Harkening back to biggest game

Even if OU and OSU don't play up to capabilities each should win this weekend.

Friday, October 31st 2008, 1:38 pm

By: News 9

Even if OU and OSU don't play up to capabilities each should win this weekend. Unless Nebraska runs a kickoff back and has a big turnover advantage, they are not good enough on defense to keep OU from outscoring them. And unless OSU's apparent less-than-stellar week of practice and a horrible turnover differential are devastating, the Cowboys will win and thus be headed to Tech next week for potentially the "next" biggest game in school history.

That last sentence needs to be qualified for those amongst the multitudes of sportsmen and sportswomen who tend to hyperbolize and think history goes back about a week and a half.

A win keeps OSU in a championship mindset. It has the chance to set up their third "biggest" game in OSU history if OU rolls into Stillwater a one-loss team and if Tech beats UT this weekend in Lubbock, meaning a share of the Big 12 title would be on the line.

But harken way, way, way back in time. There was a game back in the black and white TV days when the players had no facemasks, wore high-top black football cleats, when QBs wore No. 57 and running backs played linebacker and fullbacks played noseguard.

Harken back to the day when there was not only a "possibility" of sharing a conference title. Harken back to the day when OSU was in the national semifinals. The day when a win would have put them effectively in the national championship game.

A day where there weren't 59 TV games (119 D-1A teams). Rather there was one TV game. A game big enough for Whoa Nellie to show up and put on that God-awful yellow ABC blazer.

It was way back on November 24, 1984. Pat Jones and his first Poke team traveled to Norman to tangle with Barry Switzer's Sooners.
Two versus three for all the chile-most of it anyway. No conference championship game to play...just one for the right to go to the Orange Bowl.

OU won that day, 21-14. Not only the biggest game but one of the best games. Aside for the massive upset in Norman in 1976, OSU had not...and did not after that...beat OU in approximately eons. But they darn near did that day.

I hope Tech upsets Texas, OSU beats Tech, OU gets to 10-1 and Bedlam can be what we all hope it could be. But there's a lot to be done by both teams before anyone should really be talking about the biggest game(s) in history.

OSU 99-2 over ISU and OU 49-24 over Nebraska.