Stormin in Norman
Fansided

Oklahoma football has survived but not thrived from championship controversy

By Chip Rouse

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - DECEMBER 28: Head coach Lincoln Riley of the Oklahoma Sooners and quarterback Joe Burrow #9 of the LSU Tigers embrace after LSU Tigers wins the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl 28-63 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 28, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - DECEMBER 28: Head coach Lincoln Riley of the Oklahoma Sooners and quarterback Joe Burrow #9 of the LSU Tigers embrace after LSU Tigers wins the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl 28-63 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 28, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /
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ATLANTA, GEORGIA – DECEMBER 28: Linebacker Kenneth Murray #9 of the Oklahoma Sooners reacts to a defensive play during the game against the LSU Tigers in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 28, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GEORGIA – DECEMBER 28: Linebacker Kenneth Murray #9 of the Oklahoma Sooners reacts to a defensive play during the game against the LSU Tigers in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 28, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

2019 College Football Playoff

Going into conference championship week, Oklahoma was sitting at No. 6 in the College Football Playoff rankings behind No. 4 Georgia, which still had a game with No. 1 LSU for the SEC Championship, and Utah, which was matched up against No. 13 Oregon.

The Sooners did not control their own destiny, and besides that, they had to beat Baylor a second time in the season in the Big 12 title game just to keep their Playoff hopes alive. Once again, Oklahoma needed some chaos to happen above them in the rankings — as well as some Sooner Magic against an angry Baylor bunch looking for sweet revenge from a gut-wrenching loss to Oklahoma a couple of weeks earlier.

For the third time in the previous five seasons, everything that needed to happen for the Sooners happened, almost as if it had been scripted that way. Utah lost ot Oregon, Georgia wasn’t able to keep pace with eventual national champion LSU and, of course, Oklahoma won an overtime thriller over Baylor to make it five straight Big 12 championships.

Once again Oklahoma survives all the controversy surrounding securing one of the coveted four tickets to the College Football Playoff and, yes, yet one more time, the Sooners earn the privilege seeing the No. 1 seeded team in the first round of the Playoff and suffer a humbling defeat and a quick exit from the championship.

Finding yourself on the winning side of any and all controversy when it comes to national title contention is one thing, but it only really matters if you are able to finish the job. And that’s something Oklahoma hasn’t been able to do in going on 20 years now.

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