Texas vs. Oklahoma: TV Info, Spread, Injury Updates, Game Time and More
The 109th Red River Showdown between Texas and No. 11 Oklahoma remains one of the highlights of the 2014 season in general.
Texas is 2-3 and is limping into the contest after a 28-7 loss to Baylor. Oklahoma is doing much of the same after its College Football Playoff hopes were put in serious jeopardy after a four-point loss to then-ranked No. 25 TCU.
But as Kevin McGuire of CollegeFootballTalk muses, the historic rivalry is still an important part of each season:
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Oklahoma heads to the Cotton Bowl angry, but it can in no way afford to take the bumbling Longhorns lightly. These encounters tend to bring out the absolute best from both sides, and this year will be more of the same no matter the paths traveled to Dallas.
Trumping History Recent and Beyond
Oklahoma has been down this path before.
After beating up on five teams, the Sooners went to Dallas last year as the heavy favorite, only to get punched in the mouth and never recover on the way to a 36-20 loss at the hands of the Longhorns.
This year, the course has been anything but encouraging for Bob Stoops, who has never allowed the Sooners to lose back-to-back conference games.
Stoops' defense has been an absolute mess, allowing 33 points in each of its last two games. In a win against West Virginia, the defense yielded 376 passing yards and two scores along with 137 yards and two more scores on the ground.
Last week in that loss to TCU, it was much of the same story, as the Horned Frogs found 318 yards and two scores through the air and 151 yards and two more scores on the ground.
Stoops himself says the issues reside at a basic fundamental level, as captured by The Associated Press (via ESPN.com):
"I believe a lot of it is easily correctable, and some of it's just discipline and fundamentals. I'm not going to detail it because then, you're calling out these young guys, and that's not the right thing to do. In the end, some of it is very fundamental in what we do, and for whatever reason, even guys with a lot of experience didn't do it very well, so we've got to do a better job coaching them and they've got to do a better job being mindful of their disciplines and what we're doing.
"
Texas struggles offensively, sure, but the Sooners are playing at a woeful level. The offense can score, as it averages 42.4 points per game to rank in the top 15. But a bad performance from the defense can have a ripple effect as seen last week when Trevor Knight threw for 309 yards with one touchdown to two interceptions.
Undisciplined football in this rivalry cost the Sooners last year. A repeat performance, even though the Longhorns are worse off, would produce a similar end result.
Hoping for a Breakout
"Hope" is the best way to describe things for Charlie Strong and the Longhorns.
Anwar Richardson of Rivals.com puts things into perspective:
Strong has to hope that his offense, led by sophomore quarterback Tyrone Swoopes, can score better than the 13.2 points per game it has averaged in its last four showings.
Swoopes has been a liability this season, throwing for just 734 yards and five touchdowns to three interceptions while completing 59.4 percent of his passes. The staff seemed to unearth some value with his legs last week, though, as he rushed for 40 yards, although he threw no scores and two picks.
One thing the Longhorns can do on offense is rush the ball well thanks to the efforts of Johnathan Gray, who averages 4.9 yards per carry and has 301 yards and a score. It helps that the unit also has a star receiver in senior John Harris (370 yards, four touchdowns), who seems to be building a stronger rapport with Swoopes by the week.
Strong has to hope that, through studying how West Virginia and TCU hurt Oklahoma recently, he can uncover ways to get the offense going after brief flashes from the above players. The Sooners defense is ripe for exploiting again, but Texas has to hope for it all to come together at once.
When: Saturday, October 11, Noon ET
Where: Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas
Television: ABC
Betting Lines (via Odds Shark):
- Over/Under: 47
- Spread: Oklahoma (-14.5)
Team Injury Reports
| David Ash | QB | 09/07/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | concussion |
| Joe Bergeron | RB | 07/25/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| Chevoski Collins | S | 07/25/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| Dominic Espinosa | C | 09/03/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | ankle |
| Kennedy Estelle | T | 09/23/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| Rami Hammad | G | 08/18/2014 | has decided to transfer | Out | personal |
| Desmond Harrison | T | 09/08/2014 | is suspended indefinitely | Suspended | disciplinary |
| Erik Huhn | S | 09/04/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | knee |
| Desmond Jackson | DT | 10/05/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Oklahoma | Questionable | ankle |
| Daje Johnson | WR | 10/06/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Oklahoma | Questionable | hamstring |
| Montrel Meander | WR | 08/04/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| Miles Onyegbule | TE | 08/14/2014 | will miss the entire season | Out | knee |
| Jalen Overstreet | RB | 07/25/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| Kendall Sanders | WR | 08/04/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| Kendall Thompson | LB | 07/25/2014 | will miss the entire season | Out | concussion/disciplinary |
| Matt Dimon | DE | 10/05/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Texas | Questionable | elbow |
| Keith Ford | RB | 10/08/2014 | will miss Saturday's game against Texas | Out | fibula |
| Dorial Green-Beckham | WR | 08/25/2014 | will miss the entire season | Out | eligibility |
| Baker Mayfield | QB | 08/31/2014 | is expected to miss the entire season | Out | eligibility |
| Joe Mixon | RB | 08/02/2014 | will miss the entire season | Suspended | disciplinary |
| Quincy Russell | DT | 09/08/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| Frank Shannon | LB | 08/21/2014 | will miss the entire season | Suspended | disciplinary |
| Charles Walker | DE | 10/05/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Texas | Questionable | knee |
Injury reports per Sports Network, via USA Today.
Prediction
It is easy to overlook a Texas defense that ranks just outside of the top 20 by only allowing 19.2 points per game, but the offensive issues have overshadowed the unit's efforts on a weekly basis.
Those offensive obstacles are not going to evaporate all at once in a historic rivalry. The last thing Strong and Co. needed this week was an angry Sooners team coming off a loss.
Were this, say, a year from now, the game would be much more competitive. But Strong is operating with a number of pieces that were not his to begin with, and while he has coached in plenty of big games, the Red River Showdown has a way of overwhelming even the most veteran of names.
Not Stoops, whose team has its back against the wall in terms of the CFP. The offense will not be pretty for his side, either, but Stoops' team is more talented top to bottom and will emerge the winner this year.
Prediction: Oklahoma 28, Texas 17
Statistics and info courtesy of ESPN unless otherwise specified.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
