This Saturday isn’t a normal one. Texas and Oklahoma take the field for one of the top rivalries in all of college football.
The two historic programs will battle it out in the Cotton Bowl in front of nearly 100,000 fans this week.
This meeting marks the 119th time the two teams have played each other, and it will be one of the more important matchups. But which team is under more pressure this year?
No. 12 Oklahoma is having a bounce-back year after already matching their 2022 season win total. Although they haven’t played any challenging opponents, they’ve still dominated the teams in front of them.
No. 3 Texas is looking to become 6-0 for the first time since 2009, in which they made the National Championship Game. The Longhorns objectively have the best defensive line in the country and the one place you win big-time games is in the trenches.
In my opinion, Texas has already proven themselves with two top-25 wins, including one in Tuscaloosa which is considered one of the hardest places to play football in the nation. Though facing off against Oklahoma is a rivalry game, they should not feel any pressure.
Oklahoma on the other hand hasn’t proved anything. They played a weak nonconference schedule and beat the worst team in the Big 12 last week. They also haven’t scored on Texas in 728 days. Oklahoma should feel the full weight of the pressure this week, as all eyes will be on them to see if they are truly a different team than last year.