After 28 years, the Oklahoma Sooners and Texas Longhorns are leaving the Big 12 and the Red River Rivalry is heading to the SEC next fall. That means a big change to Oklahoma’s conference slate, with the likes of Tennessee, Alabama, LSU, and eventually Georgia to deal with instead of Texas, Oklahoma State, and then a rotating cast of lesser-than programs.
So, if the Sooners and their fans could choose to kick out a few schools from the now 16-team conference, these would likely be the first five on the list.
The Oklahoma-Missouri rivalry has been a one-sided affair. In 96 matchups, Oklahoma is 67-24-5 with a win in the most recent showdown back in 2011. The two will play regularly now in the SEC, after sharing a conference for so many years in the Big 8 and then the Big 12.
The Sooners are expected to beat the Tigers, but Eli Drinkwitz has quietly built a very strong program at Mizzou and the stakes are much higher for his team with the rekindling of the rivalry. Playing a team every year that was once a familiar rival that can go into almost every game with little-to-nothing to lose as a historical underdog, isn’t a good situation for OU.
Missouri belongs in the Big 12 and could be a contender in that watered-down conference now, so a swap would make sense.