Oklahoma walked out of the Red River Rivalry with the kind of finish that turns a tense afternoon into a full-blown classic.
Tate Sandell drilled a 47-yard field goal as time expired, lifting the Sooners past No. 1 Texas after Arch Manning’s interception gave Oklahoma one final opening in the closing seconds. The kick sent half the stadium into a frenzy and sealed a huge win for an Oklahoma team that arrived in the Cotton Bowl under heavy scrutiny.
The decisive sequence started when Manning threw the backbreaking pick with Texas pushing toward field-goal range and a chance to answer late. Instead of setting up a Longhorns winning try, the turnover handed Oklahoma the ball at its own 39 with 19 seconds left and one timeout.
From there, John Mateer handled the moment. He completed two passes to Isaiah Sategna III, moving the Sooners all the way to the Texas 30-yard line and setting Sandell up for the winner.
The game had been defined by Oklahoma’s offense struggling to find the end zone. The Sooners had not scored an offensive touchdown against Texas since 2023, and that drought held through the first three quarters on Saturday.
Even so, Oklahoma stayed close thanks to its defense and a punt-return touchdown. Then came Manning’s 42-yard pick-6 with 10:07 remaining, which gave the Sooners their first lead of the day.
Texas answered on Manning’s next possession with a touchdown drive, but the quarterback’s interceptions ended up leaving the strongest impression from the afternoon. Mateer, meanwhile, delivered when the Sooners needed him most, and Sandell finished the job.
In Other News...
Red River History Shows How Rarely This Rivalry Gets Out Of Hand
The Red River Rivalry has a way of making even the most confident predictions feel shaky, and the history backs that up. Over 121 years, Oklahoma and Texas have produced far more tense, back-and-forth afternoons than runaway results, with blowouts of 30 points or more happening only 16 times. Most of the series has lived in the margins, which is part of why this annual meeting still feels like one of college footballs purest pressure games.
Even in a rivalry that usually stays tight, the extremes have surfaced often enough in recent years to remind everyone how quickly things can unravel. Since 2000, there have been six blowouts of that size, including Texas 49-0 win over Oklahoma in 2022, the largest margin in series history. Oklahoma has accounted for nine of the 16 lopsided wins, Texas for seven, but the broader story remains the same: this matchup is far more often decided by a handful of plays than by a runaway. [Read more 🡒]
Texas Just Handed Oklahoma Fans A New Rivalry Talking Point
Texas left the Red River Rivalry with a familiar kind of frustration, the kind that lingers because the game was there to be taken. Oklahomas 27-24 win came down to Tate Sandells 47-yard field goal at the buzzer, but the postgame conversation from the other sideline quickly shifted toward self-inflicted damage. Longhorns edge rusher Colin Simmons pointed to Texas mistakes as the difference, a fair read considering Arch Manning threw two interceptions in a game that featured a late turnover on a promising final drive.
For Oklahoma, the result was the same regardless of how Texas explained it. The Sooners took advantage when it mattered most and walked away with a rivalry win that came after a night of swings, miscues and pressure-packed possessions. For fans on the Oklahoma side, Simmons assessment only adds another layer to a game that already delivered plenty of fuel for bragging rights, and a reminder that the Red River meeting rarely needs much help creating a talking point. [Read more 🡒]
Sooners Defense Has Oklahoma Fans Believing In Red River Upset Chance
With the Red River Rivalry looming, the conversation around Oklahoma has started to shift away from the offense and toward a defense that has given Sooners fans a reason to believe. ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit pointed to Texas as the favorite, but he also singled out Oklahomas ability to get off the field, noting the Sooners top-ranked third-down defense as one of the clearest reasons this matchup could stay tight.
Herbstreit also framed the game through the lens of both quarterbacks, saying Arch Manning has not been especially sharp on the Texas side while Oklahoma has had its own offensive issues. Even with that in mind, he still leaned toward the Longhorns to pull it out, which only adds to the intrigue for Oklahoma heading into a rivalry game that could hinge on whether that defense can keep the Sooners in striking distance long enough for the rest of the offense to matter. [Read more 🡒]