The Red River Rivalry gets its latest chapter Saturday at the Cotton Bowl, and the matchup arrives with Texas riding high and Oklahoma searching for answers.
Texas comes in unbeaten and ranked No. 1 in the country. Oklahoma, meanwhile, is 2-2, unranked, and stuck with an offense that has been a major problem all season.
Still, this series has a way of ignoring the numbers. Last year around this same time, Texas was unranked and had two losses before knocking off OU, which was sitting just outside the top five.
That history is a reminder that the Cotton Bowl can flip the script in a hurry.
Sean McDonough will handle play-by-play, with Greg McElroy as analyst and Katie George on the sideline.
The betting line has Texas favored by 7.5 points. The Longhorns are -335 on the moneyline, while Oklahoma is +265.
The over/under is set at 39.5 points. Oklahoma is 2-2 against the spread in 2026, and Texas is 4-0.
Odds are courtesy of FanDuel.
Weather should be comfortable for early October in Dallas, with a low of 66 degrees and a high of 85. That means fans heading to the State Fair of Texas before kickoff should catch the cooler part of the day early.
Texas leads the all-time series 65-51-5. Brent Venables is 1-3 in the rivalry, and Oklahoma has lost the last two meetings while failing to score a touchdown in either game.
The biggest question for Oklahoma is whether the offense can finally show something. The Sooners rank last in the SEC in total offense and have been plagued by turnovers, many of them tied to quarterback John Mateer. That has left Oklahoma with the No. 136 turnover margin in the country, and there’s no way around the fact that the offense has been the reason the team has struggled.
The bye week offered a chance for offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle to get things moving in the right direction, but there isn’t much evidence yet that a quick fix is coming.
Mateer remains the starter, and Venables has continued to express confidence in him. Even so, the Sooners don’t have much behind him.
Mercer transfer Whitt Newbauer and freshman Bowe Bentley are both inexperienced, which makes the quarterback situation delicate. Mateer has been responsible for six of Oklahoma’s 10 turnovers this season, and the rest of the offense has done him few favors.
That leaves the door open for a change at some point if things go badly enough, even if the timing would be brutal in a rivalry game against the No. 1 team in the country.
There’s also the bigger-picture question hanging over the game: could a third straight loss to Texas turn up the heat on Venables? He signed a two-year extension before the season that runs through 2031, and the deal included a raise that makes his buyout unclear and, for now, gives the appearance of job security.
But at Oklahoma, nothing stays comfortable for long. A loss would drop the Sooners to 2-3 and all but wipe out their College Football Playoff hopes, and if it comes against Texas again, that would cut especially deep.
In Other News...
Oklahoma Faces A Red River Concern Fans Already Feared
Oklahoma heads into the Red River matchup with a defense that could get a boost from a couple of returning pieces, but the more immediate concern is on the other side of the ball. The Sooners are working through injury issues along the offensive line and at running back, and that combination can shape everything from protection to play-calling in a game where margin for error is already slim.
Michael Fasusi is doubtful, Eddy Pierre-Louis is questionable and Xavier Robinson is out, leaving Oklahoma to sort through a patchwork situation at key spots before facing Texas. There are several other availability questions on the report as well, while Texas enters with fewer players listed as unavailable, which only sharpens the concern for a Sooners offense that would prefer far cleaner health heading into one of the season's biggest tests. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahomas Receiver Frustration Just Took Another Hit Before Texas
A week before the Red River showdown, Oklahoma added another wrinkle to a wide receiver room that has already been under scrutiny. Freshman Jahsiear Rogers has been dismissed from the football program, according to an OU spokesperson, and he has already been removed from the teams online roster. Rogers had not carved out a major role this season, but he arrived with the kind of recruiting profile that made him an intriguing long-term piece for the Sooners.
For a passing attack trying to find more consistency, losing a young receiver who once looked like a possible building block is another reminder of how much turnover can shape a season. The Sooners are now moving toward Texas with less depth and one fewer developmental option at a position that has been watched closely all fall. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma's 2028 Running Back Problem Just Got Worse Before Texas Week
The recruiting battle around the Red River Rivalry picked up another jolt when Micah Rhodes, a four-star running back in the 2028 class, backed off his Oklahoma pledge and announced for Texas just ahead of the matchup. Rhodes had originally committed to the Sooners, so the flip adds a fresh layer of sting to a weekend that already carries plenty of recruiting and regional weight for both programs.
Rhodes change of heart came after the departure of Oklahoma running backs coach DeMarco Murray, a reminder of how quickly the staff turnover can reshape a class. The Sooners still do not have a replacement lined up for Rhodes in the 2028 group, though they remain involved with other targets such as Jayshawn Mitchell as they try to steady that part of the board. [Read more 🡒]