Every time the Texas Longhorns and the Oklahoma Sooners meet in the Cotton Bowl, it means a ton, but this year seems to attach extra meaning to it.
The Longhorns have been on a redemption tour over the last three weeks, beating ranked opponents in dominant fashion, followed by snapping a 16-year road losing streak to Kansas State. Oklahoma has continued its regular season dominance from a year ago, but the caliber of their opponents in non-conference leave something to be desired.
Add to that the fact that this is the first matchup since 2012 where both teams come in ranked, and the presence of ESPN’s College GameDay for the first time since 2011, this matchup is starting to feel marquee again for the entire country, not just for fans of those two schools.