Oklahoma upsets Texas, and the Red River Rivalry delivered chaos again. Unranked Oklahoma knocked off No. 1 Texas 27-24 at the Cotton Bowl on Saturday, winning on a Tate Sandell field goal as time expired.
Yes, these were the same Sooners who entered 2-2 and rated as the weakest offense of the Brent Venables era. Meanwhile, Texas was a 7.5-point favorite. Still, nobody told the Cotton Bowl.
How Oklahoma upsets Texas: two late interceptions flipped the game
For three quarters, this looked like the script everyone expected. Texas led 7-0 after Arch Manning hit Cam Coleman for a 41-yard touchdown, according to CBS Sports’ live coverage. A Manning strike to Ryan Wingo from 34 yards out then helped build a 17-7 halftime lead. (For the full pregame setup, see our Red River Rivalry preview.)
Oklahoma’s first-half offense was a ghost story. The Sooners had just 69 total yards and one rushing yard at the break, while Texas had 194, per News 9’s game tracker. Their only touchdown came on special teams, when Danny Okoye blocked a punt and Dakota Fields recovered it in the end zone.
Then the fourth quarter happened. Jermaine Bishop’s touchdown tied it at 24, as On3 reported. Texas then settled for a field goal try on 4th-and-2 from the Oklahoma 35. Gianni Spetic missed it wide right, and the Sooners suddenly had a pulse.
That’s the thing about a missed kick in a tied game. It hands the other sideline a pulse.
The Guillory pick and the final drive
Manning had been the Longhorns’ safety net all season. Instead, two fourth-quarter interceptions became the story of the game. The second came from Courtland Guillory with 19 seconds left and the game tied 24-24, which gave Oklahoma the ball at its own 39.
John Mateer wasted no time. He found Isaiah Sategna III for gains of 13 and 20 yards, which pushed the Sooners inside the Texas 30. Sandell then did the rest as the clock hit zero, and Oklahoma beats Texas on a kick that will live in Cotton Bowl lore.
The Longhorns had 19 seconds and a tied game. In the end, they had a loss.
Why this Red River upset matters
Texas arrived at 4-0 overall and 1-0 in the SEC, off a bye week, chasing a third straight win in the series after its 23-6 victory last year. Now it sits at 4-1, 1-1 in the league, per the screenshot’s postgame graphic. Oklahoma moves to 3-2.
The all-time series entered Saturday at 65-51-5 in Texas’ favor. Oklahoma trimmed that margin, and it did so with an offense that had averaged just 3.0 points per game in three losses to Texas under Venables. As a result, our look at what was at stake for Sarkisian’s Longhorns now reads very differently.
Here’s the thing for the rest of the SEC: a No. 1 ranking is a target, not a shield. Texas will almost certainly slide when the next poll drops, so check our SEC scores and rankings roundup for how the league shakes out. Still, the bigger question is whether two late turnovers from Manning are a blip or a pattern defenses can study.
Oklahoma upsets Texas only once per Saturday, and the Sooners made theirs count. The Longhorns have a long season left to answer it. The Sooners, for one Saturday at least, don’t have to.
