The 10 Greatest Texas-Oklahoma Games Ever Played

Texas and Oklahoma play again Saturday at the Cotton Bowl, the 121st time they have met and the 3rd as SEC members. Texas leads the series 65-51-5, and last October an unranked 4-2 Longhorn team held No. 6 Oklahoma without a touchdown in a 23-6 win. That game was a rout. The ones below were not.

A few ground rules. This is a list of great games, not great wins, so the score had to matter into the 4th quarter. The split is 5 Texas wins, 4 Oklahoma wins and 1 tie, which is about the fairest thing anyone has ever said about this rivalry. And number 1 is not up for debate.

10. 1977: Texas 13, Oklahoma 6

The moment: Johnny Johnson and the Texas defense stuff Thomas Lott on 4th-and-1 at the Texas 4-yard line in the closing minutes.

No. 5 Texas came in 3-0. No. 2 Oklahoma came in 4-0. Then Texas lost its starting quarterback, Mark McBath, to an ankle injury in the 1st quarter, and its backup, Jon Aune, to a knee. The quarterback for the rest of the day was Randy McEachern, who had never lettered and by his own account started the season 4th on the depth chart. Earl Campbell carried 23 times for 124 yards and the only touchdown of the game, and 114 of those yards came after contact. Two Russell Erxleben field goals covered the rest.

Why it belongs: Texas was No. 1 within a month and finished the regular season unbeaten, Campbell won the Heisman, and McEachern is still the answer to the best trivia question in the series. Billy Sims missed the game hurt, which Sooner fans will mention before you finish the sentence.

9. 1999: Texas 38, Oklahoma 28

The moment: Major Applewhite's 18-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Nunez caps a 99-yard drive in the 4th quarter.

Bob Stoops' first Oklahoma team, with Mike Leach calling plays, jumped on No. 23 Texas 17-0 in the 1st quarter. Then Hodges Mitchell ran for 204 yards and Applewhite threw for 328 and 3 touchdowns without a turnover. Oklahoma kept coming. Kicker Tim Duncan scored on a fake field goal to make it 31-28 before Texas went 99 yards to put it away.

Why it belongs: It was the biggest comeback by a Texas team since 1965, and it was the last time Texas beat Oklahoma until 2005. Five straight Sooner wins followed, by a combined score of 189-54.

8. 1996: Oklahoma 30, Texas 27 (OT)

The moment: James Allen takes a pitch 2 yards into the end zone in overtime.

Oklahoma was 0-4 under first-year coach John Blake. Texas was ranked No. 25 and led 24-13 in the 4th quarter. Jarrail Jackson returned a punt 51 yards for a touchdown, a 2-point conversion made it 24-21, and a field goal tied it. In the first season college football used overtime, Texas went backward on its possession and settled for a 43-yard Phil Dawson field goal. Allen, who had been stopped a foot short of the goal line by Stonie Clark to end the 1994 game, scored on the next possession.

Why it belongs: Winless Oklahoma beat ranked Texas in the first overtime game in the history of the series. That is the whole case.

7. 1990: Texas 14, Oklahoma 13

The moment: Peter Gardere hits Keith Cash for a 16-yard touchdown on 4th down with about 2 minutes left to finish a 91-yard drive.

Oklahoma came in unbeaten and ranked No. 4. Texas came in unranked and had already lost to Colorado. The Sooners led 13-7 late when Gardere, a sophomore who had beaten them with a late touchdown pass the year before, drove the length of the field. Oklahoma still had one shot. R.D. Lashar's 46-yard field goal on the final play sailed wide left.

Why it belongs: Texas beat No. 3 Houston the next week, climbed to No. 7, and won the Southwest Conference. Gardere went on to start and win 4 straight against Oklahoma, which no other quarterback in the series has done.

6. 2023: Oklahoma 34, Texas 30

The moment: Dillon Gabriel to Nic Anderson, 3 yards, with 15 seconds left.

Both teams were unbeaten. Texas was No. 3, Oklahoma No. 12, and the game was the last Red River meeting as Big 12 members. Texas scored 13 straight points, including a 47-yard field goal, to lead 30-27 with 1:17 left. Oklahoma had no timeouts. Gabriel took them 75 yards in 5 plays and 62 seconds, finished it to Anderson, and Quinn Ewers' Hail Mary fell incomplete. Gabriel threw for 285 yards and ran for 113.

Why it belongs: It cost Texas a perfect regular season and nearly cost them a playoff spot. It also closed the Big 12 era the way it opened, with Oklahoma winning the ones that mattered.

5. 2001: Oklahoma 14, Texas 3

The moment: Roy Williams leaves his feet.

The defending national champions led 7-3 with just over 2 minutes left, and Texas had the ball at its own 2. Williams, who had been told all week not to jump at the line of scrimmage, launched himself over running back Brett Robin and into Chris Simms as he threw. The ball popped straight to linebacker Teddy Lehman, who walked 2 yards into the end zone. Oklahoma's own record book calls it a fumble return, because the ball was out before Simms' arm came forward. Nobody else does. Fifteen seconds later Williams intercepted Simms for good measure.

