5 on a fake-punt attempt that came up a yard short of a critical first down.
“I don’t think we ran real hard at times,” offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson said. “We just kept challenging our guys. We do need to have the balance, but again they were going to commit in certain sets to overload it. That’s is why we passed so much. We don’t want to be one-dimensional.”
The Sooners almost got away with it. Sam Bradford, who was 28-for-41, put on one of the best performances in the rivalry’s rich history, throwing for 387 yards and five touchdowns. The last one, a 14-yard connection to Manny Johnson, put OU up 35-30 early in the fourth quarter.
“In the first half, we played at a fast tempo and I think we caught them off guard a couple times,” Bradford said. “In the second half, they made some adjustments. But most of all, we didn’t make plays.”
The quarterback duel between Bradford and McCoy was as good as advertised. The Sooner signal-caller had to leave the Cotton Bowl feeling like a pitcher who threw a no-hitter and lost.
“Sam Bradford is a great leader,” said McCoy, who threw for 277 yards. “I mean look at him today — he ran them up and down the field. He is a special player and we knew coming in that they were going to score some points.”
OU did early, twice taking 11-point leads in the first half. Texas ducked enough punches to stay in the game.
“It was a heavyweight fight that continued throughout the day,” Texas coach Mack Brown said. “Every time one would get up the other one would come back. Neither team gave up and neither team quit.”
The last 14 minutes told the story.
OU only converted one third down and was 0-for-2 on fourth down in the final period. Its last three possessions ended with a punt, a turnover on downs and an interception on the final play.
Cody Johnson scored on touchdown runs of 1 and 2 yards in the final 7:37 to post the final score and seal Texas’ victory. Both came against an OU defense that wilted under the hot sun and strain of being on the field nearly 15 minutes longer than its rival.
“When we needed stops, we couldn’t get them,” OU defensive tackle Gerald McCoy said.
