Oklahoma football: Five memorable Bedlam games of the 2000s
By Chip Rouse
Oklahoma football ranks fifth nationally in all-time wins. The 90 wins the Sooners have against Oklahoma State represents the biggest single contributor to that all-time total.
Oklahoma and Oklahoma State have met 116 times in a football game, the first of which took place in 1904, when the two schools competed against each other in a city park in Guthrie, Oklahoma. Two years later, the two teams faced each other again in Stillwater. For most of the series history, the games have been played on the campus sites, except for the seven times the battle for in-state bragging rights took place in Oklahoma City.
Despite the lopsided nature of the series, with the Sooners winning 80 percent of the time, there have been a number of memorable games in the lengthy history of Bedlam. We’ve identified five noteworthy contests that have occurred over the past 22 seasons.
November 24, 2001 — Oklahoma State 16, Oklahoma 13
The 96th game in the Bedlam rivalry series took place in Norman, Oklahoma, between the Sooners, ranked No. 4 in the Associated Press poll and No. 3 in the BCS standings, and an Oklahoma State team that had struggled all season and was coming into the game over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend with a 3-7 overall record and just 1-6 in the Big 12.
Oklahoma came into the game with a 10-1 record, the one loss coming at Nebraska, and a 19-game home winning streak.
With 75,000 fans looking on at Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, the two teams played to a scoreless tie after one quarter. OU opened the scoring early in the second quarter on an eight-yard touchdown run by Quentin Griffin to take a 7-0 lead. The two teams traded field goals and Oklahoma State added another just before the half as the Sooners took a 10-6 lead to the locker room at the intermission.
With the score still 10-6 heading to the fourth quarter, quarterback Nate Hybl led and Oklahoma drive that stalled out on the Oklahoma State four-yard line, forcing the Sooners to settle for a Tim Duncan 22-yard field goal that stretched the OU lead to 13-6. A little more than a minute later, OSU’s Luke Phillips made good on a field goal from 52 yards out to cut the Sooners’ advantage back to four points at 13-9.
Josh Fields, who replaced Oklahoma State starting quarterback Aso Pogi in the opening quarter, directed the Cowboys on a late fourth-quarter drive. On the sixth-play of the drive, from the Sooner 14-yard line, and with time winding down on the game clock, Fields lofted a pass to Rashaun Woods in the left corner of the end zone. Woods was able to outleap OU cornerback Derrick Strait to pull in the catch, which proved to be the winning play in the game. Phillips added the extra point, capping off the 16-13 upset and eliminating Oklahoma from a potential spot in a the Big 12 Championship as well as the chance to appear in a second straight BCS Championship game.
Ironically, it was Strait who deflected a similar pass attempt late in the Bedlam game the year before preserving OU’s 12-7 win and the Sooners’ perfect season in the 2000 national championship run.
November 1, 2003 — Oklahoma 52, Oklahoma State 9
The 2003 Bedlam game was memorable more for all the chatter and comments coming from the Oklahoma State side of the rivalry, particularly those from then-Oklahoma State head coach Les Miles, and the response by the No. 1-ranked Sooners.
After winning two consecutive Bedlam games (2001 and 2002) Miles was apparently feeling too good about himself and had some not too subtle things to say about OSU’s opponent that week:
"“They’re the best team in college football, or so we’re told,” Miles said."
That same week, leading up to the game, he offered these choice words:
"“On Saturday, two teams are going to play. One is maybe the best team in college football and the other one is one darn good football team, and we’re going to figure out which one is which.”"
Needless to say, those comments got the attention of Bob Stoops and the Oklahoma football team.
Well, we did find out which one was which as the Sooners laid a 52-9 beatdown on the 14th-ranked Cowboys.
The Sooners jumped out to a 10-0 advantage in the first quarter, stretched it to 24-3 by halftime and kept on rolling downhill after that, outscoring the overmatched Cowboys 28-6 in the second half.
OU quarterback Jason White threw for three touchdowns and ran for another, and the Sooner defense was dominant the entire game.
It became crystal clear which team was which after this game.
After the game, OU coach Bob Stoops said, “All week, the talk was about their offense. You would have never thought we played a little defense around here.”