Why it belongs: The score is the lowest on this list, and the play is the most replayed. The "Superman play" has been on every Red River highlight reel for 25 years and will be on every one for the next 25.

4. 1984: Texas 15, Oklahoma 15

The moment: Keith Stanberry intercepts Todd Dodge in the end zone, and an official rules he was juggling the ball as he stepped out of bounds.

No. 1 Texas against No. 3 Oklahoma in a downpour. Texas led 10-0 at halftime. Oklahoma came back to lead 15-10, then took an intentional safety deep in its own end to make it 15-12. On the last drive, Dodge threw for Bill Boy Bryant, the ball was tipped, and Stanberry came down with it near the sideline. The ruling was incomplete. Jeff Ward kicked a 32-yard field goal through the rain as time expired. There was no overtime in 1984.

Why it belongs: A tie for first place in the country decided by one official's eyes in a monsoon. Oklahoma players still say Stanberry was in bounds. Texas coach Fred Akers said it could have gone either way, which is the closest a Texas coach has ever come to agreeing with them.

3. 2021: Oklahoma 55, Texas 48

The moment: Kennedy Brooks takes a direct snap 33 yards with 3 seconds left.

Texas led 28-7 in the 1st half and 38-20 in the 3rd quarter. Lincoln Riley benched Spencer Rattler after two turnovers, and freshman Caleb Williams ran 66 yards for a touchdown on 4th-and-1. Brooks ran for 217 yards, and his 18-yard score with 7:10 left gave No. 6 Oklahoma its first lead at 48-41. Xavier Worthy, who caught 9 passes for 261 yards, tied it with 1:23 left. Oklahoma went the length of the field and did not need overtime.

Why it belongs: 103 points, 2 comebacks, a quarterback change that altered the trajectory of both programs, and a winning score with 3 seconds on the clock. It was also the first of 6 straight losses that sank Steve Sarkisian's first season.

2. 2018: Texas 48, Oklahoma 45

The moment: Cameron Dicker's 40-yard field goal with 9 seconds left.

No. 19 Texas led No. 7 Oklahoma 45-24 going into the 4th quarter. Kyler Murray then threw a 19-yard touchdown to Lee Morris, ran 67 yards for another on a 1-play drive, and handed Trey Sermon the tying score with 2:38 left: 3 touchdowns in 6 minutes. Sam Ehlinger, who finished with 314 yards passing, 72 rushing and 5 touchdowns, converted a 3rd-and-3 on a keeper and ran a draw to the middle of the field to set up a freshman kicker.

Why it belongs: Murray won the Heisman 2 months later. He put up 304 passing yards, 92 rushing yards and 4 touchdowns, erased a 21-point deficit in a quarter, and lost. Texas fans will tell you where they were when Dicker's kick went through. Oklahoma fans will tell you about the 39-27 rematch in the Big 12 title game 2 months later.

1. 2008: Texas 45, Oklahoma 35

The moment: Jordan Shipley's 96-yard kickoff return, the longest in the history of the game, answers an Oklahoma touchdown before halftime.

No. 1 Oklahoma, with Sam Bradford on his way to the Heisman, against No. 5 Texas, with Colt McCoy on his way to 2nd. Bradford threw 5 touchdown passes. McCoy went 28 of 35 for 277 yards and did not throw an interception. Shipley caught 11 passes, a record for the game, on top of the return. Oklahoma led 35-30 in the 4th quarter. Texas stopped a fake punt, drove 74 yards for a Cody Johnson touchdown, and then scored again on another Johnson run to finish a 15-7 final quarter.

Why it's number 1: Two top-5 teams, two Heisman finalists at quarterback, 80 points, and the lead changing hands into the final minutes. Texas went to No. 1 the next day. And then came the 3-way tie, the BCS tiebreaker, and Oklahoma playing for the national championship instead of the team that beat them on a neutral field. Texas fans have been arguing about it for 18 years. That is what a great game does.

Honorable mentions

• 1963: Texas 28, Oklahoma 7. The only No. 1 vs. No. 2 meeting. Texas won the national title.
• 1971: Oklahoma 48, Texas 27. The wishbone, turned back on the school that invented it.
• 1976: Oklahoma 6, Texas 6. The other tie, played with Darrell Royal accusing Barry Switzer of spying on practice.
• 1989: Texas 28, Oklahoma 24. Gardere to Johnny Walker with 1:33 left. The one everyone mixes up with 1990.
• 2000: Oklahoma 63, Texas 14. Not a great game. A great statement.
• 2013: Texas 36, Oklahoma 20. A 2-touchdown underdog, Case McCoy at quarterback, and Mack Brown's last win in the series.
• 2025: Texas 23, Oklahoma 6. Three John Mateer interceptions and no Sooner touchdown.

Your turn

What did we get wrong? Is 2008 really better than 2018, or is that just a Texas fan talking? Make your case before kickoff Saturday.