In the most obvious breaking news of the day, the Oklahoma Sooners announced that Spencer Rattler would be the starting quarterback. Rattler had been in a “quarterback competition” with Tanner Mordecai. However, the news that Rattler will be the starter sets up the Red River Rivalry showdown.
The young inexperience redshirt freshman quarterback Spencer Rattler against the savvy veteran senior Sam Ehlinger. This year will mark the fourth rivalry matchup for Ehlinger, who debuted in the 2017 matchup. After being down 20-0 with 4:32 left in the first half, he would lead the Longhorns back to take the lead with 8:01 left in the game. Ultimately falling 29-24 to the Sooners.
Ehlinger is 1-2 in his career against the Sooners in the Red River Rivalry. After their loss in the Big 12 Championship, Sam is 1-3. Ehlinger could even the series with victories on Oct. 10 and in the Big 12 Championship game. In his lone win, he bested a quarterback debuting in the rivalry. Kyler Murray made one start in the series, losing 48-45 to the Longhorns on a last second kick by Cameron Dicker.
For Rattler, a quarterback debuting in his first taste of the rivalry haven’t faired well as of late. In fact, three of the last five quarterbacks to debut in this game have lost. Blake Bell, Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray all fell in their first matchups against Texas as the starter.
While you can argue that Spencer Rattler is more talented than the other three from a recruiting standpoint, he will have his work cut out for him. No Kennedy Brooks and no CeeDee Lamb this year. Lincoln Riley knows how to put his guys into a position to win. In the biggest game of the year for the Big 12 Conference, this will be a battle worth every penny.