From the primary drive Saturday inside Dallas’ Cotton Bowl, the faculty soccer rivalry that has hardly ever performed to script once more seemed to be veering away from expectations.
Three performs into the annual Red River Rivalry, Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers threw an interception. First-ranked and undefeated Texas was on its again foot in opposition to Oklahoma, the group the Longhorns have been anticipated to beat handily.
In earlier years, when the higher-ranked group usually left the Cotton Bowl making an attempt to grasp the way it had by some means misplaced, such a begin would have portended an ominous finish.
But not this yr.
The Longhorns went on to beat the 18th-ranked Sooners, 34-3, by hardly ever making such errors once more.
Late within the second quarter, main 14-3, Texas pressured fumbles on consecutive Oklahoma drives to guide 21-3 on the half.
For a Sooners offense that lacked a passing sport and knew its margin for error was already slim, the turnovers earlier than halftime successfully ended any menace and turned a rivalry whose historical past is rife with surprising outcomes right into a outcome that ought to shock no person.
Playing his first sport since coming back from an indirect pressure that sidelined him for 2 video games, Ewers appeared overwhelmed early, however ended with 199 passing yards, finishing 20 of his 29 passes.
He threw for one landing and rushed for one more. Texas (6-0) was additional helped by Quintrevion Wisner’s 118 dashing yards, together with a 43-yard landing run, and solely 5 penalties.
The outcome made clear that Oklahoma (4-2) might once more wrestle underneath coach Brent Venables. Once a manufacturing unit that produced Heisman Trophy-caliber quarterbacks, the Sooners entered Saturday with the 119th-ranked passing offense, and Michael Hawkins hardly ever threatened by finishing 19 of his 30 passes. Oklahoma’s dashing assault additionally produced solely 2.3 yards per carry.
Harder to discern is how a lot the Longhorns’ rout of Oklahoma revealed in regards to the power of Texas as a national-title contender.
This season, it has received by a mean margin of 36.8 factors, however whether or not that claims extra in regards to the power of Texas or the underwhelming nature of its schedule stays unclear. Its two greatest victories, on the highway at Michigan and at a impartial web site in opposition to Oklahoma, have been spectacular given the Longhorns’ stage of management, but got here in opposition to groups which can be significantly flawed.
Life in Texas’ earlier convention, the Big 12, meant that beating Oklahoma was the hardest hurdle to reaching the convention title sport. In the SEC, that’s now not the case. Next week, the Longhorns host Georgia.
Beating the Sooners earned Texas bragging rights. The Bulldogs, nonetheless, might be a more true championship litmus take a look at.