Mussatto's Minutes: OU fares well with ESPN's 'College GameDay' at Red River Rivalry
ESPN’s "College GameDay" is headed to OU-Texas for the eighth time as the undefeated Sooners take on the undefeated Longhorns in the 119th edition of the Red River Rivalry.
There’s no better setting in college football. A half-crimson, half-burnt orange Cotton Bowl Stadium in the middle of Dallas’ Fair Park.
Texas leads the all-time series 63-50-5, but OU has a 4-3 edge when ESPN’s "College GameDay" is on hand.
2021: OU 55, Texas 48
2018: Texas 48, OU 45
2011: OU 55, Texas 17
2009: Texas 16, OU 13
2008: Texas 45, OU 35
2002: OU 35, Texas 24
2001: OU 14, Texas 3
ESPN’s "College GameDay" premiered before a Notre Dame-Florida State game in 1993. Since then, OU ranks fourth all-time in "GameDay" appearances (39) behind Ohio State (57), Alabama (55) and Florida (42).
OU is 26-13 in its "GameDay" games.
The Sooners made their first "GameDay" appearance on Sept. 30, 1995, when No. 4 Colorado came to Norman and beat No. 10 OU 38-17.
OU’s last "GameDay" appearance was at the Red River Rivalry in 2021. This will be Texas’ second "GameDay" appearance this season. Kirk Herbstreit and crew were in Tuscaloosa on Sept. 9 when Texas beat Alabama 34-24.
More: Mussatto: Brent Venables has rebuilt the OU football defense, but is it ready for Texas?
Kentucky’s winning streak against Florida
In Lexington, Kentucky, “The Streak” was infamous. A 31-game losing streak to the Florida Gators that lasted from 1987 to 2017.Since snapping the streak in 2018, beating Florida has become the norm for Mark Stoops and Kentucky. The Wildcats have won four of the last six games in the series, including a 33-14 beatdown on Saturday in Lexington.
Kentucky now has a three-game winning streak over Florida. If the Wildcats win next year in Gainesville, they’ll tie their longest-ever winning streak in the series — a four-game streak from 1948-1951.
Mark Stoops, the youngest brother of former OU head coach Bob Stoops and on the job since 2013, is the second-longest tenured coach in the SEC behind Alabama’s Nick Saban. Former Sooners defensive coordinator Mike Stoops is in his second season as Kentucky’s inside linebackers coach.
At 71-59, Mark Stoops is the winningest coach in Kentucky football history. Second on that list is Bear Bryant, who won 60 games at Kentucky from 1946-53.
More: OU football 'scarred up' from last year's loss to Texas, 'excited' for Red River Rivalry
OSU loses in bye week
OK, not really, but the Cowboys’ loss to South Alabama is looking worse and worse.
Since stomping OSU 33-7 in Stillwater, South Alabama has lost back-to-back games to Central Michigan and James Madison. In South Alabama’s defense, James Madison is undefeated (5-0) and the game was at JMU.
Still, OSU is in unfortunate company with Southeastern Louisiana as the two teams South Alabama has beaten.
Meanwhile, OSU’s best win — at Arizona State — isn’t much to be proud of. The Sun Devils lost at Cal on Saturday to move to 1-4.
OSU hosts Kansas State at 6:30 p.m. Friday.
More: 'We wanted it to be Oklahoma State': How Cowboys' graffiti mural became a recruiting boon
Pick Six
Each week, I make a list of six college football somethings — teams, players, coaches, etc. — I want to highlight.
In this week’s Pick Six, we take a look at six basketball schools winning on the gridiron.
1. Kentucky (5-0, 2-0 SEC): Undefeated Kentucky is at No. 1 Georgia on Saturday. The Wildcats will be alone atop the SEC East if they pull the upset.
2. North Carolina (4-0, 1-0 ACC): The Tar Heels host another basketball school in 4-1 Syracuse on Saturday. If UNC wins, it’ll be a matchup of unbeatens when Miami travels to Chapel Hill next week.
3. Maryland (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten): Maryland won at Michigan State 31-9 and clobbered Indiana 44-17. That’s a soft open to the Big Ten schedule, but the Terrapins have been impressive. Things are about to get harder. Maryland plays at Ohio State on Saturday.
4. Louisville (5-0, 3-0 ACC): Some serious football is being played in the Bluegrass State. Can the Cardinals keep it going at home against Notre Dame on Saturday? Regardless, Louisville native and former Cardinals quarterback Jeff Brohm is doing big things in Year 1.
5. Missouri (5-0, 1-0 SEC): Is Missouri still a basketball school? The Tigers haven’t made a Sweet 16 since 2009. Anyway, coach Eli Drinkwitz’s seat has cooled off thanks to the hot start. Missouri, 5-0 for the first time since 2012, hosts LSU on Saturday.
6. Duke (4-1, 1-0 ACC): Duke lost a 21-14 heartbreaker to Notre Dame, but the Blue Devils are legit. They’re off this weekend before hosting North Carolina State next week.
More: How hectic world of college coaching brought David Glidden back to Oklahoma State football
Big 12 Game of the Week
OU at Texas (Dallas), 11 a.m. Saturday, ABC: It’s a weak slate of Big 12 games, but who cares? All eyes will be on OU-Texas.
Honorable mention goes to UCF at Kansas (3 p.m., FOX). Will quarterback Jalon Daniels play for the Jayhawks after missing the Texas game? And how the heck will UCF respond after blowing a 35-7 lead in a 36-35 loss to Baylor? Yes, that really happened. It was the biggest comeback in Baylor history.
National Game of the Week
Kentucky at Georgia, 6 p.m. Saturday, ESPN: It’s the best game of the non OU-Texas variety. Georgia feels due for a dominant win after skating by South Carolina and Auburn, but maybe the Bulldogs aren’t as good as advertised. Georgia is riding a 13-game winning streak against Kentucky.
Mid-major mention — Fresno State at Wyoming: Fresno State is undefeated with Power Five wins at Purdue and Arizona State. Wyoming beat Texas Tech and its only loss was a competitive one at Texas. This is going to be a good one in the Mountain West.
OKC Thunder thoughts
Stay tuned, because Monday is media day. I and the rest of The Oklahoman crew will have plenty of coverage.
We’re also a week away from the Thunder’s first preseason game, when Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs come to town. Buckle up.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU vs Texas: Sooners own edge with ESPN's GameDay at Red River Rivalry