November 28, 2009 — Oklahoma 27, Oklahoma State 0
Like the 2022 season, the Bedlam rivalry game in 2009 featured an unranked Oklahoma team with a 6-5 record against an Oklahoma State squad sitting in the No. 12 spot nationally. The game was played in Norman, and that proved to be a big advantage for the team in the home crimson jerseys.
After a scoreless first quarter, Patrick O’Hara kicked a 24-yard second-quarter field goal followed shortly thereafter by a 13-yard touchdown run by DeMarco Murray (the current OU running backs coach) to give Oklahoma a 10-0 halftime advantage.
The same pair teamed up for 10 more Oklahoma points in the third quarter, and the Sooners closed out the scoring and the improbable shutout over a very good Oklahoma State offense with a 67-yard punt return by Ryan Broyles in the fourth quarter. Signed…sealed…and delivered: a 27-0 statement win by OU over its in-state rival.
Oklahoma produced 367 yards of total offense while holding the potent Oklahoma State offense directed by quarterback Zac Robinson, to just 109 yards total and only six first downs.
“The only good thing about this is its counts as one loss,” Cowboys’ head coach Mike Gundy told reporters in his postgame comments, “and I told the team that.”
November 27, 2010 — Oklahoma 47, Oklahoma State 41
As they have so often historically, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State met in the final game of the regular season in 2008. The game was played in Stillwater with 9th-ranked Cowboys hosting the 13th-ranked Sooners. OU came into the contest with a 9-2 record, and Oklahoma State was a notch better at 10-1.
A win would give Oklahoma State the outright title in the South Division of the Big 12. An OU win would result in a potential three-way tie at the top of the South Division between the two Oklahoma schools and Texas A&M.
Oklahoma took a 7-3 lead at the end of the first quarter. Landry Jones threw two touchdown passes in the second quarter and also threw an interception that was returned 52 yards for a touchdown. The Sooners added a field goal, and Oklahoma State scored twice in the second stanza.
OU went to the locker room with a 24-17 margin at the half.
The only scoring in the third quarter was a 20-yard touchdown pass by Brandon Weeden of Oklahoma State. The two teams entered the fourth quarter all tied at 24 apiece.
The final quarter turned into a track meet and an offensive explosion on both sides.
Jimmy Stevens of Oklahoma started things off 35 seconds into the fourth quarter with a 24-yard field goal, capping off a 17-play, 74-yard Sooner scoring drive, to put OU up 27-24. Stevens added another 31-yarder seven minutes later to extend the Sooner lead to 30-24. And that’s when the real fireworks began.
December 6, 2014 — Oklahoma State 38, Oklahoma 35
The 2014 Oklahoma-Oklahoma State game will always be remembered for the infamous Bob Stoops re-kick decision and as a coming-out party for one Tyreek Hill.
Behind the one-two running punch of Samaje Perine and Keith Ford, who combined for 242 of OU’s 242 rushing yards on the day, the Sooners led Oklahoma State 35-21 with just under eight minutes remaining in the game.
Oklahoma State scored on a 43-yard touchdown pass by Mason Rudolph to make it a one-score game, 35-28, with 4:51 to go in regulation.
Faced with a 4th and 14 at the Oklahoma State 45-yard line, the Sooners elected to punt The Cowboys’ called for a fair catch at their own 16-yard line, but there was a flag thrown on the play for roughing the Oklahoma punter. Sooner coach Bob Stoops accepted the penalty and elected to punt the ball a second time, thinking the Sooners coverage unit could pin the Cowboys back deeper in their own territory.
The re-kick was fielded by Tyreek Hill at the eight-yard line. Hill, who possessed lightning-quick track speed, immediately cut toward the left sideline, beat two defenders, picked up a block at the 45, and was gone from there, outracing everybody for a 92-yard touchdown that tied the game with 45 seconds remaining to send the contest into overtime.
Oklahoma had first possession in overtime, and Michael Hunnicutt missed on a 44-yard field-goal try. That opened the door for the Cowboys’ Ben Grogan, who did not miss on a 21-yard field-goal attempt in overtime, which completed the improbable comeback win for Oklahoma State.
It was only Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy’s second win in 10 tries against the rival Sooners.
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