Nebraska vs. Oklahoma: Rivalry Renewed and Revisited

It only seems fitting that the Nebraska Cornhuskers last game in the Big 12 comes against the Oklahoma Sooners.

What was arguably one of the best rivalries in college athletics fizzled in 1996 due to the foolishness of the newly formed Big 12, but that can't take away the shared history of the two teams.

These two teams first played in 1912, and for the foreseeable future, December 4, 2010 may be the last time they play each other for years.

Oklahoma holds the all-time lead in the series by the narrow margin of 44-38-3.

Here are some of the best memories from the series. 

November 23, 1912: Oklahoma @ Nebraska

Nebraska and Oklahoma meet for the first time.

Nebraska walks away with a 13-9 victory.

October 13, 1923: Oklahoma @ Nebraska

Nebraska defeats Oklahoma 24-0 in the first ever game at Memorial Stadium.

1943-1958

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DALLAS - OCTOBER 12: Offensive lineman Vince Carter #50 and defensive back Brandon Everage #7 of the Oklahoma Sooners celebrate victory by waving the school banner after winning the Red River Shootout against the Texas Longhorns at the Cotton Bowl on Oct

Up until 1943 the Huskers were dominating their series with the Sooners, 16-3-3.

Then Oklahoma won 16 games in a row in the rivalry. 

In three of those games Oklahoma was the No. 1-ranked team in the nation; Nebraska was only ranked once in any of the 16 matchups. 

Oklahoma won three national championships during this span.

October 31, 1959: No. 19 Oklahoma @ Nebraska

After 16 consecutive losses, the Huskers went into the 1959 season looking to shock the Sooners.

And that they did. 

Oklahoma had a 74-game conference winning streak and was climbing the national ranks once again.

The Huskers sent the Sooners back to Oklahoma with a 25-21 defeat.

November 24, 1964: Nebraska @Oklahoma

The Huskers went to Norman, Okla. ranked fourth in the nation on Thanksgiving Day in 1964.

A victory at Oklahoma would give the Huskers a shot at the national championship, but fate had other ideas.

Oklahoma dealt Nebraska a 17-7 loss, their only of the year. It would be the first time of five that Oklahoma would be responsible for the Huskers only loss of a season.

November 21, 1966: Nebraska @ Oklahoma

Talk about deja vu.

The Huskers were undefeated and ranked No. 4 in the nation when they traveled to Norman, Okla. on Thanksgiving Day in 1966.

For the second time in three seasons Oklahoma was Nebraska's only loss of the year, and Oklahoma had once again eliminated them from national championship contention, this time by one point. 

November 21, 1970: Oklahoma @ Nebraska

Led by coach Bob Devaney and halfback Johnny Rodgers, the Cornhuskers narrowly defeat the Sooners by a touchdown, 28-21, en route to their first national championship. 

November 25, 1971: Nebraska @ Oklahoma

"The game of the century."

Does that sum it up for you?

The No. 1 team, Nebraska, was facing the No. 2 team, Oklahoma, on Thanksgiving Day. 

In a back-and-forth, hard-fought game, the Huskers would give the Sooners their only loss, 35-31, en route to their second-consecutive national championship.

1972-1977: Sooners Domination

For six straight Thanksgivings the Huskers and Sooners met as ranked teams.

Each time the Sooners won.

The Sooners would win back-to-back championships in 1974 and 1975. In the 1975 season, the Sooners gave the Huskers their only loss of the year.

November 11, 1978 and January 1, 1979: Oklahoma @ Nebraska

In the 1978 season the Huskers and Oklahoma faced off twice. 

Once in November, and once in the Orange Bowl.

In the November game, the Huskers edged the Sooners by a field goal to give them their only loss of the season.

And if you're good with reasoning, you'll realize that the Sooners recovered to beat the Huskers in the Orange Bowl just two months later.

1979-1983: Back and Forth

Despite Nebraska being predominately ranked higher than Oklahoma for most of these games, they still managed to practically split them. 

Neither team managed a national championship during this span, partly because they were too busy beating up on each other to allow it to happen.

1984-1987: Sooner Dominance Again

From 1984 to 1987 the Huskers didn't win a single game in this series.

Their rank in those games? No. 1, No. 1, No. 2 and No. 5. 

Despite consistently defeating Nebraska, arguably their most difficult competition, Oklahoma only managed a single national championship, in 1985, during this span. 

Once again in 1987 the Sooners accounted for the Huskers' only loss of the season.

1991-1997: All About The Huskers

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2 Jan 1998: Head coach Tom Osbourne of the Nebraska Cornhuskers celebrates after the Orange Bowl against the Tennessee Volunteers at Pro Player Stadium in Miami, Florida. Nebraska won the game, 42-17.

In 1991 the game was competitive, with the Huskers winning by a narrow five-point margin.

It would be their closest game in the next seven years.

As the Huskers hit their stride, they continually decimated the Sooners in their annual games. 

During this time the Sooners fell from national relevance while the Huskers became the team of the '90s.

In 1994, 1995 and 1997 the Huskers would dominate the Sooners on their way to winning national championships. 

In 1997 the Huskers' 62-point victory was the largest the series had ever seen.

1996: The Big 12

In 1996 the Big 12 began its first season of play.

Much to the chagrin of both Husker and Sooner fans, the teams were put in separate conferences and would not play yearly.

It was the beginning of the end.

2001 and 2002: The Last Big Games

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3 Jan 2002: Quarterback Eric Crouch #7 of Nebraska gets up off the ground after being knocked down by the Miami defense during the Rose Bowl National Championship game at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. Miami won the game 37-14, winning the BCS

In 2000 the Huskers were the No. 1 team in the nation when they took on No. 3 Oklahoma. 

Oklahoma would handily beat the Huskers 31-17 and end any hope of a national championship for them. 

That same year Oklahoma would go on to win their seventh and most recent national championship.

2001 was a different story for the Huskers. 

The Huskers were ranked No. 3, the Sooners No. 2, and the Huskers had the best player in the nation that year in quarterback Eric Crouch. It was Crouch who would score a huge touchdown on a trick play to put the Huskers up for good.

They would win 20-10 in the last big game these two teams played.

December 2, 2006: Big 12 Championship

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LOS ANGELES - SEPTEMBER 16: Quarterback Zac Taylor #13 of the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers passes the ball against the University of Southern California Trojans during the game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on September 16, 2006 in Los Angel

Ten years after the the Big 12's first game, and with the luster of their glory years gone, Oklahoma and Nebraska faced off for the first time in a Big 12 Championship.

The No. 8 Sooners would easily handle the No. 19 Huskers, taking a 21-7 victory.

December 4, 2010: The Last Chapter

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COLUMBIA, MO - OCTOBER 23: Landry Jones #12 of the Oklahoma Sooners in action against the Missouri Tigers at Faurot Field/Memorial Stadium on October 23, 2010 in Columbia, Missouri. The Tigers beat the Sooners 36-27. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Imag

While the once-heated rivalry has undoubtedly cooled down, try telling that to the Husker and Sooner fans who will find themselves in Arlington, Texas, on Saturday.

All the old games will feel like yesterday, the memories rushing back.

For the sake of the rivalry, let's hope it's one for the ages.