The Red River Rivalry is one of the biggest games of the year.
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The Longhorns enter the showdown with the Sooners looking to rebound from another disappointing blowout loss. The Longhorns are 1-4 and there seems to be no light at the end of the tunnel – not even the Cotton Bowl’s South end zone tunnel. Texas will try to beat the Sooners for the second time in seven years. All four losses have come against ranked opponents who have a combined record of 19-1.
So even though they are Longhorns through and through, Mayes and his family will be rooting for one Sooner on Saturday.
-QB Baker Mayfield grew up in the Austin, Texas, area and although he was a Sooners fan, he was open to the possibility to walking on at Texas before eventually landing at Texas Tech and then Oklahoma.
On the season, the Oklahoma Sooners average 358.3 yards in passing and 163.5 yards in rushing. The Sooners scored first on an 8-yard touchdown run by Blake Bell and were never headed from there. “It’s not the same thing as (in high school)”.
He’s also made the most of that opportunity, Mayfield’s most defining trait heading into Saturday’s matchup between Oklahoma (4-0, 1-0 in Big 12) and Texas (1-4, 0-2) in the Cotton Bowl (11 a.m., WFAA.Ch. 8). On the ground, Samaje Perine rushed for 65 yards in 16 attempts while Joe Mixon added 43 yards and one touchdown. Andrews has three touchdown catches on eight receptions this season. That’s because of quarterback Jerrod Heard. Heard and the offense struggled against TCU and will look to bounce back from their rough performance. Texas also needs a difference-maker in the return game if Daje Johnson is out as expected. The Longhorns’ missed senior offensive lineman Kent Perkins against the Horned Frogs. The Sooners were heavily favored in 2013 only to get thumped 36-20.
“Being from Austin, there’s always a few Longhorn fans that wish you good luck but say, ‘Hey, I’ll still be cheering for my team, ‘” Mayfield said. “They just want to go out and play the game on Saturday”.
The Longhorns will try to get big plays from wide receivers John Burt and Armanti Foreman on Saturday.
If OU wins, Governor Abbott has selected to send a shipment of Railhead BBQ from Fort Worth to City Rescue Mission, a non-profit partnering with the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma, in Oklahoma City.
The Longhorns’ will have an opportunity to establish its offense and take advantage of Oklahoma’s defense as it hasn’t been a strong unit for the Sooners.
-WR Sterling Shepard has been a strong contributor for Oklahoma in each of the last three games vs. Texas, but he said early in the week that he was hoping for a signature moment in the rivalry.
Well it’s Texas and it’s football season, so yes it is a big deal.
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A different outcome in the Cotton Bowl would allow Mayfield to break the hearts of several childhood friends, a prospect he relishes. Notre Dame, Cal, Oklahoma State and TCU have combined for only one loss, which proves the Longhorns haven’t had a cake walk to start the season.
